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How to get sales on Shopify is one of the top concerns for sellers right after launching their store. There are many ways to double or even triple your sales, but the key is applying the right strategies that align with your store’s current resources.
To make this process easier, Merchize has categorized sales-boosting methods into three groups: free strategies, paid solutions, and unique approaches distilled from real seller experiences.
How to get sales on Shopify without ads
The first group of strategies helps you increase sales on Shopify without spending any money, as long as they are implemented correctly.
These methods are especially suitable for beginners exploring how to increase Shopify sales for beginners, or for Shopify store owners looking to maximize profit without making a large investment in advertising.
How to get sales on Shopify without ads
1. Find your unique selling point
To increase the conversion rate on your Shopify store, you need to sell the kind of value that customers are truly looking for, something they can only find in your store. This is known as your Unique Selling Point (USP).
How can you identify your USP within your customer base? Start by researching and analyzing the available data about your market. You can gather insights from social media, online communities related to your niche, or by using market research tools. Once you understand your customers’ problems, you should adjust your product to directly address those pain points.
For example, if you sell print-on-demand items for pet lovers, and you see people on Reddit asking where they can buy custom pet keychains or embroidered pillows, that is a clear signal. You can turn this insight into a product idea and use it to reach out to your audience and generate sales.
2. Use blog content to drive traffic
Blog content is one of the most widely used strategies across websites to attract organic traffic and guide potential customers toward conversion. When users discover your Shopify store through valuable content you share, they are more likely to explore related topics, including the products you sell.
Here are a few steps to turn blog content into a conversion tool:
- Keyword research: Use tools like Google Keyword Planner or Ahrefs to identify keywords with consistent monthly search volume
- Create valuable content: Write blog posts that answer customer questions. You can use Shopify’s built-in blog feature or connect your store to WordPress
- Distribute content: Share your blog across platforms such as LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, or niche communities where your target audience is active
- Add calls-to-action (CTA): Place subtle CTAs throughout the content to encourage readers to leave their information or take the next step
Even Shopify uses this exact approach to drive organic traffic to its website. From there, they implement SEO and marketing strategies to improve the customer journey and increase conversion rates.
3. Leverage customer reviews
Customers tend to trust real experiences from other buyers more than promotional messages from sellers. In the United States, 62 percent of online shoppers say that customer reviews are very helpful (Statista). This highlights how ratings and product reviews have become a major factor influencing online purchasing decisions across platforms.
To build trust and deliver a positive experience, focus on offering high-quality products and attentive customer service. When customers are satisfied, you can encourage them to leave positive reviews on reputable platforms such as Trustpilot or TripAdvisor.
You can also integrate these third-party review platforms with your Shopify store. This gives you an advantage over competitors, especially when customers are still undecided about where to make their purchase.
4. Add trust signals
What happens when customers know your store but hesitate to make a purchase because of trust issues? The simple answer is that your store loses a significant number of potential buyers. According to Baymard Institute, up to 19 percent of customers abandon their carts during the checkout process because they do not trust the website.
Adding trust signals helps reassure customers when they decide to buy. Here are key actions you should take:
- Display security badges such as SSL certificates
- Show trusted payment icons like PayPal and Stripe
- Provide clear and transparent return and refund policies
- Make contact information easily accessible
- Use a professional design that avoids interface errors
5. Run abandoned cart emails
Using email reminders for abandoned carts is an effective way to recover lost revenue. According to Baymard Institute, 70.19 percent of online shopping carts are abandoned. This represents a huge revenue opportunity if stores can reach out and convince customers to complete their purchases.
To send effective reminder emails, you should:
- Personalize the content by including the customer’s name, the abandoned products, and offers like a 10 percent discount or free shipping to encourage purchase
- Set up automated emails using Shopify Email or apps like Klaviyo to send reminders when customers leave items in their carts
- Schedule emails strategically by sending reminders one hour, 24 hours, and 48 hours after the cart is abandoned to maximize effectiveness
- Test different email subject lines to increase open rates
6. Optimize product pages for SEO
SEO is one of the most effective free methods to increase sales on a Shopify store, and 100 percent of sellers use it. To optimize SEO for your Shopify store, you need basic marketing knowledge to achieve the best results.
Your tasks include optimizing product categories, such as titles, product descriptions, page content, and product images. For each product, you should include keywords that customers search for so your products appear in search results. For example, if you sell custom printed mugs, your title could be “Custom photo mugs" along with the unique selling points of your product.
For keyword research, you can use tools like SEMrush, Google Keyword Planner, and Google Trends. Keep in mind that each platform has different SEO requirements, so make sure to research carefully before implementing to avoid mistakes.
Read more: How to drive traffic to your Shopify store
One important note to keep in mind is to always update your SEO plan because user behavior constantly changes. What works today may become outdated in the near future.
