Expert Review of the Shopwired E-commerce Platform

4.5/5 - (2 votes)

Shopwired is an e-commerce platform designed to help brands and retailers build, manage, and optimize their online stores. In this blog post, I’ll be sharing my personal experience using Shopwired to run an online store, along with an overview of its key features, pros and cons, pricing, and some helpful tips.



1. A Bit About My E-commerce Business

Before diving into the Shopwired review, let me give you some background on my e-commerce business. I run a small online store selling handmade jewelry and accessories. I started on Etsy but eventually wanted my own branded website so I could have more control over my brand and customer experience.

My key needs for an e-commerce platform were:

  • Easy-to-use store builder and content management
  • SEO optimization features
  • Integrated payment processing
  • Inventory and order management
  • Customer support and community forums

After researching options like Shopify, BigCommerce, and Volusion, I ultimately went with Shopwired based on the features, flexibility, and pricing model.



2. Hands-On Experience With Key Shopwired Features

Now onto the Shopwired review! Here are some of the key features I’ve used and what the experience has been like:


2.1 Store Builder and Theme Customization

Shopwired has a drag-and-drop store builder that makes it easy to quickly build out product categories, pages, content, etc. I was able to launch my initial store in just a couple of days. Their template themes are modern and look great on both desktop and mobile. You can use the base templates or customize everything from colors to fonts.

I was able to match my brand styling very easily just by tweaking their debut theme. The page builder is intuitive with options to add sections, product grids, banners, and more.


shopwired-dashboard

2.2 SEO and Marketing Capabilities

Optimizing my site for search engines was critical. Shopwired has built-in SEO features like customizable metadata, XML sitemaps, SEO-friendly URL structures, and more.

I was able to boost my site traffic within the first few months by taking advantage of these SEO optimizations and integrating my blog. All my product and blog content is indexed quickly and showing up on Google searches.

Shopwired also provides other marketing features like email campaign creation, user retargeting, and syncing with MailChimp. I use email campaigns to send promotions, drive sales, and recover cart abandons.


2.3 Payment Processing and Shipping

Shopwired uses Worldpay as its default payment processor which makes taking online payments easy and secure. I was able to accept both credit cards and PayPal right out of the box.

The platform also integrates with major shipping carriers like USPS, UPS, FedEx, and DHL. I’m able to calculate real-time shipping rates, print labels, track shipments, and more.

Order management and fulfillment have been a breeze!


2.4 Inventory and Order Management

Managing my product catalog and incoming orders has been easy with Shopwired. It has robust inventory management features so I can track stock levels and SKUs. I can update inventory across multiple sales channels when orders come in.

The order management dashboard lets me quickly see and manage orders from a central location. I can check order statuses, send order notifications, print packing slips, and more.


shopwired-features

2.5 Customer Support Resources

As a new user, I heavily relied on Shopwired’s online knowledge base, tutorials, forums, and customer support team. They have a ton of resources like step-by-step articles, videos, and guides.

The community forums have also been invaluable. I was able to connect with other Shopwired sellers to get questions answered and learn best practices.

And the 24/7 customer support has helped whenever I’ve needed more in-depth troubleshooting or configuration assistance. Overall the customer service experience has been fantastic.



3. Shopwired Pricing and Plans

Shopwired offers 4 main subscription plans:

  • Basic – $25/month (up to 100 products)
  • Standard – $75/month (up to 2,500 products)
  • Plus – $150/month (up to 10,000 products)
  • Pro – $300/month (up to 25,000 products)

The main difference between plans is how many products you can upload. All plans include unlimited bandwidth and storage.

I started with the Standard plan which has been perfect for my catalog size of around 500 products. The pricing is very competitive compared to other hosted platforms. They also occasionally run promotions for discounted first-time subscriptions.

One nice perk is that Shopwired doesn’t charge extra transaction fees beyond the monthly fee. Overall I’ve been really happy with the value I get from their pricing.



4. Pros of Using Shopwired

Based on my experience so far, here are some of the main benefits and pros of using Shopwired:

  • Easy-to-use platform – The store builder, content management and product catalog management have an intuitive drag-and-drop interface and workflow.
  • SEO-optimized – Comes with built-in SEO features to improve site optimization and ranking for e-commerce searches.
  • Great designs and themes – Modern, converting templates and design capabilities for branding your store.
  • Lightning-fast performance – Shopwired stores have excellent load speeds and uptime from their fast hosting infrastructure.
  • Robust features – Has all the key e-commerce features needed for managing and growing an online store.
  • Terrific support – Knowledge base, community, tutorials, and 24/7 customer service provide amazing support.
  • Cost-effective pricing – Very affordable plans compared to other major e-commerce platforms. No extra transaction fees.


