Which is the best e-commerce for services, digital marketers and online product sellers?
SamCart vs. ClickFunnels vs. Shopify vs. PayPal
When you enter the online business world for the first time, you may feel overwhelmed by the number of tools, apps, and digital services available for selling your products online. I’ve been there, drowning in a sea of information trying to decide which one was right for me. Entrepreneurship is hard enough… getting started with selling your services, programs and products online shouldn’t be, which is why I’ve cut through the fluff and put together everything you need to know to choose the right online shopping cart for you right here.
I’m saving you tons of time with this in-depth feature comparison of the top shopping cart contenders for entrepreneurs selling digital products, online courses and physical products shopping cart platforms: SamCart, ClickFunnels, Shopify and PayPal. No matter where you are in your business - from newbie to seasoned online entrepreneur - you can find the solutions you need with one of these sales platforms.
SamCart Review: E-Commerce for services and product sellers
The powerful yet affordable solution for small business newbies to online business mega-sellers
What is SamCart?
Let’s start off with the relatively new kid on the block, SamCart. Originally created to provide an elegant alternative to the ugly PayPal checkout page, SamCart started off as an e-commerce for services platform but has expanded to comprehensive drop shipping services for physical products, as well. This e-commerce platform has continued to evolve and further its mission of helping you cut-down on your abandoned shopping cart rate, close more sales and increase the amount you sell to each customer.
The great thing about SamCart, especially for those who consider themselves “non-techy” (like me) is that they’ve made it really easy to get your account up and running quickly. Their platform is simple to use and has full library of tutorials and helpful instructions to assist you. Because of its simple interface, comprehensive support features and stellar customer service, SamCart is the best platform for beginners in the digital product industry.
With SamCart it’s easy to get your checkout pages created. Simply click “New Product”, enter your product’s name, choose a payment price and frequency, select your checkout page template, insert the appropriate description and set up integration with your Stripe and/or PayPal accounts you’re ready to go. If you have other tools, like an email service provider or membership platform, you can set those up in less than 60 seconds and your buyers' information will be sent over. (Note: you have to also set up the integration on your email service provider's end, too.) Once you hit save, you can start sharing your checkout page URL, which will take your customers directly to your beautiful new shopping cart page.
SamCart's product dashboard. Watch their free training that shares 10 Step System for Starting an Online Business from Scratch now.
But even though SamCart is easy enough for complete online selling newbies to use, it still offers a full suite of options that seasoned professionals doing millions of dollars in sales every year may need… all without becoming overly complicated. For example, you probably know by now that if you’re selling online, one of the fastest ways to grow your sales and business is with an affiliate program, but maybe you’ve shied away from complicated and cumbersome stand-alone affiliate tracking tools so far. SamCart makes things easy for you with its fully integrated affiliate platform that allows you to control who joins and even set up special “VIP affiliate” commission structures. You can also allow your affiliates to promote all or only some of your products and customize the commission pay-out for each.
SamCart’s full suite of features, ease of use and reasonable price tag even at the Premium level is a big reason so many six- and seven-figure entrepreneurs and online marketers use them.
SamCart's one-click order bump capability can instantly increase your total sales.
SamCart Features
Let’s now take a look at some of the stand-out features and many things you can do with SamCart:
Deliver digital files your customers purchase with a link that automatically expires after they’ve downloaded the product, eliminating the need for having a website, complicated plug-in or membership site. SamCart hosts the uploaded product directly so you don’t have to do it somewhere else.
Use their revolutionary 1-Page Website sales method page that takes all of the best elements of a complicated sales funnel puts it on one simple page which makes it easier for you to launch products and for customers to say yes
One-click order bumps that can instantly double or triple your total sales per customer
Easily create multiple payment options, free trials, expiring trials and subscription payments for every product you have.
Choose from 18 checkout page templates proven not only to make your brand look great but to also help you increase your conversion rates.
Don’t like the checkout page templates like they are? You can customize them to reflect your own brand using HTML and CSS or use the built-in fields to change font, background and button colors, for example.
Insert custom content on your checkout pages with images, tables, special symbols and more.
Add design elements proven to increase sales, like testimonials (with images) and guarantees.