7. Improve store navigation
Improving visual navigation helps your customers interact with products more easily and reduces bounce rates. This especially increases conversion rates when customers are ready to buy.
To enhance user experience, you should:
- Structure your website or Shopify store with clear menus and logical category hierarchy, such as [Home > Men’s Fashion > T-Shirts]
- Add a search bar and filters
- Make CTA buttons easy to find and use
How to increase online sales fast
If you have been running your Shopify store for a while and now need to boost sales quickly, the following methods can help you take immediate action.
How to increase online sales fast
1. Paid advertising
The fastest way to generate immediate sales is by running paid ads. Depending on where your target audience mainly spends time, you can run paid ads on that platform. However, the main goal of all campaigns is to direct customers to your Shopify store.
How to set up an ad campaign for your Shopify store:
- Targeted ads: Use Google Ads or Instagram/Facebook ads, focusing on specific audiences such as age, interests, or location
- Integration with Shopify: Connect your ad account to Shopify for easy campaign management and performance tracking
- Retargeting: Run ads to reach customers who have visited your site or abandoned their carts to increase conversion chances
A useful tip for a successful campaign is to use content based on your Unique Selling Point and user search keywords. Then combine high-quality images and videos with clear CTAs to achieve the best conversion rates.
2. Flash sale
Flash sales are commonly used by stores to encourage customers to make immediate purchases during holidays or major events. People tend to buy during these quick discount periods due to the fear of missing out, or FOMO. This behavior contributed to online sales reaching 9.3 billion dollars on the Shopify platform during Black Friday and Cyber Monday in 2023.
To maximize effectiveness, you should combine flash sales with advertising and email marketing. The basic steps include:
- Creating promotional banners or landing pages
- Promoting the flash sale through your Shopify store, email notifications, social media, and paid ads
- Timing the sale around major holidays
- Creating a sense of urgency and setting purchase limits
- Applying flash sales only to products with high profit margins
- Optimizing the conversion funnel accordingly
3. Email campaigns
Email marketing is a powerful tool to increase sales on Shopify, with an average ROI of 36 dollars for every 1 dollar spent (Litmus). Personalized email campaigns boost open and conversion rates while building strong customer relationships. For example, Glossier uses email to promote new products combined with personalized offers to drive sales. This strategy is ideal for nurturing and retaining customers.
Steps to implement:
- Segment your email list: Group customers into categories such as new customers, returning customers, or cart abandoners using Shopify Analytics
- Use email tools: Leverage Shopify Email or integrate with Mailchimp to design visually appealing and professional emails
- Personalize emails: Tailor writing style, design, and calls to action for each customer segment
- Design effective CTAs: A useful call to action should be placed where customers are most likely to take the next step toward completing a transaction within the email content
Unique ways to increase sales
Besides the free and paid methods to increase revenue on Shopify, you can also apply the experiences of successful Shopify sellers to leverage overlooked opportunities that generate additional income.
Unique ways to increase sales
1. Diversify your product collections
Diversifying your product collection will help your store reach more customer segments and increase repeat purchase rates. You can gather customer feedback through surveys to create a suitable collection and feature it prominently on your homepage.
2. Personalize customer experience
Personalizing the customer experience, regardless of the sales model, will generate positive signals for your sales. Many consumers are willing to spend more on products that offer a personalized experience without hesitation.
You should combine all the data you can gather about your customers, then adjust your plan according to each customer segment. This approach will enhance personalization for each group of customers.
How to get sales on Shopify FAQ
Should I use a standard Shopify product page or create a custom landing page to increase sales?
If you are selling common products or receiving traffic from SEO, a standard product page on Shopify is sufficient, as long as you optimize the description, images, and add trust elements such as reviews and certifications. However, if you run paid ads or want to create a focused shopping experience, a custom landing page will be more effective.
What are the best plugins to improve my Shopify store’s performance and sales?
Here are some popular plugins used by Shopify store owners to boost performance and sales:
- Judge.me (or Loox): Collects and displays product reviews with images
- Vitals: Combines multiple conversion optimization features such as countdown timers, volume discounts, and sticky add-to-cart buttons
- Klaviyo: Automated email and SMS marketing
- ReConvert: Post-purchase upselling
- Plug in SEO: Checks and improves SEO for your store
- PageSpeed Optimizer: Increases page loading speed, a critical factor for conversion rates
How should I balance my advertising budget to achieve effective conversions on Shopify?
An effective advertising budget allocation depends on the stage of your store and the traffic sources. A simple way to start is with the 60/30/10 model: allocate 60% to primary conversion-focused campaigns, such as promoting flagship products on Meta or Google Shopping; 30% to remarketing, targeting visitors who have browsed your website but have not yet made a purchase; and 10% to A/B testing different ad creatives, new platforms, or innovative ideas.
