Scoping Your Shopify Project and Providing an Accurate Quote

At Create8, we’re passionate about harnessing the power of Shopify to help you succeed online. Our skilled team brings together design flair and technical know-how to ensure your online store not only looks incredible but also functions flawlessly. 

Whether you’re launching your first eCommerce venture or refining an established store, we can build you a Shopify website that’s tailored to your brand’s unique requirements. 

Read this article to get up to speed on the information we’ll need to build your quote – so the process can be as streamlined and seamless as possible, right from the start. 

Shopify project information checklist

When it comes to Shopify, our mission is to build you a store that reflects your brand’s core personality. By blending stunning visuals with solid functionality, we can make sure your store stands out and runs like clockwork. To make that happen, we need the right information and guidance from you! 

Use this list as your first point-of-call, and try to make sure you’ve got everything here in place before reaching out. 

1. What are the primary goals and objectives of your web project?

Are you looking to increase brand recognition, boost sales, or capture fresh leads? Maybe you want to expand into new markets, introduce a subscription model, or launch a customer loyalty scheme?

Whatever your goals, defining them upfront will help us to build you a uniquely tailored Shopify solution that serves all of your brand’s needs. By understanding the bigger picture, we can recommend the best approach and focus on the features that yield the best returns.

Getting started: Create a list of short-term and long-term goals to clarify your priorities and keep your project focused.

2. Who is your target audience?

You might be targeting new customers, returning customers, or even other businesses that require special pricing or bulk ordering options. 

The more specific your target audience insights are in terms of demographics, purchasing habits, and user expectations, the easier it is for us to build the right website functionality. Your target audience also influences language and tone, design style, and the layout of pages and content, so we need to understand who your audience is before we start building. 

Getting started: Create user personas that include demographics, behaviours, and buying motivations to help us tailor your store experience.

3. What specific features and functionalities does your website need?

Do you need to enable B2B pricing options, or does your company have subscription products? Maybe you want to include personalised product options, or loyalty and rewards programmes to increase retention?

When you lay out the specific features and functionalities that best serve your customers and support your brand objectives, we can transform your Shopify store into a dynamic experience.

Don’t worry if you’re not 100% sure what you need, the Create8 team can provide specialised recommendations based on your core business functionality. So, consider what your products or services are, how you’ll sell them, and who you’re selling them to – our team can take it from there.

Getting started: Think about the core business functions you need for launch, as well as any additional functionalities you might need as your business grows.

4. Do you have brand guidelines or design preferences? 

Sleek, minimalist layouts often work best for luxury products; whereas bold and vibrant designs tend to appeal more to the younger and more trend-focused. Whatever your design preferences, make sure they reflect your brand identity and audience.

Consistency is key to creating a Shopify store that feels authentically yours. Have a think about visual references and websites you love, as these can help capture your vision and craft a site that aligns with your brand’s own unique style. 

If you already have brand guidelines – which include rules for logos, colour schemes, typography, or even a preferred brand voice – we’ll need these to keep your Shopify store in line with your existing brand. And if you don’t have any existing brand guidelines, the Create8 team can help with that, too! 

Getting started: Gather and organise your brand assets, including logos and style guides, into a single file so that we can use them during the design of your website.

5. Do you have content and images to migrate? 

If you already have assets that you want to move to the new site – such as product descriptions, collections, blog posts, customers and orders – share these with the team to streamline the process. We can’t directly migrate “about” pages or home pages though, as layouts often significantly change. 

If you don’t have any existing content or what’s there needs a complete overhaul, let us know! Our expert content writers can provide brand-specific content writing. 

Strong visuals are just as important as great text. Do you already have professional photography or graphics that match your brand identity? If not, we can connect you with our trusted photography partners to ensure your store looks polished and professional. 

Don’t underestimate this task! Content is essential in the success of your branding, but this step is time consuming – regardless of whether it’s gathering and migrating existing assets, or creating entirely new ones. Begin this process as soon as possible, and get in touch if you’re struggling or falling behind.

Getting started: Audit your existing content to identify gaps or outdated material, and plan to update it before integration.

6. Does your website need any integrations with other systems or third-party services?

Shopify has the capability to link up with a wide range of third-party systems, such as: accounting software, product inventory management (PIM), enterprise resource planning (ERP), and shipping platforms (among others). 

These are called integrations, and we’ll need to know about them as part of the scoping phase, in order to provide you with an accurate quote. Integrations like these can make your Shopify store more powerful and efficient, so think about how your store will interact with your existing systems or let us know about any tools you plan to introduce in the future. 

Create8 doesn’t internally facilitate these integrations, but we are partnered with a number of trusted specialists who can provide varied and efficient integration options to clients. 

Getting started: Create a flowchart to map out how your systems interact to ensure nothing is overlooked.

7. What are your website KPIs and do you have a specific launch date?? 

Understanding your brand’s performance can help us to target key improvement areas effectively. To achieve this, think about metrics like sales revenue, conversion rates, average order value, and customer retention. 

Key performance indicators (KPIs) are essential for measuring your Shopify store’s success, and setting clear KPIs from the get-go helps track results effectively. For existing brands, share any historical metrics with the Create8 team. If you’re a new business, share your targets in these key areas – it’s hard to hit goals without knowing what they are!

Timelines are equally important. Let us know if you have a specific launch date in mind or any key milestones, such as a product launch or seasonal campaign. A well-defined timeline and precise KPIs can help us allocate resources, prioritise tasks, and manage expectations throughout the project.

Getting started: Let us know when you need to launch so that we can plan timelines accordingly.

8. What’s your budget? 

Be specific! Whether you’re looking for a quick, cost-effective, theme-based site or a fully custom-built solution, your budget helps us recommend the best approach.

Understanding your budget is crucial for shaping a Shopify solution that fits both your financial parameters and business goals. You might choose to focus on advanced features, or instead allocate funds toward professional photography or content creation. 

At Create8, we have Shopify options that suit most budgets – from premium themes to custom websites. Being transparent about your funds ensures we can tailor a proposal that meets your needs without unexpected costs, and offer you the most suitable approach for your brand and budget.

Getting started: Work out your available Shopify budget, and let us know so we can recommend the best solution.

Scoping your Shopify project is the first step towards creating a store that meets your business goals. The more we understand about your project, the better the design and development process will be.

Ready to get started? Let’s bring your vision to life!

Contact the team to discuss your Shopify project and get a bespoke proposal.