Sell in major currencies and automatically support sales in different languages.
Easily split test different designs to see what works best.
Customize your checkout page URL to make it easier for your customers to find and remember you.
Test your checkout process in “sandbox mode” to make sure everything is working correctly before going live. This eliminates the need to spend your own money purchasing your products and lose money on the credit card transaction fees (something I’ve done a lot of in the past) in order to make sure everything is ready to go for your customers.
Quickly add more products and services to your customers’ orders without requiring them to fill out a long checkout page again with the “Add to Order” feature. Your customers will receive an updated receipt and it works with PayPal, too!
14-day free trial and then $39 - $199 / month, depending on your plan (see SamCart Pricing section below)
Advanced Features
SamCart also has the following features:
Unlimited product set-up and sales
Digital product sales and delivery
Physical product sales
Subscription product sales
Multiple language support
Customizable shipping charges for physical product sales
Sell in any currency
Built-in affiliate center
Detailed sales reports supported by snapshot visuals
One-click upsells and upsell funnels
A/B Testing
VAT tax tracking via integration with Taxamo
No additional sales fees above what Stripe and PayPal charge with the Pro and Premium Plans
Integrations with programs like ActiveCampaign, AWeber, ConvertKit, Drip, GetResponse, HubSpot, Infusionsoft, Kajabi, MailChimp, MemberMouse, OptimizePress, Paypal, Stripe, Zapier and more.
Try it with a 14-day free trial and 45-day no-questions-asked, money-back guarantee.
Get the 6-Figure Business Planning & Marketing Checklist and video training. Download it FREE now!
Profit Center Dashboard
Inside your account you can look at your company performance from a bird’s eye view with SamCart’s Profit Center dashboard. Here you can find live information on:
Total sales, orders, profit, refunds, page views, conversion rates and more
Custom reports to find the information you need
SamCart's Profit Center dashboard
SamCart Integrations
The great thing about SamCart is you can continue to use your favorite business tools with dozens of built in integrations, plus virtually unlimited integration possibilities using Zapier. Some of the most popular purchase-related integrations include:
Send purchaser information to email services like Drip, ConvertKit, Aweber, InfusionSoft, ActiveCampaign and MailChimp.
Landing page platforms like Leadpages and OptimizePress.
Create automatic membership access in tools like WishList Member, MemberMouse, Kajabi, Teachable, Zippy Courses and more.
SamCart Pricing
Here’s the breakdown of their current plans, based on annual pay:
“Launch” plan (works well for most new and established businesses, but may be too limited for more sophisticated sellers), currently $39 per month
“Grow” plan (provides everything that Launch plus more customization, upsell/downsell capabilities, and management options), currently $79 per month
“Scale” plan (includes advanced features suitable for companies with multiple products and delivery methods), currently $159 per month
You can view the full list of features and how the plans compare on the SamCart pricing page.
Why get started with SamCart?
Many SamCart users have attributed their uptick in sales and profit per customer to the platform’s ease of use and elegant design. Because each customer’s buying experience vastly improves when you have a highly-effective sales process in place that also supports the value of your brand, you can sell more to each customer that lands on your page. Whether you’re selling a $297 online course, a $12 e-book, or a $5,000 coaching program, SamCart is a fantastic platform with which to sell your products and services.
SamCart also developed a profit-boosting checkout page template called the 1-Page Funnel that eliminates the need for developing complicated sales funnels with many different pages. The #1 reason people don’t put sales funnels in place is because it takes a lot of work… but the 1-Page Funnel model cuts out all of that. And, with the sales conversion bonus trainings that SamCart gives you to create your own 1-Page Funnel in record time and drive sales of your product or service, it’s hard to see why you’d ever need a complicated sales funnel ever again.
But one of the most compelling reasons to sign up for SamCart beyond its amazing features, in-depth training library and stellar customer service is their affordability. With a free 14-day trial and prices starting around $40 per month, their plans makes it super-affordable for any entrepreneur to get started selling online, close more sales and make more money at the end of every month. And to solidify the case for SamCart being the undisputed ecommerce choice for online entrepreneurs, they offer a 45 day, no-questions-asked, money-back guarantee. That’s a tough combo to beat!
