A hot topic in Japan! What is Shopify, the world's No. 1 e-commerce platform?

What is Shopify?

Shopify is an e-commerce platform service (SaaS) that was launched in Canada in 2006. It is used widely by individuals and large corporations, and its annual distribution volume is growing to 7 trillion yen. It has the world's largest number of accounts (= 1 million active users) as an e-commerce platform service, and more than 600,000 online shops in 175 countries around the world are built using Shopify. For example, companies that everyone has heard of, such as Tesla, Nestle, GE, Toraya, and GoGo Curry, use Shopify.

Shopify's four features

Shopify offers many tools that can be used for various business situations. There is no need to spend unnecessary costs on unnecessary features, and you can choose the most suitable Shopify account plan to use it according to your business. Below are some of the features of Shopify that we would like to introduce in particular.

1. Extensive store themes and linked apps

   The Shopify Theme Store has many free and paid themes to choose from depending on the type and number of products and design you want to offer in your store. In addition, Shopify's original themes are of course created by designers and engineers from all over the world, so it's unlikely that you'll find a theme that overlaps with other stores. You can try out the theme on your own store as if you were changing the theme, so just choosing is exciting.
   Of course, you can also customize the design as you like.

   
   Plenty of free themes available

   The Shopify App Store is a treasure trove of applications that allow you to freely expand and customize your store. There are a wide variety of apps for beginners to advanced users that will further expand your marketing and design functions. New apps are constantly being released, so making effective use of the latest apps will definitely help you stand out from the competition.

2. Sales channel addition function

   Managing brand sites and social media related to EC sites is also a constant challenge for online shop managers. Have you ever thought how easy it would be if you could register your products in one place and then have them reflected on other channels with the push of a button? By using Shopify's "Buy Buttons" function, you can embed a purchase button on your brand site or blog, allowing users to complete their purchase on the site they are currently viewing without having to go to the trouble of visiting your store site.

   
   Buy Button can be configured in detail

   It also has extensive integration with social media, which has become essential in recent years, making it possible to smoothly connect purchases to product photos posted on Facebook and Instagram.
   *The Shopping feature on Instagram was recently launched in Japan. Please read this article for an introduction to the feature and how to set it up.

3. Shopify Blog Features

   The article you are currently reading is being created using Shopify's blog feature.
   In recent years, more and more companies in Japan have started to place importance on owned media, but integrating a company's website, online store, and in-house media can be extremely costly and time-consuming. Shopify is designed from the start to capture traffic through media and lead to product purchases, making it possible to build an owned media site stress-free.
   Shopify's UI design is very simple, so with just a basic knowledge of HTML you can create media that is intuitive and easy to read.

4. Shopify Expert

   Shopify experts, professionals who are experts in building stores using Shopify and marketing, are available all over the world to provide support, so even individuals and businesses just starting out can get off to the best possible start.
   We're not even hiding anything, but our company is only the third in Japan to be certified as a Shopify Expert, and we feel that many individuals and companies are empathizing with the ecosystem of know-how that this Shopify Expert system makes possible.

summary

As mentioned at the beginning, Shopify is currently the world's fastest growing and most popular e-commerce platform service. It is simple and easy to use, yet has cutting-edge functions. This is why it has gained a large distribution scale and active user base, and continues to move forward with further investment.
Wouldn't they be the perfect partner to help us pave the way into the coming EC era?
Anyone can use Shopify's 14-day free trial. First, try the free trial at Shopify.jp to experience the ease of use and design.