If you've been looking for ways to build your website, you've likely come across Shopify and Shopify Plus. They're reliable and robust platforms designed for different types of businesses. Shopify is generally considered the best platform for medium—to small-sized companies, offering user-friendly and straightforward features. However, Shopify Plus is designed for larger companies that need more sophisticated features and customized options.

Let us explore the features, compare Shopify and Shopify Plus, available plans, and more.

What is Shopify?

Shopify is an online e-commerce cloud platform that lets users customize, manage, and personalize their online store. It's easy to use without expertise in technology or skills. With Shopify, you can sell your products, manage inventory, process payments, and handle shipping all on one platform.

Key Features of Shopify

Shopify provides a wide choice of options that make it an excellent choice for any company of any size:

- Simple Installation: Shopify is known for its simplicity of setup. It doesn't require a technical background to get your store up and running.
- Customized Themes: Shopify provides a range of themes you can choose from, allowing you to design your online shop to reflect your brand's image. You can customize themes with their built-in editor, and you don't require any programming skills.
- Mobile Optimization: In the era of more people using smartphones, Shopify ensures your store is mobile-friendly. All themes are adaptive, meaning they automatically adjust to different sizes of displays.
- App Store: Shopify App Store provides thousands of capabilities for your online store, which can be added to your store. If you need marketing tools, inventory management instruments, or customer service tools, you'll find what you need.
- 24-Hour Helpline: Shopify offers 24/7 support to customers via phone, email, and live chat.
- Security: Shopify handles security concerns relevant to an online business, including SSL certificates and PCI compliance. This means you do not have to worry about securing your customer's information. All of it is handled for you.

What is Shopify Plus?

Shopify Plus is a version of Shopify for businesses that need extra features and customization options. It's a component of Shopify's main features but offers additional capabilities and tools to aid large-scale operations.

Key Features of Shopify Plus

Shopify Plus offers all the features provided on the standard Shopify platform, plus extra features designed specifically for businesses:

- Dedicated Account Management: Shopify Plus comes with an account manager who will assist you in developing your store, adding new features, and expanding your business.
- Customizable Checkout: Shopify Plus lets you personalize the checkout procedure. It lets you create customized fields, change the layout, and create a personalized experience for each customer.
- Unlimited Staff Accounts: Unlike Shopify's standard plans, which restrict the number of employee accounts that can be used, Shopify Plus allows unlimited employee accounts. This is an excellent alternative for companies with large numbers of employees who need access to the business's back end.
- Shopify Flow: With Shopify Flow, you can design workflows that automate routine tasks. This will help you save time and allow you to manage your Shopify store more effectively.
- Multiple Storefronts: Shopify Plus lets you manage multiple storefronts on one account. It's ideal for businesses that operate in numerous areas or with various brands.
- Advanced Reporting: Shopify Plus provides additional reports and analytics on how to improve your Shopify store's performance. It also comes with a custom report and dashboards.
- Launchpad: Launchpad Plan is a sales and launch promotion and event. It automatizes various tasks associated with marketing campaigns, making it easier to manage significant events.
- B2B Capabilities: Shopify Plus has B2B (business-to-business) sales features, including custom pricing, wholesale channels, and customer segmentation.

Shopify Plus is built to handle the challenges of running a massive online business. It's specifically designed for businesses that require more than the basics Shopify plans offer and are willing to invest in a platform that will aid in their company's growth.

Also Read: Ultimate Guide to Sell on Shopify Australia

Shopify vs. Shopify Plus: A Comprehensive Comparison

Let's examine their differences now that we know Shopify and Shopify Plus better. Whereas Shopify is perfect for small and mid-sized businesses with minimal needs, Shopify Plus caters more to companies with more complex requirements. Here are some essential points:

Advanced Function

Shopify Plus provides

- Additional customization options than the standard Shopify offers,
- Allowing businesses to customize their online stores to better align with their business's image and values—this personalization results in an engaging customer experience,
- Creating satisfaction and building loyalty.

