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Shopify Tutorials — Step-by-step guides for building with Shopify
ShopifyIf you’ve ever dreamed of running your own online business, you’ve probably come across Shopify. Today, it’s one of the leading eCommerce platforms worldwide — powering more than 4.8 million websites globally, including thousands of successful Australian businesses. Shopify enables entrepreneurs, small business owners, and even large enterprises to create professional-looking stores without requiring in-depth technical knowledge.
Why, then, are Shopify tutorials so worthwhile? In short, they eliminate the learning curve. Whether you are a total newbie or someone who wants to cultivate an existing business, this step-by-step guide takes you from store configuration to advanced customisation.
In this Shopify step-by-step guide, we’ll walk you through everything—from creating your Shopify account to opening your store and optimising it for sales. You will also learn how to customise themes, add applications, set up payments, and explore advanced features such as Liquid customisation and workflow automation.
By the end of this article, you’ll understand exactly how to build Shopify store tailored to your brand and customers.
1. Starting with Shopify
Creating a Shopify Account
Step 1 in your Shopify journey is signing up for an account. Go to Shopify.com, click “Free Try Start,” and follow the steps. Shopify offers a complimentary 3-day evaluation, allowing you to test the features before selecting a plan.
Understanding The Shopify Panel And Navigation
When you log in, you will be taken to the Shopify panel. This is the core of your store, where you manage products, sales, applications, analysis, and settings. It’s neat and simple enough for beginners to use, which is one reason Shopify beginner tutorials are straightforward to navigate.
Selecting a Plan That Works for Your Store
Shopify has several plans ranging from Basic to Advanced, with features such as reporting, staff accounts, and international sales tools. The Basic plan ($51 AUD/month) will suffice for most small businesses in Australia to start with.
2. Creating Your Online Store
Choosing and Installing a Theme
Themes give your store its look and feel.Shopify offers free and paid themes within the Shopify Theme Store. Select one that fits your niche — say fashion, tech, or food.
Paid themes tend to come with premium features, such as mega menus or quick product views, but free ones, like Dawn or Craft, are great to begin with.
This is too often underplayed but vital. Your customers decide whether to visit your store in under 10 seconds, so your brand should resonate immediately.
- Logo: Add a high-resolution logo that displays well on both desktop and mobile.
- Colours: Stick to 2–3 brand colours. For example, many Australian lifestyle brands utilise earth tones that reflect the local culture.
- Fonts: Make it readable. Steer clear of too fancy fonts for body copy.
If you need more control, use a how-to customise Shopify theme tutorial or invest in Shopify website development services from a professional Shopify web developer for the best results.
Adding Essential Pages
Do not forget the essentials:
- Home: Promote your bestsellers or promotions.
- About: Tell your brand story.
- Contact: Include forms or contact details.
- Policies: Refund, privacy, and shipping policies are essential for trust.
Adding these pages in front will save headaches in line compliance.
3. Adding Products to Shopify
Adding Products Manually and in Bulk
Go to Products > Add Product and upload one product at a time. To bulk upload, use the CSV import feature to save time.
Writing product descriptions that sell
Your descriptions should focus on benefits, not resources. Example: Instead of “cotton shirt”, it is fresh all day in this 100% breathable cotton shirt, perfect for Australian summers.”
Optimised description tips:
- Use keywords naturally.
- Mention sizes, care instructions, and material.
- Add narrative — in what way does this product enhance a person’s life?
Organising Products into Collections
Collections facilitate easier navigation. Examples: “Men’s Shoes”, “Women’s Accessories” or “selling items”. This is better for customer experience and Shopify product page optimisation.
Tip: Utilise smart collections to automatically group items according to tags such as “Summer” or “Best Sellers.”
4. Setting Shopify Settings
Setting Up Payment Gateways
Shopify has several payment providers it can integrate with, such as Shopify Payments, PayPal, and Afterpay — a favourite in Australia. Follow a Shopify payment setup tutorial to walk you through adding and testing your payment gateway.
