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Before becoming a multimillion-dollar beauty mogul, Ann McFerran was building her career as an independent artist. But her whole life changed when she came up with the idea for magnetic eyelash extensions. She launched Glamnetic, solving common issues associated with eyelash glue.

Ann used her degree in psychobiology and her love of makeup to develop the first set of lashes. With her limited budget and savvy negotiating skills, she kept production costs low and brought in $50 million in revenue after one year. Glamnetic’s innovation continued to take off, with brands like Sanrio, Sephora, and Ulta Beauty reaching out for partnerships. 

Ann’s invention has permanently changed the false lash game. A huge factor in her success was her ability to keep costs low and bootstrap to launch her brand.

 

How to bring your product to market on a small budget 

When you first start a business, keep your operating costs as low as possible so you can reinvest profits back into the company. Following Ann’s advice, you’ll be able to launch your first product without breaking the bank.

1. Sample, sample, and sample again

There’s a lot that goes on in the time between coming up with a product idea and launching it to the world. To avoid wasting money on failed production runs, testing and sampling are key.

Ann used Google and YouTube to research the top 150 vendors that could make her magnetic lashes. “It took over a year and a half to develop, because it took me a while to understand what to look for to find the right one,” Ann says. She ordered more than 100 different samples and tested the magnetic eyelash strips herself before placing a full order. 

2. Use spreadsheets to stay organized 

During the development process, Ann kept detailed notes on a free Google Spreadsheet to track the vendors she was sampling. “I would make columns for each requirement, like magnet numbers, durability, and price per unit,” Ann says.

Having her requirements outlined made the selection process much easier when it came time to place the pull purchase order. “[After everything was said and done], I found two that could make the samples how I wanted them,” Ann says.

3. Do everything yourself

While it will be a slower process, Ann suggests learning every aspect of production that you can accomplish yourself. “If you want a professional photoshoot, prices can get really high, which is why I just learned how to do it by myself,” she says. 

When it came time for ecommerce photos, Ann turned to Bumble BFF and offered women free headshots with hair and makeup included if they were willing to be part of her brand photoshoot. “I bought everything [for the shoot] on Amazon and then just did it myself,” Ann says. She learned best practices online using search tools like YouTube and Google. 

Launching a new product can take a lot of time and money, but there are ways to minimize costs. Take your time during development and avoid expensive fees by slowing down the process and managing things one at a time, on your own.

Using popular Instagram hashtags can help you extend your reach, engage your audience, and please the Instagram algorithm. In order to get these benefits, you need to find and use the right hashtags on Instagram for your content.

This article contains a list of trending Instagram hashtags for 2024, tips on how to select the right Instagram hashtag for your post, plus a list of the best Instagram hashtag generators.

If you want to promote your brand or learn how to make money on Instagram, these tactics are for you. You can also check our guide on how to get followers on Instagram if you’re looking to build an audience.

What are Instagram hashtags?

Hashtags are your best friend for sorting and finding content on Instagram. Created using the “#” symbol, Instagram hashtags are attached to things you post on Instagram and become clickable and searchable topics.

Any word or phrase can be turned into a working hashtag, as long as it has a # placed in front of it. Numbers can be used inside hashtags, but spaces and special characters can’t. On Instagram, most creators use hashtags to join trends, and help audiences discover their content.

How hashtags work on Instagram

You can use up to 30 hashtags on every Instagram post. Those posts need to be public—if your profile is set to private, any hashtags you use won’t appear on discovery pages.

When users click on a hashtag, they’re taken to its discover feed, which shows all the public content attached to it. People will click on or search for hashtags they’re interested in as a way of finding content on Instagram.

Users can also follow hashtags they’re interested in, ensuring that relevant content appears in their feed regularly.

Hashtags on Instagram Stories

Instagram Stories has a hashtag sticker, which lets you place working hashtags onto your Stories. Users who click will be taken to the hashtag’s feed, just like they would if they’d clicked on a hashtag in your post.

Hashtags on Instagram Reels

Hashtags work similarly for Reels, helping the Instagram algorithm categorize your content so it shows up in a user’s Explore feed.

Do hashtags still work on Instagram?

Hashtags are still a valid tool to help your Instagram account grow—but the way that Instagram hashtags work has changed slightly.

Basically, the Instagram algorithm will reward engaging content by featuring it more prominently on hashtag pages and explore pages.

That means the best way to use Instagram hashtags is create and tag quality content that keeps people on the Instagram platform. Once that content begins to receive interactions, the algorithm should notice and amplify your post.

So, while adding hashtags to your content won’t automatically mean more views or followers, hashtags are a legitimate way to boost the visibility of content that already performs well.

Since hashtags are used with an intent to discover content, the right hashtags can put you in front of your target audience, even if they haven’t connected with you before.

Recognizing their importance on the platform, Instagram has expanded the functionality of hashtags. For instance, brands can now add hashtags to the profile section of their Instagram bios.

💡 Tip: Shopify comes with powerful integrated tools that help you list, promote and sell products on Facebook and Instagram. Create product collections, showcase your brand and products, and make sales on Facebook and Instagram without leaving your Shopify admin.

Top 50 Instagram hashtags for 2024

Here’s how brands are using popular Instagram hashtags in 2024:

1. #love (2.1B)
2. #instagood (1.7B)
3. #instagram (1.2B)
4. #fashion (1.1B)
5. #photooftheday (1B)
6. #photography (1B)
7. #photo (1B)
8. #beautiful (833M)
9. #nature (798M)
10. #picoftheday (726M)
11. #travel (717M)
12. #instadaily (659M)
13. #style (652M)
14. #tbt (585M)
15. #repost (561M)
16. #followme (557M)
17. #summer (556M)
18. #like4like (513M)
19. #instalike (516M)
20. #food (515M)
21. #beauty (538M)
22. #fitness (530M)
23. #me (456M)
24. #music (452M)
25. #selfie (452M)
26. #friends (442M)
27. #smile (439M)
28. #ootd (433M)
29. #girl (428M)
30. #life (445M)
31. #trending (445M)
32. #family (441M)
33. #sunset (328M)
34. #likeforlike (327M)
35. #artist (325M)
36. #model (365M)
37. #motivation (365M)
38. #design (362M)
39. #dogsofinstagram (313M)
40. #followforfollowback (303M)
41. #follow (303M)
42. #foodporn (304M)
43. #beach (298M)
44. #amazing (287M)
45. #nofilter (285M)
46. #instamood (283M)
47. #igers (277M)
48. #makeup (401M)
49. #trendingreels (164M)
50. #trend (134M)

Top Instagram hashtags by category for 2024

There is a lot to consider when working with Instagram hashtags.

Below, you’ll find the best Instagram hashtags, sorted by categories like industry or event. Choose a relevant category to start the process of fleshing out your hashtag strategy.

Best hashtags for likes and follows

1. #likes
2. #like
3. #follow
4. #likeforlikes
5. #love
6. #instagood
7. #instagram
8. #followforfollowback
9. #followme
10. #photooftheday
11. #fyp
12. #instalike
13. #photography
14. #l
15. #instadaily
16. #me
17. #picoftheday
18. #beautiful
19. #myself
20. #likeforfollow
21. #fashion
22. #smile
23. #followers
24. #likeforlike
25. #followback
26. #f
27. #followforfollow
28. #comment
29. #likesforlikes
30. #bhfyp

💡 Good to know: No promises on the quality of the followers or likes you’ll receive from these hashtags, as these and other related tags are typically used by new Instagram accounts looking to trade likes and follows.

Best Instagram Reels hashtags

1. #reels
2. #reelsvideo
3. #reelsinstagram
4. #reelsindia
5. #holareels
6. #reelsbrasil
7. #reelsteady
8. #instagramreels
9. #reelsinsta
10. #instareels
11. #reelsofinstagram
12. #k
13. #music
14. #bhfyp
15. #disney
16. #littlestoriesofmylife
17. #tiktokindia
18. #videoftheday
19. #instareel
20. #foryoupage
21. #fyp
22. #reelsviral

Best fashion and beauty hashtags

1. #fashion
2. #beauty
3. #haul
4. #style
5. #shopping
6. #styleinspo
7. #ootd
8. #outfitoftheday
9. #outfit
10. #whatiwore
11. #shoppingaddict
12. #beautydoesnthavetobepain
13. #currentlywearing
14. #instastyle
15. #lookgoodfeelgood
16. #hippy
17. #fashionblogger
18. #fashionista
19. #fashionstyle
20. #fashionable
21. #fashiongram
22. #fashionblog
23. #fashionaddict
24. #fashionphotography

Best food and beverage hashtags

1. #food
2. #foodporn
3. #foodie
4. #instafood
5. #foodphotography
6. #foodstagram
7. #yummy
8. #yum
9. #instagood
10. #love
11. #foodblogger
12. #foodlover
13. #delicious
14. #homemade
15. #healthyfood
16. #photooftheday
17. #picoftheday
18. #dinner
19. #foodgasm
20. #foodies
21. #tasty
22. #cooking
23. #instadaily
24. #lunch
25. #bhfyp
26. #takeout
27. #restaurant
28. #healthy

Best travel hashtags

1. #travel
2. #nature
3. #photography
4. #travelphotography
5. #photooftheday
6. #instagood
7. #travelgram
8. #picoftheday
9. #photo
10. #beautiful
11. #art
12. #naturephotography
13. #wanderlust
14. #adventure
15. #instatrave
16. #travelblogger
17. #landscape
18. #summer
19. #trip
20. #hike
21. #explore

Best pet hashtags

1. #pet
2. #dog
3. #pets
4. #dogsofinstagram
5. #cute
6. #petsofinstagram
7. #dogs
8. #cat
9. #love
10. #puppy
11. #cats
12. #petstagram
13. #animals
14. #animal
15. #instadog
16. #instagram
17. #dogstagram
18. #doglover
19. #of
20. #catsofinstagram
21. #dogoftheday
22. #doglovers
23. #petlovers
24. #doglife
25. #instapet
26. #catstagram
27. #instagood
28. #cachorro
29. #catlover

Best tech and gadgets hashtags

1. #techie
2. #latesttech
3. #ilovemygadgets
4. #gadgetsgalore
5. #apple
6. #android
7. #applevsandroid
8. #wearabletech
9. #VR
10. #mobile
11. #makinglifeeasier
12. #tech
13. #technology
14. #technews
15. #gadgets
16. #instatech
17. #software
18. #innovation

Best wedding hashtags

1. #wedding
2. #bride
3. #weddingdress
4. #weddingphotography
5. #weddingday
6. #weddinginspiration
7. #makeup
8. #weddingplanner
9. #prewedding
10. #bridal
11. #bridetobe
12. #weddingphotographer
13. #weddings
14. #groom
15. #engagement
16. #party
17. #weddingideas
18. #makeupartist
19. #indianwedding
20. #casamento

Best fitness hashtags

1. #fitness
2. #gym
3. #workout
4. #fitnessmotivation
5. #motivation
6. #fit
7. #bodybuilding
8. #training
9. #health
10. #lifestyle
11. #fitfam
12. #healthylifestyle
13. #sport
14. #healthy
15. #gymlife
16. #life
17. #crossfit
18. #personaltrainer
19. #goals
20. #exercise
21. #muscle

Best holiday hashtags

1. #stockingstuffers
2. #christmasdecor
3. #spookyhalloween
4. #happyhalloween
5. #thanksgivingtable
6. #turkeyorham
7. #valentineformyvalentine
8. #happyfourth
9. #newyearseve
10. #newyearsresolution
11. #holidaycrazy
12. #holidayspirit
13. #kwanza
14. #hanukkahgift
15. #underthetree

Best Instagram contest hashtags

1. #instacontest
2. #instagiveaway
3. #giveaway
4. #sweepstakes
5. #contestalert
6. #contestentry
7. #winit
8. #freebie
9. #winitwednesday

Best photography hashtags

1. #photography
2. #photooftheday
3. #photo
4. #picoftheday
5. #photographer
6. #model
7. #photoshoot
8. #portrait
9. #beauty
10. #travelphotography
11. #canon
12. #selfie
13. #landscape
14. #sunset
15. #fotografia
16. #portraitphotography
17. #photographylovers
18. #artist
19. #nikon

Best B2B hashtags

1. #business
2. #businesstips
3. #marketing
4. #ecommerce
5. #socialmedia
6. #digitalmarketing (28M)
7. #SEO
8. #contentmarketing
9. #marketingstrategy
10. #consulting
11. #workplace
12. #startups
13. #productivity
14. #strategy
15. #sales

Best hashtags for small business

1. #smallbusiness
2. #supportsmallbusiness
3. #handmade
4. #shoplocal
5. #shopsmall
6. #smallbusinessowner
7. #entrepreneur
8. #supportlocal
9. #localbusiness
10. #businessowner
11. #blackownedbusiness
12. #art
13. #explorepage
14. #homedecor
15. #covid
16. #startup
17. #entrepreneurship
18. #womeninbusiness
19. #motivation
20. #success
21. #girlboss
22. #entrepreneurlife
23. #handcrafted
24. #local
25. #smallbiz
26. #homemade
27. #custom
28. #smallbusinesssupport
29. #shopsmallbusiness
30. #handmadewithlove
31. #supportsmallbusinesses
32. #supportlocalbusiness

Best music hashtags

1. #music
2. #hiphop
3. #rap
4. #musician
5. #singer
6. #musica
7. #dj
8. #rock
9. #dance
10. #song
11. #guitar
12. #viral
13. #producer
14. #newmusic
15. #musicvideo
16. #instamusic
17. #livemusic
18. #pop
19. #concert
20. #trap
21. #beats

Best art hashtags

1. #art
2. #artist
3. #drawing
4. #artwork
5. #painting
6. #artistsoninstagram
7. #illustration
8. #digitalart
9. #design
10. #sketch

Best nature hashtags

1. #nature
2. #naturephotography
3. #sunset
4. #flowers
5. #wildlife
6. #mountains
7. #hiking
8. #explore
9. #outdoors
10. #naturelover
11. #beach
12. #forest

Top Instagram hashtag generators

Whether you’re shooting for six hashtags or 30, it can be time consuming to enter that many characters, especially since autocorrect doesn’t fix hashtag spelling mistakes. Ask any social media manager and they’ll tell you: it’s not their favorite thing in the world.

Fortunately, there are plenty of Instagram hashtag generators and hashtag search engines that can streamline the process. Here are some Instagram tools to consider.

Best-Hashtags

Best-Hashtags is a simple browser-based hashtag research tool. Its algorithm calculates the best Instagram hashtags for your social content based on historical data. Simply type in your desired hashtag and Best-Hashtags will generate a list of hashtags across different categories like:

• Best related hashtags
• Top 10 hashtags based on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and TikTok popularity
• Low difficulty hashtags
• Exact hashtags

You can also discover new hashtags on its New Hashtags and Best Hashtags category pages.

SISTRIX

The SISTRIX Instagram Hashtag Generator is another great tool for finding successful hashtags, fast. Enter a hashtag or topic, and you’ll see the best 30 hashtags to use. Get more recommendations by searching other hashtag variants related to your main search.

The tool is completely free for up to 25 queries each day. If you want more searches, you’ll need to register for a SISTRIX account.

Influencer Marketing Hub

This Instagram hashtag generator is different. Rather than search for hashtags by topic, you upload a photo and the tool suggests hashtags to use. In the following example, we uploaded a surreal artwork to see what hashtags would generate.

You can select up to five keywords. Once selected, the tool reveals the optimal list of hashtags to use for your post.

Inflact

Inflact is another useful Instagram hashtag tool for tagging your posts or researching popular ideas for Stories and Reels. The easiest way to use the tool is through keywords. For example, if you type “Paris” into the generator, it will reveal a handful of different hashtags that contain the keyword. Hashtags are broken down by frequent, average, and rare use cases.

Inflact’s AI search tool also reveals organic hashtags or those that are often written together in the same post.

Keyword Tool

Keyword Tool is a paid tool that helps businesses discover keywords across a variety of platforms, including Instagram hashtags. It has a geolocation feature, so you can pinpoint popular hashtags that are trending in your audiences’ area.

Most Instagram hashtag generators are free. If you aren’t willing to invest in a tool just for this purpose, the more affordable route may be to use a general social media tool. You can keep a document of different hashtags and use social media scheduling software.

You can create the posts on your desktop, copying and pasting hashtags or groups of hashtags to the caption as needed. Since all of these tools can now post directly to Instagram for you, this can save you a few steps.

Types of Instagram hashtags

Understanding which hashtags to use is a crucial part of developing a strong hashtag strategy that maximizes your reach and increases engagement.

Different types of hashtags serve different purposes, and a good strategy incorporates a combination of them. Learn how to get verified on Instagram and use hashtags from your verified account to maximize your reach.

Branded hashtags

These should be listed in your Instagram bio and are exclusive to your specific store. They can be used to build brand awareness, and you can encourage users to share user-generated content employing them. Examples include Harper Wilde’s #LiftUpTheGirls, Shwood Eyewear’s #shwoodshop, and So Worth Loving’s #swlfamily. Use only one or two branded hashtags per post.

Location-based hashtags

Do you use Instagram to sell your products in specific locations? Use hashtags like #FloridaLife or #NewYorkDrinks to target those local audiences. You can also tag posts based on location to reach users in the area.

Community and industry hashtags

The majority of brands and businesses, regardless of their size, use at least one hashtag that symbolizes their product or industry. More often than not, these hashtags are designed to be uncomplicated and memorable.

To find popular community hashtags in your niche, examine popular posts from competitors in your field. Check out the hashtags they’re using.

Daily hashtags

Famous daily hashtags include #MondayMotivation and #ThrowbackThursday. But there are many tags for daily challenges, themes, or common experiences. Find them by checking the tags of posts from specific days, or search the days of the week and see what autofills in the search results.

Entertainment hashtags

These hashtags aren’t meant to grow your audience, but rather to expand on the relationship with the audience you already have. These phrases often have little to do with a brand itself, and more to do with the situation in the specific post.

Mass appeal hashtags

Mass appeal hashtags are general hashtags that can apply to almost any post. They’re frequently used, which means they’re also frequently sought out. They can occasionally give your posts a significant bump in reach, putting them in front of established audiences. Examples of these include #instagood and #lovelife.

Occasion-based hashtags

Maybe you want to remind your followers that it’s OK to have a #caseofthemondays, or to appreciate that #summerrain. Timely hashtags can be related to a certain holiday, time of year, or even time of day. Users love timely content and are likely to seek out holiday and seasonal posts in particular.

Trending hashtags

Trending hashtags are hashtags that for any number of reasons explode in popularity due to current events, advertising campaigns, viral nature, or pop culture. Hashtags go in and out of favor, just like styles of clothing and slang.

Whether Apple has announced a new version of the iPhone, or it’s election day somewhere in the country, trending hashtags won’t give you evergreen results, but they can yield meaningful returns when used correctly.

Niche hashtags

Certain products have audiences with niche interests with corresponding niche hashtags. People who are buying their own virtual reality systems, for example, are likely to be interested in all the latest technology. Customers who are interested in healthy eating may search for phrases like #organic or #eatinggreen. Use niche-specific hashtags to connect with a highly relevant audience.

Bremont does this exceptionally well in the example below. It uses hashtags like #watchstyle and #watchesofinstagram, knowing that these niche hashtags could connect them with their target audience.

Special event hashtags

Sometimes hashtags can act like beacons that alert users to special events going on with your store. Are you about to host a contest? Hashtags like #contestalert and #instagiveaway can help you find an interested audience. Similarly, hashtags like #flashsale and #BOGO can both help you find bargain hunters and signal to followers you’ve got special deals for them online.

If you create a hashtag to promote a new product launch, you could feature that hashtag in your Instagram bio so that when people click through, they’ll find all the posts and stories that were published using that hashtag.

Which types of hashtags should I use?

Not all ecommerce businesses will benefit from every type of hashtag.

A merchant with national or international reach may not have a reason to use location-based hashtags, for example, and B2B merchants with a strictly professional voice may not use a lot of entertainment-focused hashtags. That’s fine. Adopt the ones that will work best for your brand and your audience.

Benefits of using Instagram Hashtags

Unsure whether you should add a hashtag to your latest post? Here are five reasons why your Instagram content can benefit from a tag or two:

1. Create or join a community

Instagram hashtags allow you to quickly identify active communities within the app. Join them by creating and tagging relevant content.

You can also use a new hashtag to build engagement on a topic that’s related to your account or business.

Promote a unique, accessible hashtag to your followers. Perhaps your tag could speak to a benefit of your product, such as #cozyhome, or cite a common experience amongst your audience, like #momlife.

If the hashtag is catchy, followers may start to use it in their own posts, creating a collection of user-generated content that fosters a sense of community and links back to you.

2. Target people and groups

Hashtags make it easier to put your content in front of a target user. Pick tags that are relevant to your brand as well as your audience’s interests to increase your exposure, and make it more likely that your posts will reach receptive people.

3. Track posts and campaigns

By creating a unique hashtag for a post or collection of content, you can easily monitor its progress. Moreover, you don’t have to limit your use of hashtags to Instagram. Why not create a hashtag for an entire marketing campaign and use it across other social sites, ads, and even in physical marketing materials?

4. Stay informed

Making hashtags a habit is a good way to stay on top of trends within your industry. By following relevant tags, you can see what types of content resonate with your audience, as well as what your competitors are up to.

