So, you’ve decided to set up your digital product shop using Shopify. Maybe your business is ready to scale, or you want a platform with all the amazing features to power your shop. Whatever your reasons for choosing Shopify, bravo! I’m excited for you.

Now, how in the world do you actually get your Shopify store up and running?! I’ve got everything you need to know in this beginner Shopify tutorial below, from creating an account to designing your store to adding payment systems and more.

Create your Shopify account

First up, you’ll need to create your Shopify account and sign up for their 14-day free trial. No need to commit to a paid subscription yet, which is awesome.

Shopify will ask you for the name of your store, as well as other details about your biz like what industry you’ll be operating in or how much revenue you’re making. Not to worry if you’re unsure of your answers; you can always change them later.

Check out the dashboard

Once you’ve filled out your initial details and verified your email address, you’ll make it to the Shopify dashboard, aka your Admin screen. 

Most of what I talk about in this blog and in the YouTube video takes place on the dashboard, so take some time to browse around. You’ll see options for adding products, picking a theme, customizing your theme, setting up payments, and lots more. We’ll cover it all, so don’t fret! For now, familiarize yourself with the dashboard, and when you’re ready, move on to the next step.

Choose a theme and make it your own

Our first task to tackle from the dashboard? Picking and customizing your theme. Click on Online Store in the left sidebar. Then, click Themes. Once you’ve installed a theme you like, click the Customize button. You’ll land on the page editor, where you’ll see drag-and-drop modules and settings on the left and a drop-down menu at the top.

There’s a lot of customizing you can do on the page editor, like adding photos or images, customizing colors and fonts, changing text, and even editing the code. Pretty fun, right?

Add your products

Once you’re happy with the look of your store (for now, at least), you’ll then add products to sell. In the sidebar of the dashboard, click Products, then the Add product button. 

Fill in all the important product information that your customers would want to know, starting with its name, an accurate description, the product type, and so on. Don’t forget to upload high-quality product images so your customers know what it looks like! When you’re done, click Save product. Then rinse and repeat with your other products.

Configure your settings

Click Settings in the sidebar of your dashboard. You’ll see a bunch of different categories that you’ll need to fill out for your store, like:

• General store details
• Locations, which have to do with inventory and order fulfillment
• Shipping, which you won’t need to worry about with digital products, but give it a looksee if you sell any physical products or may want to in the future
• Notifications that both you and your customers receive
• Sales channels, which allow you to sell products on eCommerce marketplaces and social media channels

I’ll cover some of the most important settings next.

Set up checkout

In the checkout setting, you can ask customers to create customer accounts and customize which information is required for checkout. Remember to keep your checkout process as smooth and intuitive as possible to avoid shopping cart abandonment.

One of the things I like best about Shopify is its checkout functionality tools. Since they make it easy for your customers to make a purchase, they help you build trust and a stellar brand reputation.

Set up payment systems and taxes

You wanna get paid, right? Of course you do. Let’s set up your payment systems and take care of the legal stuff for your store.

You can enable multiple payment options for customer convenience with Shopify. When picking which options to offer, think about cards to accept, transaction fees, and location of you and your customers. You can use Shopify Payments or pick from a huge list of third-party providers, as well as PayPal, Amazon Pay, or Apple Pay.

Lastly, don’t forget to handle your taxes! Shopify handles most common tax calculations in tax jurisdictions. Check on the default rates that Shopify configured for you in this setting.

Add your domain name

You’re almost ready to go live with your store, wheee! Before you do, add your domain name (your website address) to Shopify.

Shopify’s default domain is “www.example-store-name.myshopify.com.” But if you want to remove the “myshopify” part and use a customized URL, you’ll need to buy a domain from Shopify or use a custom one that you already own.

Click Online Store in the sidebar of the dashboard, then click Domains. Then pick one of three options for setting up your domain:

• Connect existing domain. Got an existing domain with GoDaddy, Bluehost, HostGator, or another host? Use this option to connect it to Shopify.
• Transfer domain. Rather than keep your domains separate, you can transfer your existing one to Shopify.
• Buy a new domain. Don’t have a domain yet? You can buy one from Shopify, and you can even keep it if you quit using Shopify for your digital product shop.

Test everything before you go live

Before you make your store public, take it for a test drive so that you can check everything: your product pages and links, the checkout process, payments and order processing, and so on.

Shopify’s Bogus Gateway feature lets you place a test order by simulating a transaction without actually charging for it. To set up Bogus Gateway, follow these steps:

1. From the dashboard, click Settings, then Payments.
2. Deactivate any credit card payment providers you have currently enabled by clicking Manage, then Deactivate. 
3. Depending on the payment system you have set up, do one of the following:
   1. If you have Shopify Payments enabled, click Switch to a third-party provider and confirm.
   2. If you don’t have Shopify Payments enabled, click See all other providers in the Shopify payments section.
4. Choose (for testing) Bogus Gateway from the list.
5. Click Activate (for testing) Bogus Gateway.
6. Click Save.

Now you’re ready to place an order as a customer would! You can even use these test credit card details that Shopify has provided. You can test checkout with real credit card or payment details too, if you like. Just remember to cancel and refund the order once it’s complete.

Ready to make your store live? From the dashboard, click Online Store, then Preferences. In the Password page section, uncheck Enable password page. Then click Save. You’re live!

Let’s recap how to set up your store

Shopify is relatively easy to use, but all the features and items on your to-do list can be super overwhelming! Take things one step at a time; no need to rush through the process. 

To recap our beginner Shopify tutorial, here’s how to set up a Shopify store:

1. Create your Shopify account.
2. Familiarize yourself with the dashboard.
3. Pick and customize a Shopify theme.
4. Add your products.
5. Configure settings like locations, notifications, payments, and taxes.
6. Add your domain name.
7. Test your store.
8. Go live!

Congrats! Your store setup is complete. Now, are you ready to start driving steady traffic to your shop so you can enjoy consistent sales and revenue? I share tips for growing your digital product shop and getting the results you want from your biz — without the extra stress and hustle — in this YouTube video. Give it a watch!