How To Start an Online Store in 2024 with Ecwid

Hi folks. Welcome to our quick guide to Ecwid by Lightspeed and see how to start an online store with Ecwid.

With this easy to follow guide we will be assuming you have all the core elements of your business set up. For example, have your business registered and set up, have branding with logos etc. and are looking to add e-commerce to the business set up.
Let us know in the comments if you would like a more in-depth start to finish blog and we will get straight on it!

With that, let’s get into it!

What are your specific needs?

Firstly, lets find out what you need to get selling. This will help us pick the correct plan for your business.
To do this you need to ask yourself a few simple questions.

1. How many products will I have available to sell and will they have variations?
2. Do I need email marketing set up from the get go?
3. Am I connecting my store to an existing website or do I need an instant site?

As stated above, we are here to cover the basics of just how easy it is to start an online store in 2024 with Ecwid by Lightspeed and to find out which plan is for you.
If you are only dipping your toes and seeing if Ecwid will work for you, the first thing we would suggest is setting up a Free Account with us and taking it for a test drive. With your Free Trial you can check every element of the e-commerce platform out, see how the Instant Sites work and how to tweak the designs, how adding products works, see the delivery set up process and much more. Then, when you are ready to sign up just upgrade your account with us. Simple!

If you are ready to rock and add some products the next thing to consider is which plan to upgrade to.

With Ecwids straightforward pricing, you pay for what you need and no more. Pay month to month with their super competitive pricing structure or save by going with an annual fee. And that’s it for the Ecwid platform, from here you can set up your site, add to as many existing sites as you like and much more.

The only other fees you will pay are

1. To whatever Payment Gateway you set up, for e.g. Stripe which at the time of posting are as follows: Pay 1.5% + €0.25 per online transaction for standard European cards, 2.5% + €0.25 for UK cards. Custom rates are available for qualified businesses

2. If you decide to add some plugins for extra functionality from the App Market like a Marketing App or a Smart Discounts App. These are individually priced.

Which plan is for me?

If you only have a few items to get selling, the Venture plan is probably for you. You can get your Instant Site set up, add up to 100 products, use discount coupons, have access to support if needed and is priced accordingly at only €21 ex VAT per month when paid annually. It is a great value option for Start Up Businesses and is a great pick for smaller stores or artists who would not have much inventory.

If and when you are ready to level up, you can upgrade when it suits you to to the Business Plan.

The Business Plan is more than enough for most, and at just €39 ex VAT per month it is superb value. All you will need to supercharge your ecommerce in one plan. Everything from Ecwid’s Venture plan is included, plus you get Multi Page Websites, Automatic Abandoned Cart E-Mails, up to 2500 products (more than enough!) 2 Staff Accounts, the ability to sell on marketplaces, custom url slugs, phone support and much more.

If you grow past this plan, congratulations, you have made it in E-Commerce Retail but Ecwid still have another level to go if needed. Their Unlimited Plan not only adds unlimited products, it also adds the option to sell via a branded mobile app, POS integration, unlimited staff accounts and priority support from Ecwid’s dedicated support team.

How do I sign up to Ecwid by Lightspeed?

Signing up to Ecwid by Lightspeed is a cinch. Just head to their home page and you choose what option suits you best. Get their free forever trial account or dive straight in and pick an E-Commerce plan to suit your needs.

Going for a Free Trial is a good option if you want to learn a little bit about how our platform works. You can test out all of the options available to you and see how you do the basics like adding products, set up shipping, create an instant site with one of the premade templates and more.

If you have decided what Ecwid Plan fits your business you can use their Secure Checkout and subscribe to your plan there and then on a monthly rolling contract or save some money by signing up to an annual e-commerce plan.

From here they will on-board you to your new account and have you set up instantly. And don’t worry, if you chose to go for a free trial account, any work you have done on your trial account will remain on the upgraded account.

What if I want to add it to my existing site?

Adding the store to an existing site could not be easier. You can just follow the online guide available through their extensive Help Center.

This gives you the knowledge you need to add/integrate your new online store to your existing site, to just add a category or to add Buy Buttons. You will also see how to add your store to an existing WordPress website. This is done by adding the special WordPress specific plugin to your websites backend.

Once installed and activated, the plugin automatically creates a Store page where your customers can shop with you. You can set up and manage your online store right from your WordPress back-end. The store admin area is built in there, so you can manage your entire e-commerce website from one place. It is the perfect solution and a streamlined integration process.

Can I add my own domain to the store?

Simply put, yes. You can add your domain by pointing it to the store through the backend. Again, if you are struggling with this our handy help center will have a step by step guide to getting this sorted for you.

All accounts will initially be set up on a sub domain assigned by Ecwid. You can continue to use this for as long as you want but we would advise that you use your own domain for brand recognition. If you are looking for a new domain you could always head to our other site Socialwise Digital where you could pick up a new domain on a number of TLD’s or new to Ecwid, Buy your own domain on Ecwid, and have it automatically connected to your store. Plus, get a free SSL certificate, all at a discounted, locked-in fee.

Some good to know options!

Connecting social media to your store is an easy task. These can be connecting from the backend with ease. Find them under their specific section, click the connect buttons and follow the steps.

Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, Google Shopping and more can easily be connected with a few clicks of your mouse.

Setting up shipping is also done from the backend. Simply go to the Shipping & Pick Up section and follow the guide. Add shipping by weight, by zone, add promotions and more. It’s simple.

You can also connect Mailchimp for e-mail marketing. This is great for keeping in touch with your customers. The connection is free but Mailchimp will charge a fee depending on what plan you are on.

There is also the option to add omnisend, a similar platform to Mailchimp. Again, this connection is free but with a paid plan through Omnisend once you sign up. They do have a free option if you are just starting out which is fantastic. This will cover abandoned cart e-mails, campaigns and more.

So what do you think?

Getting started with Ecwid by Lightspeed is a breeze and offers a great value all in one offering for starting an online business.

With their Get Started for Free option (and Free means Free!) it’s a bit of a no brainer to sign up and take it for a test run. Plus, you won’t need a Credit Card to sign up either so it is definitely risk free.

There are plenty of Pros to Ecwid so why not hop on over for a look now. Thanks for reading and if you have any questions or comments feel free to leave them below and be sure to sign up to our newsletter.