ClickFunnels Review
All-in-one e-commerce for services and builder for marketing funnel fanatics
What is ClickFunnels?
ClickFunnels is an all-in-one online marketing tool that you can use to create marketing funnels, landing pages, track affiliates and set up simple membership sites.
If you’re not familiar with exactly what a marketing funnel is, here’s a simple explanation: It’s a series of pages your client goes through before landing on your checkout page. The funnel starts with marketing campaigns, then moves down to client engagement, targeted content, email blasts and culminates in a sales transaction (at least, that’s the goal!).
ClickFunnels is all about funnels and has a variety of pre-built ones for you to choose from. If you’re an author, ClickFunnels has a Bestseller Book funnel. If you’re a local business owner, use the Fishbowl Funnel, which is a page where people put their contact information on your page to win a prize.
They also have the pre-built…
Product Launch Funnel if you have a product you want to get out there.
Perfect Webinar Funnel for launching and monetizing your webinars.
And If you’re selling on Amazon, you can subscribe to their “real stuff” funnel to market your physical products.
In ClickFunnels, you can create:
Optin or lead capture funnels that are used to get the email addresses of your potential customers
Sales page funnels that leads your visitor to an upsell or downsell page depending on whether or not he or she chooses to purchase your product
Membership sites to create your very own community of subscribers
ClickFunnels Features
Custom domain names
A/B testing
Email integration
Optin funnels
Advanced funnels
Sales funnels
Membership funnels
Webinar funnels
Automated Webinar funnels
Order Pages
One-click upsell pages
Downsell Pages
Mobile responsive
Professional themes
Clone, drag and drop, and advanced website editors
Major payment integrations like PayPal, Stripe, and Infusionsoft
14-day free trial and then $97 per month for the Standard features or $297 per month for the full Etison Suite
ClickFunnels Pricing
ClickFunnels makes it somewhat hark to find pricing information. There's no “Pricing” link in their navigation on their main website. But I’ve done the research for you, and at the time of writing this article, ClickFunnels pricing includes three different levels:
$97 per month (basic)
$297 per month (Platinum)
$2,497 per month for their Two Comma Club level
There are some significant differences between the plan levels, including the number of payment gateways, pages included, number of funnels you can build, and support options.
For example, you only get access to their affiliate platform, Backpack, at the Platinum level and above (which means that if having an integrated affiliate program is important to you, it will cost you about $140 per month more than SamCart’s top plan). The top two options (Platinum and Two Comma Club) also come with additional bonus trainings, as well, much like SamCart’s extra training library that’s included with all their plan levels.
For in-depth details on ClickFunnels features, read this SamCart vs ClickFunnels article.
Why get started with ClickFunnels?
In the past, you’d need a team, a lot of time and several different tools to put together your own sales funnel. You’d have to think about website hosting, landing page software, an email autoresponder, split testing software, automated webinar software, affiliate software, membership site software and design. But with ClickFunnels, you can find all that on one platform, although it also comes with a higher monthly price tag to get access to the full suite of options.
If you have no idea what a marketing funnel is or haven’t yet got one in place, ClickFunnels is the perfect place to learn all about it. Because its interface is so easy to navigate, you can easily build your landing page and optin forms to grow your email list. You only have to drag and drop widgets in order to create your pages.
They also have proven templates you can choose from or you can customize your own with HTML. You can make your sales page look exactly like you want by dragging and dropping information, logos, images, testimonials, and guarantees.
One advantage ClickFunnels has over other ecommerce platforms is their integrated membership site and course delivery capabilities. Whether you’re selling tea leaves, dog food, weight-loss powders, fitness programs, or parenting advice, ClickFunnels will show you how to create a monthly membership site where you can generate income from your members. Although I personally find the design of ClickFunnels-hosted membership sites and courses to be more basic and less user-friendly than than well-known stand-alone membership and course platforms, like Teachable, Kajabi or Thinkific, it’s enough to get you started if you don’t want to add on separate tools for those.