Maintaining consistent brand messaging is important, but you should also adjust your content strategy in response to shifting trends and interests.

5. Improve post SEO

Adding hashtags to a post’s caption can increase its visibility in Instagram’s internal search engine. By tagging posts with popular or timely search terms, you should gain greater prominence in results, giving your content an extra boost.

According to Instagram, this tactic can be particularly effective for posts that already have significant clicks, likes, or shares.

Tips for using hashtags on Instagram

Be mindful of the number of hashtags you use

You can use up to 30 hashtags on a single Instagram post. Whether you should is another question entirely.

The latest advice from Instagram is to be selective with hashtags and only use three to five per post. However, research suggests that using more hashtags generally leads to higher engagement.

As for precisely how many hashtags work best, the data is inconsistent. Some marketers swear by using just two hashtags, while others use all 30. In reality, the sweet spot for a single post may only be something you can uncover through testing.

Should my Instagram hashtags be visible?

Nobody wants to read through 30 different hashtags, or even six for that matter, just to get to the content. Big blocks of difficult-to-read text also look visually unappealing.

Because of this, many brands opt to hide the bulk of their hashtags by strategically placing them below the “See More” option. Some will even take this a step further, adding significant extra spaces outside of the See More in order to aesthetically remove large chunks of hashtags from the rest of the description. Other brands will add hashtags in a separate comment on the post, but this may cause the hashtags to lose effectiveness.

For most brands, the best option is simply to make sure that your hashtags are separated by at least one line from the caption and are hidden under the See More option. This keeps the focus on your caption, increasing the likelihood that it will be read. It also looks cleaner.

The exception is if you’re using one or two hashtags for branding or entertainment purposes. In this case, leave them above the fold, if necessary, and make sure they’re listed first or written in line in your Instagram caption. That way, users are more likely to read them.

Although you may see others doing it, there’s no reason to use more than one line of separation for hashtags. If users click on See More, you don’t want them to have to scroll forever to get to the comments, because there’s a good chance they won’t continue and leave a comment of their own.

Conduct Instagram hashtag research

Hashtag research is a key part of distribution on Instagram. It can help you identify the most popular hashtags, give you new ideas for hashtags you wouldn’t have thought of on your own, and help you to identify trending hashtags.

There are several different strategies you can use to conduct hashtag research, whether you want to grow your list or find new trending topics. Let’s take a look at each.

Scope out Twitter

If you want to find relevant hashtags that are currently trending, Twitter can give you an edge. It has a trending topics section, where you can see what people are sharing.

Note that hashtag usage on Instagram and Twitter is different, and trending Twitter hashtags are more heavily focused on news. Keep that in mind and use it for research purposes instead of copying and pasting hashtags blindly to Instagram.

Check out your competition

It never hurts to see what your competition’s Instagram marketing strategy looks like, and that includes their hashtag strategy. Look for trends in which hashtags they’re using and you might get a few ideas for phrases you want to add to your roster, too.

Monitor influencers

Influencers—including micro-influencers—are called influencers for a reason: they already have an audience and people actively look to them for advice, inspiration, or expertise. It’s not surprising that these Instagram profiles may have mastered their hashtag game and found the best performing terms out there. Take a look, and don’t be afraid to snag a few that you like.

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Avoid banned hashtags

Did you know that there are such things as banned hashtags on Instagram? They aren’t even necessarily swear words or outright obscenities—though those definitely make the list.

Instagram routinely “bans” hashtags that it detects are used frequently alongside some sort of illicit content. Some of these aren’t surprising, like #nasty, but others like #fitnessgirls and #tgif could be used for perfectly innocent reasons. Instagram won’t post new content to a banned hashtag’s feed, if the feed even stays up at all.

Hashtags can be banned permanently or temporarily, and when you use them, your Instagram posts could be shadowbanned. This means that they may not show up in your followers’ feeds, and they may not appear when users search for other hashtags attached to the post. All in all, using a single banned hashtag can unravel all the work you did on a post.

When compiling hashtags that you want to use, check out the full list of hashtags that have been banned on Instagram.

Measure your Instagram hashtag strategy

All marketing efforts should be measured whenever possible, and that goes for hashtag strategies, too.

Hashtags can be much more difficult to evaluate on your own, especially if you have groups of them on posts. This can make it difficult to know which are working and which aren’t pulling their weight. Fortunately, there are several ways to measure the impact of your strategy.

First, take a look at the overall growth of your channel. You can do this with Instagram’s analytics, though many third-party social management platforms will offer more detail.

See if impressions, reach, and likes go up for your profile and posts. How many accounts have you reached through the Discovery channel? Are you seeing big changes as a result of your new strategy? Look for month-to-month increases. If you don’t see them within a couple months, it’s time to try something different.

You should also be using hashtag research tools to monitor the hashtags you’re using regularly. Make sure their popularity is trending up over time and not decreasing. You can use tools like Keyhole to track your branded hashtag and to see the reach, impressions, and overall use from other profiles. This can help you evaluate how much your branded hashtag is helping you, and if it’s gaining traction organically.

Finding the best Instagram hashtags

Instagram hashtags are an essential part of Instagram marketing. If you combine your hashtag tactics with a strategy that focuses on getting more followers, you’ll see an immediate lift in likes, comments, and audience.

If you don’t have a strategy in place, your marketing may not be reaching its full potential on the platform. Use the tools and hashtag suggestions detailed in this post to form your own list of high-performing hashtags that will extend your reach and keep your audience engaged, and remember to switch them up based on your analytics tools for best results.

Illustration by Eugenia Mello

When you’re shopping online or looking for product recommendations, where do you go first? While Google is a common starting point, increasingly, consumers are turning to their favorite social media apps. Chief among them: TikTok. The popular hashtag #TikTokMadeMeBuyIt alone generates one billion views per week globally, according to the social media platform.

Not only has TikTok become a search engine, a source of inspiration and discovery, and a powerhouse product recommender—it’s also a destination for businesses to sell directly to users. TikTok shopping continues to grow in popularity as brands look to reduce friction for the fan-to-customer transition, and its own native shopping features and ecommerce integrations enable brands to sell natively on the platform.

Ahead, learn how to add the social commerce channel, sign up for TikTok Shop, and use these tools to reach TikTok users and potential customers. 

What is TikTok Shop?

TikTok Shop is the social media app’s built-in commerce solution for sellers, creators, and affiliates. It enables TikTok users with business accounts to sell directly on the platform with options like Live Shopping and shoppable videos.

What are the benefits of TikTok Shop?

TikTok Shop eliminates the extra step to convert your TikTok fans into customers by offering shopping options directly on the platform. With TikTok becoming a go-to for product discovery, especially for Gen Z and Gen Alpha future consumers, brands benefit from showing up in search and offering convenient TikTok shopping options.

TikTok Shop and other shopping integrations allow brands to naturally introduce products into entertaining videos and other content. If you are not eligible for TikTok Shop based on your location, certain integrations such as the TikTok app for Shopify can give you access to shopping features.

Adding TikTok Shop to your available sales channels creates another touchpoint in addition to your online store that supports your potential customers’ online shopping preferences. Other benefits include:

• Broadcasting to a wide demographic of potential shoppers
• Partnering with trusted creators and using influencer marketing to increase authenticity
• Creatively positioning your products in entertaining content
• Creating a personalized shopping experience based on TikTok user behavior
• Benefitting from virality with TikTok trends and hashtag challenges

Who is eligible for TikTok shopping?

TikTok Shop is available in select markets, including the US, UK, and China. Check TikTok’s latest information for eligible countries and regions. TikTok Shop is broken down into four categories, with different requirements for each type of commerce user, which includes:

• Sellers
• Creators
• Partners
• Affiliates

For a seller account, you simply need to reside in one of the supported countries and provide ID, proof of residency, and a business license. Creator accounts have additional criteria, including minimum follower counts. For the purposes of this article, the information will be geared toward the most common type of TikTok Shop user: sellers.

How to set up TikTok Shop

For those eligible for a TikTok Shop seller account based on location and other parameters, follow these simple steps to get set up and enable online shopping features on your account.

1. Create a business account on TikTok

Creating a business account is simple—and free. Completing this step alone unlocks features not available to other users, such as advanced analytics and access to the TikTok Ads Manager.

🎵 Learn more: How To Use TikTok for Business: An 8-Step Guide

2. Register for TikTok Shop

Navigate to the seller registration portal and fill out the application. Upload the required documents, including your ID, proof of residency, and proof of business ownership. 

3. Wait for the results

You will receive an email about your application result in one to two days after applying. Once accepted, you will be able to use TIkTok’s shopping features.

4. Link your account and get selling

Link your TikTok account to your TikTok Shop to start selling on TikTok. You’ll now be able to add products and promote your shop in your bio and content.

How to sell on TikTok with Shopify

If your business is ineligible for TikTok Shop based on your location, you may be able to access the benefits of TikTok shopping and making sales through your content and video marketing.

Follow these steps for your Shopify store, if the TikTok integration is available in your region:

1. Set up a Shopify store and create your website.
2. Create a TikTok business account.
3. Install the TikTok for Shopify app from the Shopify App Store.
4. Connect TikTok to your Shopify store within the app.
5. Start creating ad campaigns using product photos and videos.

Shopify merchants benefit from the TikTok integration for their businesses as they can manage inventory, sales, and advertising across platforms in one place.

5 ways users can shop your products in the TikTok app

TikTok shopping options are plentiful for users looking to buy products directly from their favorite businesses on the platform. 

1. Live shopping on TikTok

When your brand goes live, it’s a great opportunity to demo products and answer questions in real time, encouraging fans to purchase those products directly from the app. Items can be added to the user’s cart during the livestream and they can check out instantly or at the end of the broadcast.

2. Shoppable videos

Shoppable videos on TikTok are content with shoppable links that allow users to buy products without leaving the content.

3. Product showcase

On your TikTok account, users can tap the shopping tab (or bag icon) to access a mini storefront where they can check out in a few taps. Some accounts may have a product showcase without a TikTok Shop. These are usually affiliate accounts that do not own the brand or products being sold. 

4. Shoppable ads (powered by Shopify)

Brands ineligible for TikTok Shop can still take advantage of TikTok shopping with the TikTok App for Shopify. By installing the TikTok Shopify app, you can sync your product catalog, build creative videos using products, and create TikTok ad campaigns. Tag products in your content to offer an easy way for users to shop your products.

5. Shop Tab

In 2023, TikTok announced its marketplace solution, the Shop Tab. By tapping the icon, TikTok users are taken to a one-stop shop to browse products from multiple creators across multiple categories. Note: this feature currently is available only in select markets.

TikTok shopping best practices

Once your business is set up with shopping features on TikTok, there are a few tips to make the most of selling on TikTok. 

Think like a creator, not a brand

Social platforms all have their own trends and content formats that work best for each audience. It’s a mistake to copy your strategy from other platforms over to TikTok without understanding the content that performs best. On TikTok, authenticity wins. 

Aim for creative content that uses trending TikTok sounds, shares a peek under the hood, jumps on current pop culture conversations, or offers real value to fans through education. Content like this that can incorporate products organically will always perform better than a direct sales pitch.

Partner with creators and influencers 

Influencer marketing is a huge industry, with brands clamoring to work with the hottest self-made internet personalities and influencers looking to monetize their success. This win-win partnership is a great option for brands of all sizes, even those with smaller budgets. In fact, TikTok’s own research found that 72% of survey respondents feel ordinary content creators are more interesting than celebrities. 

Marketing alongside influencers gives your brand and products authenticity, as TikTok users often turn to their favorite creators for trusted recommendations. 

🎵 Learn more: TikTok Marketing: Creating a Successful Strategy

Make the most of social commerce with TikTok Shop

Social commerce is exploding, with sales projected to reach $79.6 billion in the US alone by 2025. Don’t sleep on this consumer trend—set up your TikTok account with shoppable features and start attracting buyers today.

Etsy is one of the biggest online marketplaces in the world. With more than five million sellers serving nearly 90 million active buyers, it has the potential to turn a side hustle into a full-time business.

It’s a place where small business owners can meet their ideal customers. Millions of people search the marketplace with a credit card in hand, ready to buy crafts, handmade jewelry, and art.

Wondering how to start an Etsy shop? Here’s a step-by-step guide to set up on Etsy and begin selling.

How to sell on Etsy in 6 steps

1. Create an Etsy account
2. Open your Etsy storefront
3. Upload products
4. Choose how you’ll get paid
5. Set up billing
6. Customize your Etsy storefront

1. Create an Etsy account 

You can create a free account on Etsy to see how it all works. Visit Etsy.com and click Get Started. 

Enter some basic personal information—like your first name and email address—to create an account.

2. Open your Etsy storefront

Once you create an account, use it to open your Etsy shop. Begin by entering your shop preferences, including the language you’ll use to describe your products, the country you’re selling from, and the currency you’ll charge customers in.

Next, enter your shop name. This can be a combination of letters and numbers, without spaces.

Unsure what to call your shop idea? Get some inspiration with a business name generator. Choose one that suits the products you’re selling and isn’t already in use by another Etsy store owner.

3. Upload products

As soon as your new Etsy shop has a store, you’ll be able to start selling items. Create a new listing for each product you’re selling through the marketplace—be it vintage items, handmade goods, or arts and crafts supplies.

The most important factor of each Etsy listing is the images. When shopping online, people buy with their eyes. They can’t touch, smell, or see the item in person, so their decision to buy your Etsy product rides on excellent product photography.

You can add up to 10 high-quality images or one video per listing. Each must be eye-catching enough to stand out against items being sold by other sellers on the marketplace.

Scroll down and you’ll see an option to add more information about the product you’re listing. 

This includes:

• A product title
• Information about the listing, including who made it and when
• The product category
• The listing type (more on this later)
• Whether it’s a physical or digital product
• A product description containing your unique selling point (USPs)

Think about search engine optimization (SEO) best practices when optimizing an Etsy listing. Remember: The marketplace is built on a search engine that connects buyers and sellers. Make sure you meet potential customers on the results page by including keywords in your Etsy listing.

Set the pricing for your product under the Inventory and Pricing section. Enter the amount someone will pay for the item, how many items you have available, and the SKU (if you use them). You can also add variations, such as different sizes or colors.

Finally, add the shipping information customers will need to know when buying your product through your Etsy store. Specify where you’re shipping the product from and your average processing time—how long it takes for you to pick, pack, and ship the item once they place an order. 

Choose whether you want to offer fixed postage prices or delivery upgrades. If you’re shipping items to international customers, add a tariff number for customs.

You can set up a number of shipping profiles that you can apply to future listings.

As a new seller, it’s advised to upload at least 10 listings when you’re opening your Etsy store. Make sure to preview all listings before publishing. You don’t want customers to see mistakes  when they’re viewing your products for the first time.

4. Choose how you’ll get paid

Happy with your inventory? On the next page, you’ll be asked to choose how you want to get paid. 

Select whether you’re an individual seller or an incorporated business. Then, enter your personal information, including your name and address. Finally, enter the details of the bank account you want your Etsy revenue paid into.

5. Set up billing

While it’s free to set up an account and buy, it costs money to sell on Etsy. After entering information about how you’d like to receive payments, you’ll be asked to choose a payment method. This is how you’ll pay to publish your listings and open your storefront. 

6. Customize your Etsy storefront

The final step in opening an Etsy shop is to customize your new storefront—the information potential customers will see when visiting your store profile. To do this:

• Upload a profile and banner photo. Put yourself, your products, or your business’s logo at the front and center of your Etsy store.
• Create a user profile. Introduce yourself as the shop manager and put a face to the products you’re selling through the marketplace. Give potential customers confidence a human is on the other side of the screen.
• Tell people about your new store. What do you sell? Why? How did your store come to life? Give first-time visitors to your new Etsy storefront a bit of background about you and why they should buy your products. 
• Upload your shop policies. Delivery, payment options, privacy, exchange and return policies are essential. Make the terms of buying from your store clear to avoid any confusion with customers.

ObjectLover’s Etsy storefront has a custom profile photo, banner, and featured items banner.

How much does it cost to sell on Etsy?

There are no upfront costs for selling on Etsy, making it easy to get set up and started. The costs come as soon as you start listing items to sell. Here are the key Etsy selling fees

Listing fees

Listing fees are the most common Etsy seller fees. Sellers are charged 20¢ for every new listing they upload to their store—regardless of whether the listing results in a sale or not.

By default, listings are shown on Etsy’s marketplace for four months (or until the item has been sold). If auto-renew is selected, you’ll be billed the same 20¢ once the four months are up.

Transaction fees

Sold an item through Etsy? You’ll pay a 6.5% transaction fee to the marketplace for facilitating the sale. That’s in conjunction with the postage, shipping, and gift wrap pricing of each listing.

Sellers in the UK, France, Italy, Spain, and Turkey also need to pay a regulatory operating fee on each listing. It’s charged on total revenue—the product price and any shipping fees you’ve charged the customer.

The transaction fees for each country are:

• United Kingdom: 0.25%
• France: 0.4%
• Italy: 0.25%
• Spain: 0.4%
• Turkey: 1.1%

Payment processing fees

You’ll have entered your bank information when you set up your Etsy store, which can be used to receive payment. 

Store owners can also use Etsy Payments, where buyers can choose from payment options like PayPal, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Klarna. Enabling Etsy Payments means being subject to payment processing fees.

Sellers in certain countries—including Mexico, the Philippines, and South Africa—will need to meet minimum payment thresholds before their Etsy revenue is transferred to their bank.

Currency conversion fees

Etsy does all business in US dollars. While you can sell items in other currencies, all of the charges related to selling on Etsy will be billed in USD. The marketplace will convert your funds to your bank account’s currency before the transfer, but note this currency conversion won’t always be the market value.

Etsy may also take a 2.5% currency conversion fee when you’re doing business using a currency other than USD.

Offsite Ads fees

While you can have an optimized product listing that reaches potential customers in the Etsy search engine, the marketplace also offers advertising.

Sellers can opt into Offsite Ads, where their products are shown across Etsy’s own marketing and advertising channels. Business owners can have their products appear in Etsy’s Facebook, Google, and display ads—without having an advertising account on those platforms.

Etsy sellers are billed when their product sells through an Offsite Ad. If your storefront made less than $10,000 through the marketplace within the last year, 15% of the order total will be taken as payment for the Offsite Ad program. Pass the $10,000 threshold and your Offsite Ads fee is reduced to 12%. Your Offsite Ad fees will never exceed $100 per item.

Etsy shipping costs

Sellers in locations that accept Etsy Payments or PayPal can purchase shipping labels through the marketplace, which is deducted from their account. Rates vary depending on the carrier, origin, destination, and size of each package. Additional fees apply for signature confirmation and insurance.

Etsy Plus

Etsy sellers have the choice to opt into Etsy Plus. The $10 per month subscription package has added features for sellers.

Etsy Plus sellers are granted 15 listing credits and a $5 credit in Etsy ads. 

They also get:

• Customizable shop options
• Discounts on custom domain names
• The ability to email shoppers when an item is back in stock

Etsy selling tips to boost your shop’s success

Here are some Etsy selling strategies you can use to help grow your business.  

Build a strong brand 

Having a strong visual brand will help you stand out in Etsy search results and make it memorable. First impressions are important, but you don’t need to go all out with an expensive, professional design. A simple logo and brand colors are enough. You can use Shopify’s free logo maker and a template tool like Canva for any visual assets you need to go with your branding. 

BooandBooFactory uses consistent branding in its profile image and banner, along with a colorful motif of earrings that immediately tells visitors what they’re about.

Optimize your shop

Etsy’s algorithm ties together popular search terms and the products it shows in the search results. 

Using relevant keywords in your product titles and descriptions will help Etsy understand what your products are and when it should show them in the search results. The higher you rank in search results, the more likely shoppers are to see your products and consider purchasing them. 

Here are some ways you can make sure your Etsy SEO is up to scratch: 

• Use relevant tags and keywords in your product listings.
• Choose the right attributes when listing a product.
• Collect and display reviews on your product pages.
• Keep your storefront updated by regularly adding fresh content.
• Add as much information as possible to your About Me page. 

The more information you provide about your brand and the more relevant keywords you use, the easier it is for Etsy to understand what you’re selling and make sure the right customers see your products. 

Sticker brand Love and Olive optimizes its product descriptions for Etsy search to ensure its products can easily be found by their customers. For example, their Wistful Wildflower Sticker Pack incorporates key search terms shoppers might use, like “sticker pack” and “botanical sticker gift.”

Promote your shop

The math is simple: More eyeballs on your products equals more sales opportunities. There are plenty of ways you can spread the word about your store.

Here are some ideas to get started: 

• Share on social media: Use social media platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook to showcase your products and engage with potential customers.
• Collaborate with influencers: Partner with bloggers and creators in your niche to reach a wider audience and promote your products.
• Use Etsy’s marketing tools: Sign up for Promoted Listings or Etsy Ads to get more views on your products. 

Pet accessories brand Bruno Society works with pet-fluencers to reach new audiences and promote their brand.

Offer competitive pricing 

Pricing your products on Etsy can be difficult. Most items are handmade, with a ton of time and effort invested into each piece. To generate sales your prices have to reflect the value of the product and the going market rate.

If a competitor is selling the same thing for half the price, shoppers will wonder why they should pay more for yours. 