5. Potential Downsides to Consider

While I’ve been extremely happy with Shopwired, there are a few potential downsides to consider:

  • Less apps and integrations – Being newer, their app marketplace has fewer 3rd party integrations than platforms like Shopify and BigCommerce.
  • Limited theme selection – They currently have around 10 themes versus hundreds on some other platforms. But you can still customize the themes significantly.
  • No brick-and-mortar retail – Shopwired is focused purely on online stores. Other platforms like Shopify support integrated in-store POS.
  • Less brand awareness – It doesn’t have the name recognition of Shopify or other incumbents, which may require some customer education.

For my needs as a small online retailer, none of these downsides have been blockers. But they are factors to weigh if you have a larger catalog, retail presence, or need specific app integrations.



6. Tips for Getting Started With Shopwired

If you’re considering building your e-commerce store on Shopwired, here are my top tips:

  • Choose the right theme – Pick a theme that aligns closest to your brand style and customize it to match your colors, logo, etc.
  • Import your catalog – Use their bulk import tool to quickly import your products. Make sure SEO data like titles, and descriptions are optimized.
  • Set up payments – Integrate your preferred payment gateway and fraud protection. They have guides to walk you through this.
  • Configure shipping – Connect your shipping carriers to calculate real-time rates and print labels.
  • Leverage apps and integrations – Connect important tools for reviews, accounting, email marketing, analytics, etc.
  • Optimize SEO settings – Update all SEO and metadata in the platform settings for better indexing.
  • Promote your store – Run email, social media, and search marketing. Use their promo tools to create coupons and banners.
  • Provide great content – High-quality product descriptions, images, and blog content improve conversions and SEO.

Following these best practices will help you launch and grow your Shopwired store successfully!



7. Is Shopwired Right For Your E-commerce Business?

Shopwired is an excellent choice for small to mid-sized e-commerce merchants looking for an affordable but full-featured hosted platform. The ease of use, built-in SEO, and robust default features make it beginner-friendly. Yet it still scales to support larger product catalogs and higher transaction volumes.

If you need advanced customizations, niche industry integrations, or brick-and-mortar retail support, then Shopwired may not be the best fit. But for most online-only retailers selling on popular channels, Shopwired hits the sweet spot.

To summarize my Shopwired review – I highly recommend the platform based on my great experience so far! It provides tremendous value at very reasonable price points.


Get an Extended 60 Day Free Trial

For being a reader of my blog, you can sign up through below coupon code to take advantage of an extended 60-day free trial of Shopwired:

shopwired-coupon-code

This will allow you to thoroughly test the platform using your own catalog before deciding. Take Shopwired for a spin today!



8. User Reviews of Shopwired

Here are a few Shopwired user testimonials and reviews from other online retailers:

Sarah D., Newport Jewelers: “We’ve been able to grow our online jewelry store much quicker thanks to the SEO optimization and marketing features Shopwired provides. Sales are up over 200% year-over-year since launching our store on the platform last year.”

Mark S., American Gourmet Foods: “As a small supplier of specialty foods, Shopwired made it easy for us to get our products online quickly. We love the 24/7 support and forums to get help whenever needed. Our store looks and functions great!”

Olivia C., Rustic Design Co.: “With Shopwired’s excellent templates and customization options, I was able to quickly build a beautiful online store that represents my hand-crafted furniture brand. My customers love the shopping experience and checkout is easy and reliable.”



9. Shopwired Pricing Plans Comparison

Here is a quick comparison table of Shopwired’s four pricing plan options:

PlanBasicStandardPlusPro
Monthly Price$25$75$150$300
Number of ProductsUp to 100Up to 2,500Up to 10,000Up to 25,000
BandwidthUnlimitedUnlimitedUnlimitedUnlimited
StorageUnlimitedUnlimitedUnlimitedUnlimited
Payment ProcessingYesYesYesYes
Shipping IntegrationYesYesYesYes
Support24/7 Chat & Email24/7 Chat & Email24/7 Chat & Email24/7 Chat & Email
Premium Theme1124


10. Shopwired Alternatives

Shopify, BigCommerce, Volusion, Wix, WooCommerce, Squarespace



11. Final Thoughts

I hope this detailed Shopwired review has provided helpful insight into using their e-commerce platform based on my real-world experience. For online retailers that value ease of use, great design, built-in SEO and marketing features, and reasonable pricing – Shopwired is worth considering.



12. Video Review



13. FAQ’s:

  1. Does Shopwired offer a free trial?

    Yes, Shopwired offers a 14-day free trial to test out the platform. Use the above promo code for an extended 60-day free trial.

  2. What payment gateways does Shopwired integrate with?

    Shopwired supports over 100 payment gateways including Stripe, PayPal, Authorize.Net, and major credit card processors.

  3. Can I use my own domain name with Shopwired?

    Yes, you can use a custom domain name with Shopwired stores. They provide free SSL certificates to support HTTPS as well.

  4. Does Shopwired allow dropshipping?

    Yes, Shopwired supports dropshipping workflows. You can fulfill orders directly from suppliers.

  5. What languages and currencies does Shopwired support?

    It supports building stores in 15+ languages and 60+ currencies.


Have any other questions? Feel free to leave a comment below!

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