Shopify Plus provides businesses access to APIs that enable seamless integration with third-party applications and systems. This allows companies to automate various procedures, such as ordering fulfillment, inventory management, and customer service. This reduces manual errors and improves efficiency.

Performance and Scalability

Through Shopify Plus, businesses can expand without technical problems that could hinder expansion. It was created specifically to manage colossal traffic and ensure stable and effective site operation during sales or promotions. Scaling is significant for businesses experiencing rapid growth or anticipating substantial increases in traffic on their sites.

Shopify Plus provides advanced caching methods along with content delivery networks (CDNs) to improve web performance, including faster page loading and the best browsing experience. Rapid content delivery could reduce bounce rates, increase conversion rates, and ultimately increase companies' revenue.

Personalized Support

Businesses using Shopify Plus receive personalized assistance from a dedicated merchant success manager who specializes in Shopify Plus and can tailor their support specifically to your specific business needs.

Merchant Success Programs provide businesses with a customized support system that ensures they can access support for technical issues, strategic advice, and platform enhancement in a prompt and efficient way. The customized support they offer will help businesses overcome any obstacles that may arise on their path to achieving their desired goals and difficulties along the way.

Also Read: Setting Up An Online Business Using Shopify Platform

What Are the Available Shopify Plans?

The greatest benefit of shopping with Shopify is that it comes with pricing plans for businesses of all kinds and sizes. You can also begin your eCommerce journey using the free Shopify themes offered in every plan, which make it simpler to build a beautiful online store with no additional costs.

We'll briefly look at Shopify's pricing plans to understand them.

Shopify Starter

You may not see the plan on Shopify's normal price page, but it's the cheapest plan available. The Shopify Starter plan (replacing the Shopify Lite plan) is $5 monthly.

This program allows you to sell your products on social media without setting up an operational online store. This is a great option for influencers and creators with an established online following.

Shopify Basic

With a monthly cost of $19, it is the perfect plan for small businesses looking to grow rapidly. Through this program, you'll be able to create a fully featured online store and sell a variety of products. You'll also be able to take advantage of features such as 24/7 support, the capability to keep track of inventory, process orders, and offer products in several locations, and many more.

Shopify

This great plan for smaller teams, costing $49, provides all the benefits of the Basic plan. It also includes API PII access and staff accounts for five or more. The Shopify transaction fee is one percent compared to 2% of the base plan. It also offers Shopify one-page checkouts, which streamline the purchasing process to decrease cart abandonment and boost conversion.

Shopify Advanced

The Shopify Advanced plan is a step above the rest for rapidly growing organizations or large-scale businesses. It offers customized analyses and reports, improved support, and many other features. We will discuss them in greater detail in the coming sections.

Shopify Plus

The most current plan available is designed for industry giants. Pricing isn't fixed and could be regarded as competitive. Additionally, it's only available for a one—or three-year period. It is an adaptable and flexible solution for businesses with high volumes, supported by Shopify development company Australia strategic guidance and technical support from Shopify.

Enterprise Commerce

Shopify offers a customized plan exclusively for businesses with many employees. Contact the Shopify team for more details on the plan and cost.

We'll explore Shopify Advanced and Shopify Plus, two of the most popular plans, further examining their unique characteristics, benefits, and compatibility with different commercial contexts. You can currently purchase Shopify Basic, Shopify, and Shopify Advanced plans for $1 for the first month.

Also Read: Pioneering eCommerce Solutions in Australia

Shopify Vs. Shopify Plus: Features to Improve Management

The best tools and features for managing an online store can be the key to running a successful online business. Shopify and Shopify Plus provide robust management options; however, Shopify Plus is more complex for larger companies. In this section, we will compare the management capabilities offered by Shopify and Shopify Plus to find out which is the better choice for running your store.

Inventory Management

Shopify

Shopify provides solid inventory management tools that help you track your inventory, control product variations, and even set up alerts when inventory levels are low. These tools are available on your dashboard and allow you to monitor and change your inventory in real time.

Shopify allows you to sell on several channels: your online store, social media, and physical retail stores. Your inventory is automatically synced between all these channels, which helps prevent overselling while maintaining accurate inventory levels.