Competitive pricing isn’t about making sure you always have the lowest price. That can hurt your bottom line, especially if the cost of creating your products is high. You want to make a healthy profit, after all. 

Follow these tips to competitively price your products: 

• Research competitors: Look at what other brands are charging for similar products. Look beyond the price to see what other value they’re offering. Is there free shipping? Are they running a discount? 
• Round down a cent: If most brands are selling the same product for $30, you can stand out by selling for $29.99. This is a popular pricing model that gives the illusion of a cheaper purchase, even if it’s only by one cent. 
• Add value elsewhere: If you can’t justify going as low as your competitors, consider adding value in other ways. This might be through free shipping, custom packaging, a freebie with every purchase, or a discount code for return shoppers. 

The search results for “wooden clogs” include hundred of results. You can stand out, like the example on the left, by running a sale, offering free shipping, and including limited stock quantity information.

Encourage reviews and feedback 

Etsy reviews help your listings stand out by providing social proof and extra keywords. The more reviews you have the more confident new customers will be when purchasing your products.

Encourage customers to share reviews, feedback, and even photos of their products (which Etsy shows on the product page). You can ask via email after a customer has made a purchase and incentivise them by offering a discount code for their next purchase. 

Los Angeles Wallpaper has seen the value of strong reviews. The home décor brand has almost 500 reviews from happy customers. The majority of feedback includes a product photo, which increases social proof and trust from shoppers.

Provide excellent customer service 

Customers are more likely to come back if they have an excellent experience. They might also recommend you to their friends, family, and followers. Etsy’s personal vibe allows for unique selling experiences. 

Here are some ways to provide great customer service:

• Respond to questions and feedback quickly 
• Use custom packaging 
• Add a handwritten thank you note to all orders
• Extend your return period to give shoppers peace of mind 
• Give existing customers a discount code for their next purchase
• Reply to Etsy reviews and thank customers for sharing their experiences
• Be proactive when communicating delivery delays 

Connect your Shopify and Etsy stores

If you’re trying to decide between selling on Etsy or selling on Shopify, why not try both? By selling on multiple channels, you can reach more potential customers. Plus, with an integration tool, you can sync your sales and inventory when selling on both Shopify and Etsy. 

Start selling on Etsy 

Like Shopify, Etsy is an option for selling your handmade goods. Whether you make intricate necklaces, crocheted animals, or upcycled furniture, you’ll find an audience. It’s free to get set up. Create an account and open your store. Then, list your products for sale. 

Most importantly, create an enjoyable experience for customers so they’ll buy from you again. 

Launching a dropshipping store on Shopify is straightforward for new and established businesses. Shopify tools and apps handle inventory management, freeing you to focus on sales and growing your brand.

Use one of three methods to start dropshipping on Shopify:

1. Connect your store to an automated dropshipping app.
2. Partner directly with a supplier and manage your products using Shopify.
3. Add items to your existing product line with Shopify Collective.

As you dive into your chosen method, you’ll encounter challenges unique to your business. Remember, how you overcome these obstacles will define your dropshipping journey and shape your success.

1. How to use dropshipping apps on Shopify

Dropshipping apps designed for Shopify make it simple to start a dropshipping business. These apps connect your Shopify store with a network of suppliers to streamline order management.

Use a dropshipping app to find products, import product details into your store, and send order information to the supplier for packing and shipping.

Most apps include features for monitoring delivery progress to help your provide better customer support.

Key points about dropshipping apps

• Download and connect a dropshipping app to start selling quickly.
• Automatically import products to your store and send orders to the supplier.
• Choose from a variety of dropshipping apps.
• Partner with multiple suppliers to sell a range of products.

Essentially, dropshipping apps make a wide selection of products accessible to sellers who don’t have existing relationships with suppliers.

This accessibility brings benefits and challenges, such as competition from other dropshippers selling the same products.

Many dropshipping apps connect stores to overseas supplier networks such as AliExpress. For sellers, this increases product selection and lowers prices, but also leads to longer shipping times that may impact the customer experience.

How to dropship using an app

Follow these steps to start dropshipping with an app and your Shopify store.

1. Create a store

Start a free trial and create your Shopify store. Follow the onboarding process to set up essential features like a homepage, product pages, and menu navigation.

If you don’t already own a domain address, register a domain that fits your niche and matches your store’s name.

2. Customize your store

Shopify’s professionally designed themes give you a headstart with store design—many popular themes are free. Select a theme that matches your desired layout.

Brand your website with a color scheme, create a logo, set up your checkout, and populate your pages with basic copy and images.

At this stage, don’t invest too much time in your store’s appearance. When your dropshipping business is up and running, draw inspiration from other stores and learn how to get the most from the website builder.

3. Download and connect a dropshipping app

Choose a dropshipping app that links your store with suppliers stocking the products you want to sell. To pick an app, consider factors like supplier location, product range, and feedback from other dropshippers.

Your supplier will handle inventory, order processing, and delivery to customers—making your choice of app important. Do thorough research and consider testing a few product samples for quality assurance before making a final decision.

Once you’ve selected an app, download it and connect to your store. 

4. Optimize product pages

As you import products from your dropshipping app, your store will autofill with product details and images.

Don’t rely on the default descriptions and images provided by your supplier. Edit product information in the dashboard to engage shoppers with original content that helps them decide to make a purchase.

Shopify’s built-in AI tools can enhance your product pages. Improve product descriptions with search-engine-friendly content suited to your target audience, and transform product photos through AI-enhanced image editing.

Click the star icon whenever it appears in the store builder to use AI powered by Shopify Magic.

When refining product pages, don’t forget to price your products competitively while ensuring a profit margin for each sale.

Recommended dropshipping apps

Try these apps to dropship products from AliExpress and other supplier networks:

DSers

Dropshippers use DSers to source and sell items from global marketplace AliExpress. Helpful features include the Supplier Optimizer, which identifies multiple suppliers for the same product to keep stock levels stable if one supplier faces issues.

Spocket

Use Spocket to source products from US, European, and international suppliers. The app features a large product selection and is an official partner of AliExpress and Alibaba. Sprocket allows you to order product samples to check quality before listing them in your store.

Modalyst

Modalyst offers access to independent manufacturers and high-end brands like Calvin Klein and Dolce & Gabbana, with suppliers from China, Europe, India, and the US.

AutoDS

AutoDS is an all-in-one dropshipping solution for product selection, customer delivery, and managing returns. Import products from multiple marketplaces including Amazon, Alibaba, CJdropshipping, Walmart, and AliExpress.

Zendrop

Zendrop enhances customer unboxing experiences with options for custom packaging and personalized thank-you cards. The product bundling feature lets you create unique listings by combining multiple products.

2. How to dropship directly from a supplier

Partnering directly with a supplier can offer more control than a dropshipping app. This dropshipping method involves building relationships with suppliers and using Shopify to showcase and sell products.

Each dropshipping supplier has its own operating process. Some provide online platforms where dropshippers can search a product catalog. Others negotiate custom deals with each retail partner.

Key points about partnering with a supplier

• Build relationships to create opportunities for product customization.
• Negotiate bespoke pricing and fulfillment agreements.
• Become a supplier’s preferred or exclusive partner.

As your store gains recognition in your dropshipping niche, suppliers may reach out to establish relationships. This can lead to priority treatment and negotiation opportunities.

At the same time, direct supplier partnerships require more manual coordination. You may encounter complex logistics when routing orders, and will need to source alternative suppliers when one runs out of stock.

How to find a dropshipping supplier

As you research suppliers within your niche, develop criteria for your needs. Delivery speed is a key customer satisfaction factor, so you might prioritize domestic suppliers located near your customers.

Try to work with suppliers that store items near common customer locations for fast order fulfillment. If managing multiple suppliers, use automation rules to route orders to the nearest supplier with items in stock.

Your supplier’s inventory limits the products you can dropship, so invest time to find a reliable partner. Read reviews from other sellers and pay attention to complaints about product availability. Here are some starting points:

When your store grows and order volume increases, invite suppliers to outbid each other and improve your profit margin.

Print-on-demand and private-label dropshipping suppliers

One challenge with traditional dropshipping is that other stores may sell the same products. This can force you to lower prices to stay competitive.

Print-on-demand and private-label dropshipping lets you create unique, branded versions of t-shirts, tote bags, household items, and more.

This approach helps your store avoid direct price competition while keeping the benefits of dropshipping’s no-inventory model.

Print-on-demand apps

If print on demand sounds interesting, check out these print-on-demand companies from the Shopify App Store:

• Printify: Use the mockup generator to create products with global providers.
• Printful: Catalog includes home, garden, and sports products.
• Gooten: Over 50 manufacturers in more than 70 locations.

3. How to dropship with Shopify Collective

Shopify merchants looking to grow their product range can use Shopify Collective to sell in partnership with other Shopify brands. With Collective, you list and sell products from another Shopify store, while your partner store fulfills orders as they come in.

Key points about Shopify Collective

• Increase average order value by listing complementary products in your store.
• Attract new customers by expanding into related product categories without buying stock.
• Grow your product catalog with no inventory costs or risks.
• Discover and connect with new brands right in Shopify.

If you combine dropshipping with traditional retail models, you can also use collective to become a supplier and sell your products through like-minded US Shopify stores.

Using Shopify Collective

Eligible merchants can download the Shopify Collective app and start making connections from the Shopify admin. Browse supplier products to discover new partners, or invite your existing partners to connect with you on the platform.

Once connected, suppliers provide product pricing lists for you to review. Selected products are imported directly into your store, complete with product details and inventory information.

Customers can buy products from your store using a single cart powered by Shopify Payments for a fast yet branded checkout experience.

After orders flow through to your partner store, Shopify Collective automatically distributes payments to each store upon fulfillment.

More Shopify tools for dropshipping

Dropshipping on Shopify doesn’t end with supplier apps and the store builder. Use Shopify’s marketing, support, and data tools to grow your dropshipping business and stay competitive.

Harness customer data

Understanding customers is key to making informed decisions and creating a brand voice that resonates. Shopify analytics offers insights through more than 60 detailed reports on your website’s visitors, sales, and marketing campaigns.

Use the reports to gain clarity on your most popular products and the marketing content that drives people to your store (and persuades them to click Add to Cart).

Refine your understanding of your target audience by using Shopify reports to answer questions like:

• What types of marketing content engage my audience?
• Which products keep customers coming back?
• Where do my site visitors come from and what devices do they use?
• What product features do my customers care about most?
• What brands does my audience prefer?

Enhance customer support

While dropshippers don’t handle inventory, they are the primary touchpoint for customer support. Poor handling of customers, especially those with complaints, can lead to negative reviews and high return rates.

Repeated issues with products and delivery may signal the need to find a new supplier. But plan for occasional errors and develop a response that includes:

• Owning the issue: Apologize to the customer and explain the solution.
• Compensating the customer: Offer a refund, exchange, or product upgrade.
• Involving the supplier: A good supplier should cover the cost of mistakes.

Enhance customer support by using Shopify Inbox to create a chat feature for your store. Start conversations with automated greetings, let customers know when you’re available, and easily follow up with issues via email.

Consider adding customer reviews to your product pages with a social proof app. Build trust by letting shoppers see product reviews from third-party suppliers and leave comments.

Reach across channels

In competitive niches, a marketing strategy helps you reach customers before your competitors.

Use multiple marketing channels, such as social media and email, to promote your brand and drive traffic to your store.

Email

When someone signs up for your email newsletter, they’re indicating an interest in your products. Use Shopify Email to nurture that lead with tailored content.

Choose from templates, pull branding and products directly from your store, and automate emails to trigger at the right moment.

Email marketing opens up an ongoing conversation with your customers. Manage your emails within Shopify to see useful metrics and refine your next message.

Social media

Social media marketing is a great way to expand your business. Paid social ads have adjustable budgets to keep costs manageable. Audiences are segmented by interests, online behavior, and the accounts they follow, so you can target users likely to be interested in your products.

Even without an advertising budget, Shopify makes it easy to sell on social media. Install the Facebook and Instagram app to sync inventory and create shoppable posts so customers can buy products directly.

Start dropshipping on Shopify today

Get up and running quickly by creating a Shopify store and connecting dropshipping apps to find suppliers, customize products, and enhance your product pages.

As your dropshipping business grows, use Shopify’s marketing and customer data tools to stay in touch with shoppers and conquer your niche. Click here to start your dropshipping business.

Many entrepreneurs are building entire businesses around digital products—such as ebooks, online courses, music, or custom templates—due to their popularity and ease of distribution. Other companies are launching them to complement physical items and services.

Learning how to sell digital products offers the potential for passive income, since they can be created once and sold repeatedly to different customers without needing to replenish inventory or deal with order fulfillment. That makes them ideal for creatives, bloggers, educators, and freelancers looking for efficient ways to make money online.

If that’s you, here’s how to create, market, and sell digital products online—including examples of the top digital products.

What are digital products?

Digital products are intangible goods that exist in a digital format. These include ebooks, music, digital art, software, online courses, and virtual goods in video games. They’re typically delivered to customers via download or email, and offer businesses a way to provide value without physical inventory.

Why sell digital products versus physical goods?

There are many advantages to selling digital products, which makes them uniquely attractive to entrepreneurs:

• Low overhead costs. You don’t have to hold inventory or incur any shipping charges.
• High profit margins. There’s no recurring cost of goods, so you retain the majority of your sales in profits. Calculate your profit margins ahead of time.
• Potential to automate. Orders can be delivered instantly with no oversight.
• Flexible products. You can offer free products to build your email list, monthly paid subscriptions for access to exclusive digital content, or licenses to use your digital products. There are many options for incorporating digital products into your business.
• E-learning is increasingly popular. Online educators have a massive opportunity to expand their business and impact with e-learning, an industry expected to be worth $840 billion by 2030.

But online digital products also come with specific challenges you’ll need to watch out for:

• You’re competing with free content. With digital goods, consumers will usually have access to free alternatives to what you’re selling. This necessitates careful thinking about your niche, the types of products you sell, and how to write your product descriptions.
• You’re susceptible to piracy. You’ll need to reduce the risk of content theft by employing tools to protect your products.

Where to sell digital products

There are three main channels for digital products: self-created online stores, social media, and digital marketplaces.

• Start an online store using an ecommerce platform like Shopify, then integrate a digital product app for seamless selling and management.
• Promote your digital products to your audience via social media. Use native shopping features or connect your Shopify store.
• Create a profile on an established digital marketplace within your niche and access a pre-established audience.

Remember, in exchange for exposure, some marketplaces can take up to 50% commission for every sale. Avoid seller fees by building your own online destination for trending digital products.

10 best digital products to sell online

1. Online courses
2. Ebooks
3. Licensed digital content
4. Premium content libraries
5. Digital templates and tools
6. Product photography
7. Music, art, and entertainment
8. Digital services
9. Printable digital products
10. Digital memberships

1. Online courses

Online courses are the best way to present in-depth content in a monetized digital format. You can create a presentation, record a video walk-through, or develop a course featuring the voices of subject-matter experts.

Once created, your course can be taken by thousands (or hundreds of thousands) of students. You only need to make updates when your content becomes outdated or loses relevancy.

When ideating your course, begin by visualizing learner outcomes: what do you want your learner to know or be able to do when they have completed your content?

Online courses can include quizzes, knowledge checks, and other interactive activities to break-up passive learning content and boost engagement.

2. Ebooks

If you are the source of knowledge for an online course, you could also package your expertise as an ebook. How to Cake It, for example, sells digital cookbooks alongside their courses for easy scrolling and bookmarking while you bake.

Ebooks are a familiar digital format across audiences and can be accessed via an ereader, computer, or mobile device. You can write an ebook on anything—but before you commit to a topic, research the availability of free content on your subject.

If there’s already an abundance of blog posts or YouTube tutorials that your readers can access for free, you’ll need to differentiate your content with a unique selling proposition (USP).

Your ebook’s USP could be your reputation as an expert or successful person within your niche. Alternatively, your book could promise to delve deeper and further into your topic than existing free online content. Or, position your book as the essential resource for readers hoping to progress within your discipline. 

Also, bear in mind that most ebooks are priced competitively and may include free downloadable sections in the hopes of selling a high number of copies.

3. Licensed digital content

From stock photos to video footage, music, and sound effects, there’s a global ecosystem of licensable digital assets uploaded by creatives for other creatives to use in their work.

Licensing your content for use by individuals and businesses is a way to generate passive income from your creations. Invest your labor in creating some top-quality video transitions or background music, then receive revenue from their use, for as long as they remain popular.

You can sell licenses from your own store, similar to how EditStock sells licenses for students. Or you can sell through online marketplaces, such as these stock photo sites.

When brainstorming asset ideas, work backward from the needs of your target audience. Start by thinking about what kind of content is in demand—and where existing creators are not fulfilling market needs.

Be sure to protect your digital products with watermarks and other security measures, especially if you’re selling photos online.

4. Premium content libraries

If you’ve had success selling an online course or ebook, or from licensing content, one way to evolve your offering is to bundle your creations. You can provide full access to your entire catalog of digital products for a monthly or yearly subscription—or a one-time fee.

Snowboard Addiction, for example, is a monetized destination for all things snowboarding. Customers can shop for physical snowboarding gear as well as download tutorials and sign up for live online courses.

One advantage of a subscription-based business model is that it generates a motivated, active community. Your subscribers are your best prospects for any new content you create, and may be a great resource to consult when considering your next move.

Since your library will only be accessible to paying subscribers, you could also consider hosting exclusive content, such as livestreams and AMA sessions.

You can sell digital product subscriptions with Shopify by using a subscription billing app.

5. Digital templates and tools

Digital products also come in the form of tools, equipping professionals to do tasks more quickly or competently. You can sell digital solutions to common pain points within a role or common online task, such as video editing.

Tools can be standalone apps or items that combine with other digital software. For example, RetroSupply Co sells brushes, textures, and templates for designers to use in popular programs such as Procreate and Photoshop. (Note how they also offer online courses and ebooks.)

Other digital tools and template products to sell online include:

• Digital marketing strategy templates for entrepreneurs
• Resume templates for job-seekers
• Mobile apps for businesses
• Graphic design templates for brochures, flyers, posters, etc.
• Adobe Photoshop filters and plugins for media editors
• Icons, fonts, or UX Kits for web designers

6. Product photography

If you’re a photographer, selling your services online can be a lucrative business. Thanks to the rise of ecommerce, professional product photos have never been in higher demand.

The best product photographers can identify the features of an item that shoppers are most interested in and use their photos to emphasize those aspects. Other tips for taking high-quality product photos include investing in a good tripod and learning how to construct the right lighting environment.

Like other digital products in this list, you can sell product photos via your own website, with an agency, through a marketplace, or all three (unless you sign an exclusivity agreement). When selling your services, consider offering different packages based on number of photos, types of products, or specific styles and setups.

7. Music, art, and entertainment

Digital product ideas don’t have to be purely functional. If you’re a musician, artist, or content creator, chances are you’ve explored these or similar ways to monetize your talents online:

• Crowdfunding platforms such as Patreon allow fans to support creators in return for exclusive content.
• For artists, online galleries like Saatchi Art are a good place to find buyers for your work.
• To build your following, upload or stream content on social media in return for a share of ad revenue, sponsorship deals, and audience tips.

Beyond artistic and entertaining content, there’s a whole world of merchandise and branded digital products. If people enjoy a particular podcast or album, for example, they might be interested in items carrying designs that reference the art.

You can use print on demand companies to create branded merch and sell it on a Shopify store, with no need to pay for manufacturing until you make a sale.

Often, this form of digital product selling works best with niche target markets. For example, Materia Store sells digital sheet music for popular video game soundtracks.

8. Digital services

Services pair well with digital products. A designer can offer a logo-creation service alongside downloadable templates. A personal trainer might offer live personal training sessions to their workout plan subscribers. Likewise, you can position services—digital or in real life—as add-ons to your online products.

For example, you might sell consultations along with a personalized report or Excel spreadsheet. Or, you could offer a free downloadable product to generate leads for your email marketing list, a tactic that many online businesses employ.

If there are tasks you commonly complete as part of your service business, you can consider separating and productizing them to create additional revenue streams.

9. Printable digital products

This category of digital products spans a wide range of print-at-home possibilities, from personalized wall art, planners, and greeting cards to specialized models for 3D printers. Customers can download and print your designs for personal use or as part of their own craft.

For a younger audience, printable coloring pages and worksheets are an in-demand mix of fun and learning. For example, digital download brand Caravan sells coloring posters as downloadable files or shipped prints.

10. Digital memberships

Digital memberships are golden tickets to an exclusive community centered around your brand or content. Joining your digital club could bestow members with access to premium content, the opportunity to purchase limited-edition merchandise, or tickets to events.

Other digital members clubs grant access to networking benefits. Nomad List, for example, is a global network for digital nomads, offering memberships that connect users with other nomads, as well as providing city data and trip planning features.

As the trend for token-gated projects has shown, however, digital communities needn’t be centered around a tangible item or service. Membership to an open-ended collective can be valuable in itself. Digital projects such as the Bored Ape Yacht Club use blockchain technology to provide proof of membership and grant access to perks without a central raison d’etre.

When crafting your digital membership experience, focus on creating a sense of exclusivity. The goal is to provide continuous value for members—and to make prospective clients feel like they’re missing out.

