How Is Shopify Lite? – It’s The Most Affordable Way To Open A Business, But What Does It Give You?

My motivation in pursuing entrepreneurship, and trying to start up a business, is not just for the amazing income opportunity that it presents, but the freedom. If this is you too, and you’re looking into how to start up a business online (which is truly where business is going), you’ve probably heard of Shopify. It’s a path to freedom.

When my wife and I first started developing our clothing brand, we had a pretty small budget to invest in the business startup. We knew we had to find the most affordable and effective way of launching.

That’s where Shopify Lite comes in.

Truth is, at least 7 in every 10 small business don’t last more than a few years. Why? Well because for a lot of businesses, especially without strategy, the bills and costs of starting up totally crush their profits.

That’s why a $9/month Shopify Lite plan is mind-blowing! You can start up a hot brand for the cost of a couple lattes every month!

So Shopify Lite Is Cheap, But Make Sure It Suits Your Needs!

At only $9 per month, Shopify Lite is by far the cheapest plan that Shopify has. It’s obviously worth considering. But being the cheapest, Lite is also the most basic plan – this means you NEED to make sure it will suit your needs.

Are you doing this as a side-gig? Is it an upgrade to a little Etsy business that you use for extra cash? Or is it the beginning of a brand that you plan on shaping into an empire?

Honestly, it’s a matter of your goals.

So here’s a breakdown of what you get with a Shopify Lite plan!

Integration With Facebook

Let’s be clear. Facebook has over 2 billion users. It’s the giant of the social media world, and if you want to get your new brand out there, you NEED to have a Facebook presence.

Shopify Lite, with a few easy clicks of a button, can attach to your business/brand page on Facebook so that you can sell directly through it.

It looks something like this:

Shopify Lite allows you to not only post your products right onto your Facebook page, but process payments (like PayPal, Stripe, and credit cards) right through Facebook.

This is extremely effective for a few reasons. 1. you have hundreds of millions of potential customers right there on Facebook, and 2. it makes things extremely easy and convenient for your customers which, as you can probably guess, increases conversions (i.e. lots and lots of sales).

This is a huge step for brand visibility! But don’t just show your products. Sell them! $$$

Sell Through Facebook Messenger

Not only can you integrate seamlessly with Facebook itself, but you can even sell through Facebook’s popular messaging feature.

Communicating with your customers is huge. I can tell you from constant first hand experience that quick and available customer support is HUGE. Your customers will love you.

Availability on messenger is not only important for your customer support ratings (yes, reliable customer support will make or break your ratings and reviews), but it’s also another avenue for sales with Shopify Lite!

Customers can buy right through messenger, whether it’s a personal message from you, or an automated sales message to your fans and followers about a new product release.

It’s all about connecting people.

Sell Your Products In Person

Ok, so I know dropshipping is an awesome thing. Getting to have a massive inventory, and not paying for it until you’e MADE a sale is awesome. Having someone else complete all of the shipping and tracking of packages FOR you is awesome.

More on that later…

But as cool as opportunity online can be, there’s still something you just can’t beat about being face to face. Maybe you have a small business in a physical location: a coffee shop, gift shop, juice bar, skateboarding outfitter, outdoor outfitter, diner, whatever. Maybe you even have an online store, but you want to get some of your products for sale as an outdoor vendor.

Shopify Lite gives you a Point of Sale (POC) feature, which allows you to accept payments in person, over your phone or tablet. Like this:

Not only can you accept things like credit card payments right there in person, but you can also show off extra inventory over your phone or tablet for your customers to scroll through.

The Features And Support

The cool thing about Shopify (besides how easy and affordable it is), is that they automatically connect you with everything you could need to run a business!

The cool thing about Shopify LITE is that even though it’s a small plan, it still gives you a lot of the features of the bigger plans.

The great dropshipping directories that you need to get your products are all here: Hello Oberlo! If you’re an artist or designer and you’re looking into a print-on-demand option to start a clothing brand (this is what my wife and I do) you’ve got that too!: Printful, Printify, TeeLaunch – all 5 star rated!

Additionally, you have full access to the 24/7, 5 star support of Shopify. Shopify is in the top 3 best support teams I have ever experienced from any company. Fast, thorough, responsive… think Amazon. You get this too with a Shopify Lite plan!

Website Integration (+ The Cons And Limitations of Shopify Lite)

So here’s the biggest pain point with Shopify Lite. Unlike the Basic Plan with Shopify, Shopify Lite does NOT build you your own webstore.

To clarify, if you have your own website, like a WordPress, Wix, Weebly, or Squarespace site, Shopify Lite allows you to add “Buy” buttons to your preexisting site. Kind of like this:

So no matter what website you have, you DO have options to sell through it.

What you don’t get with a Shopify Lite plan is a store, where you can display and drop your inventory for display. If you are just starting out, without much of a customer base, this isn’t going to be a huge problem. However, if you’re planning on building a profitable business, you’re ultimately going to want a store.

The $29 Basic Shopify plan gives you an impeccable looking store, that can help capture the essence of your brand. And that’s something your customers will love.

What are the other cons of Shopify Lite?

Facebook is ultimately the only social media platform you can really connect with through Shopify Lite. By contrast with the Basic Plan, you can launch campaigns on other lucrative marketing spaces like Pinterest.

Shopify Lite vs. Shopify Basic

The only reason to choose Shopify Lite is if the Basic Shopify plan of $29 is still outside of your budget.

Can you build a lucrative brand through Shopify Lite? Absolutely! You’re still getting a great selection of Shopify tools to get your brand to the achievement of your goals. Social media marketing is ESSENTIAL!

But if you’re looking to build your own store, and to launch a profitable business (the kind that you might be able to sell for millions someday) you’re going to need a store! And a managed, hosted, professional looking webstore for $29 a month is still the best deal in the entire e-commerce industry.

See for yourself! You can take a 14 day free trial, no credit card or commitment necessary!:

Shopify 14 Day Free Trial!