Shopify Saves Development Cost Compared to Custom Site. So, you have started your own business through hard work and determination up to the point where you now have started making a profit. It’s time for you to create an online presence to reach out more to your potential customers. You know that your company now needs a website with features and functionality that is easy to understand to effectively reach potential customers. The purpose of the website should be to serve the need of the customers in a user-friendly manner.
According to a survey by research firm Clutch, 46 percent of U.S. small businesses still don’t have a website for their company. This means that you have a higher chance of expanding your business and reach out to your potential customers than your competitor.
Now the first question that comes to your mind is “how much will your business website cost?” It depends on your business needs. There are two options for you to go for website development.
- Custom made website
- Open-source eCommerce like Shopify Website.
Custom Made Website Cost
When you think you know your entire requirement clearly, you can choose a custom-built website. It would help if you had the presentation ready for the website requirement with each feature, logo, icons listed clearly because when you go for custom development, you need to pay the developer per hour.
You don’t want to spend an extra amount of changes in later stages because that will cost you more. The designer and developer work hard to create the design you have imagined for your users so that they can engage with the website, and subconsciously spends more time exploring your website. But naturally, for all this, you will have to pay a great deal of money.
Critical Cost that Determines e-Commerce Website
·Platform
·Design
·Development
·Domain and Hosting
The reason why custom designed and developed websites can cost more are, custom websites are built from scratch by a web designer who writes the HTML CSS code for the site, creates the website’s architecture from scratch, and enhances custom features that can only be implemented by a highly skilled programmer. The programmer who writes the codes for your website charges approx. $125 per hour for custom programming and the overall cost of the custom website can increase depending upon how extensive you want your website to be.
These custom designers and developers expect an upfront cost from you to start the website development. In case, for whatever reason, they are not able to complete the project, you may tend to lose your money.
Shopify Based Website Cost
It is always better to go for Shopify open source website development as it is a one-stop-shop platform. It is cloud-based, software as a service online selling solution. It is cost-effective, and its basic plan is of low cost that you can choose in the beginning if you are in any dilemma before spending a large amount of money on a custom website.
Shopify requires non-professional knowledge to maintain its website. A person who doesn’t have any technical understanding can manage the website on its own. It has four licensed plans available for small, medium, large, and enterprise businesses, you can choose as per your requirement. It is an excellent choice for small business, for the more significant undertaking, there are enhancements you can opt for in advance plans.
Lite starting at $9/month, Basic starting at $29/month, Pro is starting at $79/month, Unlimited starting at $179/month. Online transaction fees based on your plan starting at 2.9%
If you have hired a Shopify developer for the development of your website, he/she can easily customize the Shopify theme according to the desired need of your business. He needs to install the chosen template, make changes in the CSS, JS files and icons, tools provided by the eCommerce builder.
One of the main advantages of Shopify over custom-built website development is that Shopify allows web store owners to sell their products through many social media channels — web store, retail package, Facebook Shop, Facebook Messenger, Amazon, Buy Button, and Shopify POS, at a meager cost.
Other Essential Features That Shopify Have Over Custom-Built Website Development Are:
1. Mobile Optimization
Shopify theme is already optimized for mobile/tablet view. It delivers more productive user experience across varying mobile devices and platforms to increase the conversion rate.
2. Reliable and Secure Hosting Solution
A large number of visitors on the website nowadays leave the site because it takes more than 3 seconds to load. Shopify is designed as a hosted eCommerce solution. It comes with features to speed up the eCommerce website and keep all sensitive data secure. You can implement SSL to keep all sensitive customer data and online transaction processing 100% secure, which requires minimum cost.
3. Multiple Payment Gateways
Shopify provides the option to add various payment gateways. You have to add their web services in the existing code. Shopify supports more than 70 international payment gateways.
4. Options to Reduce Checkout Abandonment
Often, customers add items to the shopping cart but do not check out the process. An enterprise can entice these customers to compel them to complete the checkout process by providing offers and discounts. Shopify tracks the empty checkout without creating the users’ accounts and hence helps enterprises to encourage the customers to complete the checkout process.
5. 24X7 Technical Supports
Shopify allows businesses to avoid website downtime by providing reliable and consistent customer support. The customer support resolves website-related issues immediately through emails, live chat, or phone call.
6. SEO Friendly
Once your online e-commerce store is set up on Shopify, you can make it SEO friendly too. Google quickly crawls an SEO, helpful website. If your web store is easily accessible through Google, then half of your job to get online presence is fulfilled.
Conclusion
With such remarkable features, Shopify emerges as one of the best choices for e-commerce store development. You can avail all these features at a little cost in the online eCommerce website as compared to custom website development.
Choosing a qualified and well experienced Shopify development company that has skilled and experienced Shopify developers is always a great choice. The Shopify development company you choose will also affect the overall pricing based on their experience and reputation in the market. Choose everything wisely.