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Building A Blazing Fast Shopify Store: Liquid or Hydrogen?

Building A Blazing Fast Shopify Store: Liquid or Hydrogen?

Someone once told me, “You don’t really need your website to go that fast.” I knew what they meant. I’d just spent five seconds waiting for Song for the Mute’s homepage to load. By any standard metric, that’s slow. But I didn’t care. When you’re browsing one of the coolest brands on the internet, and you really want to buy, you’re not timing it. You’re in it. You’re immersed. You’re seeing poetry, storytelling, and fashion blending perfectly together! But most stores aren’t Song for the Mute. And if your brand doesn’t have that kind of magnetic pull yet, performance matters — a lot. Google called it out years ago in their “Milliseconds Make Millions” report. Even today, 82% of users say slow speeds affect their purchasing decisions, and a 1-second improvement in page speed can yield an extra $7,000/day for a $100k/day site. Things haven’t changed. Now, if you're using a traditional Shopify theme, built on Liquid and your site feels sluggish, your first instinct might be to install a performance app. Don’t. Most of them do more harm than good. Others might suggest going headless. I build for Shopify Hydrogen, and even I’ll say this: don’t rush. Can Shopify Liquid Perform Well? Absolutely. Shopify published their own study in late 2023 showing that Liquid storefronts outperform most ecommerce platforms in Core Web Vitals. As of September 2023, 59.5% of Shopify sites passed all CWV thresholds, a stat that continues to climb. Even large-scale merchants like Rothy’s, Rad Power Bikes, and Dollar Shave Club use Liquid and still hit performance benchmarks. Surprisingly, Liquid even outperforms most headless implementations. Shopify found that many SSR frameworks — the ones powering most headless setups — had fewer sites passing Core Web Vitals compared to Liquid. Hydrogen ranked second, but there’s still a gap. So why invest millions in building Hydrogen? Just why? Hydrogen vs Liquid/Shopify Themes A Rebuttal Against Liquid First, I have to say that it might be hard to compare apples to apples in this case, mainly because the data in Shopify’s benchmark focuses on real storefronts using Hydrogen. Many of these early adopters built custom experiences without performance best practices. In contrast, Liquid storefronts benefit from: Years of optimization by Shopify's core teams Default themes like Dawn that are tightly optimized A templating model that constrains performance pitfalls Hydrogen, on the other hand, gives full freedom. Yes, this freedom cuts both ways; it brings performance potential and risk of poor implementation. Hydrogen storefronts can match or exceed Liquid performance when built well. Shopify’s own documentation even notes: “Some routes in the Hydrogen demo store template saw their load time cut in half” after optimizing GraphQL queries. Hydrogen is built on React Server Components (RSC) and uses Vite for ultra-fast development. Shopify chose this stack specifically because: RSC reduces client JS bundle size significantly Pages stream in progressively with lower Time to First Byte (TTFB) Data fetching is done on the server, not in the client render phase You get full control. You also get full responsibility. That’s why some Hydrogen stores load in half the time, and others fall flat. When Should You Consider Hydrogen? Page speed shouldn’t be the only factor in deciding between Shopify Hydrogen and Liquid. The real choice comes down to how much control you need over your storefront experience. If you’re planning to run A/B tests, personalize content, or build dynamic user interfaces, you’ll hit the limits of Liquid fast. Hydrogen is built for that kind of flexibility. It’s designed for brands that want to iterate quickly, experiment often, and optimize every touchpoint. On the other hand, Liquid works well for stores that prioritize simplicity and stability. Its guardrails are a strength if your store setup is relatively fixed, maybe with just a few campaign landing pages here and there. Use Hydrogen if: Your store has 500+ SKUs or 100K+ visits/month, and you’re seeing speed decline. You need to launch experiences that your theme can’t handle: multi-currency PWA, AR tools, immersive UIs. Your team (or agency) is fluent in React and headless workflows Stick with Liquid if: You’re validating a new product or category All your needs are covered within the theme editor, and your site already performs well You don’t have the engineering support to maintain a custom frontend The TL;DR In short, Liquid gives you structure. Hydrogen gives you freedom. Choose based on how far you plan to push your storefront. How To Build Hydrogen Storefronts Faster? One of the biggest reasons developers hesitate to go headless is that it breaks the visual editing experience. The Shopify Theme Editor disappears. Content teams are locked out. Everything becomes a Jira ticket. Weaverse fixes that. With Weaverse Hydrogen, developers can build Hydrogen themes and components via an SDK, expose them in a familiar drag-and-drop editor, just like Shopify Theme Editor, and let content teams reuse, remix, and publish without touching code. And it's only getting easier. With Weaverse AI, the gap between idea and execution shrinks dramatically. Developers will soon be able to turn Figma design into Hydrogen landing pages using Weaverse and Figma MCP. Merchants will soon be able to edit their Hydrogen storefronts using a natural language interface. If you’re interested in Weaverse AI, let me know here, and I’ll reach out once it’s ready!