ClickFunnels vs. SamCart
Before moving on to Shopify and PayPal, let’s sum up what we’ve covered so far with ClickFunnels vs. SamCart. Both platforms have their strong points.The number one difference between SamCart and ClickFunnels is that they focus on different parts of the sales process.
The number one difference between SamCart and ClickFunnels is that they focus on different parts of the sales process.
SamCart is an ecommerce platform that’s specifically designed to help you make more money from each customer that lands on your checkout page.
ClickFunnels is a marketing funnel platform and email marketing tool to nurture customer interest when they’re not yet convinced enough to buy your product or service, and once they do buy, ClickFunnels helps you maximize the amount you earn from each sale with upsells and downsells (much like SamCart does).
When choosing which ecommerce platform is right for you, also consider what other tools you already have in place. For example, if you’ve already set up dozens of landing pages with LeadPages and have email automations already established with a service like Drip, simply adding on SamCart might be the way to go versus ClickFunnels, especially given ClickFunnels’ higher starting price. But if you’re just starting out or looking for a true all-in-one platform, then ClickFunnels may be your better option.
Shopify Review
Eye-catching virtual storefronts for physical products and e-commerce for services
What is Shopify?
Shopify is one of the biggest e-commerce companies in the world and processes billions of dollars in sales for their customers every year. Shopify is an e-commerce platform that helps you create a website and use their shopping cart solution or POS service to manage, sell, and ship your products.
Shopify clenched their position as the physical product storefront of choice when in early 2020, it was announced that Walmart would give Shopify sellers access to their Walmart Marketplace (watch out Amazon!). In a word, Shopify is at the very top if you’re a brick-and-mortar retail shop or business that uses drop shipping to sell physical products.
Although you can sell services and digital products using this ecommerce platform, Shopify excels at serving sellers of physical goods, offering extensive inventory and purchase-tracking capabilities using their Liquid short-codes. With over 100 professionally-designed. Mobile-friendly and fully-customizable storefront themes to choose from, you can make your brand pop and catch your customer’s eye.
If you mainly sell physical products, have inventory to manage or extensively use drop shipping, Shopify is likely your best choice of ecommerce platforms.
Shopify Features
Unlimited number of products you can sell in your store
Fraud analysis
Discount codes
Staff accounts
Customer product review capability
Sell on Facebook without fans having to leave Facebook to make a purchase
Social media integration - All Shopify websites include social media integration, such as Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and more.
Gift cards
24/7 live and email chat support
Unlimited bandwidth and online storage so you won’t be charged based on how many online visitors you have or how many files or photos you upload on your store
Shopify POS that allows you to sell in a physical store or pop-up setting. It comes in the form of an app that lets you process orders in person, take payments, swipe credit cards, and control it all from your iPad or smartphone.
Online sales channels where you can set up an online store that is linked to Amazon, Facebook and Pinterest, with shopping buttons to make purchasing easy. Each sales channel connects to your sales page, so you can keep track of your orders and customers on various platforms.
Manual order creation that lets you create orders that you took over the phone or in person and then just email your customer the receipt with his or her order details.
Full integrated blogging platform
Finances report to see an overview of your sales, payments, and pending sales data. You can also view your full finance report.
14-day free trial, then $29 - $299 per month, depending on the features you want.
Checkout features
Shopify’s checkout features are quite diverse, and it comes with lots of different options. Of course, not all of them will be available with the Basic plan, and even the ones that will might require an upgrade. So be sure to do some additional research before you decide which Shopify plan you go with.
In terms of the checkout itself, we can display it in 50 different languages. Considering how large the service already is, that number does not surprise me. This platform is present in over 175 countries worldwide. Then, there’s also the guest checkout feature. Non-members can make a purchase for a limited time without actually making an account.
Shipping rates will vary with Shopify. For instance, let’s cover all the supporting mailing services. If you use DHL, Canada Post, USPS, and UPS, you will get automatically calculated shipping rates. These get reduced based on which plan you’ve subscribed to. But you can also select different factors that can directly affect the cost of shipping.
By far, the best checkout feature is the Abandoned Cart Recovery. If I were to leave my cart without making a purchase, Shopify would let me know about it via email. It’s a handy reminder to continue or abandon any purchase.