How to create and sell digital products

1. Find or create a digital product

Find a digital product to sell. You can create your own digital products or become an affiliate partner for an existing creator. Popular digital products include:

• Entertainment content
• Music
• Fonts
• Design assets
• Photoshop presets
• Templates
• Software and plug-ins
• E-learning courses
• And other online services

Product brainstorming

When generating ideas for your digital products, don’t be too critical—the key to brainstorming is to avoid overthinking. If you’re looking for ideas of downloadable products to sell online, here are some questions to ask yourself:

• Can you teach customers how to use your products? For example, if you sell knitting products, you could offer appointments to teach advanced knitting techniques.
• Are there things you can help your customers with related to your overall industry? If you sell surfboards, you could create a workout program to help your customers stay in surf shape at home.
• What are the values you’ve built your business on, and what are topics related to them? For example, if you sell sustainable apparel, you could create a course teaching your customers how to live a more sustainable life. 
• In what ways could you bring your community of customers together? If you sell kitchen supplies, you could run a virtual guided wine-tasting event.
• What are you good at? If you’re really great at product photography, you could teach other people how to get better at product photography too.

💡 Learn more: Finding Your Niche: 8 Niche Market Examples to Inspire You.

2. Product validation

Validate your idea before committing too much time to it. The last thing you want to do is invest a lot of time or money in a new venture without knowing it has a good chance to be successful.

Here are some ways to validate your idea as you figure out how to sell digital products: 

• Keyword research. Use a keyword research tool to see how many people are searching for your topics. This will give you an idea of the opportunity size of each one.
• Google Trends. Search your topics on Google Trends. Look for topics that are growing in interest. This means the opportunity size will keep growing.
• Facebook groups. There are Facebook groups dedicated to every niche and audience imaginable, making them a great place to learn what your potential customers care about. 
• Industry forums. Forums dedicated to hobbies and communities in your industry can help you learn more about what people want and need in your broader industry.
• Product reviews. Read both the reviews for your products and competitors’ products to get ideas. These could come from the reviews on product pages as well as standalone reviews on blogs and other websites.
• Start small and iterate. Sometimes, the easiest way to validate an idea is to experiment with a smaller version of the idea with room for growth. The goal is to get something out into the world as soon as possible so you can put your idea to the test and improve it from there. 

No matter what industry you’re in, you have unique strengths and knowledge that would be valuable to your customers and selling digital products. 

💡 Learn more: The 16-Step Guide to Evaluating the Viability of Any Product Idea.

3. Create an online store

Once you validate a digital product idea, you’ll want to get an ecommerce platform to sell on.

Make a website to sell your digital products and get up and running in a few hours. Pick from a catalog of website templates, populate with your logo, copy, and images, and you’re ready to get selling.

Shopify is the easiest and most reputable way to create an ecommerce store for online digital products. You don’t need any tech skills or a big budget, and you can choose from more than 100 templates with built-in features to get set up quickly.

There are also over 4,000 free Shopify apps you can use for managing your store and selling more digital products online. Apps make the delivery of digital products easier than ever. Browse the App Store to find apps that plug into your store and do everything from hosting course content to delivering PDF purchases.

4. Market your digital products

With a digital product and an online store sorted, it’s time to find your customers. If you’re selling fonts or design templates, build an audience of designers and creators on the social platforms they use most. Also consider influencer marketing, social ads, or lead magnets.

8 apps for selling digital products on Shopify

1. EDP ‑ Easy Digital Products. EDP is a popular app for selling downloadable files and license keys from your online store
2. Filemonk. Filemonk is designed to make it as easy as possible for Shopify merchants to brand and sell digital products.
3. SendOwl. For more complex digital product businesses, SendOwl comes with a variety of automation features.
4. Courses. This Shopify app lets you create lessons, tutorials, webinars, and manuals and sell them online. 
5. Single. If you’re a musician selling music, Single bridges the gap between physical and digital music sales.
6. FetchApp. FetchApp is another digital download delivery app with a free plan available (five megabytes of storage).
7. Sky Pilot. This app for building a membership program. Sell files and exclusive video streams to customers.
8. BookThatApp, Tipo, or Sesami. Use these apps to schedule consultations or coaching sessions with customers. All three have a free plan available.

Beyond these digital product delivery systems, there are other Shopify apps to power and protect your digital goods, such as:

• RecurrinGO!. This is an app for weekly or monthly subscriptions. Use it to automate recurring orders, invoices, and digital subscriptions for online memberships or programs.
• Disable Right-Click. When your content is your product, this app helps you protect it from theft. You can lock images and text so they can’t be saved or copied without your permission.

Note: When creating digital products in Shopify, be sure to uncheck “This is a physical product.”

Sales and marketing tips for selling digital products

Whether you’re a new business owner or adding online digital products to your existing store, keep these tips in mind:

Create a great digital product

The first criteria for creating digital products is to add value to your customers’ lives. Since you’re competing with free content on the web, invest in building a product people can’t find anywhere else. 

Promote a free lead magnet

Regardless of how much your product costs, create a light version of it for free. A free product can help you build an email list you can sell to in the future. It also opens the door for upselling and retargeting potential customers with different promotions. Free products can build trust between your business and potential customers. 

Start an affiliate program for your product

Affiliates are a huge source of traffic and sales for creators selling digital products. Find influencers who are established and trusted in your industry and offer them a commission for each sale they make. You can create different percentages for different affiliates, so if someone has a large audience, you can give them a higher commission rate to promote more and attract customers.

Collect preorders

A great way to get early sales is by giving a discounted “early bird” price. If you’re releasing a new digital product, you can offer a 50% discount for the first 100 buyers, then 25% for the next 100 buyers, and then release the product at full price after the 25% discount runs out. 

Offer a money-back guarantee

If you’re hesitant about offering a warranty on your products, it makes sense. Some people could buy and use your product then ask for their money back. But it’s all a part of running an online business. The rewards of higher conversion rates outweigh the small percentage of people who may abuse the policy. A money back guarantee shows potential buyers you’re putting the risk on you, not them.

Creating the best digital products for your business

Without the need to hold inventory or the overhead associated with selling physical products, all types of digital products can be profitable online business ideas. 

There are countless ways you can create the best digital content to sell and resell and incorporate them into your business. With a little ingenuity and upfront investment of time, you can serve up irresistible value that can more than pay for itself over time.

Blogging is a small business idea with the potential to make thousands of dollars per month, whether by driving product sales for your own brand, earning commission from affiliate programs, or creating a space for digital ad sales.

This guide shares how you can make money blogging, with 11 revenue streams used by professional bloggers who earn a full-time income through their websites.

How much money can bloggers earn?

Blogging has high potential. Well-established bloggers like Ryan Robinson—who runs a blog about blogging—can make upward of $30,000 per month. Adam Enfroy, who started blogging about the business of blogging as a side hustle, generated $1.5 million from his blog just two years later.

It’s not just monthly revenue that bloggers can cash in on. Marketplaces like Flippa list blogs for sale, many of which come with hefty six-figure price tags. Bloggers cash in when their creative project is acquired. 

Not every blogger however can make millions through their website. The income potential of your blog depends on two factors:

• Your niche. Do people spend large sums of money on products in your industry? The software industry, for example, can be lucrative, since many companies pay recurring commission. Bloggers can earn small amounts each month, long after the customer made the purchase.
• Your monetization strategies. Some blog monetization methods are off the table for new bloggers who want to stick to their core values—like not being paid to post content you don’t agree with. This can impact earning potential in the short term.

How to make money blogging: 11 ideas

1. Choose a profitable niche
2. Build an email list
3. Write sponsored product reviews
4. Sell advertising placements
5. Join an affiliate marketing program
6. Offer services
7. Sell digital products
8. Sell physical products
9. Create a membership community
10. Monetize YouTube videos
11. Produce a podcast and get a sponsor

1. Choose a profitable niche

A niche is a specific topic within a broad topic, such as vegan recipes. By choosing one for your blog, readers build an association with your site. They know exactly what they’ll get when visiting, improving your chances of being their first port of call when looking for advice.

“Before monetization, it’s all about quality and expertise if you want to stand out,” says Mushfiq, founder of The Website Flip. “First, figure out what your niche is and why you should be writing about that, and make a persona for yourself to be who you are in that topic. Once that happens, you’ll build a following over time. Monetization follows later.”

You’ll find bloggers making money in a wide variety of niches, from business software to pet accessories. Though not all niches are good ones. 

A profitable blog niche meets three criteria:

1. It’s something you’re skilled at and/or interested in. Blogs need a lot of consistently high-quality content to build an audience and become monetized. Not only will it be more enjoyable to blog about something you have a genuine interest in, but you’ll increase the likelihood of generating money. It’s easier to stick with a hobby we enjoy.
2. There’s low competition. Popular blogs, brands, or forums in your niche indicate others are making money in it. Similarly, do a Google search to assess keyword ranking difficulty. It’ll be harder to drive organic traffic if big-name brands (with even bigger marketing budgets) are dominating the first page of search results.
3. There’s clear monetization potential. Look at monetization opportunities for each niche on your shortlist. Do companies in that niche pay to advertise their products on other blogs? Are there many affiliate programs that sell products in that industry? Both are telltale signs of a profitable blog niche. 

2. Build an email list 

To make money from your blog, you need loyal readers who value your recommendations.

One of the best ways to do this is by building an email list for your own blog. When someone opts in to hear from your blog, you’re given permission to reach readers in one place more sacred than all others: their inbox.

“Email marketing is by far the most lucrative sales channel for me. I don’t even really try to sell directly from other channels anymore, instead directing people from social media, collaborations, and SEO to my email list,” says Brittany Berger, founder of Work Brighter.

Encourage blog visitors to sign up to your mailing list using a pop-up box. The goal is to make anyone visiting for the first time opt in to to hearing from you using an incentive, such as:

• Free checklists
• Lists of resources or recommended products 
• Blog content packaged in a PDF (such as printable recipes)

Once they’ve signed up, continue nurturing that relationship with educational or entertaining content. You’ll build an audience ready to buy products off your recommendations.

Take it from Lily Ugbaja, who initially started her blog FindingBalance.Mom “because I wanted to stay home with my son, do something I love, and still make money.”

It took Lily two weeks to make money from her blog: “I used emails to promote my products and relevant affiliate products with tripwires and Facebook groups. You add lead magnets to your site so people sign up after reading your article. Instead of a success page, you share a one-time offer—a low-end product at a super discounted rate, $7 in my case.”

Despite the blog seeing less than 1,000 monthly page views, Lily says she ended her first month earning over $100, which soon became a few thousand.

You can also charge your email list for access to exclusive content. Many bloggers monetize through monthly subscription fees which grant subscribers access to extra content. You can use a platform like Substack to publish directly to your audience and get paid through subscriptions.

3. Write sponsored product reviews

All businesses want social proof to show their customers that their products are worth buying. One way for them to collect that is by paying bloggers to publish reviews.

Reach out to your favorite brands and ask if they’re interested in sponsoring a review on your blog. If you use the product outside of the purpose of the review, this tactic essentially costs nothing. You’re simply getting paid to share your opinion of a product you already own.

You need to be across guidelines that pertain to ecommerce merchants and, ultimately, the bloggers they’re paying to write sponsored reviews.

Avoid landing your blog in hot water by:

• Disclosing whether you’re incentivized to write the review. If you’re being paid to publish a review, for example, include the following disclaimer in the introduction of your article: “I’ve been paid to write this review and may make a commission if you purchase this product.”
• Being honest. Share the good and the bad to help readers make an informed decision about whether they should purchase the item you’re reviewing. There’s a reason de-influencing has become a trend.

4. Sell advertising placements

Companies are willing to pay bloggers for advertising placements on their websites. Lend them otherwise unused space in exchange for a fee.

There are two routes to building this income stream for your blog:

1. Negotiate with companies individually. Find companies in your niche and ask if they’d be interested in advertising on your site. This approach is more time-consuming and you’ll need strong negotiating skills, but done well, it can net the most amount of money.
2. Use an advertising network. Prefer the hands-off approach? Platforms like Google AdSense, Mediavine, and Raptive (formerly AdThrive) claim space on your blog and handle the billing of advertisers. Simply embed the code on your site and get paid to show ads.

For Emily Brookes, a blogger at Emily May, display ads are the most lucrative sales channel. “Some 60% of my blog’s revenue comes from display ads,” she says. “Ads make me money consistently each month, even when I haven’t published any new content.”

To make advertising a substantial revenue stream for your blog, driving website traffic should be a priority.

Ad networks like Google AdSense pay per 1,000 impressions (CPM), with the average CPM for display ads falling around the $1.25 mark. The more people exposed to the adverts on your blog, the more money you’ll make. 

Afoma Umesi runs her book blog, Reading Middle Grade, on the side. “I had no experience and started blogging as a hobby before seriously deciding to monetize the site,” she says.

“I needed something passive, so I chose ads and affiliate links. I don’t want to make or sell digital products or services right now and I’m not a huge fan of sponsored posts, so ads were the perfect fit. All I need is traffic.”

Reading Middle Grade earns around three-quarters of its income from this type of advertising. Afoma says: “Don’t be afraid or ashamed to use ads. They’re inconvenient for some users, but if you provide value and use them reasonably, most users barely notice the ads.”

5. Join an affiliate marketing program 

Affiliate marketing is the process of recommending products to your blog’s audience. You’ll receive commission when they purchase the product using your custom link.

It’s a great revenue opportunity for bloggers, since the content you share will already be influencing their purchase decisions. Make your blog a hub for educational content and you’ll build the know, like, and trust factors needed to make a sale.

The beauty of affiliate marketing is you don’t need to create your own products. Plug into an existing ecommerce business and become a virtual salesperson for them. There’s no need to worry about producing marketing materials, shipping products, or dealing with customer service.

To make money blogging using this method, join an affiliate networks like ShareASale or ClickBank. Browse available programs in your industry, apply to join them, build custom links, and track affiliate revenue through the dashboard.

You can also search for high-ticket affiliate programs from merchants selling expensive products, such as electronics, jewelry, or software. Bloggers earn sizable checks when recommending those items to readers. Shopify Affiliates, for example, earn 100% commission on the first two payments of any subscription plan.

6. Offer services

A natural byproduct of building your audience means more people associate your name with the blog topics you write about. That’s a great way to build authority—something people look for when hiring people to complete a service.

“If you’re in the B2B space like me, consulting is a big revenue generator,” says Mushfiq, founder of The Website Flip. “If you have some expertise and people are genuinely reading your content, what kind of consulting can you do for them? It’s a high revenue, low commitment way to make money blogging.”

While running a service-based business is time consuming, it can be a quick way to make money online. Demand a higher hourly rate, and find high-paying clients, by using your blog content as a way to demonstrate your expertise. 

Examples of services you can sell alongside your blog include:

• Consulting services
• Graphic design
• Freelance writing
• Virtual assistance 
• Classes or workshops 

Save time scheduling appointments and taking payments with apps like Acuity and Calendly. Promote your service through the blog—be that a standalone landing page or display ad in your sidebar—and start booking new clients. 

7. Sell digital products 

Digital products are a more scalable way to make money by selling things alongside your blog. Unlike service-based businesses, you don’t exchange time for money. And unlike selling physical products, there’s no shipping or manufacturing costs.

You can create digital products once and sell an infinite number of them via your blog—hence the phrase “build once, sell twice.”

“I decided to add printables—and soon other digital products—to diversify my income and put more control in my own hands,” says Dylan Houlihan, founder of Swift Salary. “So far, I let readers decide how much they’d like to pay for my printables, which is why revenue numbers haven’t been crazy. However, I have clocked over 800 downloads, so I’m quite proud of that.”

Figure out which digital products your audience would buy using a reader survey with the question, “What problem do you need help with that the blog isn’t already solving for you?” Answers can unveil ideas you can package and sell as:

• Ebooks
• Printables
• Workbooks  
• Online courses 

Benjamin Houy has been running the blog French Together full time for close to 10 years. Part of the blog’s monetization strategy includes digital products—particularly a French course, which drives 90% of the blog’s revenue.

“Ads and affiliate links can be great monetization strategies depending on the niche, but creating a product is both easier and more profitable than most bloggers think,” Benjamin says. “Your product doesn’t have to be the absolute best product ever when you launch it, it just has to be something your audience will find genuinely useful and will be happy to pay for.”

8. Sell physical products

Does your blog have a cult following? Loyal readers of a blog quickly become raving fans, eager to support their favorite influencer. Help them do that—while also generating income for your blog—by selling physical products.

The print-on-demand model works well for small blogging businesses since you only pay manufacturing costs when a reader purchases a product. There’s no excess inventory, storage fees, or high upfront costs when bulk manufacturing products.

Use a service like Printful or Printify to create custom merchandise, such as:

• Mugs
• T-shirts
• Stickers 
• Posters
• Tote bags
• Phone cases 

Prefer something more hands-on? Start your first online store and treat your blog’s audience as your initial customer base.

9. Create a membership community

Give your most engaged readers a VIP experience—one they have to pay a small fee in exchange for. This type of community is an important part of social connection—something especially important in a world becoming increasingly online-first. Not only have communities shown to improve mental health, but 52% of shoppers will spend more on brands (or blogs) with shared values. 

Take it from Michael Keenan, who runs a membership community alongside the Peak Freelance blog: “If you want a consistent revenue stream for your blogging efforts, create a membership program. You can offer exclusive content like handbooks and courses, special offers—even a Slack channel like the one we offer for Peak Freelance members.

“Set up your membership fees on a monthly or yearly basis. Provide a small discount for those who pay yearly. This gives you a nice cash injection you can use to develop new content and products for members.”

10. Monetize YouTube videos

It’s possible to make money on Youtube as an expansion of your blog content.

Add video marketing to your list to maximize affiliate commission. Some 88% of people have been convinced to buy something after watching a branded video. Make that your tutorial, review, or haul and you’ll get rewarded when a viewer purchases off the back of your recommendation. 

Increase the dollars you earn through your blog by treating each piece of content like the foundation of a video script. Record yourself talking about the same topic, then edit the video and upload it to YouTube.

The bloggers behind A Beautiful Mess, for example, published a YouTube video that demonstrates how to create built-in shelves. The video description directs people to the blog write-up, which contains affiliate links to the products used in the tutorial. 

This strategy works for several reasons. First, not everyone enjoys reading online content. Some people prefer to watch videos. You’re potentially alienating thousands of people by only producing written text.

Secondly, Google and YouTube are the two most popular search engines in the world. Sharing content to both platforms increases the likelihood of your target reader finding it—and therefore, purchasing products you’re an affiliate of.

For some queries, Google’s algorithm pulls YouTube videos in the search engine results page (SERP). The first thing you’ll see on the SERP for “how to groom your dog at home,” for example, is a YouTube video on the topic.

The best part? An active YouTube channel expands your revenue opportunities.

The platform comes with its own set of monetization features, including the YouTube Partner program, which is available to vloggers with more than 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 watch hours. Once enrolled, YouTube will display advertisements before your video loads. You’ll get paid every time a viewer watches it—a nice way to supplement your blog income.

11. Produce a podcast and get a sponsor

Podcasts are more popular than ever, with over 100 million US citizens expected to listen to podcasts in 2024. 

But episodes don’t just fill time on morning commutes. Studies show that 70% of listeners will visit a brand’s website after hearing about its products through podcast sponsorships. Another 67% will spark a conversation with a friend about the item in question. Both points make them attractive propositions for brands looking to expand their reach.

Capitalize on your audience’s attention by producing your own podcast. Record yourself talking about a topic in your niche and syndicate each episode to a streaming platform like Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

Reach out to brands in your niche with sponsorship opportunities. Sell ad space and give companies a shortcut to reach their target audience in exchange for a sponsorship fee. 

This podcast revenue calculator shows a blogger with:

• 10,000 episode downloads 
• Four new episodes each month
• Two adverts (one pre-roll) 

…can add upward of $16,000 per year in revenue.

The downside to the podcast approach is it can be costly—both in terms of time and money. It takes time to build a relationship with a new audience. You’ll also need equipment, such as a high-quality microphone and editing software, to produce the podcast itself.

But get it right and there’s the potential to add another lucrative revenue stream to your blogging business.

How long does it take to make money blogging?

While you can technically make money right away from blogging, it typically takes a bit of time.

Some with an entrepreneurial mindset make their first $100 online within a few months—like Brittany Berger, founder of Work Brighter, who started earning money almost instantly. Berger created a simple $20 digital download, which she promoted in her weekly newsletter and her newsletter signup page. “By starting that early on in the blog’s lifetime, I was able to convert a huge portion of the audience,” she says.

“I think waiting to launch something until you have a bigger audience can end up creating more pressure for yourself, so I’m glad I experimented with a small product when my audience was small.” 

Mushfiq Sarkar also started blogging on the side of his full-time job back in 2008. Though Mushfiq had no prior marketing experience, he says, “I left my job in April 2021 to focus on The Website Flip because it was growing significantly and I was more passionate about growing this website and blogging.”

Now, the blog makes significant revenue despite only being a few years old: “A lot of people knew me by name, but not that I was an active blogger or someone who covered the industry. I started earning money fairly quickly—within a month or two.”

Blogging is typically a side hustle people take up with the hopes that, one day, they’ll be able to quit their day jobs. Yet the length of time it takes to generate substantial income varies from blogger to blogger.

Turn your blog into a money maker 

Building a blogging business isn’t a linear process. The best revenue generator depends on your niche, relationship with your audience, and content formats you’re producing. Focus first on building great content and a loyal readership, and then experiment with these monetization tactics.

