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How to Make an Online Store With Wix: Go From 0 to a Working Store in 9 Steps

Wix provides beginners and advanced users with the tools to build a website, but some of its plans provide specific tools for ecommerce. And the process of making an ecommerce shop is drastically different from that of a standard business website. That’s why we’ve put together an in-depth tutorial on how to make an online store with Wix.

This step-by-step guide will cover all the essentials of launching your Wix ecommerce store:  picking an ecommerce-specific theme 🎨 , customizing your Wix store 🖱️,  adding products to your Wix store 🛒 , accepting payments through Wix 💵,  handling store pages 🛍️ , setting up shipping rules 🚢,  configuring taxes 💼 , getting a domain and launching your Wix online store 📢

How to Make an Online Store With Wix

How to make an online store with Wix

Here’s a high-level look at how to make an online store with Wix – keep reading for the detail guide:

1. Create your Wix account and complete basic setup wizard

It all starts with going to the Wix website and picking a plan that’s suitable for making an online store with Wix.

On Wix.com, click on the Get Started button.

get started learning how to make an online store with Wix

Use the Sign Up link to create an account username and password.

login page

Walk through the initial sign up questions to help Wix formulate the best combination of features for your site.

get started with Wix online store

Fill in these parts of the questionnaire:

  • That you’re building an online store
  • The name of your site
  • Which special features you want, like shipping labels, automated sales tax, abandoned cart recovery, and a blog
Wix online store name

You can click on the Skip link for most other questions.

2. Choose an ecommerce-specific theme

After completing your account, you’re presented with a page to either:

  • Let Wix ADI create a website for you: A process that uses artificial intelligence and another questionnaire to construct your theme

Or:

  • Choose a template: You pick the template and customize your own website

Although the Wix ADI works well, we recommend choosing a template, so you have complete control over the design.

choose template in Wix store

That brings you to the Wix Templates Library. Make sure you choose the Store filter.

store filter

Next, you’re able to get more specific with your filters, opting for industries like:

  • Fashion and clothing
  • Jewelry and accessories
  • Home and decor
  • Food and drink
  • Electronics
  • Kids and babies
  • Many more

That narrows down the search for a simpler customization process moving forward.

filters

Wix provides hundreds of free templates to choose from, and dozens for each category. We encourage you to scroll over templates of interest to either Edit or View them.

  • Edit: Instantly activates the theme as your primary site design
  • View: Gives you a functional preview of the template
pick a template

It’s wise to View (preview) multiple templates before activating one as your final choice. In the previews, test out every aspect of the design, and make notes as to which features you need and the ones that may be missing for certain templates.

  1. View how sliders work
  2. Check for necessary ecommerce pages and menu items
  3. Look for clearly listed cart and checkout icons
  4. Make sure your theme has product galleries on the homepage
  5. Ensure the colors and typography look on-brand
checking templates before learning how to make an online store with Wix

Also, open the preview’s product pages to understand what your customers will see if you go with the template.

  • Does it have a decent photograph with zoom and slider capabilities?
  • Is the title, pricing, and product info clearly listed?
  • Are there areas for return, refund, and shipping info?
  • What about product reviews?
a product page on Wix online store

The good news is that you don’t necessarily need every feature on your list to make it a quality template.

Why?

Because Wix has a robust App Store. For instance, you may find a template you love, but it’s missing social sharing buttons on the product pages; no worries—there are free social sharing apps on Wix.

social buttons

Once you decide on a template, click on the Edit This Site button in the preview.

edit this site

You can also do this by clicking Edit in the template library.

edit or view template

As a result, Wix adds the template to the website builder!

the Wix builder

3. Customize your online store theme from Wix

The customization of any online store in Wix begins with the drag-and-drop page builder.

The left-side panel offers buttons to:

  • Add elements: These are standard webpage elements like text boxes, images, buttons, galleries, and lists
  • Add sections: Pre-made modules for things like welcome blocks, about information, and testimonials
  • Menus and pages: Add new menus, and adjust current menu titles and links
  • Site design: Modify colors, typography, page backgrounds, and page transitions
  • Add apps: If your theme lacks a feature, use the App Store to install anything from payment gateways to email marketing tools, and pop-ups to social media buttons
  • Media: Upload images and video from your computer, social media, cloud storage, or any free or paid stock image sites
  • Start blogging: Set a page to list blog posts, and write posts from the Wix dashboard
  • My store: The go-to place for managing everything for your online store, from the checkout to inventory, and orders to fulfillment
how to make an online store with Wix with the side menu

Using those tabs on the left, drag elements anywhere you want in the editor.

how to make an online store with Wix by adding elements

The editor preview then updates in realtime to display what you should expect on the frontend.

add section - how to make an online store with Wix

Aside from the control panel, Wix provides a fully drag-and-drop editor, meaning you can click on any element to either move it, delete it, or customize it.

For instance, click on the logo to either add a text logo or upload an image.

adjust logo in Wix online store

Each element has unique settings, so you must click on each one to figure out what’s possible. As an example, you can select almost any element on the page to change or add its background.

Choose a color background, one for video, or upload an image.

change slide background

Within seconds, you’ve swapped out a background image.

change background

It’s also worth mentioning that both headers and footers are editable, and everything inside those two areas is viewable on every page of your website.

manage menu in Wix online store

Finally, you may want to check the status of your online store on the frontend. To do so, click on Preview. Another option is to Publish the site and visit the URL.

publish or preview

4. Add products to your Wix store

Learning how to make an online store on Wix obviously involves selling products. So, let’s add a new item to give you a strong idea of how it works.

