Introduction
If you're looking for a way to build an ecommerce website, Shopify's platform might be the best choice for your business. Shopify has been around since 2004 and is one of the most popular platforms for online stores in Canada. With over 1 million active customers worldwide, it can help your company sell more products and grow faster than any other platform out there.
The benefit of Shopify being an ecommerce platform is that it's made specifically for ecommerce.
There are a few reasons why Shopify is so great. First, it's a hosted ecommerce platform—not only that, but it also has a user-friendly interface and an easy setup process. You can start selling right away with no costs involved. As a hosted service, you don't have to worry about hosting your own website or maintaining its upkeep on your own time (which can become costly).
In addition to this convenience factor, there's also the fact that Shopify offers many features that other platforms don't have:
- The ability to design custom themes from scratch or use pre-made ones from their store
- Customization options like shipping rates, payment gateways and more
- Multiple payment gateways (including Square)
WordPress is open-source software, which means that anyone can modify its core code.
As a result, WordPress is a very popular content management system (CMS) that has been around for years. It's free, open-source and easy to customize. In fact, more than 60 million websites use WordPress!
WordPress' popularity comes from its flexibility: The core code can be modified by coders who have access to the source code or can hire someone who does (if you don't want to do it yourself). You might think this means there are lots of bugs in your website—but actually that's not true at all! Most of those bugs come from using outdated versions of plugins or themes that no longer work with current versions of WordPress or from installing incompatible extensions onto them (which cause problems).
While with Shopify, you get 24/7 access to customer service via phone, email and live chat.
While with Shopify, you get 24/7 access to customer service via phone, email and live chat.
Customer service is available in multiple languages so that your customers can communicate with you easily. Customer service agents are knowledgeable and helpful when they help solve any problems or questions you might have.
WordPress has more flexibility when it comes to the type of website you can build.
WordPress has more flexibility when it comes to the type of website you can build. You have more freedom to customize your site, and you can create a blog, a portfolio or an ecommerce site. Themes are another great feature in WordPress as they allow you to change the appearance of your site with just one click.
You can grow your business without any developer experience on Shopify, with their many apps and extensions available.
Shopify has a dedicated ecommerce platform that you can use to create your site. This means you don't have to worry about learning how to code, and it allows you to easily add new features through extensions.
WordPress is also available as an ecommerce platform, but it comes with some limitations compared to Shopify:
- You will need developers (or have them) if you want advanced functionality like web payments or affiliate marketing tools.
- The WordPress core doesn't have any plugins or extensions available for it, so if there's something specific that needs modifying on your website then this may not be possible with WordPress alone.
Due to all the customization options available in WordPress.org, you will need some development knowledge to use it (or to hire a developer).
Due to all the customization options available in WordPress.org, you will need some development knowledge to use it (or to hire a developer).
WordPress is easy to use and can be set up by anyone with basic HTML and CSS skills. However, if you want to add features like e-commerce or social media integration, then you'll definitely need some web design skills as well.
Hosting is included with Shopify; where with WordPress you will have to find your own host provider.
You can host your WordPress site with Shopify or use a different service provider. On the Shopify platform, you'll have access to hosting and everything else that comes with it—including SEO tools, ecommerce capabilities and more.
WordPress on the other hand needs its own host provider if you want it to be truly beginner-friendly. Some of these dedicated hosts offer free trials so you can test drive their services before committing to them for good (but don't let this fool you into thinking that they're cheap). The best option is always going to depend on what kind of budget you have available for hosting as well as how much control over your site's appearance/functionality/etc., but here are some options:
- Shared servers - These are basically just shared computers among many people who use them for different things like gaming or streaming video games live through Twitch channels run by gamers themselves! They tend not be ideal because each person would need their own computer in order for anything like this work properly but they're still useful sometimes when resources aren't available elsewhere."
If you're looking for a dedicated ecommerce solution that saves you time and hassle, then Shopify could be just what your online business needs.
If you're looking for a dedicated ecommerce solution that saves you time and hassle, then Shopify could be just what your online business needs. Shopify is a hosted solution—you don't have to set up any servers or software on your own. It's easy to use, with a dedicated team of support staff available 24/7 via phone, email and live chat. The platform also has many apps and extensions available which make managing your store even easier than it already is.
Shopify has been around since 2006 but has seen immense growth over the years as more people started using it to build their businesses online.
If the idea of having almost unlimited freedom and control over the look and functionality of your site appeals to you, then WordPress could be a better choice for your company.
If the idea of having almost unlimited freedom and control over the look and functionality of your site appeals to you, then WordPress could be a better choice for your company.
WordPress gives you more flexibility than Shopify. You can use plugins to add functionality (like social media buttons), customize the look and feel of your site through themes, hire developers to customize it for you if needed—and these are just some examples!
It depends on what your priority is in building an ecommerce website
It depends on what your priority is in building an ecommerce website.
If you're a beginner, Shopify is probably the best option for you. It's simple and easy to use, which means less time spent learning how to code and more time getting your store up and running! However, if building something custom or complex isn't something that interests you (or if you have a lot of experience), WordPress may be better suited for your needs.
Conclusion
This article has given you an overview of the two most popular ecommerce platforms, Shopify and WordPress. Both have their benefits and drawbacks, but if you're just starting out, then Shopify might be a better choice for your business because it offers more flexibility in terms of design or functionality options. If you want to take advantage of all their features right away (or hire someone who does), then WordPress is a good option as well.