As Gen Z’s favorite social network continues to grow in popularity, even among other generations, TikTok continues to be the source for trends that transcend the app. Every day, TikTok users flock to the social platform to see what’s hot in fashion, music, food, and pop culture. TikTok’s straightforward interface and unique algorithm create a revolving cycle of TikTok trends—some that fade quickly and others with staying power. 

For brands, catching the wave of a big TikTok video trend can translate to engagement, brand awareness, and even sales. But jumping on every trend isn’t a sound social media strategy. Getting it right is a tricky balance between catching a trend at its peak and putting a spin on it that’s clever and on brand.

Ahead, explore some of the top TikTok trends for ecommerce brands, with real examples of popular TikTok videos from other successful businesses. This article focuses on trend themes and evergreen hashtags to inspire your content through 2024.

What is a TikTok trend?

A TikTok trend is sound, dance, hashtag, challenge, topic, or video format that goes viral on the platform. This means it catches on among a large number of users during a specific period. A trend spawned by a single video will inspire other users to create content that uses the theme, hashtag, or trending sound with their own spin. Some trends fizzle out after a few weeks, while others become evergreen content formats on the app.

Trends have launched the careers of some of the app’s biggest creators. Being early to a trend can lead to millions of video views and a rise in a creator’s popularity. TikTok is driven by trends, and many of them are born on the platform before making their way onto other social networks and even into everyday life.

Why are trends important on TikTok?

“If I were to start a business now in 2024, I would fully lean into TikTok,” says KraveBeauty founder Liah Yoo. TikTok is the place to be if you’re a brand selling to younger Gen Z audiences. 

These trendsetters use the platform to start and propel the latest trends. Here’s why trends are important on TikTok: 

They signal wider trends in fashion and pop culture

Because of TikTok’s popularity among younger audiences and its focus on fashion, beauty, pop culture, and humor, the app often starts or propels online trends into real world trends. Creators in the DIY sphere drive trends in home décor (think #cottagecore) and popular films getting the TikTok treatment inspire fashion (consider #Barbiecore).

They influence trends on other platforms

Have you ever been scrolling X or Instagram only to see a video with a TikTok logo stamped in the corner? The best videos on TikTok often travel beyond the app, getting reshared on other social media apps. The TikTok format has also influenced how users create content for other platforms, including Instagram Reels. 

They offer opportunities for brands to reach audiences

Trends are a great way to gain exposure for brands. Jump on a trend with timely and relevant content that both understands the trend and ties it back to the brand. Brands that do this right can show the authenticity users on TikTok expect from the brands they love and follow.

How to find new TikTok trends

TikTok can feel random until you learn how to use it. TikTok’s algorithm surfaces video content in the For You page (FYP) based on a mix of trends and content relevant to each user’s habits and preferences. This is a great place to start, but there are other ways to discover what’s trending on TikTok today. 

Keep an eye on your For You page 

As you scroll through the FYP, you’ll see dozens of videos that the algorithm hopes you’ll engage with. The more you watch a video and engage with it (like, comment, follow, etc.), the more the algorithm learns what you like and what it thinks you want to see next.

The best way to discover what’s trending on TikTok is to spend time on the app and cultivate your own unique FYP. It won’t take long for you to see which trends are going viral—especially those that are aligned with your content preferences or industry.

Check out TikTok’s Discover page

One way to find out what’s trending is to head to the Discover page. This page will also be somewhat curated based on the content you’ve interacted with on your For You page. Creators can help boost their content by using the Discover page to look up which hashtags are currently trending and adding them to their videos.

Tap into TikTok’s Creative Center 

TikTok’s Creative Center is a source for all things trending. You can see what’s hot on TikTok across different countries and time periods and filter by hashtags, songs, creators, and videos.

Track trending songs

Sound is key to TikTok, and 88% of TikTok users say that sound is a critical part of the TikTok experience. Sounds and songs are often at the heart of viral memes and trends on the platform. In the Creative Center, toggle to Songs in the trending chart. Click Explore More to see this chart: 

From here, you can click into the analytics for a specific song to see interest over time:

Keep an eye on trending hashtags

Now toggle to Hashtags in the same chart. Here, you can filter by date range and industry (for example, Apparel and Accessories), then drill into a specific hashtag to see its interest over time. In these two examples, #summervibes is a popular hashtag that has been growing steadily over the past three months, whereas #earthday spiked in April, around Earth Day celebrations.

Follow popular creators and influencers 

Popular TikTok creators eventually will appear in your feed, as TikTok promotes popular videos within your For You page. You can also use Creative Center to find and follow users.

Toggle to Creators or TikTok Videos to discover these users. Following popular creators—especially those with audiences similar to your target customer—will help you identify trends as they emerge.

The TikTok trend cycle

TikTok has its own framework for measuring trends. Within it, the platform has categorized trends under three categories.

• Trend moments refer to short-term trends that gain traction quickly and either fizzle out at the same rate or become trend moments.
• Trend signals emerge when user behavior and content styles signal a new way to use TikTok, perhaps a format that spans multiple memes and topics. This is a longer-term trend format.
• Trend forces apply to large scale transformations in the way users behave on TikTok. These may be wider themes that grow steadily on TikTok over time.

3 TikTok trend forces for 2024

Each year, TikTok releases a trend report that captures the year’s top trends as well as its forecast for upcoming trends. For 2024, TikTok identified the following trend forces on the platform:

Curiosity peaked 

This trend force relates to TikTok’s prominence as a discovery tool—for products, trends, and topics. Unlike search engines, where users go to find a specific answer, TikTok is meant for rabbit holes and learning new perspectives. Brands that want to jump on this trend should create video content that sparks curiosity.

Storytelling unhinged

Storytelling is a critical tactic for brands that want to stand out in a crowded market. Consumer trends point to an expectation that brands are authentic and relatable. Storytelling on TikTok is a great way to humanize your brand. But stories are taking on a new life on TikTok, with new formats, diverse voices, and unexpected narrative structures. Get creative with your stories to capture the attention of today’s users.

Bridging the trust gap 

According to TikTok, users will trust a brand 108% more if they see an ad by that brand on the platform. But building trust isn’t just about putting out content. Brands should continue to build trust by engaging directly with customers and treating the platform as a communication channel. Get feedback and listen to your audience to improve your video content and build loyalty.

16 TikTok trends to inspire your next viral video

1. Get ready with me (GRWM)
2. #tiktokmademebuyit
3. Femininity and #coquette
4. Food challenges and #foodtok
5. Trending sounds
6. Self-growth, inner beauty, and #hopecore
7. Subcultures and communities
8. Delulu trend signal
9. TikTok challenges
10. Dance trends
11. Memes and pop culture trends
12. Fit check
13. ASMR
14. Nostalgia and retro trends
15. POV (point of view)
16. Pack an order with me

Not every TikTok challenge or meme will be a fit for your brand. But there are ways to put your own spin on TikTok trends that will help you make sales, grow your audience, and strengthen your brand’s presence.

TikTok is the birthplace of some of the internet’s most popular memes, style trends, influencers, and even food trends. Here are some of the app’s most evergreen trends to inspire your next TikTok video.

1. Get ready with me (GRWM) trend

This trend is an ongoing phenomenon used by makeup artists, beauty creators, and fashion influencers alike. Anyone can participate in this trend by inviting users into a morning routine or other process of getting ready for the day or an event. 

This is a great trend for beauty brands, especially if you can team up with an influencer to incorporate products into their routines. Here’s how OUAI tried this trend with a creator partner:

Other types of brands can put their spin on the trend, like this example from Yeti:

2. #tiktokmademebuyit 

TikTok is overflowing with creators showcasing products they’ve found and bought thanks to TikTok. Often, this content is tagged with the popular hashtag #tiktokmademebuyit.

Many small businesses use TikTok to advertise, and if a product goes viral through hype or positive product reviews, it can be a game changer. Using the hashtag for product videos can also help provide more visibility for your brand. Products that provide some kind of “life hack” or that strike a chord with Gen Z tend to take off under this trend.

This trend is also a great way to gather user-generated content for your brand as the hashtag often features gushing testimonials from real customers.

3. Femininity and #coquette

Among the broader themes predicted by TikTok in 2024, this trend revolves around femininity. Also known as the #coquette trend, this hashtag returns videos of girly moments featuring bows and pastels. This trend aligns with related fashion trends like the return of the ballet flat. 

Here’s how Knix jumped on the trend, featuring products from its collection:

4. Food challenges and #foodtok

Food challenges have long been a part of the TikTok content mix from the extreme spicy food challenge of 2023 to the more current rock paper scissors food challenge. While these challenges come and go quickly, one thing remains constant: #foodtok is a vibrant subculture of TikTok and users can’t get enough.

As a food brand, consider getting more niche with your hashtags if you can find trends that pertain to your products specifically. Here’s how Olipop used #drinktok to share this educational drink recipe post: 

5. Trending sounds

Sound will always drive memes and trends on TikTok, whether it’s driven by a big album release or Stitched from a trending video. Beat drops, sound clips from films, and popular songs can all go viral on the platform. 

Here are two brand examples using 2024 trending sounds. Sol De Janiero hopped on the #hellosharks trend, a format that used the Shark Tank theme song alongside a plea to the TV show’s hosts and investors. 

And, after the release of Taylor Swift’s latest album, the founder of XXL Scrunchie added her take to a Swiftie trend using the song lyrics, “I cry a lot, but I’m so productive.”

If you’d like to use a trending song or sound in your video content, follow these instructions:

1. From the mobile app, click into a video that uses the sound.
2. Tap the circle in the bottom right corner to see the sound.
3. Tap Add to Favorites to save the song for later or Use this sound to create content now. 

6. Self growth, inner beauty, and #hopecore

This year, TikTok is predicting trends pertaining to inner beauty and inner strength. This trend will see more video content around self growth, wellness, healing, and moments of self-transformation. Among these, the hashtag #hopecore is appearing more frequently. 

This wholesome trend is all about messages of hope and encouragement. Rather than a physical transformation, these focus on a spiritual glow up. Wellness and self-care brands can hop on this trend, featuring products in a genuine way.

7. Subcultures and niche communities

As with other social media platforms and sites like Reddit, TikTok has its own subcultures. Niche trends emerge across hashtags like #booktok, #foodtok, #filmtok, and #anime. 

Celebrities like Oprah are jumping on the #booktok trend, one of the most popular niche communities for 2024. Here’s her #booktok content celebrating LA independent bookstore Lost Books:

8. Delulu trend signal

Delulu, Gen Z slang for delusional, emerged as a mainstream term and trend on TikTok in 2023. And it’s not showing signs of slowing. TikTok identified #delulu as a trend spotlight for 2024. This trend refers to users posting overly optimistic takes on hopeless scenarios. “Delulu is the solulu,” as in “delusion is the solution,” is another term you may see attached to this trend. 

9. TikTok challenges

Challenges have long been part of social media content, inspiring some apps’ most memorable moments. As early as 2014, the ice bucket challenge took hold of Facebook, and YouTube’s controversial Kylie Jenner lip challenge raised safety concerns among parents in 2015. 

From lighthearted to downright dangerous, TikTok challenges pop up every day on the platform. Participating in these as a business means assessing if it’s appropriate for your brand. 

Here’s an example of a company’s take on a TikTok trend that aligns perfectly with the brand. A 2024 trend, sometimes called the Blue Monday trend or the punching trend, is a battle style trend that sees two people “fight” over opposing ideas or preferences. This is how activewear brand All Fenix tried the trend:

10. Dance trends

Dance routines and choreography have been at the core of the app’s video content since the beginning. Top influencers like Charli D’amelio and Addison Rae have built million-dollar careers on viral dance trends. While dances on the app move in and out of fashion quickly, they’re generally easy to participate in and businesses can find creative ways to add a brand spin.

Footwear brand Crocs took this one step further by partnering with Japanese dance troupe Avant Gardey to create dance content for its brand page:

11. Memes and pop culture trends

Pop culture hot takes thrive on TikTok and often become trends as others weigh in on the drama or become memed. Take 2024’s Kendrik Lamar and Drake beef, where users shared their explanations of the artists’ diss tracks. In early May, both #drake and #kendrik lamar topped the hashtag charts. By the next week, however, TikTok drama will move elsewhere.

As a business, using TikTok to stay on top of pop-culture trends can help you stay relevant and understand your audience’s preferences. Remember to only use trends and memes if they are the right tone and topic for your brand. And, be sure the trend is still active lest you appear out of touch.

Here’s how shoe brand Vessi used a popular clip from TV’s I Think You Should Leave to demonstrate product features: 

And in this video from Scrub Daddy, the brand took part in Jojo Siwa mania, using much-memed makeup from her latest album along with Jojo audio:

12. Fit check 

Want to show off your #OOTD (outfit of the day)? Post a fit check! Show off your sense of style and become a fashion inspiration by wearing something unique or putting your spin on what’s trending in the fashion space. This is a perfect trend for designers and clothing brands to reveal new collections. 

Other fashion trends have spun off this one, too. For example, Megababe founder Katie Sturino uses her platform to share outfit ideas and inspiration for plus-size bodies using the hashtag #supersizethelook.

13. ASMR

ASMR (autonomous sensory meridian response) trends continue to be popular on TikTok and other video platforms. This content serves as both entertainment and stress relief for those who find ASMR soothing. 

There are many ways to put a spin on this for your brand. For example, restaurant-quality Asian seasoning brand Omsom shared the satisfying noises of a team member sizzling up some spicy noodles.

Even pet food brands have jumped on the trend, like in this video from Spot & Tango:

14. Nostalgia and retro trends

Nostalgia is huge on TikTok, from recreating ’90s high school aesthetics to Gen Z kids gawking at their parents’ ’80s dance moves. Brands and creators alike share embarrassing or relatable nostalgic content about school days, emo trends, past fashion trends, old school music, and more. If it was popular 10, 20, or 30 years ago, it will definitely find an audience on the app. Decade-specific fashion trends like Y2K or ’60s-inspired makeup looks are also popular.

Here’s how Barbie added its flavor to the 90s blowout trend on TikTok in 2024:

15. POV (point of view) 

This long standing trend on TikTok includes videos that present a point of view that reflects a particular character or situation. For example, you might post a video from the POV of your strict parent, a nervous backseat driver, or a dog on a walk. These are usually humorous takes and can be adapted to any situation, making this trend ideal for brands looking to show personality. 

Here’s how Lululemon used the trend to showcase its new collection:

Bali Body took a humorous approach, even pairing the trend with another trending moment, Met Gala fashion: 

16. Pack an order with me 

TikTok users love watching small business owners pack orders on social media. These videos often have high design aesthetic and even ASMR qualities. Or they humanize a brand with a behind-the-scenes view of a frenzied fulfillment process.

For example, home décor business Tarta Gelatina shares order packing videos that highlight the brand’s attention to design and detail:

How to create a TikTok trend

One of the biggest trends of 2023 was the Grimace shake trend. This TikTok trend was brand-led by McDonald’s during the launch of its newest product: a purple milkshake named for one of its lovable mascots. But trends can be started by any TikTok user.

Starting a trend as a brand begins with understanding your audience. Start with topics they’re already engaging with and envision it through a brand lens. To take off as a trend, your content should have universal appeal and be flexible enough to be memed by anyone. 

TikTok’s own analysis has determined that every trend is made up of four elements: 

• A trend message
• Associated hashtags
• A sonic identity
• Visual narrative 

Here are some more tips for going viral on TikTok with your own branded trend:

• Consider challenges that include a unique branded hashtag and a catchy sound or song with pop culture appeal. 
• Challenges should be easy for users to participate in, such as an easy dance. Chipotle’s simple #guacdance was one of the most successful brand challenges on TikTok. 
• Partner with an influencer with an audience similar to your target customer. 
• Humor goes a long way on the platform. Create a trend that allows users to be silly and showcase their own sense of humor. 
• Tap into what’s current in popular culture. Can you start a branded trend based on a new album drop or controversial fashion trend?
• While selling on TikTok gets easier with the app’s own shopping features, your content shouldn’t be salesy—especially if you want it to go viral.
• Use editing tools to turn an original clip from your camera roll into a punchy video with slick transitions.
• Keep your video clip short and use text overlay to convey more information, especially if you pair it with a sound clip.

Use TikTok trends to boost views and grow your business

As TikTok trends come and go, pay attention to recurring themes, evergreen trends, and formats that stick around. These are some of the best ways to jump on trends without the risk of missing them altogether.

Staying on top of the latest TikTok trends, viral sounds, and challenges can be valuable as you learn what type of content works on the platform. As you develop your TikTok marketing strategy, continue to monitor how trends in your industry evolve and how your target audience reacts. 

When you think of selling online, what initially comes to mind? Probably products like printed t-shirts, handmade jewelry, or pet supplies, right? Creating or curating tangible goods to sell online is a common business model, after all—one that defines many who use Shopify today.

But determining what to sell on Shopify can still be a challenging task. Will you create your own handmade products or dropship for other brands? Will you hop on a trend or invent something entirely new?

Consider also that you can sell more than just things you can touch and feel. Many founders are using Shopify in creative ways to sell pretty much anything and everything. Selling experiences, courses, rentals, and digital goods are just a few of the unique business ideas you’ll find in this guide. Ahead, find a product that excites you and get started selling on Shopify today.

What to sell on Shopify: 17 ideas

1. Handmade products
2. Dropshipping products
3. Print-on-demand products
4. Merch
5. Trending products
6. Curated products
7. Service appointments
8. Memberships
9. Consultations
10. Digital products
11. Experiences
12. Classes and workshops
13. Rentals
14. Quotes, estimates, and assessments
15. Donations
16. Event tickets
17. Gift cards

If you’re embarking on a new entrepreneurial journey, or you’re looking for a change, consider selling products or expanding your brainstorming beyond tangible goods. Here, we’ll explore what you can sell on Shopify, including real store examples, app suggestions, and advice for getting started.

1. Handmade products

One of the most common things to sell on Shopify is handmade goods. If you have a hobby like jewelry making or baking, chances are you may be able to monetize it. Turning your hobby into a business means finding an audience, streamlining your production processes, and preparing your products to sell online. 

When stained glass artist Debbie Bean found her calling, she worked side jobs and cut household expenses to grow her new business. She found her start at a local craft show and grew her brand by word of mouth from there. Her work was featured in more than 200 retailers worldwide before she pivoted her business to large-scale art installations.

Tips for getting started

• Scaling a handmade business is tough, but you eventually can hire staff to help with assembly. In the meantime, try streamlining your process to make products in batches.
• Consider a made-to-order model that allows you to produce work only when it’s sold. 
• Brand storytelling is important for maker brands. Take time to craft your own.
• Consider personalized products like adding monogram embroidery for an extra cost.

2. Dropshipping products

Dropshipping is a great option for ecommerce beginners. It’s a business model that allows you to sell products without holding inventory or dealing with shipping. A dropshipping business is one that sells products online for another company that, in turn, ships those products directly to the customer.

Tan Choudhury discovered dropshipping while struggling with the shipping issues in his first business. Since then, he’s become an expert, helping others sell products this way. His biggest piece of advice? Start with one product. “Trying to merchandise 20 products as a beginner can be pretty overwhelming,” says Tan.

Tips for getting started

• Find reputable suppliers that can ship products on time.
• Focus on differentiating your brand from the other dropshipping businesses selling similar products.
• Look to trending products for inspiration on what to sell.
• You can dropship almost anything, from clothing and jewelry to books and baby products.

3. Print-on-demand products

Print on demand is another type of business model that requires no inventory or shipping. If you’re a creative, consider using print on demand to apply your designs to t-shirts, smartphone accessories, mugs, and more. 

Maria Qamar, also known by her artist name HATECOPY, found print on demand after her art business took off. “At some point the volume became so much that I couldn’t make time to draw. I was spending all of my days delivering and in transit,” she says. Print on demand now allows her to focus on the creative parts of her business.

Tips for getting started

• There are a number of print-on-demand companies to choose from. Find one that has the types of products and quality you’re looking for. 
• Authors too can use print on demand to sell books on Shopify, bypassing the traditional publisher route. 

4. Merch

There’s a way to sell products even if your business isn’t about products. Many service businesses and online creators sell merch to diversify income streams and build brand affinity. Influencers can build their own ecommerce store and sell merchandise to fans. This is also a great way to build your email list and own your audience away from social platforms.

Sarah Andersen’s doodles caught the attention of Tumblr users back in 2011. Since then, she’s built those drawings into a comic book empire called Sarah’s Scribbles. Eventually, merch made sense for her brand, and she launched a line of tees, plushies, mugs, and prints alongside her comics.

Tips for getting started

• Use a print-on-demand service or app from the Shopify App Store to avoid handling inventory. 
• Use merch as a way to offer lower cost items to your mix. An artist who sells only expensive originals can add merch printed with art to the mix.

5. Trending products

When you’re starting from scratch and looking for something to sell on Shopify, consider trending products. If you don’t have a business idea or hobby you can convert into one, this is a great place to start. You already know there is a market for the product—you just need to drive them to your website. 

Google Trends can help you vet your idea’s trend potential. Setting up a successful Shopify store for your trending product is also an important step. There’s likely a ton of competition: How will you stand out? 