Product Management
Categorizing and keeping track of products in Shopify is as simple as using the dashboard. For instance, I can sort my products based on color, shape, size, and material. More importantly, the number of products I can sort in the inventory is quite literally unlimited.
Sometimes, product management will involve migrating products from one platform to the next. If that happens, I can use Shopify’s Bulk Export/Import function and get the job done in no time. Additionally, this feature can help with bulk edits to product catalogs.
Store Management
Shopify offers a whole host of store management services, including:
Customer segmentation based on user information
Mobile store management
Options for fulfillment centers such as FBA and Rakuten Super Logistics
Drop-shipping apps (including Inventory Source, Ordoro, and HubLogix, among many)
Point of Sale in-person selling system
Multilingual admin
Web Hosting
Importantly, with Shopify you don’t have to worry about your online store going down. Shopify boasts 99.98% uptime, even during the busiest online traffic times.
Marketing and SEO
Shopify relies heavily on modern marketing practices and proper SEO content. In terms of marketing, the platform has fantastic social media integration, as well as the ability to link to multiple third-party online marketplaces. Moreover, using the blog editor, you can create and run your own blog for additional brand engagement. Email templates and integration with MailChimp will also come in handy for email marketing.
In terms of keeping your store in check, the service provides built-in analytics for various reports. Alternatively, you can link up your Google Analytics account, thanks to the platform’s compatibility with Shopify. In addition to analytics, you also have the so-called Burst library, the platform’s own repository of stock photos and images.
And, of course, Shopify enables you to use some old but proven sales incentives, like offering coupons and discounts. With Shopify, you can even create various discount codes and, with higher plans, gift cards for loyal users.
Shopify relies heavily on modern marketing practices and proper SEO content. In terms of marketing, it has fantastic social media integration. In addition, it has the ability to link to multiple third-party online marketplaces. Moreover, using the blog editor, you can create and run your own blog for additional brand engagement. Email templates and integration with MailChimp will also come in handy for some email marketing.
In terms of keeping your store in check, the service provides built-in analytics for various reports. Alternatively, you can link Google Analytics since the platform is compatible with Shopify. In addition to analytics, you also have the so-called Burst library. This library is the platform’s own repository of stock photos and images.
Expanding the trade also requires some old but proven methods like offering coupons and discounts. With Shopify, I can even create various discount codes and, at higher plans, gift cards for loyal users.
Shopify Pricing
Shopify’s checkout features are comprehensive and geared toward making marketing and selling products easy for sellers and buying them a breeze for customers. Naturally, Shopify offers different plans to fit various business needs.
Their “Basic Shopify” plan starts at $29 per month
The “Shopify” plan is $79 per month
The “Advanced Shopify” is $299 per month.
I suggest you do additional research before you decide which plan you’ll settle on; especially with the recent announcement of the Walmart partnership, features and pricing may change.
Why get started with Shopify?
If you run an online business that has a lot of physical inventory to manage and ship, Shopify is your top choice among these four e-commerce platforms. Get started with a 14-day free trial to see how it can work for you.
PayPal: E-commerce for services and physical products
Few people on this planet haven’t heard of this brand. Ever since 2002, this giant has been providing regular services to millions of people across the globe. Right now, there are over 270 million regular users worldwide. In addition, 19 million registered merchants and business owners are on this platform. Calling it popular would definitely be an understatement.
What is PayPal?
But what exactly is PayPal? Simply put, it’s a massive online money transfer service that doesn’t require any paper money to work. Everything done using this service is digital, and thanks to its success, competitor companies have been popping up ever since it came to the forefront.
PayPal Features
Online Payments
Although PayPal offers certain of the more robust ecommerce platform capabilities that SamCart, ClickFunnels and Shopify do, PayPal is at its heart an online payment gateway, i.e., a way for your customers to transfer their money to you – and a hugely popular one. In fact, some people will only buy your products if they can check out using PayPal. This means that if you want to capture more sales, PayPal really is a must-have for any online seller, even if you use another ecommerce platform and your main payment gateway is Stripe or Authorize.net, for example.