Shopify Plus

Shopify Plus offers all the inventory management features available in the standard Shopify plans. For example, Shopify Plus allows third-party inventory management systems and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) instruments to combine more complicated inventory management across different warehouses and locations.

If you manage multiple stores within the same account, Shopify Plus makes it easy to monitor the inventory of all of your stores through the same dashboard. This is especially beneficial for companies that have multiple brands or in different regions.

Order Management

Shopify

Shopify's order management platform handles everything from payment to shipping. The platform has order tracking, automated tax calculation, and integrated shipping with major carriers.

Shopify provides customers with automated emails with information about their order status, including confirmations, shipping information updates, and delivery notifications, improving customer satisfaction and decreasing the time spent on manual communication.

Shopify Plus

Shopify Plus comes with more sophisticated order management tools. These include handling large-volume purchases, big orders, and custom order workflows using Shopify Flow, an automation tool exclusive to Shopify Plus.

Shopify Flow automates order management tasks, such as identifying high-value customers, separating orders for fulfillment centers with different locations, and establishing automated responses to specific orders.

Also Read: How Much Does Shopify Cost In Australia

Customer Management

Shopify

Shopify provides essential customer management. It includes customer profiles with contact information, purchase history, and order preferences. Use this information to customize your marketing and improve customer service.

Shopify lets you segment your customers based on the location of their purchase, their purchasing habits, and the value of the order. This allows you to tailor your advertising campaigns and promotions to certain customer groups.

Shopify Plus

Shopify Plus extends the standard customer management capabilities with more customer insights and more advanced segment options. Customize segments based on more precise information, such as lifetime value, buying frequency, and customer engagement.

Shopify Plus also includes features for managing B2B (business-to-business) customers. These features include customizable prices, wholesale channels, and catalogs customized for each customer, which are essential for companies selling to consumers as well as other companies.

Multi-Store Management

Shopify

The basic Shopify plans are designed to handle only one store. You can add additional sale channels to your accounts; however, each Shopify account has only one storefront. This is sufficient for many small—to medium-sized companies with only one store or brand.

Shopify Plus

Shopify Plus lets you manage multiple storefronts with one account. This is great for companies that have several storefronts, brands, or even different versions of their website. Each storefront has different settings, products, themes, and settings; however, all of them can be controlled from one dashboard.

Also Read: Top Shipping Apps For Shopify Australia

Reporting and Analytics

Shopify

Shopify offers tools for reporting and monitoring your store's performance. These tools include reports on sales, traffic, and reports on customers. These reports can help you track the performance of your store and help you make better business decisions.

The Advanced Shopify plan gives you more comprehensive and custom reports that dig into specific details. These reports can help you better understand your business's performance and identify areas for improvement.

Shopify Plus

Shopify Plus provides even more advanced analytics and reporting. Create custom dashboards that display your business's key metrics, such as conversion rates, customer retention rates, and the average order value.

Shopify Plus connects to third-party analytics tools and business intelligence systems. This means you can integrate your Shopify data with other data sources to learn more details about your business. This can be helpful for large companies with complex operations.

Steps to Implement Shopify Integrations

Implementation of Shopify integrations requires careful planning and execution. Here are the most important steps to ensure integration is successful

Identify Business Needs

The first step in implementing Shopify integrations is to evaluate your business requirements and determine which integrations will provide the most benefits. A thorough internal audit will assist in identifying areas that are not working and areas that could be improved.

- Conduct an Internal Audit: Review the processes and systems to identify integration requirements.
- Find the pain Points: Determine the areas in your business that can benefit most from the integration.
- Set Clear Goals: Define your goals and the results you plan to achieve with these integrations.

Understanding your business's needs is crucial to picking the most appropriate integrations and ensuring they deliver the benefits you desire.

Choose the Right Integration Tools

After identifying your company's requirements, the next step is choosing the appropriate system and tools to integrate. Look into options such as Shopify Flow and third-party apps and APIs that you could alter to see which is most suitable for your needs.