Tips for getting started

• Don’t stop at Google Trends. TikTok Trends, Pinterest Trends, trade publications, consumer magazines, and other online stores can be great places to discover trending products.
• Remember that trends are fleeting. Have a plan to pivot if interest in your product wanes.

6. Curated products

If you’re not interested in making products from scratch, try a curated approach to selling on Shopify. Consider your interests: Can you curate the best niche products in that category? What about selling beauty products for a specific skin condition? You can even try becoming a reseller for an existing brand in a new market. 

If you have deep interest in or knowledge of a specific topic, this is a great place to start. Use content marketing to establish yourself as an expert and build trust. Then, curate the best products in the category to sell on Shopify.

Tips for getting started

• Explore other online stores to get inspiration for yours. How do they curate collections? What makes their store stand out?
• Consider a subscription box business and try a subscription app from the Shopify App Store to help manage your business.

7. Service appointments

In-person and virtual businesses alike can make appointments more seamless for customers (and staff) by offering self-serve online bookings. Salons, contractors, and music schools can sell virtual consultation time slots and in-person services through an online store.

Stores that typically sell physical products can also benefit from adding services (free or paid) to their websites. Toufie, an online footwear brand that sells handcrafted custom shoes, uses appointments to help nail the fit. “Appointment bookings are one of the integral components to a risk-free customer shopping experience,” says co-founder Meliza Salim.

Tips for getting started

• Appointment booking Shopify apps offer a dynamic calendar, letting customers book preferred time slots with real-time availability. 
• Service businesses can also consider branded merch to sell on Shopify alongside appointments.

8. Memberships

Many non-profit organizations rely on paid memberships as a way to secure ongoing financial support. Memberships can also be used by creators to sell access to exclusive content for their most avid fans. Golf courses, fan clubs, galleries, and educational content producers are more great candidates for selling memberships online, securing long-term commitment from customers rather than selling one-off services. 

The Buffalo Botanical Gardens sells single-visit tickets but encourages visitors to buy memberships that allow year-round access and member-only perks. And kid music brand Yoto sells memberships to its Yoto Club. Members receive Yoto Cards in the mail monthly. 

Tips for getting started

• Memberships work much like subscription businesses, relying on recurring payment functionality and customer account management tools. Use this model as a guide when setting up your ecommerce store.
• An app like Bold Memberships allows you to sell one-time or recurring memberships online.

9. Consultations

Why not sell your expertise online? Everyone from interior designers to fitness trainers can use an online store to book and sell online or in-person consultations. 

The team behind Carter Design uses their Shopify store to sell design consultations to clients worldwide. This allows the duo to expand their services into other markets. 

Brands that specialize in customization or made-to-order products may sell consultations to help customers create the perfect product. Kaikini founder Taryn Rodighiero runs her custom bikini business with the help of online consultations to guide customers through the measuring and ordering process.

Tips for getting started

• An app like BookedUp lets customers book consultations with you on your website, syncing with Calendly to avoid double-booking.
• Try Shopify’s invoice generator tool for billing custom services that you sell through consultation. 

10. Digital products

Digital products can refer to anything you sell that you deliver in a virtual format—course content, music files, fonts, or other design elements are a few examples. (Note: Later in this article, we’ll dive deeper into selling courses, specifically.)

While Thread Theory founders Matt and Morgan Meredith sell physical products like scissors and paper patterns, they also offer a lower-cost option: PDF sewing patterns delivered virtually. Other businesses with printed materials like magazines or journals may opt to offer digital versions to sell on Shopify that customers can print at home.

Tips for getting started

• Apps like Sky Pilot and Easy Digital Products can instantly deliver files to customers after a purchase, or send a link to where the files can be downloaded.

11. Experiences

Experience-based businesses can range from travel and adventure providers to winery tastings to kids’ camps. These businesses can improve the customer experience by offering advance ticket purchases and scheduling options online. 

Aspen Expeditions Worldwide sells rock climbing adventures, international guided trips, and camping expeditions through its ecommerce store. Since the product pages for each adventure do a lot of heavy lifting to inform, educate, and persuade potential customers to make big-ticket purchases, Aspen Expeditions organizes the information by adding tabs to the product description. 

Tips for getting started

• Experience-based businesses may need to collect additional customer information, like medical concerns and emergency contacts. Use Shopify Forms to create robust and customizable forms.
• Use video to your advantage: Shopify’s free online video maker can help you create marketing videos using footage from real experiences.

12. Classes and workshops

The COVID-19 pandemic proved that courses could be easily portable to a virtual format. Yoga studios and boxing gyms alike moved to an online model, letting participants buy class passes and attend online. Consider other types of courses you can sell on Shopify: digital marketing, DIY how-tos, and parenting classes.

If I Made creates original creative course content with industry professionals and delivers programming digitally to students—but it started with in-person learning. “We then took that content and brought it all online to make it more portable and accessible,” says founder Emily Newman. 

Tips for getting started

• Sell courses in multiple formats like videos, worksheets, booklets, and 1:1 coaching sessions.
• An app like Courses Plus can turn your Shopify store into a course platform, allowing you to create lessons to sell online. 
• Create course content using Shopify’s free online video maker and sell it over and over.

13. Rentals

Rental businesses are services that make physical products available to customers for a predetermined amount of time. Customers pay for the advantage of using an item for a brief period without the associated long-term costs like storage and maintenance.

Mannequin Madness sells retail props to other shops through its online store, but also rents them temporarily. When accidental entrepreneur Judi Henderson-Townsen needed a mannequin, she discovered only one seller in her area. “I bought his entire inventory,” she says. Mannequin Madness uses a contact form to assess customer needs before processing the rental.

Dress rental business The Fitzroy, however, takes a self-serve approach by asking customers to select a rental period using a date selector variant available on its product page to “check out” the item. It relies on a simple app and a clear FAQ page to make the rental and return processes run smoothly.

Tips for getting started

• IzyRent: Rentals & Bookings is an app designed specifically for stores offering rentals. It allows for one-click rentals on your website.
• Rentals may require extra information to be collected from customers, and Shopify Forms can help you do just that. 

14. Quotes, estimates, and assessments

GoGreenSolar sells and installs solar energy solutions for homeowners. Due to the custom nature of the product and the additional work involved in installation, customers can request quotes and expert advice through the contact forms available on the company’s site. Self-serve quote requests save time and staff resources for businesses that provide highly technical services and products.

Quotes are a great marketing tool for a business’s other services. For example, a business that provides home energy upgrades may sell energy audits through a website. The final report would then inform customers how they can recoup the audit cost through energy savings—by buying the business’s upgrades.

Tips for getting started

• An app like G: Request a Quote can help you gather customer quote requests from your store and convert that quote into a real order.

15. Donations

Many charities use Shopify as the merchandise arm of their organization, selling branded goods, with profits supporting the cause. But charities and non-profits can also use an online store to “sell” one-time and recurring donations.

An Act of Dog is a registered charity that sells pet paintings, with proceeds supporting various animal rescue organizations. The company also lets customers donate directly to causes through the same website.

Tips for getting started

16. Event tickets

Online ticketing can be employed by a number of businesses, from event spaces to independent theaters to pop-up haunted houses. 

Undertow works with select artists to sell tickets online for music events throughout the US. It uses a paperless delivery method, sending downloadable tickets to customers. Run Across America uses ticketing in a different way, selling access to virtual run challenges that participants complete on their own schedule. Purchases include access to a tracking app and a sweatshirt. 

Tips for getting started

• Design, sell, and scan event tickets with the Event Ticketing app that syncs with your Shopify store. 
• A QR code generator can be helpful for creating unique QR codes that customers can present at live events.

17. Gift cards

The simplest of non-tangible goods to add to any website is gift cards. From Shopify, you can enable gift cards for most stores. They’re perfect for any business, allowing recipients to redeem codes online for products or services sold through your website.

Home décor brand Apt2B sells branded gift cards in multiple denominations, redeemable for furniture and décor goods through its online store.

Tips for getting started

• Offer gift cards in a number of denominations to give customers more options.
• Push digital gift cards in your marketing efforts after the shipping cutoff for holiday delivery has passed.

Sell (almost) anything on Shopify

If you’re looking for a business idea and aren’t sure what to sell on Shopify, the answer is: almost anything. There are ideas for everyone, even if you’re not creative or don’t plan to make your own products. Don’t limit yourself to selling physical items. You can sell everything on Shopify, from memberships to tickets to digital goods. Develop your brand, set up a Shopify store, and start selling products—and everything else—today.

Making a living as a career artist is more than creating beautiful art. It involves understanding how to build an audience, how to price art products, and the unique requirements for shipping art. It means thinking like an entrepreneur.

Before ecommerce platforms, artists relied on third-party gallerists, agents, and retailers to distribute work. Today’s creator tools allow independent artists to own their distribution streams, creating and selling their art online—and on their own terms.

This shift has allowed gallerists and curators to represent more artists and expand into selling affordable art prints online to reach wider markets.

Whether you’re a creator or a curator looking to make money online by selling art, this step-by-step guide will teach you how to sell art online, with advice from successful gallerists and painters.

How to sell art online

1. Choose your business model
2. Decide what to sell: original art vs. reproductions
3. Photograph and scan your work
4. Find a printer to print your art
5. Build your brand as an artist
6. Set retail prices for your products
7. Build an ecommerce store to sell your art online
8. Discover more channels for selling art
9. Sell your art offline
10. Work with galleries to sell your art
11. License your art 
12. Market your art brand
13. Package and ship your art
14. Understand plagiarism and copyright for artists

In the following sections, we’ll cover the basics of selling art online for beginners and seasoned artists alike. Explore topics for every level including working with printers and dealing with plagiarism.

No matter what type of art you’re into—original acrylic paintings, digital art prints, sculpture—this resource has actionable advice for every artist. Hear expert advice from Spoke Art gallerist Ken Harmon, Ferme à Papier owner Cat Seto, and artist Maria Qamar, a.k.a. Hatecopy. From learning how to sell paintings online to reproducing your work as merch, these experts will walk you through every step.

1. Choose your business model: Sell your own art or works by other artists

There are two ways to sell art online: create or curate. Cat built her career both ways, by creating and selling her own work and representing the work of others in her boutique. Which one is right for you?

Create and sell your own art

As an artist, you are the creator, producing original art, reproductions of originals, or digital artwork, and selling directly to your customers or indirectly through a gallery, retail partner, or agent. 

It’s never been easier for artists to sell directly, with emerging creator tools popping up seemingly every day.  If you’re learning how to sell paintings online, galleries can expose your work to new audiences. They may also have access to resources and professionals to help promote, exhibit, handle, and ship artwork.

Curate the works of other artists

If you’re not personally an artist but you have a great eye and a love of the art world, you can still get into the game of selling art as a curator. 

Some artists may not be into marketing or figuring out how to sell art online and instead rely on gallerists, curators, and retail partners to handle this aspect of the business. As a partner to artists, you make a percentage of the selling price in exchange for your business knowledge and service.

There are several ways to work with artists to sell their art online—be it selling originals or prints, or licensing works to be printed on merchandise or used in publication. 

2. Decide what to sell: original art versus reproductions

The best way to sell your art online will depend on the nature of your art and your chosen medium. You may choose to sell your art, sell reproductions of that work, or both.

Fine artists using classic mediums and selling at high price points may choose to sell only originals, for example, while digital art, which can be reproduced without loss of quality, is great for prints and merch. However, most art created in 2D mediums have multiple options for generating unlimited sales on a single work.

Consider the following formats:

• Original art: Paintings, drawings, illustrations (Note: you can sell both the original art as well as prints of the same work)
• Limited- or open-edition prints: Framed, unframed, or prints on canvas)
• Digital art or digital downloads: Desktop wallpaper, templates, print-at-home art, etc.
• Custom art: Made to order from a customer request or commissioned by a business.
• Merchandise: Your art printed on hats, iPhone cases, mugs, t-shirts, enamel pins, greeting cards, stationery, etc.
• Repeat prints: On fabric, wrapping paper, or wallpaper
• Licensing: “Renting” work to other brands or publications (great for illustrators and photographers)
• Collaborations with brands: Limited collection sold through the partner brand’s store

How to sell paintings online

This guide will provide you with everything you need as an artist selling paintings online. With the exception of the section on printing your art, each step applies to online art sales for both original and reproductions.

How to sell prints online

You’ll also find all the information required to sell prints online. This guide will walk you through the steps to make money selling art online by reproducing original artwork to sell over and over again. Pay particular attention to the section on printing your art, as well as how to leverage print on demand products to start making online sales through your digital art in just a few clicks.

Selling other types of art reproductions

Indigenous artist Patrick Hunter creates price-accessible reproductions of his work on goods like greeting cards and apparel.

Some mediums, like sculpture, are more difficult to reproduce or use for merchandise applications. But for those impossible to scan and print, there are still ways to generate additional income from a single design. For example, clay works may use the same mold to generate similar pieces, and 3D designs can be created over and over with a 3D printer.

Reproductions of art prints: open edition versus limited edition

Reproducing art on t-shirts or mugs, or as art prints means that a single work can bear fruit indefinitely—or for a limited time. There are two ways to approach selling your art as prints: open edition or limited edition.

What is open edition? 

Open edition means printing and selling an unlimited number of products (reproductions or prints of an original work). With this option, you can continue to profit from a single piece of art indefinitely while there is still demand for it. However, the unlimited availability of your pieces may devalue your work overall.

What is limited edition?

Limited edition means printing only a certain number of prints before they are gone. These are often numbered and signed by the artist to add value and authenticity. The limited availability adds value to the art, meaning you can sell prints at higher price points.

Spoke often opts for the limited edition strategy. “We work really hard to find things that are very special to sell. Things that are special should be treated like they’re special,” Ken says. 

To help minimize reselling, Spoke will limit quantities of certain prints per customer. “Making sure that the real fans are actually the ones who are able to get the things that we sell is always a priority,” Ken says.

3. Photograph and scan your work

Photographing and representing your products clearly and accurately is important for any online small business. Without the ability to feel a product, potential customers need to get the best sense of what they’re buying through clear and detailed images. 

Selling art online is no exception. “If you have a bad image of your work or the image doesn’t represent the work accurately, you’re going to have a harder time selling it,” says Ken. Or, you’ll be stuck dealing with unhappy customers and processing returns.

Photographing art to sell

Product photography for art is a little trickier than other products, and a basic light setup may still cause glare or color irregularities. Consider hiring a professional to shoot larger works or art with any three-dimensional or glossy elements.

If you’re selling merch or other products that feature your art, the general rules of product photography apply. Take clear shots from multiple angles as well as zoomed-in shots to show texture and detail. Lifestyle photos (your product in a scene) are great for your homepage and social media and help to show scale. 

Print-on-demand services often provide mockup images you can use on your product pages in lieu of or in addition to photography. 

Scanning art to sell

For 2D works, Ken recommends scanning as an affordable and effective alternative to photography. “The most cost effective way to do that is to get a desktop scanner and scan the work in parts and stitch it together digitally,” he says. “If you’ve got a piece with a high-gloss coating or a resin, that’s a little tricker, but for the majority of works on canvas or paper, it’s pretty easy.” In the case of more challenging scans, galleries and other printing services can help.

In both cases, you’ll want the final product to represent your work as closely as possible so you can use it in your portfolio or sell the work as prints or digital art.

🎨 Learn more:

4. Find a printer to print your art

Understanding how to sell your prints of your artwork comes down to getting very friendly with a printer, whether that’s your at-home inkjet or a company that handles the task for you. There are multiple options, from DIY to completely hands off, to help you sell art prints and other merchandise to your audience.

DIY printing

It’s possible to start selling your own artwork by creating quality prints yourself with high-quality paper, ink, and an at-home office printer. As a new artist, this method can keep costs low, but may be unsustainable as you scale over time. 

“In the beginning, I would print, package, and deliver by hand every single poster that was ordered,” says Maria. “At some point the volume became so much that I couldn’t make time to draw. I was spending all of my days delivering and in transit.” 

This method is usually limited to selling art prints on paper, but some specialty home printers may allow you to print on canvas paper or fabric designed specifically for this purpose.

Using a printing company

A local or online printing company can reproduce your work en masse and can even offer bulk discounts if you are printing many of the same piece. This can be the best way to sell art online if you have a small catalog and high sales volume of those pieces. 

With this method, you’ll still be responsible for packaging and shipping the prints you sell online. These companies can often produce high-quality prints due to more advanced printers.

Print on demand services

Print on demand is the most hands-off and versatile option and the easiest way to sell art online—especially if you plan to sell your work printed on merch like t-shirts or caps. 

Print-on-demand services generally integrate with your online store. When an order is placed, the integration triggers that piece to be printed and shipped directly to the customer. This is a great option for selling art on a budget, as there is no need to invest in equipment or inventory. 

When the number of orders exceeded her capacity to print and ship work herself, Maria upgraded to using a print-on-demand company. “All I have to do is upload and let it do the work for me,” she says. “Now I can focus on actually creating the artwork and connecting with people.”

Print-on-demand products don’t just stop at paper prints. Your art can be printed on a number of items to sell, from phone cases to stickers.

💡 Tip: Request samples from the print-on-demand provider so you can inspect the colors and quality of the print. This is especially important if items will be sent directly to your customers.

5. Build your brand as an artist

As an artist learning how to sell your artwork, your brand may evolve as a natural extension of your art. Your chosen style and medium will define you as an artist and you will naturally attract fans and buyers based on this alone. However, there are many decisions you will need to consciously make when you start to think of yourself as a business as well as an artist.

Because art is a personal and sometimes emotional purchase, your brand story as an artist could factor into someone’s decision to buy. And other business assets like packaging and site design should mirror or complement the visual aesthetic of the work itself.

Your branding exercise should answer the following:

• Do you create and sell art under your own name, a pseudonym, or a brand name?
• How will you approach brand storytelling? How much of your personal story will you tell?
• Do you have a mission, values, or a cause that you want to communicate through your brand?
• Outside of the art itself, what is the visual direction of your brand identity? What’s the tone of your communication?
• What branding assets do you need? Even without design skills or the budget to hire a graphic designer, you can generate a logo with a logo maker and execute branding design with free and simple tools.

The answer to these questions will help you build a set of brand guidelines that will form the foundation for website design, marketing materials, etc. If you eventually scale your business, these guidelines will help you maintain brand consistency as you delegate tasks to staff or other partners.

Your brand story can surface in multiple places including your social media content, inserts in your packaging, and on an About page on your website, like this one from Australian artist Sarah Migliacco.

Many artists build fan bases based on their online personas or personal brands that are closely tied to their art. Tatiana Cardona, also known as Female Alchemy, has chosen to put her face at the center of her social media strategy.

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6. Set retail prices for your products

How do you sell your art online—and actually make money doing it? Making a living as a working artist is possible if you know how to value and price your work. Pricing art is challenging because it doesn’t necessarily fit neatly into typical pricing strategies. 

Pricing original art

Running any business that will be sustainable in the long term involves being profitable at some point. To achieve this, you will need to price your art accordingly. If you’re just beginning to experiment with selling paintings online and don’t have a widely known name, you can start with a simple formula to price your original art:

Your cost to sell and market the piece + material costs + other expenses + your markup (profit) = retail price

For this method, it’s helpful to factor in the time you spent creating the art. It is typical for artists to undervalue their time and work, especially at the beginning.

Where the formula above fails is that the value of art is subjective and not necessarily dependent on concrete details like material cost or labor hours. Famous and successful artists can fetch exponentially more for a piece that has roughly the same creation costs as that of a new artist. Check the market to compare your pricing to similar artists at similar levels and adjust accordingly. 

💡 Tip: You can work with gallerists, who are experts at valuing and pricing art, to set a price that makes sense for you, the gallery, and the market. Note that the gallery will take a cut of the retail price when selling paintings online and IRL.

Pricing art prints to sell

Selling art prints or other types of reproduction can follow a more simple pricing formula: 

The cost of printing + your cost to sell and market the print + other expenses + your markup (profit) = retail price

Your markup may be on a scale depending on whether you sell open- or limited-edition prints. Other expenses may include office supplies, software or app fees, professional services, studio rent, and more.

“Knowing what your products stand for and what you aren’t willing to compromise are key components in driving decisions about pricing,” says Cat. For her, printing on sustainable paper was a must-have, even though it would drive up material costs and ultimately the retail price. Communicating these decisions to the customer is important, especially if your prices are higher than average.

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7. Build an ecommerce store to sell your art online

The best way to sell your art online is through your own website. You’ve already done a lot of the work if you’ve established brand guidelines, pricing, and business model (originals, prints, or merch)—this part is simply assembly.

Critical pages

Every ecommerce store should have a few key pages that customers expect to see when browsing. These include a homepage, contact page, About page, collection pages, and product pages. Some lesser known but important pages to consider are terms and conditions, FAQ, privacy policy, and shipping policy pages. 

For artists, a gallery or portfolio page may also be useful if you plan to license your work, sell through galleries, offer custom art, or attract brand partnerships. 

Store design and themes

When setting up your online art store, choose a Shopify theme that lets your art breathe—large images and lots of white/negative space. Themes are like templates that you build upon, layering in your own images and copy, and tweaking colors and layout to suit your business.

While Shopify themes are designed to be customized easily with no code, you can adjust your theme even further by hiring a Shopify Expert to help you with design or development work.

