10 Common Reasons Why Shopify Stores Fail (With Expert Tips)

With the internet, it has become easier than ever to earn money. Your side hustles can become the primary source of income. One such profitable venture is Shopify. These stores have helped many quit their 9 to 5s and start their own business. But many Shopify stores do not turn out to be successful. But, why Shopify stores fail really?

There are many reasons why many Shopify stores fail. One of the most common ones is picking the wrong niche, not branding properly and also making mistakes when it comes to the financials of the store. Other things can be low-quality products or picking bad suppliers.

In this article, we will dive a bit deeper into all the mistakes beginner Shopify owners make that lead to their downfall so you can avoid them. So, if you are a Shopify store owner or planning to start one, please keep on reading. 

10 Common Reasons Why Shopify Stores Fail 

Honestly, there can be a lot of reasons why a Shopify store might fail. Some might be due to lack of proper management, wrong business decisions, or even laziness. But those are obvious. I am here to talk about some common reasons most may not realize. Let's start with our first one. 

1. Not Choosing the Right Niche 

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Choosing the right niche to do business in is one of the most common reasons why your Shopify store may fail. It is like failing before you even have a chance. This is the biggest reason why so many stores fail. 

You need to do proper research and pick a good niche for yourself. Choosing one that has a lot of audiences is the most obvious way to set yourself up for success. Shopify stores can be very profitable. I am talking about millions of dollars in profit. But then you need to lay the groundwork first. 

Some common profitable niches are gardening, sports, pets, and outdoor products. There are more. So, get your research in. And remember audiences for the niches matter a lot! 

Many entrepreneurs make the mistake of going into it with a ‘make money fast’ mindset. That’s not something you want to do. Take time to do proper research and start from there. 

2. Selling Low-Quality Products

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Do I even have to explain this one? Your customers are the ones you need to impress. So, they can make repeat purchases or recommend your store to others. Word of mouth marketing is still one of the most effective ways of marketing. 

The quality of the products is not the only thing though. You want to sell unique products. The ones that will inspire intrigue are the ones that will bring in the big bucks. Do not just stock products anyone can find in their local store. That defeats the purpose. 

3. Choosing The Wrong Suppliers

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Your suppliers are sort of the backbone of your Shopify store. If you go wrong here, it can cost you dearly. Do not shoot yourself on the foot. Choose your suppliers wisely. Ignore working with suppliers that are geographically very far away. 

Of course, many of them are from China. Also, avoid picking a niche where there are not a lot of suppliers. This can tie up your lead times and also impact your store and business. Suppliers are important. 

4. Not Setting Out a Thought-out Plan 

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If you are not starting with a solid plan, you are losing right from the get-go! Jumping into the world of Shopify and eCommerce without knowing the field and the challenges within it is a big mistake. 

You need to have a plan on how you want to do business. This includes daily operations, marketing, sourcing products, and also the complete customer journey. The customer journey includes all things like how they will buy the product from you when it will be shipped, how they can pay you for the purchase, and more. 

Having a planned-out approach prepares you for any surprises that may come up. So, planning is always important. 

5. Not Having an SEO Optimized Website

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It is not enough to just create a website, list the products you are selling, and call it a day. Your site needs to be optimized for Google and other search engines as well. 

Good optimization ensures your website will come up on search results much more often. And this will result in more visits which will then result in more sales. 

6. Shipping Problems 

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If you can't properly ship the products, you will face sustaining the business hard as well. Customers who bought a product from you will expect to receive it, duh! Shipping has costs involved and it can also vary where you are shipping too. 

Many business owners fail just because they did not spend enough time planning out how they will ship their products. Fast, reliable and consistent shipping is the key to any website's success. 

7. Ignoring Competitors 

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Most likely unless you are selling something groundbreaking and unique, you aren't the only player in the field. So, it is absolutely necessary to do a competitor analysis and see what they are up to. 

Otherwise, your competitor can overtake you at any time. This can lead to the failure of your store for not adapting.

8. Poor Branding

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Poor branding is another reason why stores can fail. A store that has good marketing and branding can leave a really nice impression on the customers. 

Also, not to mention a brand creates trust. So, customers will return to buy from you. Failing to differentiate yourself is a big mistake, especially when there are many competitors. 

9. Wrong Financial Decisions 

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Not doing the right calculations and messing up on the financials can hamper your store. You need to take into consideration all the expenses your store might face. 

Things like subscription, sourcing costs, design, hosting, SEO, marketing and all the others. All of these must be considered when you are pricing your products.

10. No Passion 

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Lastly, there is passion. This is very important. If you start your store with a money-making shortcut mentality, you will not always be able to put in the time and effort that is required. 

There might be tough times for your business. And your passion during those times will be the thing that can bring you out of trouble. 

7 Expert Tips to Help You Grow and Keep Growing 

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Alright then, now that you know what are the reasons a business can fail, let’s look at some expert tips that will help your store succeed. 

• You can use free channels for promotions if you do not have a large marketing budget. This is good news for new stores that might not have that much capital on hand.
• Focus on mobile. You cannot ignore mobile devices when running your store. So, make sure the store's setting is on mobile. A lot of traffic will come from Instagram and Pinterest.
• Analytics are your best friend. Do not ignore solid data. These will help you make better business decisions.
• Create and focus on one store at a time. You are not a robot. Your time and attention are valuable. So, it is better to focus on one store at a time. Never create more than one store at a time.
• Do marketing the right way. Setting up a store and not focusing enough on marketing is a death sentence. Some might say it is the most important thing.
• You can sell impulse buy products in your store for rapid growth. But make sure it’s something people can find in their local stores.
• Creating an affiliate program is the best way to market your business. And, using our Ambassador Affiliate Marketing app you can generate affiliate codes easily and even track commissions automatically. 

Wrapping Up 

There you have it. Now you should have a clear idea about why Shopify stores fail and how to overcome those issues. Building your first store can be exciting and also a scary experience. But if you keep in mind the mistakes most stores make, you can avoid those pitfalls. 

Thanks for reading. And best of luck with your business endeavors.