5 Ironclad Ideas for Hiring the Best Shopify Consultants

A “just about average” Shopify store won’t cut it. You need to find the best Shopify consultants to maximize your store’s potential. Especially if you’re dealing with a magnitude of orders.‍

Why? Because having your growth strategies held back by an old web system will handicap you. A lot. It could lead to a slowdown of sales, unsatisfied customers, or a bad user experience. A whole list of things that can give you and your team a headache. This is especially true if you're running a rapidly scaling eCommerce store (or multiple Shopify stores).

How do you solve this dilemma, you may ask. The answer is simple—hire a Shopify Expert.

Who are Shopify Consultants And What Do They Do?

A Shopify Consultant (or a Shopify Expert) have a few functions and hold a few qualities that distinguish them from an average eCommerce store owner:

• They help you achieve your online store’s goals through the merging of problem-solving and web development
• They are trusted agencies or freelancers that have been expert-vetted by Shopify themselves. 
• They’re ambassadors that help merchants and online stores grow their businesses by offering services to help develop a well-rounded store.
  

No two stores have the same problem. Shopify Experts realize this grain of truth and are equipped to carry the technical burdens on their shoulders for you.

In short, Shopify Experts essentially help guide you wherever you are in your eCommerce B2B or B2C journey. 

New Businesses

Let’s paint an example. If you’re in the initial phase of your business process, no matter the industry, you’ll need to have a sound business plan. 

Many online stores and businesses crumble in the first year due to a lack of understanding of the landscape they’re playing in. Hiring a Shopify Expert grants you a failsafe by providing you expertise on decisions that could’ve been miscalculations or errors.

Of course, you’ll need to be able to pull your weight as well. From operational plans, acquisition of products, to monthly and annual financial projections—all of these have to be thoroughly planned and analyzed before hiring a Shopify consultant. 

These experts won’t serve the next big dropshipping idea on a silver platter. Rather, they’ll assist in fixing up your plan, assuming it’s sound to begin with, and then put it to action.

Businesses Looking to Scale

Have you been in the eCommerce field for a while now? Are you considering taking the plunge with more functional tools like Shopify Plus for your growing business?

Shopify Experts provide their expertise and talent to help you scale your business, independent of how deep along the process you are.

In particular, these Shopify experts can help smooth out processes and accomplish things for your online store such as:

• Revenue growth
• Decrease in developer costs
• Increase in shop loading speed
• Transaction growth
• A better user checkout experience
  

Hiring a Shopify expert will give you a second pair of eyes that’ll propel your growth in potentially overlooked ways. With that in mind, it’s entirely up to you how you want to position your online store in the eCommerce industry.

How do you know who is the best? 

Don’t worry, we got you covered.

Here’s How to Hire the Best Shopify Consultants 

Ironclad Idea #1: Sift Through Their Case Studies

A case study is a great way to determine if a Shopify Expert knows what they’re doing or not.

Anyone can post a picture of them doubling the transactions in an online store … only for that "store" to be a small-scale eCommerce store that gains a staggering two sales instead of one per week.

To save yourself the time from falling for over-the-top exaggerations, consider finding Shopify Experts that have a proven, quantifiable track record.

If we may step in, our Chicago-based agency Pivofy has several case studies of our satisfied clients.

Take this case study of Kalorik for example. 

To spare you the details, they wanted a full-web migration to a functional website on a skin-tight budget.

What did we give them in return?

• Full migration, including customer info and website data
• A more visually appealing and functional user experience
• More search visibility with Implementation of SEO practices
• A project that met financial goals and finished ahead of the deadline
  

Don’t get enamored by sweet-talking copy with no substance. Hire proven Shopify consultants that show results.

Ironclad Idea #2: Don’t Hire Self-Proclaimed Experts on Freelancing Sites

There are thousands of freelancers claiming to be Shopify experts all over websites like Fiverr and Upwork.

You’d be surprised how many of these self-proclaimed “experts” aren’t the real deal. They’re neither vetted nor recognized by Shopify at all.