Begin by selecting the My Store tab on the left side of the Wix editor. Choose Get Started.

get started button

This shows a section for direct access to the Wix Stores dashboard. Here, you can go to the dashboard for control of the ecommerce part of your site, while also accessing all your settings from the standard Wix editor.

Click on Add Products.

In the Wix Stores Dashboard, this area is accessible by going to Store Products > Products.

add products in Wix store

You’ll see a list of all products in your shop. Feel free to edit/delete the ones added by your template.

Select the Add Product button to continue.

new product - how to make an online store with Wix

Pick whether you’d like to sell digital or physical products.

physical or digital

Once inside the product page editor, complete the following actions:

  1. Fill in the product title
  2. Add images or videos
  3. Check the box to “Show in online store
  4. Add the item to whichever collections you want
product page for wix

After uploading media, it all appears for you to reorganize.

add product photos in Wix store

Scroll down to access more product options, like:

  • A Ribbon field for showing a special “Sale” or “New Arrival” ribbon
  • The Description field
  • Promotional tools
  • Fulfillment options
  • The Brand field
description

Feel free to create additional info sections for:

  • Return policies
  • Care instructions
  • Sizing
  • Shipping

In the Pricing area, type in a price, then choose settings like:

  • If you want to have a sale
  • To show the price per unit
  • To set the cost of goods (for calculating the profit and margin)
add an info section

Finally, examine all additional features available for products in Wix:

  • Let customers add custom text to products for personalization
  • Include product options (variants), like for sizing, colors, and materials
  • Choose to track inventory and set a reminder if the product is in stock
  • Add the product to any subscriptions you plan on selling
  • Ready the product for SEO

That’s it! Click the Save button to add the product to your Wix store.

finish the product page

You’ll see the item in your product list.

item list in Wix online store

As well as on the frontend of your site, assuming you made it visible.

the product page

5. Set up Wix payment methods

To complete sales and transfer money to your back account, you must configure a payment processor and also decide which payment methods to accept.

To do this, go to My Store from the Wix editor, then Add Payment Methods.

add payment methods to Wix online store

As an alternative, from the Wix Stores dashboard, go to Settings > Accept Payments.

accept payments

Click Connect for all payment processors you want to add.

The most common and easiest option is to Accept Credit/Debit Cards with Wix.

connect payments - how to make an online store with Wix

Mark your desired payment methods; the more the better. It’s prudent to accept debit/credit cards, Apple Pay, and maybe the Wix POS if you’re running a physical store as well.

Click Continue.

add credit cards

You’ll see a message that Wix Payments is connected, but that’s not really the case.

payments connected

Close that message, and select the Complete Setup button.

complete setup in Wix payments

This is the actual evaluation process to confirm your identity and link to your bank account.

The form asks for:

  • Business type
  • Personal details like name, date of birth, and social security number
  • A photo ID
  • Address
  • Business description
  • Bank account details (to receive your payouts)

Click Submit. You can start accepting payments after you’re accepted!

submit button

6. Adjust your store’s core pages as needed

Under My Store > Store Pages, there’s an area to look at, and customize, your “Store Pages.”

Wix autogenerates all of these for you. But you may want to customize how they appear.

store pages

It’s possible to open these pages:

  • Shop
  • Cart Page
  • Product Page
  • Thank You Page

Each of them open in the standard Wix editor for global customizations.

customize the page when learning how to make an online store with Wix

7. Set up shipping rules on Wix

Shipping rules come easy when learning how to make an online store with Wix.

First, go to Settings > Shipping & Fulfillment in the Wix Stores dashboard.

shipping and fulfillment

Either:

  • Add a custom shipping region

Or:

  • Edit preset shipping regions like Domestic and International
add region

You can get specific with your regions and set rules for how shipping is calculated.

pick shipping for Wix online store

Shipping rules include:

  • Free shipping
  • Flat rate
  • Rate by weight
  • Rate by price
  • Rate by product
  • USPS calculated rate
free shipping and other options

You also have local delivery and pickup available.

Click Save to complete the process.

Save delivery options

8. Configure tax rates as needed

To set taxes on your Wix store, go to Settings > Tax in the Wix Stores dashboard.

taxes in Wix

One option is to automate all sales taxes with the Avalara app.

Or, choose the Add Country button to set rates manually.

how to make an online store with Wix and add taxes

Simply complete an internet search for the right tax rates for each region, then type them in.

Hit Save when you’re done.

Save

9. Connect your domain name and launch your store

The final step 🤗 is to link a domain to replace the testing subdomain from Wix.

In the Wix editor, click Connect Your Domain.

connect your domain

Choose to either:

  • Get a new domain name

Or:

  • Connect a domain you already own.
get a Wix domain

In this step, you must finally select a Wix plan. Choose from the Wix Business and Ecommerce plans for online store functionality.

pick a Wix pricing plan

After that, you’ll walk through the checkout process, make your payment, then Wix helps you purchase or transfer a domain to replace the subdomain.

checkout and publish your Wix online store

And that’s how to make an online store with Wix! 🦸

Create your Wix ecommerce store today 🚀

That wraps up our Wix ecommerce tutorial. To learn more about Wix and/or how to improve your Wix store, you might want to check out 🎁 these other posts:

Are you building a site with Wix? Still have any questions about how to set up your store? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.

Don’t forget to join our crash course on speeding up your WordPress site. Learn more below:

 
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Joe Warnimont
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