The Internet has exploded since the days of its conception. Before, computers took up an entire room and had to be run with thousands of buttons and dials. Then, we got a dial-up Internet making strange screeching noises through the phone, and then we got discs. Now navigating the internet has become a lot easier, too. The Internet now offers millions of services, including information, educational resources, tests, quizzes, and ecommerce. The days of camping out outside of stores have long since passed. Now anything you want is just one click away!
Navigating has become a lot easier, too. The Internet now offers millions of services, including information, educational resources, tests, quizzes, and shopping. The days of camping out outside of stores have long since passed. Now anything you want is just one click away!
And not only has it never been easier to buy something, but it’s also never been easier to start a business! Nowadays, anyone can create an account for free and start selling their products, no matter how niche they are!
However, if you’re an online seller, you may be overwhelmed by the number of choices you have at your disposal. Most people have narrowed it down to two main platforms: Shopify or Etsy. But how can you decide which one is best for you?
That’s precisely what we’re going to figure out on this edition of : Shopify vs. Etsy.
Overview
Before we get into the actual fight, let’s look at our fighters. In one corner, we have a tech giant that has been on the Internet for about as long as Queen Elizabeth II has been alive, Etsy. Etsy is the online equivale; Ent of a flea market: you can sell just about anything, at any price, and people can even get into bidding wars over your products!
However, the bad part about Etsy is that it’s hard to develop your brand image there. Because Etsy currently doesn’t offer any ways to make your market store stand out, it can be easy to get lost in the sea of painted spoons. Still, millions of people use Etsy every day, and it is widely successful and reliable.
And in the other corner, we have Shopify, the young buck who’s threatening to take down Etsy! Shopify has a significant advantage in that it is highly customizable. Platforms can easily use it to create their online stores and build a group of reliable customers to keep them afloat during hard times.
Let the fight begin!
Anyways, now that you have some background on each of our fighters let’s look at their stats. Let’s see who comes out on top in each category!
Round 1: Ease Of Use
This is a hard one to measure up since both platforms are relatively easy to use. The user interface is intuitive, so it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to buy or sell products on each platform.
However, Shopify has an advantage in the sense that everything on their website is built in. Because it’s so easy to attract customers, all you have to do is create an attractive website and market it throughout all social media platforms.
Etsy, on the other hand, takes an entirely different approach to online sales. Instead of redesigning your website in the way that you would your physical shop or boutique, you set up a business in an already existing marketplace, sort of like hitching up a tent at a local flea market.
This means that setting up when you are brand new is easy. But, sticking out and getting customer retention is hard because everyone is competing in the same marketplace with no options to differentiate themselves and stand out.
Round 2: Domains And URL
Believe it or not, this is an essential part of growing your online business. Your URL is like your store’s address. It’s how people can find you in the ocean of other internet sites and know who you are and where to buy your products.
Shopify has this covered by allowing buyers to buy their ion domain name so that they can make it something easy to search. Etsy, however, doesn’t allow for this type of customization, so you run the risk of customers having to paste a very long list each time or having to scroll past hundreds of results before they even get to you.
Round 3: eCommerce Features
Now, this is the thing every online entrepreneur wants to know about: how easy is it to sell on either one of these platforms? Well, Shopify makes it extremely easy to run a business on their platform by giving you tons of valuable tools. For example, creating unique product pages, figuring out check out experiences that can’t be found anywhere else online, and offering a wide range of payment options so that no customer is left out!
On the other hand, Etsy doesn’t offer as many attractive features for sellers, but it does have its own set of assets. It offers entrepreneurs an effortless way to get started since they give access to an existing audience.
Because pretty much everyone uses Etsy, your store can benefit from that traction as well. Other significant advantages to online sellers include shipping labels, discount codes, and vouchers, which are great for maintaining customer retention, advertising opportunities, email alerts sent directly to customers when products are back in stock, etc.
The Bottom Line
So, who won the fight? Well, it’s really up to the owner of the online business. Some businesses prefer making their shops as customizable as possible to get traction, and others would prefer to lean into Etsy’s already existing popularity to gain customers.
Some buyers may prefer Shopify’s web design and various payment options, and others may go for Etsy’s shipping labels and the possibility to make discount codes for customers. All in all, the true winner is always decided by you, the business owner. So, try out these two options and see which one is best for you!