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Apps for art stores

The Shopify App Store is packed with apps that plug directly into your online store to solve specific pain points, add unique features, and help you run your store more effortlessly—allowing you to focus on the creative aspects of the business.

App suggestions to help sell your art online:

• Print-on-demand apps. If you sell your artwork as prints and merch, apps like Creativehub, Printful, or Printify can sync with your store.
• Gallery apps. An app like POWRful Photo Gallery can be used to create a portfolio or catalog of your work to share with galleries or brands looking to partner with you.
• Social marketing apps. Keep site content fresh with an app like Instafeed that pulls Instagram images into a gallery on your site.
• Product page apps. If you’re offering a specific piece of artwork with overlapping options (size, frame or no frame, paper type, etc.), use an app like Bold Product Options to layer item variants.

🎨 Learn more:

8. Discover more online channels for selling art

What’s the best place to sell your art online? Aside from your own online store, it’s where your ideal customer is already hanging out. If you have amassed a following on a particular social media channel, for example, that might be a great place to start.

Having an omnichannel strategy is important for protecting your independence as a creator. Your own online shop allows you to own the look and feel of your space as well as the audience you build. But layering on other channels can help you access additional markets and build your personal brand as an artist.

Where to sell your art online:

• A standalone ecommerce site allows you to sell online using an ecommerce platform like Shopify.
• Online marketplaces like Etsy, Amazon, or eBay can plug directly into your online store, allowing you to sync sales and reach wider audiences.
• Other art-specific marketplaces help you show up where art lovers congregate (Society 6, Artfinder, Saatchi Art, Fine Art America, etc.).
• Social selling channels like Facebook and Instagram that integrate with your Shopify store. Sell on TikTok and run TikTok ads to drive fans to your store.
• Wholesale or consign to other online boutiques and galleries. You can browse wholesale markets to find compatible retailers that want to sell your art.
• Collaborations with other artists who sell artwork online. Get exposure to their audiences by producing collab work to sell and promote on both your site and theirs.

Cat sells direct to customers and works on custom projects for clients and brands, in addition to her wholesale business. “If I had tried to balance all of these from the onset,” she says. “I believe I would have been overwhelmed.” 

9. Sell your art offline: gallery exhibitions, pop-ups, and events

Because Maria works frequently in traditional mediums, much of the impact of the texture and scale of her work gets lost digitally. “It’s actual physical work, so when we do exhibits, you can walk into a gallery and see that I’m a real person who has technical skills and can do paintings and large scale installations,” she says. 

Artists can also connect with fans and find new audiences by selling art offline. You can use in-person experiences to drive people back to your online store.

Consider the following when selling your own artwork IRL:

• Partner with a gallery to exhibit work and generate buzz.
• Look into local art markets, art fairs, and events, and set up a one-time or semi-permanent booth.
• Consign or wholesale with art, gift, or lifestyle retail stores, or set up a small pop-up within an existing store.
• Open your studio to the public when you launch your website, or keep consistent weekly open-studio hours to invite fans into your process.
• Run a pop-up shop (partner with other artists to reduce costs).
• “Lend” or consign work for décor to emerging retail businesses like cafés in exchange for the exposure.

Advances in technology like 3D and AR for online stores and the trend toward digital experiences may mark big changes for the art world in the future. It’s important to follow consumer trends while you learn how to sell your art and grow your business.

10. Work with galleries to sell your art

You can work with galleries to sell your art on your behalf if you are not interested in handling the business side of art, or as an additional channel to complement your own efforts. This partnership can give you access to new audiences, including serious art buyers and art collectors.

Here are a few dos and don’ts when working with galleries:

✅ DO check out the gallery’s social media accounts. “If you have more followers than that gallery does or that gallery doesn’t have a lot of followers, that may give you pause,” says Ken. A gallery should be able to give you a wider exposure than you can get yourself.

❌ DON’T approach a gallery via social media (unless they specifically ask for it). “While social media is a major focus for us, that’s just not a very professional way to come across if you’re an artist,” says Ken.

✅ DO your research and contact only those galleries who represent work in line with your own style. “You can’t sell street art to somebody who collects impressionism,” says Ken.

❌ DON’T sacrifice quality for quantity. “It’s frustrating when an artist who’s hoping to catch our attention tags us and 20 other galleries all in the same post.” Select the top few galleries that you want to work with most and send individual outreach to each.

✅ DO your homework. “Find the name of the director or the curator for the gallery,” says Ken. “Being able to personalize an email is a great first step in that process.”

11. License your art 

Aside from selling physical art—both original and reproductions—there’s another way to make money as an artist: licensing. Licensing your art involves selling permission for a brand, business, institution, agency, stock photography site, or person to use a digital version of your image for a specific use case and timeframe.

Licensing contracts vary and may include unlimited use rights or the right to use a digital art image indefinitely, though usually there are limitations in place to protect the artist. Understand what you’re signing before entering into any legal agreement, and be sure you still retain ownership over your image.

💡Tip: Consult a contract lawyer for help in negotiating the terms of your licencing agreements. This is especially important as you gain more cachet or the value of your art increases.

12. Market your art brand

Many artists like Maria started on social media, growing a following first before launching a store and monetizing their work. The channel where you’ve gained the most traction in the beginning is a natural place to spend your energy and marketing dollars first.

Artist Adam Spychala uses Instagram—a platform where he has over 100,000 followers—to promote his work and his print shop.

There are several ways to market your art and drive traffic to your sales channels. Try these marketing strategies for your brand:

• Paid ads. Run ad campaigns on platforms like Google or Facebook.
• Invest in organic social content by posting consistently and engaging with fans and art communities frequently. 
• Run contests or offer exclusive discounts. Use these to help build your email list.
• Use influencer marketing. Reach out to creators and press when you launch your site or a new collection.
• Apply SEO. Learn about ecommerce SEO to help improve your store’s discoverability on search engines.
• Try offline marketing. Participate in art shows and markets or work with a gallery to expand your reach to new, larger audiences.
• Use content marketing. Leverage your expertise to create content around art, tutorials, behind-the-scenes sneak peeks, etc., either through a blog, TikTok account, YouTube channel, or podcast.

Artist Segun Caezar takes fans behind the scenes with content that demonstrates his process of creating his paintings.

🎨 Learn more:

13. Package and ship your art

As art is visual, you should pay attention to the smallest details, down to how your art is packaged and shipped. Art that arrives undamaged is the bare minimum—give your customers an experience that matches the quality and care you put into your work. 

As art can be fragile, follow these guidelines for ensuring your work arrives safe and sound.

DIY shipping for art

If you are shipping original art, or elect to ship prints and canvases yourself, rather than through a print and fulfillment company, take extra precaution with your packing. Larger prints and posters are best shipped in cardboard mailing tubes, and smaller prints in rigid cardboard mailing envelopes. 

Use glassine (a water and grease-resistant paper) or clear cellophane sleeves to protect prints within the packaging. Custom branded packaging like tissue paper or poly envelopes that feature your branding or art can spark delight with customers and improve their experience with your brand.

Many ecommerce platforms integrate with shipping providers and shipping apps to help you find the best shipping rates for each market and package. Determine if you will offer free shipping and roll the shipping cost into the retail price or charge a flat fee to keep shipping transparent.

Shipping expensive and oversized original artwork

Framed works and canvases require additional precautions. Packaging supply shops offer packing and shipping materials like cardboard corners and specialty box sizes designed specifically for art.

If you’re shipping original work to a gallery or art collector, there are ways to cut costs. “Sometimes what we do is unstretch a canvas, roll it in a tube, and ship it that way, which dramatically lowers the freight costs,” says Ken. “Then we can have the canvas stretched locally.”

Shipping art direct with print on demand

The easiest way to sell artwork online is to outsource all of the printing, fulfillment, and shipping to a print-on-demand partner. They are able to access great shipping rates due to volume and partnerships with carriers.

Shipping insurance for fine art

Insurance is important when shipping original works, as a lost or damaged package can’t be replaced. Many standard carriers offer fairly basic insurance on most packages, and if you sell your art you should look into the specific extra coverage costs and limitations of each carrier’s insurance offerings. 

For expensive works, look into using a private freight company or a carrier that specializes in art handling, despite the higher costs.

🎨 Learn more: Shipping & Fulfillment 101: A Step-By-Step Guide for Getting Your Products to Your Customers

14. Understand plagiarism and copyright for artists

Both Maria and Ken say copycats and plagiarism are just an unfortunate reality of doing business. Maria took legal action only once, before shifting her perspective.

Maria takes Hatecopy’s copycats as an indication that she’s onto something.“It’s a sign that I’m inspiring others and that what I’m doing is right, because they wouldn’t copy me otherwise,” she says, “I’m not offended or bothered by it anymore.”

For galleries that represent multiple artists and sell art online, copycat websites are a consistent problem. “It’s part of the way the world works, unfortunately. We do our best, but it happens,” says Ken.

While copycats may be a reality, artists and businesses have legal recourse and should seek the advice of a copyright lawyer to help protect intellectual property before infringement happens.

Today’s the day to start selling art online 

For many emerging artists, the best way to learn how to sell your art online is to just get started with what you have at your disposal. Cat started her art business from a spare bedroom. Whether it’s a basement or a kitchen table, it can work as your launch pad. 

Thinking of yourself as an entrepreneur right from the get-go will be crucial to your path to becoming a successful artist. You may stumble as a creative to learn the business aspects, but they will ultimately help you grow and scale your business selling paintings online. “You could know everything about business and you could know everything about art,” says Maria, “but it’s the combination of both that really makes a successful brand.” 

Feature illustration by Pete Ryan

Most people don’t buy your products after their first visit to your site.

Ecommerce stores convert only 5.2% of traffic on average. Without a strategy to gain back website visitors, you’re leaving money on the table. That’s where retargeting comes in. 

Learn how retargeting works, and discover tips and apps for creating ads that keep you top of mind and profitable. 

What is retargeting?

Retargeting is a form of online advertising that targets users who have previously interacted with a brand in some way. This could be visiting the brand’’s website, clicking on a product, or even abandoning a shopping cart.

“Retargeting ads are shown to people who have already visited your website,” says Daniel Patricio, founder of Bull and Cleaver. “These ads are intended to entice them to come back to buy your product.”

Retargeting vs. remarketing

Retargeting and remarketing are often used interchangeably. However, they are distinct strategies with separate goals and channels. 

How retargeting ads help

Some 96% of people who come to your website are not ready to buy. Retargeting campaigns are kind of like dating: You don’t meet someone for the first time and fall in love. It usually takes a few interactions before you commit. 

Retargeting ads have a couple advantages: 

• They’re personalized. Retargeting ads can reference past interactions with your brand. You can remind customers of the products they’ve viewed, liked, or added to their carts. 
• They’re effective. Precisely segmenting customers by behaviors means you can deliver relevant ads with higher click-through rates (CTR) and conversion rates (CVR). 

How retargeting works

Retargeting works across many different channels, like paid search, email, and social media. There are two common ways to approach retargeting. 

Pixel-based retargeting

This paid advertising technique lets marketers display targeted ads to visitors who already visited their website. They do this by placing a “pixel,” or a piece of code, on the site.

Pixels like these install cookies on a shopper’’s browser, so retargeting platforms like Google Ads, TikTok, and Meta can track their online behavior and show relevant ads as they browse. 

Here’s how it works for shoppers:

1. They browse your website, scrolling through your bestsellers and maybe even adding products to their cart. 
2. They leave your website without buying. 
3. They see your retargeting ads while reading an article, scrolling Facebook, or watching YouTube. 
4. They remember the awesome stuff you had in your store, return, and purchase.

By showing relevant, targeted ads to interested customers, retargeting raises brand awareness and increases conversions. Moreover, you can automate the ads while you focus on other aspects of your business.

List-based retargeting

A list-based retargeting campaign employs data about potential or existing customers to serve ads. These campaigns require two steps:

1. Share a list of email addresses with a social platform such as Facebook or LinkedIn.
2. The platform then finds people with matching emails and serves them advertisements.

List-based retargeting is less common than pixel-based retargeting, but it’’s effective for re-engaging past customers and leads. 

Because the list consists of known contacts, you can create highly targeted, customized ads that convert. If you have a lot of data and can cross-sell or upsell to the potential customers on your list, then this strategy is a good bet.

💡Want to set up email retargeting campaigns for your store? Download the Klaviyo Email Marketing & SMS app today.

Best practices for creating retargeting ads

To make the most of a retargeting campaign, follow these best practices:

1. Use ads to build audiences

It’s tempting to focus on getting that first sale with a new customer, but getting them to opt into your newsletter is more likely to keep them engaged, says Reza Khadjavi, founder of performance marketing agency Shoelace.

“Don’t always feel the need to get somebody to buy something,” Reza advises. “You can use a retargeting campaign to get them to sign up to your email list, because then it’s free for you to reach out to them any time you want.”

2. Think beyond the inbox

Even as your email list grows, it’s not a magic bullet. Reza has seen firsthand that email marketing works best when combined with retargeting campaigns.

“Email is always a great channel,” Reza says, “but even when people have opted into your list, sometimes your emails wind up in the promotions tab, and people won’t see them.

“Even when people get the email and open it, there’’s a lot of value in reinforcing that message through retargeting, because they might see the email, but they’’re on the go and they forget to act on it. If you’re retargeting them, later they might see a video ad on Instagram that has the same messaging as the email and say, ’‘Oh right, I knew I wanted to buy that.’”

Pairing these efforts is what’s known as a multitouch campaign, where you communicate a consistent message to a target customer across different touchpoints. 

3. Start small, and know your margins

Your best source of learning will come from getting some skin in the game and actually running a few ads. That’s why even seasoned pros will start small to test the waters when they’re running new campaigns. Brent Stirling of Growth Crew advises starting with an understanding of your profit margins to make sure you’re not going over budget.

“There are a lot of variables when you run Facebook ads,” he says. “Starting out, be sure to set a small daily or lifetime budget with conversions as the objective. A lot of marketers will also set a bid cap per conversion, but doing this requires knowing what your margins are. 

“If your average cart size is $60, what are you comfortable spending to get that order? This can take a bit of time to figure out the sweet spot—you want to maximize conversions without overspending. Maybe it’’s $10 per conversion, maybe it’’s $20. Each retailer will be different.”

To implement Brent’s advice, examine your business’s budget to determine its profit margins.

4. Capture attention with product page retargeting

Product page retargeting is the simplest way to profit from your advertising efforts. It involves getting people who’ve visited your store and looked at actual products back to buy them. 

These ads work better in shorter windows. For example, if someone visited a specific page in the past three days, they are more likely to buy versus someone who visited in the past 30 days. 

5. Test homepage and collection page retargeting ads

One common retargeting strategy is showing ads to people who’ve visited your homepage or collection page. These ads are different from product page ads because the viewers have never seen a product. 

Don’t focus on product benefits with these ads. Instead, you highlight why you’re a great brand to do business with.

These ads are beneficial because they:

• Remind potential customers that you exist
• Build trust by letting potential customers know other customers love buying from you (“social proof”)
• Make targets feel good about your brand
• Show off your products and compel click-throughs
• Have a strong call to action

Look at how BOOM! by Cindy Joseph approaches homepage and collection page ads and demonstrates social proof.

How to create retargeting ads

Several platforms offer retargeting ad capabilities. Here’s how to implement retargeting ads on some of the most popular ones:

Facebook & Instagram

Setting up a Facebook retargeting campaign is easy with a Shopify store once you’ve set up Shopify’’s Facebook & Instagram channel and synced your products to Facebook.

Here’s how to set up Meta campaigns, using Facebook as an example:

1. In Shopify, go to Marketing.
2. Click Create campaign.
3. Click Facebook dynamic retargeting ad.
4. Enter a name and the ad text for your activity.
5. Set the budget.
6. Set a start date and time;You can also set an end date and time, if you choose.
7. Click Publish activity.

Shopify apps like AdRoll help you run and optimize retargeting ads across Google and other social media platforms. 

TikTok

You can also retarget people with TikTok ads. As with Facebook, you’’ll need to install the TikTok pixel on your website and complete setup on TikTok Ads Manager. TikTok has options for creating custom audiences based on criteria like:

• Customer file uploads
• People who have seen or engaged with your content 
• People who have visited your TikTok Shop
• People who have visited your website

💡AD TIP: Install the TikTok app on your Shopify store. You can automate ad creation and launch a shopping tab on your TikTok profile in select countries.

LinkedIn

With LinkedIn, you can retarget audiences based on activities like company page visits, lead gen form responses, and LinkedIn event RSVPs. To collect website visitor information, set up the LinkedIn Insight Tag, which gives real-time insights into visitors’’ professional traits and content preferences. 

LinkedIn retargeting is ideal for B2B brands looking to re-engage qualified buyers for their products and services. 

Pinterest

The Pinterest ad platform also supports dynamic retargeting campaigns. Simply upload your catalog and enable the Pinterest tag on your website. 

The tag consists of a base code and an event code, of which there are several types. The base code is unique to your Pinterest account, allowing you to build retargeting campaigns based on site activity.

Event codes are for pages where you want to track things like conversions, carts, and sign-ups. You might add the checkout tag event code to the “Thank you for your order” page to flag the purchase, for example.

Dropshipping is a simple, popular way to start an online business. It removes common retail challenges such as buying, storing, and shipping inventory.

When a dropshipping store makes a sale, it forwards the order to a supplier, who handles delivery to the customer. This lets store owners focus on other tasks, like marketing and branding.

Ahead, learn what dropshipping is, how it works, and how to get started as a dropshipper.

What is dropshipping?

Dropshipping is a retail method where an online store doesn’t keep its products in stock. Instead, when a customer makes an order, the store forwards it with payment to a dropshipping supplier. The supplier then ships the product to the customer.

Many business owners prefer dropshipping because it passes the task of order fulfillment to suppliers. This means stores don’t need to invest in warehouse space or risk getting stuck with unsold inventory. As a result, businesses can allocate more resources to other retail activities such as marketing.

It’s estimated that dropshipping generates more than $300 billion in ecommerce sales every year.

What is a dropshipper?

A dropshipper is the person or business that accepts customer orders and passes them to a supplier for fulfillment.

Dropshippers often run online stores to market and sell products. When a customer buys a product, the dropshipper places a corresponding order with the supplier.

Let’s say you own an online dropshipping store that sells pet products. When a customer purchases a cat collar, you forward the order to your supplier, who has a warehouse of pet goods.

(Confusingly, in some resources, the term “dropshipper” refers to the supplier. This article defines dropshippers as sellers of dropshipped products.)

What are dropshipping suppliers?

Dropshipping suppliers fulfill orders made by retailers on behalf of customers. They store products, package them for shipping, and organize delivery to the customer address.

You might work with an individual supplier or a platform that hosts a directory of suppliers, such as AliExpress. Some manufacturers also operate as dropshipping suppliers.

In the pet store example, the company that receives the order, packages the cat collar, and ships it to the customer is the dropshipping supplier.

What about wholesalers?

Wholesale suppliers are not part of the dropshipping process. Unlike dropshipping suppliers, wholesalers sell bulk quantities of products to retailers, who then sell them to consumers.

If your pet store buys a large quantity of organic dog treats at a discounted price, stores them, and then sells them individually to customers, you are a traditional retailer working with a wholesaler.

How does dropshipping work?

Here’s a step-by-step breakdown of how the standard dropshipping process works:

1. Partner with a dropshipping supplier

Find a dropshipping supplier that offers products you want to sell. After signing an agreement, they’ll handle storage, packaging, and shipping of customer purchases.

You could partner with an individual business in your niche. You can also use a dropshipping app to sell products from multiple suppliers.

2. Set up an online store

Next, create your online store. Your store lists products from your supplier for the price that you decide.

Add a dropshipping app to your store to keep product listings updated and automatically forward orders to suppliers:

• DSers connects Shopify stores to AliExpress.
• Zendrop has a catalog with more than a million products.
• Spocket includes dropshipping suppliers in the US, Europe, Brazil, and India.

3. Receive a customer order

When a customer visits your store and places an order, the checkout process happens as normal. The customer pays, receives order confirmation, and awaits delivery.

4. Forward the order to the supplier

Once your customer pays for the order, send the order details to your dropshipping supplier. If you’re using a dropshipping app, this step is automated.

5. Supplier prepares and ships the product

The dropshipping supplier prepares the order and ships it directly to the customer. Many suppliers offer branded invoices and custom packaging to enhance the shopping experience.

6. Customer receives the product

The customer receives their product from the supplier while the store handles any customer service needs.

Should you start dropshipping?

Trying to decide whether dropshipping is worth it for you? Here are some signs that a dropshipping business model could fit your business:

You’re all about marketing

If you’re skilled in search engine optimization or social media marketing, dropshipping could be a great fit.

The primary goal of dropshippers is to drive traffic to an online store using platforms such as Google, YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram. Dropshippers leverage content marketing skills and an understanding of ranking algorithms to connect potential customers with products.

You’re sales-driven, not brand-focused

If your business strategy is more focused on generating a high volume of sales than on building a distinctive brand, dropshipping could be suitable for you.

In other retail models, sellers add branding to their store, products, packaging, and communications to create a consistent brand experience, building customer loyalty.

Dropshipping offers fewer branding opportunities. Packaging and delivery leave little room for personalization, and dropshipping products are rarely exclusive to a single retailer. This makes it harder to provide a unique experience that resonates with customers and keeps them coming back.

