How To Start Shopify Dropshipping in 2023 (BEGINNER GUIDE)

Setting Up a Shopify Store

In this video, the speaker walks through the process of setting up a Shopify store from start to finish. The first step is creating a Shopify account.

Creating a Shopify Account

• To create a Shopify account, go to the website and sign up.

• The Shopify plan costs $30 per month, but you can save money by signing up using the link in the description for a free trial and then paying only $1 per month for three months.

• After entering your email address, answer some setup questions or skip them if you prefer.

• Select your country and create a Shopify ID by signing in with Google.

• Wait for your store to be built, which will take just a few moments.

Navigating Your Dashboard

• Once your store is built, you'll see your dashboard with pop-ups, tips, and checklists.

• The dashboard shows live sales analytics such as daily sales and visitors.

• Other tabs include orders (for order data), products (for product listings), customers (for customer data), analytics (for performance metrics), marketing (to track sales channels), discounts (to create custom offers and discounts), and online store (to customize website design).

Adding Products

• To make customizing your store easier later on, add at least one product right away.

• Download an app called De-Essers to connect directly with AliExpress. However, it's recommended that you use AliExpress only to test products before switching over to getting your product sourced by a sourcing agent.

Customizing Your Online Store

Now that you have set up your Shopify account and added at least one product, it's time to customize your online store.

Designing Your Website

• Use the online store tab to customize website design by creating legal pages, blog posts, menus, and store preferences.

• Choose a theme for your website from the Shopify Theme Store or create your own custom theme.

• Customize your main menu and footer menu to make navigation easy for customers.

Adding Products

• Use the products tab to add new products or edit existing ones.

• Edit product titles, pricing, descriptions, and other details as needed.

Setting Up Payment and Shipping

• Use the settings tab to set up payment options such as PayPal or credit card payments.

• Set up shipping rates based on weight or price of items.

Launching Your Store

• Once you have customized your online store to your liking, it's time to launch it!

• Make sure everything is working properly before launching by testing all links and buttons.

• Start promoting your store through social media channels and other marketing strategies.

Introduction to Dropshipping and DSers

In this section, the speaker introduces dropshipping and DSers as a great alternative for those who want to start their own business without having to worry about inventory.

How to Get Started with DSers

• To get started with DSers, head over to their website and fill out a free quote request.

• Alternatively, you can install the DSers app and create an account by clicking on the basic free plan.

• Link your AliExpress account to DSers by clicking on "get access" if you already have an account or registering if you don't.

• Once logged in, browse through different product recommendations or import a product from AliExpress using the import list tab.

Adding Products to Your Store

In this section, the speaker explains how to add products from AliExpress to your store using DSers.

Importing Products from AliExpress

• Copy the URL of the product you want to add from AliExpress.

• Paste it into the search bar in DSers and click search.

• Edit the product details such as title, variants, price, compare price value, description, and images before importing it into your store.

• Check competitors' prices for similar products before setting your own price.

Pushing Products to Shopify

• Select the product you want to push from DSers and click "push to Shopify."

• Choose whether or not you want to continue selling when out of stock and publish online store.

• Do not select manually editing prices stuff option.

• Go back to your Shopify store's products tab where you should see your newly added product.

Designing Your Storefront

In this section, the speaker explains how to design your storefront using themes in Shopify.

Choosing a Theme

• Go to the themes tab in Shopify and choose a theme that suits your store's needs.

• Customize the theme by changing colors, fonts, and layout.

Adding Pages

• Add pages such as "About Us," "Contact Us," and "FAQ" to your storefront.

• Use these pages to provide more information about your business and products.

Creating Collections

• Create collections of similar products to make it easier for customers to find what they're looking for.

• Use tags to organize products within collections.

Conclusion

In this section, the speaker concludes the video by summarizing the steps covered in creating a dropshipping store using DSers and Shopify.

Recap of Steps Covered

• Get started with DSers by filling out a free quote request or installing the app.

• Import products from AliExpress using DSers and edit their details before pushing them to Shopify.

• Design your storefront using themes, adding pages, and creating collections.

Customizing the Theme

In this section, the speaker explains how to customize a Shopify theme by changing its color scheme and other settings.

