A lot happened with eCommerce and Shopify in 2023, from the launch of Shopify Online Store 2.0 and sections to new Shopify B2B features and AI app integrations designed to streamline efforts like email marketing. As a Shopify Plus partner agency, we stay up to date with all the news in the Shopify ecosystem. On our blog, we interpret and share this information as well as best practices, expertise and insights on subjects we think will be helpful for Shopify merchants, such as customer retention, A/B testing and UI/UX design.
Which topics on our blog did readers find most interesting or informative this past year? Here’s a quick roundup of the top five most-read blogs of 2023.
1. Yes, You Can Do Shared, Multi-Brand Shopping Carts in Shopify
Inflation and rising costs were significant factors in 2023 and many merchants were looking for ways to streamline their business. One way to reduce development and maintenance costs of multiple Shopify Plus sites is to consolidate to a single multi-brand site with a shared shopping cart. Benefits may include lower costs, better customer experience, and increased revenue. This post explores different ways to approach creating a multi-brand shopping experience and highlights some CX best practices for higher conversions.
2. 6 UX Guidelines to Give Your Customers a Better Subscription Management Experience
Most merchants love subscriptions because they help ensure a more predictable revenue stream. But customers love subscriptions only when they’re easy to manage. Giving your customers full control over their subscription – to skip, change, delay, add to, and yes, even unsubscribe – actually can encourage them to stick around longer. How can brands do this successfully? This post outlines the important features of a customer-friendly subscription management experience that reduces churn.
3. Should My eCommerce Store Upgrade to Shopify 2.0?
Speed and performance are critical for converting customers. Now that Shopify Online Store 2.0 is available, merchants frequently ask us if they should upgrade for a faster site and better customer experience. We say: maybe, but maybe not. This post helps merchants think through the factors they should consider before deciding to upgrade to Online Store 2.0. What about optimizing your current site? Or maybe headless is the way to go? Many options, many considerations. It can help to have an agency partner to help you figure it out. In the meantime, read this post!
4. Headless vs. Shopify Online Store 2.0: Weighing Your Options
When brands are thinking about upgrading their eCommerce site, questions about Online Store 2.0 seem to go hand-in-hand with questions about headless. (We can answer one frequently asked question right now: headless has no particular advantage for customizing your storefront design!) Our take: although there are new tools that make headless more cost-effective, it’s still not for everyone. But what about for your specific business? This post helps you clarify your priorities, understand your options and weigh the pros and cons of headless.
5. Getting Around Shopify Plus’s 100 Variant Limit
While Shopify Plus does have a 100 variant limit out of the box, don’t let that deter you from the platform. There are some relatively easy workarounds to allow merchants to add as many products and variants as they want. For our clients, we create a Shopify native solution that’s easy for merchants to implement and maintain without a developer and also provides total inventory tracking. However, it’s not the only solution. Read this post for what to consider to help find the solution that’s right for your business.
There’s more great content to come in 2024! To get it delivered to your inbox, please sign up below for our newsletter. We hope you keep reading!