If you’re looking to sell branded products using dropshipping, explore options for private label dropshipping or print-on-demand products.

You prioritize product variety

Dropshipping gives merchants the ability to sell a wide array of products from a global network of suppliers without worrying about inventory.

However, this comes with a trade-off: less control over product quality and consistency. Beyond ordering samples, you may have little influence over the manufacturing process.

You’re comfortable with longer shipping times

In an era of super-fast delivery, most customers expect their purchases to arrive quickly. This presents a challenge for dropshippers who partner with overseas suppliers.

Products sent from international locations, such as China with ePacket, can take significantly longer to arrive, risking customer dissatisfaction.

If you can source domestic suppliers or manage customer expectations around delivery times, dropshipping could be a viable option.

You’re prepared for customer service needs

While dropshippers don’t deal with product fulfillment, they are the primary point of contact for customers. This means they often find themselves addressing customer service issues that are beyond their direct control, such as shipment delays, delivery problems, product defects, and return requests.

If you’re ready to navigate these challenges and manage customer inquiries effectively, dropshipping could be a well-suited business model.

6 benefits of dropshipping

Here are six reasons why dropshipping has become a popular ecommerce model for businesses:

1. Low costs
2. Wide selection of products to sell
3. Flexible location
4. Easier to start
5. Easier to test
6. Easier to scale

1. Low costs

Because you don’t buy inventory, dropshipping requires minimal upfront investment. Many dropshipping stores are run from home with little more than a laptop, making it an attractive small business idea.

With this benefit, however, comes competition from other dropshipping entrepreneurs. You’ll need to invest your time rather than capital, applying tips from dropshipping experts to make your business work.

2. Wide selection of products to sell

Use dropshipping to offer a wide array of trending products to your customers. With no unsold inventory to worry about, you can change your product catalog at will. If suppliers stock a new item, you can immediately list it for sale.

3. Flexible location

A dropshipping business can be run from just about anywhere with an internet connection. As long as you can communicate with suppliers and provide timely customer support, there are few restrictions on where you live and work.

4. Easier to start

Dropshipping removes many retail hurdles. Running an ecommerce business becomes easier when you don’t have to:

• Manage or pay for a warehouse
• Monitor inventory
• Pack and ship orders
• Track inventory for accounting
• Handle returns and inbound shipments

That said, successful dropshippers carefully oversee the fulfillment process and are committed to providing a satisfying customer experience.

5. Easier to test

Dropshipping is a useful fulfillment model for testing customer interest in a new product category. Stores can trial sales of a dropshipped product before committing to buying inventory.

6. Easier to scale

Scaling a traditional retail business takes forward planning. If a large number of orders arrive unexpectedly, it can be challenging to accommodate them, and you may quickly sell out.

Dropshipping businesses tend to scale more efficiently. Plus, you can expand your reach by dropshipping on popular marketplaces like Amazon, eBay, and Etsy.

Dropshipping drawbacks

Like all retail models, dropshipping also has its downsides. Here are four drawbacks to consider:

1. Lower profit margins
2. Inventory volatility
3. Shipping complexities
4. Supplier errors

1. Lower profit margins

The accessibility of dropshipping can lead to intense competition, resulting in lower profit margins as businesses undercut each other.

The more you reduce prices, the harder it becomes to calculate profit margins that work for your store.

Mitigate this problem by choosing the right products and selecting a dropshipping niche that’s not over-saturated.

2. Inventory volatility

For all its inventory management benefits, dropshipping exposes retailers to sudden changes in product availability.

With suppliers fulfilling orders for multiple retailers, inventory levels can fluctuate unexpectedly—something that’s less of an issue when you stock your own products.

Fortunately, dropshipping apps like DSers give merchants options when a supplier’s stock hits zero. For example, you can automatically unpublish a sold-out product or set a “Sold Out” label.

3. Shipping complexities

Working with multiple suppliers can complicate order fulfillment. If a customer orders three items from three different suppliers, you’ll need to cover separate shipping costs for each. The items may also arrive at different times.

One possible solution is to pass shipping costs on to customers. However, this may make your pricing less competitive.

4. Supplier errors

Even the best suppliers make fulfillment errors. Unfortunately, these mistakes fall on the dropshipper to resolve.

This makes the task of selecting a reliable supplier crucial for minimizing missing items, packing errors, and product quality issues—which harm your business’s reputation.

Dropshipping in 2024

In 2024, dropshipping remains a popular choice for online store owners, side hustlers, and people looking to start a retail business.

Dropshipping with Shopify is easy. Integrate a dropshipping app or use Shopify Collective to dropship products from US-based Shopify brands. Here’s how:

1. Sign up for a free trial with some basic information about your business.
2. Personalize your store with a logo, helpful content, and a free theme that fits your brand.
3. Set up the Dsers app to connect with your Shopify store with your AliExpress account, or choose another dropshipping supplier.
4. Import products to your store and set prices that ensure a profit margin.
5. Start selling and marketing your products.

Starting a dropshipping business is an accessible path to entrepreneurship. When a customer orders from your dropshipping store, the supplier ships the product directly, so you don’t need to hold inventory and overhead costs stay low.

Follow these nine steps to get your dropshipping business off the ground.

How to start a dropshipping business

1. Decide if dropshipping is the right business model
2. Choose a dropshipping niche
3. Research competitors
4. Choose a supplier
5. Select products and set prices
6. Build an ecommerce store
7. Decide on a business structure
8. Set up finances
9. Market your dropshipping business

1. Decide if dropshipping is the right business model

Dropshipping is just one way to run an online store. Before diving in, take time to ensure it’s the right business model for your goals.

Typically, dropshipping is suited to people with marketing skills who want to run a store with minimal upfront investment. Since you don’t need to stock or handle products, it’s possible to start with just a laptop and an internet connection.

However, this accessibility comes with tradeoffs. Dropshippers tend to have less control over the goods in their catalog, and because other retailers are likely to sell the same products, competition can be tough.

If you plan to focus on marketing and aren’t looking to build your business around a flagship product, then dropshipping could work for you.

2. Choose a dropshipping niche

A niche is a segment of a market. You can target a niche with your store, brand, and product selection.

Selecting a dropshipping niche helps you identify a target audience. With specific customers in mind, it’s easier to search for products to dropship.

There are two general methods for selecting a business niche:

1. Choose a niche that you’re knowledgeable or passionate about.
2. Choose a niche based on market demand.

The aim of the second method is to find niches with high customer interest but low competition. Dropshippers assess market demand through keyword and product research.

Finding a niche with keyword research

Keyword research shows you what people are searching for online. Tools like Google Trends, Facebook Audience Insights, and Keywords Everywhere reveal popular product-related searches that your online store might serve.

When assessing search demand, look at historic interest as well as search volume to find a niche with sustained or increasing popularity.

For example, eBike Generation founder John Murphy used keyword research to build a $3 million dropshipping company, by identifying an underserved niche: ebikes for hunters.

Finding a niche with product research

Product research helps you discover trending products and understand consumer tastes for different product categories.

Dropshipping apps like DSers let you see product order volume on marketplaces such as AliExpress to gauge the potential size of your business.

Use both types of research together to build a full picture of a dropshipping niche. Consumer habits change rapidly, so perform regular check-ins on keyword trends and product popularity.

To align your business with product availability, you could also decide to choose your dropshipping supplier before you select a niche.

3. Research competitors

Competitor analysis helps when starting a dropshipping business. Spend time gathering information about rival stores in your niche.

By observing what your competitors, especially other dropshippers, are offering, you can identify potential products and marketing strategies. Review product pages and social media ads to see what appeals to customers.

Conduct thorough competitor research with these tasks:

• Run a Google search
• Use competitor analysis tools
• Browse social media
• Check marketplaces

Run a Google search

Start by searching for keywords relevant to your niche to see which businesses appear. For example, if you’re starting a dropshipping business in the pet supplies niche, you might search for “pet toys,” “pet food,” or “pet brushes.”

Look closely to see which businesses consistently show up in the search results. These are likely your main competitors for organic search audiences. For more in-depth insights, try an SEO tool.

You may find top-ranked competitors optimize their content for long-tail keywords, which are longer, more specific phrases that customers are searching for.

Long-tail keywords have less competition, making them a strategic target for smaller dropshipping websites.

For example, your competitor analysis might reveal the keyword “dog collars” is contested by large retailers, while “LED dog collars” has less competition—and “LED dog collars for small dogs” has room for your new business.

Use competitor analysis tools

Competitor analysis tools are another way to find insights into rivals’ strategies. Uncover data by monitoring traffic sources, visitor counts, and social media engagement.

For instance, if you find a competitor relies heavily on paid ads, you could consider a rival campaign, or invest more in SEO content. If they’re active on a social platform you’ve overlooked, starting a channel might be beneficial.

Browse social media

Follow competitors’ social media pages to understand how they engage with followers. Pay attention to the types of posts that generate the most likes, comments, and shares.

For example, if a competitor in your pet supplies niche is going viral with DIY grooming videos, consider creating similar content. Also, watch for any gaps—perhaps there’s underserved demand for content on pet wellness tips.

Check marketplaces

Sellers within your niche on marketplace platforms like eBay, Amazon, and Etsy also offer insights.

Note how many listings exist for similar products. If the market looks saturated, consider how you might differentiate your product listings, either by reducing your prices or offering a premium customer experience that’s not possible through a marketplace.

Track all your competitor research in a spreadsheet to make it easy to search and reference your findings.

4. Choose a supplier

A dropshipping supplier sources and manages inventory, accepts orders and payments, and organizes shipping to customer addresses.

With such core responsibilities, your choice of supplier will have a large impact on the success of your dropshipping business.

Depending on your niche and the products you sell, you might work with a single supplier, or partner with multiple suppliers using a supplier directory.

Popular supplier directory apps and websites automatically connect your store with a large network of dropshipping suppliers.

For example, the DSers app lets Shopify users dropship products from AliExpress, the global marketplace.

5. Select products and set prices

The products in your store are dictated by your supplier’s inventory. You’ll encounter many of the same products in rival dropshipping stores, so it’s important to curate a selection that resonates with your niche audience.

A well-chosen product catalog creates opportunities for cross-selling and upselling, where shoppers add additional or higher-priced items to their shopping carts.

When picking products from an app or marketplace, study reviews from other sellers, as well as the supplier’s performance history. Once you have a shortlist, order product samples to assess quality and consistency.

If your strategy includes partnering with overseas suppliers, consider choosing products eligible for expedited mailing services such as ePacket shipping from China. This can significantly cut down delivery times.

Pricing your dropshipping products

Whether it’s electronics, clothing, or toys, you will need a pricing strategy that keeps your dropshipping business sustainable and allows you to make a profit from each sale.

No matter the price point, set a profit margin for every product by calculating your costs, including the price paid to the supplier and other operating expenses. Balance this against the price of similar products in the market to ensure your store is competitive.

6. Build an ecommerce store

Your online store is a hub for your dropshipping business, showcasing your product catalog and giving customers a way to check out. It’s also the destination for traffic from your social media ads.

Beyond product pages, your store can feature content to enhance the customer experience. This includes product reviews, user guides, buying guides, and relevant blog posts. Additional content not only helps customers make decisions, but also improves store visibility in search engine results.

Shopify’s store builder comes with the internet’s best-converting checkout and flexible design options. Customize your store’s appearance with professionally designed themes that fit your brand.

Adding a dropshipping app to your Shopify store simplifies product management and order processing. Popular apps include:

• DSers, for syncing with AliExpress.
• Zendrop, featuring more than a million products.
• Spocket, with suppliers from the US, Europe, Brazil, and India.

Use AI to enhance product pages

AI is built into every Shopify store to help you manage products and sell more effectively. Use AI to enhance product listings with content that goes beyond the basic information provided by your supplier.

Share a few keywords with Shopify Magic to generate product descriptions that outshine competitors, with SEO-friendly language that’s suited to your target audience.

Transform the product photos you receive from a supplier into distinctive, branded images with unique backgrounds, through AI-enhanced image editing. Original visuals differentiate your product pages from competitors.

Click the stars icon whenever it appears in the Shopify Admin to harness the power of Shopify Magic for your dropshipping store.

7. Decide on a business structure

Writing a business plan and creating a legal entity are key initial steps in setting up your dropshipping business for the long term.

Three common business structures for a dropshipping business are:

• Sole proprietorship
• Limited liability company
• C corporation

Sole proprietorship

A sole proprietorship is run by one person and doesn’t require complex paperwork or additional tax filings. This makes it a popular business structure for dropshippers who want to keep things simple and affordable.

However, sole proprietorships offer no protection of personal assets if the business runs into legal trouble.

Limited liability company (LLC)

Setting up a dropshipping business as a limited liability company keeps personal finances separate from the business, which is not only safer but also makes accounting clear.

Compared to a sole proprietorship, LLCs offer flexible tax benefits, which might help you save money. But you’ll need to comply with additional filing requirements and pay incorporation fees.

C corporation

Many large businesses are set up as C corporations due to the extensive liability protection. C corps are often expensive to incorporate and are subject to double taxation, as income doesn’t pass directly to the shareholders.

Before choosing a business structure, it’s advisable to consult with a lawyer to understand the best fit for your situation.

Apply for an EIN

Most US businesses need an employer identification number (EIN), serving as a Social Security number for your business. An EIN is necessary for filing taxes, applying for wholesale dropshipping accounts, opening a bank account, and other business activities.

Apply for a free EIN online through the IRS.

8. Set up finances

Separating your personal banking from your dropshipping business helps simplify accounting and keeps your business’s financial health visible.

Consider these basic financial tasks:

Open a business checking account

Open a business bank account to deposit revenue. A dedicated account for your dropshipping store makes tracking income and expenses easier and ensures financial transparency.

Apply for a business credit card

Consider getting a business credit card to pay for product orders, software subscriptions, ad fees, and other expenses. This helps keep your personal and business expenses separate and can also earn you rewards if you choose a card with benefits.

Check local business license requirements

Even if you operate from home, your city might require a business license. The requirements can vary, so checking with your local government is essential to ensure you comply with all local laws.

Collect sales tax

Collect sales tax if your business operates in a state that requires it. You generally don’t need to collect sales tax for orders outside your state, though it’s prudent to stay updated on the latest rules.

If your state does charge sales tax, be prepared to collect taxes from eligible customers.

9. Market your dropshipping business

Once your dropshipping store is live, turn your attention to marketing. An active marketing strategy that brings traffic to your store will give your dropshipping business the best chance of success.

Develop a strategy for these marketing channels:

• Paid ads
• Influencer marketing
• Content marketing
• Communities
• Mobile marketing
• Email marketing

Paid ads

Experiment with ads on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and Google. Social media ads help increase your brand’s reputation among related audiences, while Google Ads target consumers with specific buying intentions.

Testing ads on both platforms can help you determine the most effective approach.

Influencer marketing

Collaborating with influencers on platforms like TikTok and Instagram can help extend your reach and credibility, potentially leading to increased sales.

Use Shopify Collabs to connect with influencers in your niche and pay them using a performance-based affiliate marketing model.

Content marketing

Developing a content marketing strategy can enhance your brand’s visibility. Consider starting a blog, making instructional videos, or launching a podcast related to your niche. Good content can keep customers engaged post purchase.

Communities

Get involved with groups of people who are passionate about your niche. Participating in discussions on platforms like Reddit and Facebook Groups can build trust and foster relationships—as long as you’re not overly sales-focused.

Mobile marketing

If you can generate a list of subscribers, SMS (text message) marketing strategies tend to receive high engagement levels. Consider creating a VIP group chat, offering live chat support, or sending messages with limited-time promo codes.

Email marketing

Email marketing helps maintain relationships with customers after they exit your website. Sending personalized emails with promotions and useful information can encourage repeat business.

Dropshipping mistakes to avoid

Like any retail business, running a dropshipping store comes with challenges. Avoid these common dropshipping pitfalls to keep your business growing:

Ignoring sales data

A common error among new dropshippers is not paying close attention to what their sales data is telling them.

Continually monitor sales, and don’t be afraid to pivot your store to optimize for profit. Regularly check:

• Which products are selling well and which aren’t.
• How much money you’re making from ads.
• Which products are giving you the best profit.
• How trends in sales are changing over time.
• Where your customers are coming from and what devices they use.

Skipping SEO

Whether your customers find you via Google or social media, your online visibility is crucial, as it directly influences traffic and sales.

As a result, not working on your website’s search engine optimization can limit your growth. Be sure to focus on:

• Creating original, helpful content for product pages.
• Improving your website’s loading speed.
• Making your website easy to use on mobile devices.

Shopify stores come with fast loading and responsive page design. Use Google Search Console to see how your website performs and find areas for improvement.

Not planning for growth

Not preparing to grow can bottleneck your business. Build your store to accommodate next year’s order volume, not today’s. Avoid limitations such as:

• Relying on one supplier. Always look for alternatives to mitigate risks and keep products in stock.
• Manually handling orders. Use a dropshipping app that automates order processing.

A benefit of dropshipping is the ability to accept increasingly large order volumes without significant investment. Have the systems in place to handle more orders when they arrive.

Neglecting unhappy customers

While dropshippers don’t deal with inventory directly, they are the primary touchpoint for customer support. Failing to focus on customers, especially those with complaints, can lead to negative reviews and high return rates.

To enhance your customer experience:

• Create accurate product descriptions
• Provide clear contact information
• Respond to every customer question and concern
• Manage returns and refunds quickly, before reaching out to the supplier

The latest customer service AI tools and chatbots give you the power to answer customers immediately.

Start your dropshipping business in 2024

Starting a dropshipping business has never been easier. Whether you’re a side hustler, an entrepreneur, or looking to expand your existing store, Shopify makes dropshipping efficient and low-cost.

Start your free trial today and connect a popular dropshipping app or sell products from known brands with Shopify Collective.

Back in 1994, in collaboration with former U.S. president Jimmy Carter’s foundation, the Carter Center, the humanitarian company Vestergaard created a pipe filter—and later a straw—designed to help filter bacteria and parasites from water. The goal was to make water safer to drink and eliminate Guinea-worm disease in Africa.

In the years that ensued, outdoor enthusiasts became interested in the straw and its possibilities for hiking and camping trips, and customers and retailers started asking where they could buy the LifeStraw. By 2012, LifeStraw entered the consumer space, and business took off. 

As a result of the product’s success, LifeStraw inverted their business model in order to allow their consumer division to help fund their impact work.  “We started to reorient the company towards a retail model that could then help fund the humanitarian work, as opposed to a humanitarian model that then had a little side hustle as a retail business,” LifeStraw’s chief brand officer Tara Lundy says.

Today, ecommerce is the fastest growing side of the business—and the company is still evolving its product line with the debut of the ultra-slim travel Sip straw. Ahead, learn how LifeStraw continues its humanitarian efforts by expanding its ecommerce business.

Tailoring products to home and travel consumers

LifeStraw originally started making consumer products for adventurers and nature lovers who could use water filters if they were drinking from a stream or lake nearby. Developing products for those customers required engineering sophisticated filtration systems that could hold up outside, but weren’t too heavy or took up too much space. “Especially in the outdoor space, you’re always trying to create something that’s smaller and lighter and more packable,” Tara says.

Now, the company also makes products for home users who want to filter their tap water and travelers who want to be careful about the water they are drinking abroad.

Tara says LifeStraw wouldn’t have been able to enter these new categories without the data from their ecommerce sales channels. “I think it’s just been really amazing to see who our customers are and how we’ve also been able to evolve them over time because we have transitioned to offering more lifestyle products,” she says.

Managing ecommerce channels

In LifeStraw’s initial foray into consumer products, the company worked with a distributor that managed shipping, logistics and retail relationships. But as that side of the business grew, LifeStraw began to manage some of distributor responsibilities themselves and launched its own Shopify website.

“Shopify has become our second biggest sales channel, which is unusual for a hard goods company like ours,” Tara says. She believes the dedicated customer base comes from the company’s history and commitment to impact, not just through its humanitarian work, but also through its B-Corp certification.

Optimizing checkout for donations

By managing their own ecommerce sales channel, LifeStraw gained the ability to customize its website and speak directly to customers. LifeStraw’s top performing product is a checkout cart add-on called “Give Safe Water,” which allows customers to add a monetary donation to safe water projects with their purchase. Plus, a Give Safe Water donation counts toward the minimum spend for free shipping.

LifeStraw received more than 50,000 contributions last year through this checkout add-on. “People see the work that we do, they see that we’re an authentic brand, and they’re willing to kind of contribute just a little bit of extra funding for us to do that impact work,” Tara says. The Give Safe Water donations have helped LifeStraw fund both its long-term projects in countries where safe drinking water is hard to come by and its short-term projects to help regions where natural disasters or war limit the water supply.

Building authenticity through transparency 

Tara says this generation of consumers is savvy. They are quick to call out brands that are jumping on social trends or posting performatively. LifeStraw avoids this by staying focused on its mission to provide clean water, and transparently communicating about its work to customers.  

For example, they segment the customers that make a Give Safe Water contributions and send them emails that provide updates on what the money was used for in recent months.

Whether or not your company started with a humanitarian purpose, Tara says there is always an opportunity to find a mission that matches the company’s values. The key is leaning into the company’s unique value proposition, and incorporating that into social impact efforts.

To learn more about LifeStraw and how it developed consumer products from its humanitarian work, listen to the full interview on Shopify Masters.