Shopify

[Shawn Gossman1]

Have any of you used Shopify for an eCommerce solution?

What did you think about it?

 

[Nomad1]

I have helped my clients build shopify stores, and I have also managed Shopify stores for my clients. Therefore, I have experience with shopify, however, I have never used for myself except for the trial version. I think woocommerce is a better solution.

 

[Shawn Gossman1]

I've used it myself for blogging. Not my own blog but another site.

I'm not a fan of it for that.

For eCommerce, I use Woo Commerce.

 

[Dilip]

WooCommerce is the best thing that happened to WordPress in years. It is so nice and easy, useful as well.

Branded solutions have their own charm. But they always have some catch.

 

[Naiwen]

I have never used it myself and have bought stuff from a shoplift store personally. And it's quite convenient and easy to use.

 

[Shawn Gossman1]

I've heard others call Shopify the next Amazon, what do you all think?

 

[Kris P. Bacon]

I've heard others call Shopify the next Amazon, what do you all think?

I’d say the opposite. Amazon is one big company, Shopify contains a vast collection of individuals. A bit like saying American Mom and Pop shops can replace giant retail superstores. Independent ecommerce sites are probably viable in economic upturns, but in a recession people are going to go for cheap(er) and that’s when the big players win. I’m already assuming independent ecommerce sites are beginning to suffer.

 

[Shawn Gossman1]

Interesting article on this by the Fool.

https://www.fool.com/investing/2021/07/17/will-shopify-be-worth-more-than-amazon-by-2030/
I find it interesting mainly because the internet opens up opportunities.

Here in America, Walmart was the prominent place to shop; now, it's Amazon. Walmart is trying to compete, but Amazon got ahead of them.

And as a personal note, I still prefer Mom and Pop shops over the big chains. Better experience, usually better product.

 

[Kris P. Bacon]

I think the Internet did open up opportunities, but there are only so many opportunities to go round. Eventually, it became an avalanche in an overcrowded marketplace. It was part of the hype at one time that if someone was unemployed or low wage, opening an Internet business was a guarantee of a good income. Shopify, Wix, ecommerce … All sprang up based on this myth. I also think there’s more than one person sitting reading this and thinking, “it hasn’t worked for me.”

If I’m looking for a product and I see one on Amazon (a company I despise for its greed and work ethics) or a superstore, is a small Internet business going to get me that product at a cheaper price after they’ve factored in their profit margin and one of us has paid for postage and packing? I doubt it. The small independent websites are the Mom and Pop shops of the Internet and they’re dwarfed by the Internet superstores of companies like EBay and Amazon.

I think the majority of people expect too much from the Internet. It’s a competitive dog-eat-dog place by nature where equal opportunities don’t produce equal outcomes, as they say.

The days of “work from home and make a six figure income” are fading, except from those commerce sites still trying to continue to sell the dream. In the US 2022, J.C. Penney, Toys R Us and Sears have gone bankrupt. In October, insolvencies in the UK rose by 38% compared to last year. What chance does the small one man band Internet commerce site stand?

I’m not saying a small sales website is a bad idea, but rather don’t build up your hopes or give up your day job. It’s a lottery in which most will fail.