Changing the Color Scheme

• Start by going to "Theme Settings" and selecting "Colors."

• Choose a primary color for the website.

• Make sure to change only the colors you intend to change, as it can mess up your entire color scheme.

• Select blue as an accent color for buttons and links.

• Change background colors to solid white or blue.

Editing Product Pages

In this section, the speaker explains how to edit product pages on Shopify.

Removing Unnecessary Elements

• Remove unnecessary elements such as dynamic checkout buttons and share buttons.

• Remove drop-down menus that are not needed, such as ingredients.

• Customize remaining elements, such as changing chat bubbles to lightning bolts.

Creating a Return Policy

• Set up a return policy that is clear and concise.

• Link legal pages with return policies below product descriptions.

Finalizing Product Pages

• Remove all unnecessary information from product pages except for images with text and product descriptions.

• Customize footer menu.

Editing Home Page

In this section, the speaker explains how to edit home pages on Shopify.

Removing Unnecessary Elements

• Remove all unnecessary elements from home page except for images with text and product descriptions.

Finalizing Home Page

• Customize footer menu.

Setting up the Homepage

In this section, the speaker sets up the homepage of a website using Shopify.

Adding an Image and Changing Text

• The speaker searches for an image related to therapy from Shopify's library.

• They select the image and change the text to "Intimate Recovery" with a small heading size.

Adding a Featured Product

• The speaker adds a product section by clicking on "Add Section" and selecting "Product".

• They select their featured product, "Theracup 2.0", from the right side of the screen.

• The product is added to the homepage and saved.

Changing Announcement Bar

• The announcement bar is changed to read "50% off today only".

Building Product Description

In this section, the speaker builds out the product description for their featured product.

Researching Competitors' Descriptions

• The speaker removes all text below the actual product by clicking on the little "i" button.

• They research competitors' descriptions for ideas to include in their own description.

Adding Images and Text

• The speaker saves several images from competitors' websites that they plan to use in their own description.

• They add an image with text section titled "How it Works" and include bolded text promoting blood flow, enhancing circulation, decompressing muscles, and connective tissue.

• An additional image with text section is added titled "Perfect Home Recovery". It includes an image of someone using Theracup 2.0 and text describing the product's features.

Adding Social Proof

• The speaker notes that reviews should be added below the product to provide social proof.

Setting up the Shopify App Store

In this section, the speaker walks through setting up the Shopify app store and installing Alley Reviews.

Installing Alley Reviews

• To install Alley Reviews, go to the Shopify app store and search for it.

• Select the second option and add the app to your store.

• Change the rating color to match your website's color scheme by going to "Online Store" > "Customize Colors" and copying your website's accent color.

• Go back to Alley Reviews and paste in your accent color code.

• Choose a grid layout and import reviews for your product.

Importing Product Reviews

In this section, the speaker explains how to import product reviews using Alley Reviews.

Importing Product Reviews

• Click on "Import reviews" in Alley Reviews.

• Add LA reviews to your extensions if prompted (you can skip watching the webinar).

• Paste in the URL of your product with existing reviews.

• Customize settings for this product by selecting five-star and up reviews with content, then click "Import reviews."

• Manage imported reviews by deleting any negative ones or pending ones that don't meet criteria.

Displaying Product Reviews on Your Website

In this section, the speaker shows how to display imported product reviews on your website using Alley Reviews.

Displaying Product Reviews

• Refresh your page after importing reviews to see review stars displayed at top of page.

• Click on star rating in Alley Reviews customization settings.

• Change star rating color to match website's accent color scheme.

• Hide star ratings for products without any reviews yet.

• This will show only 5 stars until you have actual customer ratings.

• You can add a fake review yourself if needed.

• Click "Save" after making changes.

• Refresh page to see updated review display.

Finalizing Website Customization

In this section, the speaker finalizes website customization by removing unnecessary elements and adding a logo.

Mobile Store Customization

• Remove "Shop Now" button from mobile store view.

• Bold important text on mobile store view.

• Remove share button from product buy buttons.

• Unselect "Show Dynamic Checkout" for buy buttons.

Footer Menu Customization

• Remove image and change text in footer menu to reflect your brand promise or mission statement.