Setting Shipping and Tax Options
Offer flat-rate, free shipping, or weight-based shipping options. For Australian stores, connecting with carriers like Australia Post ensures efficient delivery. Taxes can be automatically configured by region.
Setting Up Email Notifications
Personalise email notifications to order confirmations, shipments, or cart abandonment. This increases trust and conversion.
5. Shopify App Installation
Best Apps to Install
Applications enhance your store functionality. Examples:
- SEO Manager – optimises search visibility.
- Klaviyo – for email marketing campaigns.
- ReConvert – upselling and cross-selling.
Shopify App Installation Guide
Go to the App Store, search, and touch “Add App.” Install through the instructions. This is easy, but don’t forget not to overburden apps — it will impact site speed.
App Performance Management Tips
- Install necessary apps only.
- Monitor the app’s effect on speed regularly.
- Maintain apps updated.
6. Optimising Your Shopify Store
Mobile Responsiveness
Australians prefer shopping on mobiles. Make your theme awesome on every screen.
Site Speed Optimisation
Use compressed images, don’t have heavy scripts, and use apps sparingly. Quicker stores equal better conversions.
SEO Optimisation
SEO is where beginners go wrong. To rank better:
- Include meta titles/descriptions for every page.
- Optimise images with text alt.
- Publish blog posts with keywords to generate organic traffic.
And to understand how visuals influence conversions, read our own insight: The Psychology Behind Shopify Store Design.
Intuitive Navigation
Have simple menus: “Shop,” “New Arrivals,” “Sale.” Use breadcrumbs to improve UX.
7. Testing and Launching Your Shopify Store
Previewing Your Store
Shopify allows previews, so test how your site looks and works before going live.
Testing Payments
Run test transactions to ensure a smooth checkout process.
Launch Checklist
- Confirm payment and shipping are set up.
- Test emails and notifications.
- Ensure your domain is connected.
Once done, click Launch — your store is live!
8. Deep Dive: Theme Customisation Beyond Basics
Whereas simple branding (logo, colour scheme, font) puts your Shopify store on the road, spending time perfecting the visual experience really pays off in terms of how customers interact. Consider your theme to be your virtual shopfront — similar to how high streets invest in window displays, your Shopify homepage must welcome people in.
The following are a few advanced theme customisation tips:
- Hero Banner Strategy: Employ quality hero images or sliders with concise CTAs such as “Shop Now” or “Discover New Arrivals.”
- Trust Signals: Include logos of payment options (e.g., Visa, Mastercard, Afterpay) or badges (e.g., “Australian Owned”) to establish trust.
- Dynamic Sections: The new themes of Shopify 2.0 simply allow for dragging and dropping content blocks. Highlight testimonials, featured items, or blogs on your homepage to encourage additional engagement.
- Personalised icons: Replace standard icons with brand-aligned ones (e.g., delivery trucks for shipping information).
If you are not confident in editing liquid files, working with Shopify website developers ensures that your store’s design not only looks impressive but also remains mobile-friendly and optimised for conversion.
9. Product Page Optimisation for Higher Conversions
Consider product pages as sales representatives — they should persuade, establish trust, and close the sale. Most Australian Shopify stores miss out on potential sales due to cookie-cutter product descriptions and subpar design.
Here’s how to optimise them:
- Social Proof: Include product reviews and ratings through apps such as Judge.me or Loox. Australians value colleagues’ endorsements of plain ads.
- Discovery of scarcity: Show current amounts of inventory or limited-time offers (“only 3 remaining!” Or “sale ends in 2 days”).
- Upselling a Crusade Sale: Offer related products (“Combine this shirt with our ecological jeans”).
- High-quality visuals: Add 360° photos, videos, or lifestyle photos so that buyers can see the product in real use.
Following a Shopify product page optimisation strategy is known to increase additional rates by up to 20%.