- Examine Options: Consider different platforms and integration tools to determine which one is most suitable for your needs.
- Be aware of your Technical Capabilities. Be sure that the tools you select are compatible with your current technology.
- Select the Most Effective Choice: Select the integration tools that give your business maximum flexibility and value.

The choice of the best tools for integration is crucial to efficient implementation and sustainability.

Implementation and Testing

After you've decided on the integration tools, the next step is to set up and use the integrated tools. The Shopify Sandbox environment allows users to test the integration thoroughly prior to launching it and making sure it functions as intended.

- Integrate Configure: Configure the integration tool you want to utilize.
- Ensure to Test Thoroughly: Test using sandbox environments integrations and identify any issues.
- Check Function: Verify that the integrations work according to plan and give the expected outcomes.

It is essential to test thoroughly to ensure that all integrations work correctly and do not disrupt operations.

Also Read: Customization To Build Shopify Development Store

Top Brands That Make Use of Shopify Plus

From top business executives worldwide and even niche-market disruptors, various powerful businesses have used the unique capabilities and features available with Shopify Plus for e-commerce businesses. These are the top brands that use Shopify Plus:

Kylie Cosmetics

Kylie Cosmetics, renowned worldwide for its exceptional cosmetics, has made the prudent decision to use Shopify Plus to manage its numerous distributors effectively. Kylie Cosmetics required a centralized solution through an internet-based eCommerce shop, pop-ups at physical premises, and a brick-and-mortar store. Shopify Plus emerged as the most appropriate platform for the company's needs.

Utilizing the numerous options and Shopify Plus benefits, Kylie Cosmetics is a pro at providing attractive promotions and bundles supported by a strong and flexible marketing infrastructure.

GymShark

GymShark is a well-known brand of accessories and sportswear that has chosen Shopify Plus as its eCommerce platform. With a presence across 130 nations and relationships with online retailers worldwide, GymShark required a robust solution that could facilitate seamless business operations worldwide.

Shopify Plus offers the essential features and advantages to meet customers' diverse needs, such as the ability to adapt themes easily to marketing campaigns' needs and effectively manage international logistics shipping.

With the help of Shopify Plus, GymShark has established itself as a reputable participant in the competitive E-commerce website market.

BuzzFeed News

BuzzFeed News is an eminent web-based news site that uses the advantages offered by Shopify Plus, specifically solutions for Theme Design and Shopify app development in Australia. This efficient Shopify Plus feature empowers BuzzFeed News to present information in a user-friendly manner, which allows easy navigation and categorization of news stories.

Through the use of custom sections, people with specific needs, such as news or culture, can gain access to an extensive range of information on their favorite subjects. Shopify Plus enhances BuzzFeed News' ability to deliver engaging and relevant information to its viewers.

Conclusion

In this article, we've explored the key differences between Shopify and Shopify Plus. From customized themes and integrations to specialized assistance and account administration, both platforms offer powerful tools and resources to help merchants succeed in the competitive eCommerce marketplace.

For small and medium-sized companies, Shopify presents a user-friendly platform that makes setting up and running an online store easy. Anyone who wants to enhance the appearance and functionality of their store can consult a Shopify developer in Australia for a professional revamp. With affordable pricing plans, a vast number of applications, and comprehensive support tools, Shopify lays a solid base for businesses to build an online presence and speed up growth.

However, Shopify Plus caters specifically to high-volume and enterprise-level businesses and comes with advanced features, customizable options, and dedicated customer support. The transition from Shopify and Shopify Plus involves upgrading plans to benefit from an entirely new pricing structure and features tailored to the particular requirements of larger enterprises.

While Shopify Plus is a bit more expensive than the regular package, the Shopify Plus plan entails higher costs than other plans that Shopify offers. However, it has advantages such as exclusive account management, the ability to get priority support, and advanced customization options that permit users to maximize the platform's potential and continue to grow and achieve the success they deserve.

If you're considering using Shopify and Shopify Plus, the key to success is knowing your company's needs, using the system's features to the maximum extent possible, and having the best shopify development company in Australia assist you in the right direction.