Adding a Logo

• Use Canva.com to create a free logo design if you don't have access to Photoshop.

• Create a design that represents your brand and download it as an image file.

• Upload the logo image file to your Shopify store.

Creating a Logo and Changing Dimensions

In this section, the speaker explains how to create a logo using Canva and change its dimensions to fit the website's main menu.

Creating a Logo

• Use Canva to create a simple logo with League Spartan font.

• Add an element to the logo for visual interest.

• Export the logo as a screenshot.

Changing Logo Dimensions

• Upload the screenshot of the logo in Shopify's theme editor.

• Increase the width of the logo to make it larger.

• Change the dimensions of the image so that it is as small as possible.

• Save changes.

Adjusting Logo Size

In this section, the speaker explains why adjusting logo size is important and demonstrates how to do it in Shopify's theme editor.

Importance of Adjusting Logo Size

• If exported as a square image, main menu will be too large.

• A smaller logo looks better on website.

Adjusting Logo Size in Theme Editor

• Select uploaded screenshot of logo in Shopify's theme editor.

• Increase width of logo all the way to maximum size.

• Save changes.

Customizing Checkout Page

In this section, the speaker explains why customizing checkout page is important and demonstrates how to do it in Shopify's theme editor.

Importance of Customizing Checkout Page

• Branded checkout pages increase customer trust and sales.

• Default "My Store" branding can deter customers from completing purchase.

Customizing Checkout Page in Theme Editor

• Go to checkout settings in Shopify's theme editor.

• Change "My Store" branding to match website name and add uploaded logo for consistency.

• Center branding on page for aesthetic appeal.

• Ensure color scheme matches website colors for cohesive look.

Creating Legal Pages

In this section, the speaker explains why creating legal pages is important and demonstrates how to do it in Shopify's settings.

Importance of Creating Legal Pages

• Legal pages protect business from legal issues.

• Customers expect to see legal pages on e-commerce websites.

Creating Legal Pages in Shopify Settings

• Go to policies in Shopify's settings.

• Create refund policy, privacy policy, and terms of service using provided templates.

• Edit templates to remove personal information and ensure they match website branding.

Setting Store Details

In this section, the speaker explains how to set store details in Shopify's settings.

Setting Store Details

• Change store name to match website name for consistency.

• Ensure currency matches country where most sales will be made.

Creating Pages and Menus

In this section, the speaker creates pages for refund policy, privacy policy, terms of service, contact page, and track your order page. They then add these pages to the main menu and footer menu.

Creating Pages

• Create a refund policy page.

• Create a privacy policy page.

• Create a terms of service page.

• Create a contact page.

• Create a track your order page.

Adding Pages to Menus

• Remove catalog from the main menu and add products.

• Add track your order page to the main menu.

• Add legal pages (privacy policy, refund policy, terms of service, contact page) to the footer menu.

Setting Up Shipping Policies

In this section, the speaker sets up shipping policies by creating two shipping zones (United States and rest of world), adding free insured shipping rates for both zones, and adding an upsell option for priority insured plus tracked shipping.

Setting Up Shipping Policies

• Go to settings and click on shipping and delivery.

• Click manage under shipping rates.

• Delete all existing rates.

• Create two shipping zones: United States and rest of world.

• Add free insured shipping rate for both zones.

• Add an upsell option for priority insured plus tracked shipping.

Activating Shopify Payments

In this section, the speaker activates Shopify payments as their payment gateway and deactivates PayPal checkout to avoid potential issues.

Activating Shopify Payments

• Click on activate Shopify payments.

• Deactivate PayPal checkout.

• Ensure that customers can check out using their credit card, debit card, or any other card.

Making the Website Live

In this section, the speaker removes the password to make the website live by choosing a plan.

Making the Website Live

• Choose a plan to remove the password and make the website live.

Creating a Shopify Store

In this section, the speaker guides the viewer through creating a Shopify store.

Setting up the Store

• Go to shopify.com and sign up for an account.

• Customize your store by adding products, images, and reviews.

• Select a plan to make your store live and available for checkout.

Congratulations!

• You have successfully created a Shopify store.

• Take a break and enjoy the rest of your day.