By Paul PhanRead
The Future of Building with Shopify: Hydrogen and AI

The Future of Building with Shopify: Hydrogen and AI

Building An Online Store: Then & Now Let’s start with a story. A history lesson, perhaps. It is 1999. Your boss tells you the company needs an online store. You nod gravely and call your web guy. He nods back and disappears for six months. You don’t hear from him again until he returns with 10,000 lines of spaghetti PHP, a MySQL database held together with duct tape, and a shopping cart that breaks when you add more than three items. You launched anyway. The homepage has dancing gifs. The checkout form requires 12 fields. Half of your customers abandon their carts. You get one sale a day. But hey you’re a dot-com entrepreneur now. It is 2007. Your boss tells you the company needs an online store. You go to Magento and download the open-source package. You spin up a server, start following a forum thread with 43 pages titled “Help: Checkout Broken!” and spend the next few weeks configuring payment gateways, plugins, cron jobs, and SSL certificates. You hire a developer to customize the theme. He hardcodes your logo into the footer and disappears. You hire another developer to undo what the first one did. The store launches. It’s not great, but it works. Kind of. At least until the next security update. It is 2016. Your boss tells you the company needs an online store. You open Shopify. It takes you 45 minutes to get to your first product page. You feel powerful. You don’t need a developer. You need a laptop and a credit card. You buy a theme. You connect Stripe. You install a bunch of apps that each solve one extremely specific thing: reviews, popups, upsells, abandoned cart reminders, shipping rate calculators, order printers, email sequences, and chat widgets. It’s a Frankenstein monster of app integrations, but it’s yours. You ship. You sell. You sleep. Sort of. Then the cracks start showing. You want to customize the checkout? Sorry, you need Plus for that. You want a multilingual storefront with dynamic pricing across geographies? Maybe hire an agency. You want to build a branded mobile experience that feels native? Time to hire a dev again. It is 2023. Your boss tells you the company needs an online store and he needs it to be butterfly, fast, and performant. You’re familiar with React and you think Shopify's built-in functionalities are still pretty good, so you decide to build with Shopify Hydrogen. It’s Shopify’s answer to headless. It’s powerful. It lets your developers do things that Liquid never could. Your storefront looks stunning with buttery transitions and personalized landing pages. And still, your performance scores are through the roof. You’ve replaced four apps with custom code. But it also demands more. You’re writing GraphQL queries, managing server components, and wrestling with route loaders and caching strategies. Now your team is busy maintaining a headless stack, they barely have time to explain. What used to take hours now takes days. What used to take days now takes a roadmap. Everything is beautiful and nothing is simple. It is 2026. Your boss tells you the company needs an online store. You open Figma. Then you open Weaverse. You type something like: “Turn this Figma design into a Weaverse page. Five products. Ships worldwide. Prioritize mobile. Feels editorial.” You watch as the layout comes to life. The hero image loads before you finish your sentence. You adjust it with a message: “Make it taller. Add motion.” You change the font. You swap the checkout flow. You personalize the homepage with a prompt. It’s Hydrogen underneath, but you don’t feel it. The complexity of headless is still there. But it’s abstracted away from you, turned into something anyone can use. The future isn’t Hydrogen or AI. It’s Hydrogen plus AI. That’s how Weaverse AI is being built. And this time, everything is possible and simple. Introducing Weaverse AI, The First AI Store Builder for Shopify Hydrogen In 2022, Shopify launched Hydrogen, a React-based framework for building highly customizable, interactive, and high-performance storefronts for Shopify stores. Weaverse was created 6 months later. For years, we’ve been focused on one thing: helping Shopify merchants build better storefronts, faster. Before Hydrogen, that meant delivering Liquid-based themes that looked great out of the box and were easy to use. But Liquid has limits. Custom layout logic often requires installing third-party apps. Dynamic sections depend on metafield hacks. Over time, these workarounds pile up, slowing down performance and restricting flexibility. When Hydrogen became available, we saw a better path forward. Weaverse Hydrogen is our response: a platform that brings Hydrogen’s flexibility into a merchant-friendly environment. With Weaverse Hydrogen, developers can build Hydrogen themes and components via the SDK, make them configurable in the visual editor, and let content teams reuse and remix them across storefronts. Merchants can drag and drop prebuilt components into a Hydrogen-powered store, preview changes in real time, and deploy to Oxygen or locally with ease. It felt like Shopify Theme Editor, but as powerful as Hydrogen can be. Now we’re taking the next step with Weaverse AI. What Is Weaverse AI and What Can It Do? Weaverse AI helps developers, agencies, and merchants build Shopify Hydrogen stores faster using a natural language interface. Imagine describing the section you want—“three columns with product cards and buy buttons”—and it generates it. Upload a Figma file, and it scaffolds a matching theme. You start with a prompt and end with a shoppable page. This is where Weaverse AI leads. There are two major pieces behind this shift: 1/ Weaverse AI Assistant (inside Weaverse theme customizer): Merchants and marketers can build and update Hydrogen pages using natural language. Want a new banner? Change layout? Update styling? Just ask. Generated sections can be promoted to the component library and reused across the organization. 2/ Weaverse MCP (Model-Component-Pipeline): Developers can go from Figma to Hydrogen in one conversation. Unlike black-box generators, the output is developer-friendly, inspectable, and structured around Hydrogen code. Every section is visible to merchants, editable in the GUI, and tweakable by devs. AI defines schema, default values, and preview logic for seamless editing. For Developers: Build Less, Deliver More Faster Prototyping and Development: Weaverse AI speeds up development. Instead of building boilerplate sections from scratch, developers can scaffold pages from Figma designs and let AI handle the repetitive work. You focus on what matters: performance, business logic, and standout features. In practice, a developer could sketch out a site structure in Weaverse’s visual builder and let AI fill in the gaps, achieving in a day what might have taken a week. Less Maintenance Works: AI assistants can handle routine updates or bulk changes across a site. For example, if a client wants to change all CTA buttons to a different style, an AI could execute that change across the codebase. It’s easier to keep the storefront fresh and updated without a continuous manual slog. For Agencies: Faster Builds, Better Margin Higher Throughput, Shorter Timelines: With AI generating first drafts and a visual tool (Weaverse Theme Customizer) enabling rapid tweaks, projects that took months can now ship in weeks, without cutting corners. This means agencies can handle more clients in parallel or offer faster turnarounds, increasing their capacity and revenue potential. Custom for Everyone: Because baseline development is faster, agencies can spend more time on strategy, branding, and customization for each client. It becomes feasible to offer truly bespoke designs to even smaller clients, since the heavy lifting (coding the theme) is largely automated. Even small clients can afford something custom. AI removes the overhead, so you can offer premium service without premium dev hours. Productized Packages: Offer AI-assisted setup packages, budget Hydrogen builds, or retainers focused on optimization instead of maintenance. You move from vendor to strategic partner. For Merchants: More Control, Less Waiting No-code Visual Editing: Merchants can finally have the best of both worlds: the flexibility and speed of a custom headless site, and the ease-of-use of a Shopify page builder. You can launch landing pages, rearrange product sections, or update content without waiting on a dev. The builder is visual and intuitive, and the AI assistant can guide or even generate entire sections for you Faster Iteration. A/B test homepages. Add new sections for a campaign. Update product grids before lunch. With Hydrogen’s speed and AI’s flexibility, iteration is instant. You just chat. Lower Overhead. Reduce dependency on developers for day-to-day changes. Let AI help with SEO, performance suggestions, or layout fixes. You run a modern, high-converting store without needing a tech team on call.

