Why Most Shopify Stores Struggle to Make Real Money
I see it all the time with businesses across Brisbane—from boutique clothing shops in Paddington to equipment suppliers in Rocklea. You’ve spent thousands on a beautiful Shopify store, you’re paying for ads, and people are actually clicking. But at the end of the month, the bank balance doesn’t reflect the effort.
Most Shopify owners think they have a "traffic problem." They think if they just get more people to the site, the money will follow. Usually, they have a "sales problem." Their website is like a bucket full of holes; they keep pouring water (money) in, but it just leaks out the bottom.
If you want to stop burning cash, you need to stop worrying about "optimising algorithms" and start focusing on what makes a human being reach for their wallet. Here is how you actually make more money from your Shopify store without needing a degree in computer science.
1. Make Your Store Work on a Phone (For Real)
I’m not talking about it just "looking okay." I mean it needs to be dead simple to use while someone is sitting on the bus or waiting for a coffee.
Most business owners check their own website on a massive iMac in their office. Your customers are looking at it on a cracked iPhone screen with one hand. If your "Add to Cart" button is tiny, or if a giant pop-up covers the whole screen the second they land, they will leave.
The Quick Fix: Open your store on your phone right now. Try to buy your most popular product. If you fumble, get frustrated, or have to zoom in to read something, you are losing money every single day. Make the buttons big, keep the text clear, and get rid of any annoying pop-ups that block the view.
2. Stop Guessing and Start Selling More to Every Customer
If it costs you $10 in ads to get a customer, and they only buy a $15 item, you’re barely breaking even after you factor in shipping and product costs. The fastest way to see more profit is to increase how much each person spends in a single transaction.
Don't wait for them to find other items on their own. You need to suggest things that go together. If they buy a pair of leather boots, suggest the waterproof spray. If they buy a drill, suggest the battery pack.
You can easily sell more to every customer by grouping related items together as a package deal. It makes their life easier because they get everything they need in one click, and it makes your bank account healthier because your average sale value goes up.
3. Use Your Customers to Do the Selling for You
Australians are naturally skeptical. We don’t trust what a business says about itself; we trust what other people say. If your product pages are just a list of technical specs and a "Buy Now" button, you’re missing out.
You need to show that real people in places like Chermside or North Lakes are using and loving your gear. This isn't just about having a star rating. It’s about showing photos of the product in the real world and sharing stories of how it solved a problem. When you use customer reviews effectively, you answer the customer's biggest question: "Will I regret buying this?"
Action Step: Don't just wait for reviews to happen. Send an automated email 7 days after a customer receives their order and ask them for a photo of the product in use. Offer a small discount on their next order as a thank you. It’s the cheapest marketing you’ll ever do.
4. Fix Your Checkout (The "Leaky Bucket" Test)
Have you ever gone to buy something online, got to the checkout, and then saw a massive shipping fee or a 10-field form you had to fill out? You probably closed the tab. Your customers do the same thing.
To stop wasting clicks and actually capture the sale, your checkout needs to be frictionless.
Be honest about shipping early: Nothing kills a sale faster than a $20 shipping surprise at the very last step. Offer Guest Checkout: Don't force people to "Create an Account" with a password they’ll forget. Let them buy as a guest. Use Express Payments: If you don't have Apple Pay, Google Pay, or Shop Pay active, you are making people manually type in credit card numbers. In 2024, that’s a death sentence for sales.
5. Focus on the Customers You Already Have
It is five to ten times more expensive to find a new customer than it is to sell to an old one. Yet, most Brisbane business owners spend 90% of their budget on Facebook or Google ads to find strangers.
If someone has bought from you once and had a good experience, they are much more likely to buy again. You don't need fancy software for this. A simple email once a fortnight with a "Product of the Month" or a helpful tip on how to use what they already bought keeps you in their mind. When you focus on your existing list, you make more from every customer without having to hand over more money to Mark Zuckerberg.
What’s a Waste of Money?
I’ll be blunt: most "Shopify Experts" will try to sell you on expensive custom themes or complex apps that slow your site down.
Custom Coding: Unless you’re doing $1 million+ a year, you don't need a custom-coded site. A standard Shopify theme is fine if you set it up correctly. Too Many Apps: Every app you add to Shopify is like putting a heavy backpack on a runner. It slows your site down. If your site takes more than 3 seconds to load, people will leave before they even see what you sell. Fancy Graphics: You don't need a $5,000 brand video. You need clear, bright photos of your products and words that explain why someone should buy them.
How Long Until You See Results?
If you fix your checkout and make your site work better on phones today, you can see an increase in sales by next week. Marketing isn't always a long game; sometimes it’s just about removing the obstacles that are stopping people from giving you money.
Increasing your average sale through bundling or improving your reviews might take a month to really show in the data, but these are permanent improvements. Once they are done, they keep working for you 24/7.
What Should You Do First?
1. The Phone Test: Go through your own checkout on your mobile. Fix anything that feels clunky. 2. The Shipping Check: Look at your shipping costs. If they are high, try building some of that cost into the product price so you can offer "Low Flat Rate" or "Free Shipping over $X." 3. The Review Push: Set up an automated email to ask your last 50 customers for a review.
Stop trying to "beat the algorithm" and start making it easier for people to buy from you. If you’re tired of guessing what works and want a team that focuses on your bottom line rather than fancy reports, reach out to us at Local Marketing Group.
We help Brisbane businesses turn their websites into high-performing sales tools. No jargon, just results.
Ready to grow your sales? Contact Local Marketing Group today.