In this post, we will explore the pros and cons of the Shopify Plugin for WordPress.

What is Shopify?

Shopify is a cloud-based, multi-channel e-commerce solution that enables you to set up an online store to sell your products. It allows you to organize your products, accept card payments, alter storefronts as well as to track and respond to orders. The company had an annual turnover of $205.2 Million as per fortune.com.

Shopify has 200,000 merchants using its service, with total gross merchandise volume over $10 billion.

Shopify Plugin For WordPress:

Shopify has introduced its new plugin for WordPress which allows you to add your products to your web pages and blog posts without having to leave WordPress.

By adding this plugin the onus of managing your WordPress pages and blog posts will remain with you, and Shopify will take care of managing the payments, secure checkout, shipping and fulfillment, inventory, and taxes.

Shopify not only makes it easier to sell on WordPress but also allows you to sell with beautiful themes. Shopify has collaborated with Themezilla, Ultralinx, and Themify to build Shopify powered WordPress themes, which are fairly customizable.

You can download The themes from Themify and Ultralinx for free for a limited time period. However The Themezilla theme is a premium WordPress theme and it is available for download in lieu of a fee.

Simple by Themify

Hype by Themezilla

Pulse by Ultralinx

Using Shopify for WordPress, you can start selling on your website for as low as $9/Month. Apart from this, you will be offered access to  features such as Facebook Shop, Shopify POS for iOS or Android, Shopify app store, and 24×7 support.

What makes the Shopify Plugin for WordPress different from WooCommerce?

WooCommerce is an open source e-commerce plugin for WordPress. It is relatively simple to install, customize and free base products. It also offers a plethora of paid add-ons. Over 380,000 Online Retailers avail the services of WooCommerce. The plugin crossed 7 Million downloads in April 2015. Notable clients include Internet Systems Consortium and Small Press Expo

The Most Useful WooCommerce Extensions & Plugins

There are a few limitations to using WooCommerce such as lack of live support and certain compatibility issues with WordPress.

With the introduction of Shopify’s new plugin for WordPress, what is it that really sets it apart from WooCommerce?

• Pricing:

On the face of it, WooCommerce is free. Free to install, that is. You can integrate the plugin with your WordPress powered website free of charge. “What’s the catch?” you might ask. In order to make use of WooCommerce effectively, you need to install several extensions.

There are a lot of free extensions available, but the most essential ones will cost you anywhere between $5 to $500, depending on your needs.

Shopify, on the other hand, has a more conventional pricing approach.  It has three popular feature based packages:

•         Basic ($29)
•         Professional ($79)
•         Unlimited ($179)

Shopify provides more features than WooCommerce. Issues related to hosting or payment processes are resolved post signing up.

 

• How Shopify and WooCommerce Help you Sell:

Woocommerce:

WooCommerce offers tons of useful extensions for its WordPress Plugins. Whether you want to sell your products on facebook or understand customer behaviour, WooCommerce has an extension for all your e-commerce related needs.

On the downside, WooCommerce does not do too well with complex integration solutions. For instance, Large companies which have more specific needs, may not find it easy to integrate WooCommerce with their company level software.

Shopify:

Shopify Plugin for WordPress offers relatively more free options than WooCommerce. Soon after you select a pricing plan, Shopify gives you free access to the following features:

• Create discount codes
• Offer gift cards ( on Professional and Unlimited Only)
• Install cart recovery systems (on Professional and Unlimited Only)
• Include individual product reviews
• Amend shipping options
• Sell on Facebook
• Import products using CSV files
• List different product variations

A lot of these free features like CSV uploads and selling on Facebook may cost you up to £500 on WooCommerce. Moreover, you will also have access to several free apps on Shopify’s app store.

• Support:

WooCommerce is in its respect, a free platform. Thus, it does not provide  customer care. For the most part, users are required to figure out solutions by themselves. Of course, there are always people on online forums who will be more than willing to assist you in case you are facing issues.

Shopify, on the other hand, is renowned for granting users access to quality customer care. Customers have access to 24×7 customer support from Shopify staff.

• SEO: 

 

Both Shopify and  WooCommerce are equally reliable when it comes to SEO. Both offer easy editing options to add  meta descriptions, keywords, alt tags, meta tags and other such SEO fields. You can also install additional plugins to boost your SEO to a higher level. Similar to the Yoast SEO Plugin offered by WordPress, Shopify has the SEO Meta Manager app which works the same way.

Conclusion:

In a nutshell, although WooCommerce allows you to create superior quality, high-functioning sites,  Shopify offers a little extra. It is faster, more technologically advanced and has a better aesthetic. Implementing Shopify is easier and more secure.

What are your thoughts about the Shopify Plugin for WordPress? Feel free to let us know in the comments.