If you want to avoid expensive mistakes by hiring these types, consider exclusively searching for verified and Shopify-vetted freelancers and agencies.

Be sure to have their Shopify-vetted status covered as early as possible. 

“Experts” you outsource from Fiverr that go for a cheap price are no bargain. They’re a liability. They haven’t spent thousands of hours honing their Shopify expertise like that of actually recognized experts.

Cause if they did, they’d be benefiting from having their names listed on the Shopify Experts website where high-ticket customers flock over.

Ironclad Idea #3: Choose an Ethical Consultant

Choosing an ethical brand is one way of supporting a better future. As an extension, hiring a Shopify consultant with good moral standing ensures your store doesn’t contribute to your business’s downturn.

To flesh out an example...

An ethical consultant would persuade you against using non-biodegradable packaging and instead offer a more eco-friendly alternative that’s not beyond budget. Generally, when you ask them questions or follow-ups, they’ll be transparent and communicate well.

An unethical consultant, on the other hand, would promote your website through questionable tactics like Black Hat practices, increasing short-term traffic but tainting your brand in the long term. They’ll also be quick to flake, disappearing once they can’t milk you any further. 

Needless to say, ensuring that your Shopify consultant practices good business ethics would make you feel safe and at ease. They’ll put your business’s success at the forefront, and are diehard fanatics when it comes to driving results.

Ironclad Idea #4: Testimonials Are King

Testimonies are incredibly powerful tools to leverage your business’s reputation in front of prospectors. Clients love them. It translates to ‘Hey, this guy (or gal) is trustworthy. Get ‘em!’ in the most foolproof way possible. 

For Shopify consultants, grabbing hold of several testimonials is no easy feat. Projects can last anywhere between two weeks to two months—and having a single positive sentence from a company is equivalent to hundreds of hours of sweat-drenching work. 

And it’s not unheard of for clients not to hand them in straight away.

So, consultants wear their testimonials like a boy scout does his badges. The testimonial acts essentially as a vote of confidence—evidence of the reliability, trustworthiness, and expertise of a Shopify expert, without the self-touting.

Speaking of touting (sincerest apologies), here’s an example of one testimonial from a company that we’ve worked with, Bariatric Fusion.

“Pivofy’s improvements to our online presence led to a 20% improvement in sales within the first few weeks of the launch. They created a much more user-friendly, clean site. We rarely receive any calls from customers as they checkout, which is a good sign it's working well.” - Andrew O'Rourke, CFO.

Browse and see more testimonials.

Ironclad Idea #5: Ask Yourself ‘Do They Deliver Results?’

The underlying question for any prospecting client when they choose to outsource is simple: Do they deliver?

A newly dubbed Shopify consultant may get the job done, for the most part. But, of course, why hire a no-name, potentially risky consultant when there are many others around with proven results?

Similarly, no one will hire a Shopify consultant that fails to deliver excellent results. Especially when there’s a catalog of competent experts you can search for on the Shopify Experts website or online.

We don’t blame you at all for wanting the best. After all that hard work you’ve done creating and maintaining your eCommerce business? It's within your right to demand excellence.

At Pivofy, we’ve delivered 100+ successful eCommerce projects for nearly a decade. 100% satisfied customers. 

When we say we deliver, we mean it.

Ok, you’ve persuaded me. How do I get started?

Shopify Plus is a whole different playing field compared to the basic Shopify platform. While Shopify allows you to pick and buy themes, a professional Shopify Plus store demands expert talent at the helm.

The reason? Shopify Plus brings more customization tools to the table. And you’ll need to hire expert developers to create your store for you. 

We at Pivofy have helped brands like Bariatric Fusion, Mata Traders, and Vosges Chocolate transfer their store to Shopify Plus. Our developers can’t wait to help to overhaul your websites and make your life a lot easier.

If you’re interested in hiring a Shopify Plus team to help set up your store, don’t hesitate to contact us. Looking forward to hearing from your next project.