PayPal makes it incredibly easy for you to set up an account and get it integrated with whichever other ecommerce platform you might use. As a business owner, you can subscribe to one of three web payment options:
● PayPal Checkout
● Payments Standard
● Payments Pro
If I were to have a business that already accepts credit card payments and just wanted to add a PayPal option, I’d go with the basic Checkout. This option covers PCI compliance evasion, contextual checkout buttons (based on the field of work that uses the platform), and localized methods of paying.
Payments Standard is a bit different. While it also avoids PCI compliance, it does provide the business owner with additional options and customization. Customizable pay buttons are a huge part of this feature. We can make and customize an entire shop using these, and even change some of the checkout aspects.
Finally, there’s the Payments Pro option, which we can fully customize. Though you submit to some PCI compliance, you can host and customize your very own checkout page. There’s also the Pro’s Virtual Terminal, which allows paying over the smartphone. Finally, for an additional fee, you can use the recurring billing feature.
Additional PayPal Features
The fantastic thing about this brand is just how quickly it’s growing and adding new features. In late 2019 alone, they added some options that I think we should go over. Not only is this set of tools decent, but it also shows just how innovative and growing this business still is.
First, there are a few features that cover using the service in taxation and instant money transfer. U.S. residents can use it to either pay their taxes (directly or indirectly) or to send their balances directly into their bank accounts.
Next, there’s the PayPal LoanBuilder, which allows us to easily loan money when needed. The impressive Checkout on Instagram feature allows a business owner to sell a product directly through their Instagram profile page.
Finally, we have the PayPal Invoicing API. As a business owner, you’ll want to send multiple invoices to all of your employees at once. This feature can send invoices in up to 25 currencies across more than 200 markets, and you don’t need to pay any fees. Considering how large the platform’s fees already are compared to the competition, that last bit was something I personally liked the most.
Additional PayPal Products and Services
Aside from the basic online paying options, PayPal has a host of other additional products and services. Some of these include:
Online invoicing with quick and interactive invoice forms
POS system integration in case you use something other than this platform
PayPal Here, the native mobile app
The Payflow gateway for other services
Mass Payouts for multiple payments
Marketing Solutions, the native analytics section
PayPal.me, a type of personal pay request tool
Developer Tools
Over the years, the company has invested time and money into perfecting their developer tools. They would definitely come in handy if I wanted to open a PayPal-based business.
The latest of these tools is the Commerce Platform from 2019. Every business can create customized solutions for online payment by using it. In addition, they will be able to receive their returns in over 100 different currencies. Whether you’re selling physical products or online services, this tool will be a valuable asset for you.
Other tools include:
Checkout
Invoicing
Subscriptions
PayPal Here SDK
Payouts
Connect with PayPal
White Label Wallet
I won’t go into detail about what these tools can or can’t do in this article. But because PayPal is so transparent with its users, this company has provided detailed explanations for each and every tool on its official website.
Shopify vs. SamCart, ClickFunnels vs. PayPal
Comparing the four e-commerce platforms
Looking over these four, which e-commerce platform is the “winner” depends on what kind of business you have and the features you want.
SamCart does have amazing checkout templates and integrations. However, it simply doesn’t support as many payment gateways as other options on this list.
ClickFunnels does a few things better than SamCart — it offers more gateways and a straightforward interface to work with. However, it suffers from the same problem that PayPal has, which is subpar customer support.
Shopify is a great platform if you need an online store to showcase many different physical products where people can just click on it to add to their cart. Even though you can sell physical products via SamCart and ClickFunnels, there’s no elegant multi-product storefront for retail product sellers like there is with Shopify. This making Shopify the go-to choice when buying decisions hinge on easily browsing through stunning visuals of your inventory.
PayPal is unique in the invoicing services it makes available to its business services customers. And it's the only one you can use to send money to others, as well.
Certainly setting up Shopify, SamCart or ClickFunnels is a huge step up from using only PayPal to sell your digital products or services. Why? Because when customers see that you only use PayPal as the checkout page for your business, they tend to regard you as only a small-time business, even if you’re an established expert in your field… and especially when it comes to selling online courses, coaching programs and consulting services costing hundreds to thousands of dollars.
