There are some little dirty secrets about Shopify that you need to know before you buy, including the reasons why you don’t need it. In this video, I will share with why you don’t necessarily have to buy Shopify

Free Alternative
A free alternative to Shopify is WooCommerce. If you are tight on cash and want to start an online store, WooCommerce is a better suggestion for you. Basically, the way it works is you need to create a WordPress website and WooCommerce is a free plug-in for WordPress. However, to have a WordPress site, you need to pay a small amount for hosting.

If you’re looking for a 100% free alternative, there are other options but all of these have some major downsides. One option is selling on Amazon. One good thing about Amazon is usually you only pay a percentage fee of what you sell. However, if you use Fulfilled by Amazon, then you have to pay a monthly fee. Another option for you is Kickstarter. You can raise some money at the same time to validate your idea. You can use the money to pay for your monthly Shopify or WooCommerce site.

Gurus are Biased
A lot of people are selling specifically because they get an affiliate commission. If you use our links to sign up for Shopify, the guru gets a kickback. The way it works is that the person gets back the two months that they pay to Shopify. What happens to a lot of gurus is that they recommend Shopify only to get that affiliate commission even though they think WooCommerce might be a better option. However, the thing is most ecommerce platforms have affiliate programs and these gurus make as much money recommending other sites like Big Commerce or Volusion. You have to decide for yourself which is the best platform for you.

It’s Hard
Shopify is not easy money. It is a way to make money online but you’re going to do some work for it. There are going to be struggles along the way.

The way I make most of my money is off of Amazon. However, I don’t recommend private labeling and dropshipping. What I suggest is creating your own product, something you wish existed in the world. Amazon makes it so much easier than Shopify. However, there are downsides too and one of them is that you don’t own the customers.