10. Advanced Tips & Tutorials
Streamlining Workflows with Shopify Flow
Apply automation to handle stock, send reminders, or automatically offer discounts.
Utilising Analytics and Reports
Monitor sales, traffic sources, and customer behaviour. These help make more informed decisions.
Customising Shopify Using Liquid
Liquid is Shopify’s templating language. Although not required, advanced users or a Shopify web developer can leverage it to generate custom layouts and dynamic content.
Growing with Internationalisation
Looking to go international? For Australian brands, this translates into being able to enter markets such as New Zealand or Asia.
Upselling and Cross-Selling
Utilise applications like Bold Upsell or reconvert to increase the average order value. Minor adjustments in checkout can add tremendous revenue.
Case Study: Elsner Technologies Australia Success Story
Client: Apollo Patios
Industry: Home & Outdoor Solutions
Apollo Patios, an Australian premium outdoor lifestyle brand, needed to elevate its online presence by developing an aggressive, scalable, and easy-to-use e-commerce solution. They were sent to Elsner Technologies Australia, a well-established Shopify Development company with extensive experience in creating personalised online stores.
The Challenge
Apollo Patios needed a website that would not only feature their large product line but also enable customers to visualise customised patios and outdoor solutions. The twist was in combining an intuitive frontend with robust backend support for quotes, enquiries, and lead generation.
The Solution
Elsner’s skilled Shopify website developers collaborated with the Apollo Patios team to design a custom Shopify website development strategy. This involved a Shopify ecommerce setup guide
- A totally custom Shopify theme with brand identity.
- A user-friendly product configurator for bespoke patio solutions.
- Third-party app integration for lead management.
- SEO optimisation for strong visibility in local Australian markets.
The Result
- In just six months of operation, Apollo Patios enjoyed:
- A 40% increase in online enquiries.
- Better search rankings across primary outdoor living keywords.
- Increased customer engagement through easy navigation and quick site performance.
Discover more about how Elsner transforms Shopify stores into powerful revenue-generating platforms. Read More story →
Conclusion
Building an online store doesn’t have to be complicated. With this Step-by-Step Guide from Shopify, now you are accurately:
- Learn how to configure your account and explore the panel.
- Learn how to customise themes, add products and configure the key settings.
- How to use apps, optimise your site, and test before launch.
- How to scale further with powerful tools such as Liquid and automation.
Learning how to build Shopify store is one of the best investments an entrepreneur can make. Start small, continue to optimise, and prioritise the provision of excellent customer service.
If you are ready to take your store to the next level, partnering with a professional team like Elsner Technologies Australia can save time and ensure that your business is built for success.
Start your Shopify store today and make your mark in the Australian eCommerce space!
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Is Shopify suitable for beginners?
Yes, Shopify is undoubtedly one of the most friendly ecommerce platforms for beginners. Using drag-and-release features, simple navigation, and a wealth of tutorials for Shopify beginners, even someone without coding skills can have a professional-looking store up and running in no time.
2. How much will it cost for a Shopify store?
Shopify plans in Australia start at approximately $ 51 AUD per month for the basic plan. The extra expenses can be themes, apps, and transaction fees. The overall setup cost will vary depending on the number of premium features you implement during the Shopify store setup.
3. Can I customise my Shopify theme without coding?
Yes. Shopify’s theme editor allows you to modify colours, fonts, and layouts easily. For deeper modifications, for example, liquid coding, you can hire a Shopify web developer or look for tutorials on how to customise Shopify theme for improved changes.
4. Which are the best Shopify apps to install first?
Some of the most used apps are Klaviyo (email marketing), SEO Manager (SEO tools), and ReConvert (upsells and thank-you page customisation). A Shopify app installation guide will help you install them.
5. How do I optimise my Shopify product pages?
Begin with descriptive descriptions, good images, and reviews. Employ keywords organically in titles and goal descriptions for SEO. Adopting a Shopify product page optimisation plan can significantly increase conversions and improve visibility.