In addition to the lack of aesthetics, sellers using only PayPal force would-be buyers to either already have a PayPal account set up or register for a new one in order to make the purchase. This adds an additional step to your sales process, leads to higher abandoned cart rates and in the end hurts your sales and conversion rates. Offering PayPal as a payment option is important, though, as studies have shown that you’ll miss out on a significant number of sales if you don’t, but you don’t want PayPal to be the only payment option. SamCart, ClickFunnels and Shopify all integrate with PayPal.
Using either SamCart, ClickFunnels or Shopify will give you more credibility as an online seller. It gives you a professional image that can increase your sales and allow you to charge more for your products and services, benefiting your bottom line in both the short- and long-term. Ultimately, it boils down to what we need out of an online shopping cart. For example, if I require transparent pay with a navigable interface, I’ll choose PayPal or Shopify. SamCart, on the other hand, is incredible for integrating many different elements. In addition, SamCart pricing is quite low when you compare it to other popular options. Finally, there’s the ClickFunnels’ method of page building. It’s fantastic to make an entire business platform by merely toying around with funnels. More importantly, it saves a lot of time and money.
The best way to pick the right service is to know what kind of business you want to run. Take everything into account: what product you’re selling, which services you provide, and who your target audience is. In the end, even if you don’t decide to stick with the platform you start out with, starting with any of these four e-commerce platforms is a good place to begin.
Which e-commerce platform is right for you?
If you want to succeed in the online product and services business, SamCart, ClickFunnels and Shopify are just the right time- and effort-saving e-commerce platform tools you need. Remember that a good investment used right more than pays for itself. It’s all in the way you make the most out of them.
Here’s how I see it:
Both SamCart and ClickFunnels are great e-commerce for services platform choices, especially if you sell online courses, coaching or membership programs, downloadable digital products and individual services. Yet they both still offer enough features to sell a limited variety of physical products, as well.
SamCart is the #1 ecommerce platform for new entrepreneurs just getting started and also already-successful businesses looking for an easy way to sell more with one-click upsells and simplified funnel options but without the complication of a complex funnel system.
Get started with a 14-day free trial, complete with a library of bonus sales and conversion optimization trainings. Then continue for as little as $39 per month for the Launch plan, you can have a high-converting checkout page up and running in minutes.
You get to keep your favorite tools, like your landing page and email service providers, without paying again for those features already built into ClickFunnels but which you’re not likely to use. And, it's 100% risk-free to try SamCart with their no-questions-asked 45-day money-back guarantee.
However, if you’re looking for an all-in-one solution, don’t have a website, or want to create and automate a lot of different sales funnels, then ClickFunnels is your best bet. With ClickFunnels, you can get started with a 14-day free trial. After that, their monthly fee is either $97 for the Standard subscription or $297 per month for the Etison Suite (full suite) of features, making it a bit more of a stretch for online entrepreneurs getting started.
Shopify is the clear winner for online physical goods retailers, with their beautiful storefronts and robust inventory tracking capabilities. You can also get started with a 14-day free trial and then upgrade to Shopify Basic for $29 per month, Shopify for $79 per month or Advanced Shopify for $299 per month.
No matter which ecommerce platform you choose, the key is to get started, take advantage of the training each company provides and start selling more so you can have the kind of freedom and income you started your online business for in the first place. So, what are you waiting for? Get going!
PayPal is a must for anyone selling online, even if you use another e-commerce platform or storefront for your customers to buy from you. And, if you have business invoicing needs, PayPal is the only one of these four e-commerce companies that can help you with that.
No matter which ecommerce platform you choose, the key is to get started, take advantage of the training each company provides and start selling more so you can have the kind of freedom and income you started your online business for in the first place.
Share Your Thoughts!
Have you used SamCart, ClickFunnels, Shopify or PayPal in your business? Why you chose that particular ecommerce platform? What do you like or dislike about it? Leave a comment below!
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Welcome! I’m Christine Parma. I’ve helped thousands of purpose-driven entrepreneurs, thought leaders and changemakers joyfully transform themselves, their businesses and their "real world results" in ways that align with their values, increase their impact, and achieve the bold visions they hold... and I'd love to support you, too!
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