The Power of Amazon
Amazon is an incredible platform. It’s quick and easy to launch products and gain traction in terms of sales and revenue. However, while the platform can deliver rapid results, many businesses overlook the additional costs that come with selling on Amazon.
Fees such as Fulfilled by Amazon (FBA) charges, referral fees, and advertising costs can eat into your margins. Plus, you’re operating in an environment where account suspensions, buy-box issues, and sudden listing removals can disrupt your revenue stream, often without warning and outside of your control.
The Shopify Advantage
By contrast, Shopify offers greater control and long-term profitability. Though it requires more upfront work, like building your store, optimizing your design, and refining your conversion rates - the effort can pay off.
Once set up properly, Shopify becomes a high-margin sales channel. There are fewer platform fees, and the store is entirely yours. You won’t deal with sudden account issues or competing listings in the same way you do on Amazon.
Shopify also allows you to diversify your revenue streams, which is a critical risk mitigation strategy. If your Amazon account gets suspended or your buy box is lost, having Shopify as a backup means your entire business isn’t jeopardized.
Own Your Customer Data
One of Shopify’s biggest advantages is owning your customer data. Every time someone purchases from your store (with marketing consent), you collect valuable contact information. This enables:
- Email marketing for future promotions- Cross-sell and upsell opportunities- Referral programs- Loyalty initiatives
All of these tactics drive higher lifetime value and repeat purchases - something Amazon doesn’t allow since customer data is not shared with sellers.
Getting Your Shopify Store Conversion-Ready
With so many conversion-tested themes available, launching a Shopify store has never been easier. All you need to do is apply your branding, logos, fonts, colors and ensure your messaging speaks clearly to your customers' needs.
Key elements to include on your product pages:- Clear shipping timeframes ("If I order today, when will I get it?")- Return policies and guarantees- Trust signals (e.g., reviews, badges, secure payment icons)
Amazon wins on trust because customers are familiar with the process. With Shopify, you need to recreate that confidence by addressing customer uncertainties directly.
Affordable Optimization and Development Support
You may need minor ongoing tweaks to your Shopify store, such as:- Adding “Subscribe & Save” features- Enabling basket upsells- Adjusting design templates
Luckily, Shopify’s ecosystem is vast. You can hire developers for one-off tasks via platforms like Upwork, or work with a Shopify specialist agency on a retainer basis.
Long-Term Profitability and Ad Integration
In the mid-to-long term, Shopify is often more profitable than Amazon, the key factor to success will be if you can manage your customer acquisition costs effectively.
Shopify integrates seamlessly with Google Ads and Meta Ads (Facebook and Instagram), allowing you to target the top platforms where consumers:- Discover new products- Compare options- Make purchase decisions
With the right campaign formats, these platforms are typically bottom-of-funnel, meaning the users are ready to buy - similar to Amazon’s audience. Shopify allows you to capitalize on that same buyer intent, but with higher margins and full control.
Using Google Ads as a Diagnostic Tool
If you’re seeing traffic to your Shopify store from high-intent sources (like Google Ads), but you’re not converting, it becomes a valuable diagnostic tool:
- Is your product proposition clear?- Are your prices too high?- Is your shipping too slow?- Is your site easy to navigate?
By examining these questions, you can refine your store and marketing strategy to drive better results.
You know that the user came online, actively searchd for the product that you sell. If they aren’t buying, you can get into the detail and figure out why they are leaving.
Google Ads will show you auction insights so you can see directly who is showing at the same time as you.
It’s common user behaviour to click multiple ads and organic listings when buying online. Comparing tabs for the best deal or fastest delivery.
You can quickly learn from this where you are strong, where you need to improve and then make changes to make it happen.
Final Thoughts
Amazon and Shopify are both powerful sales channels but they serve different roles.
Amazon is excellent for fast traction, as you don’t have platform conversion rate and UX to content with, while Shopify is a longer-term play that delivers control, margin, and brand equity.
If your Shopify store isn’t performing as well as your Amazon presence, it may be time to work with a partner to identify what's blocking your growth. Starting with Google Ads is a smart move—it allows you to tap into active search demand and begin gathering insights immediately.
With the right setup and support, Shopify can evolve into one of your most profitable and scalable sales channels.
Meta is unmatched as a performance demand generation channel for ecommerce so get in touch with our team to find out more.
We create momentum
Delivered, measured, built upon