By Paul PhanRead
Weaverse Pricing Update - More Free Usage, More Flexibility

Weaverse Pricing Update - More Free Usage, More Flexibility

Building a brand is tough. You’re constantly juggling priorities, from sales and marketing to product development—and everything costs money. When you’re starting, every penny matters. Your burn rate matters. As a startup ourselves, we understand this deeply. Weaverse is designed to help you build headless storefronts faster, bringing your vision to life. But we also know that’s only part of the equation. You need time and resources to truly scale and grow. This is why we released a new pricing update to offer our users more flexibility to grow, to scale, to win - without losing sleep over your burn rate. Here’s what’s new New Pay-As-You-Go Plan: Replacing our Free Plan, this option is ideal for those just starting out. You now get 10,000 free view credits (twice the previous 5,000!). Only pay as your store grows—simple, flexible, and effective. Introducing Grow Plan: Tailored for growing businesses. For $29/month, you get 200,000 view credits, along with a Service Level Agreement (SLA) and guaranteed response time to ensure your store runs smoothly even as you scale. Introducing Scale Plan: Designed for high-traffic stores. At $199/month, you’ll get 1.5 million view credits and priority access to our upcoming features, including Localization, A/B Testing, and Scheduling. What About Current Paid Users? Don’t worry, you’re covered. The new pricing doesn’t affect existing paid users. If you’re already on a legacy business plan, you can switch to any of the new plans with the same add-on pricing: $1 for every 10,000 views. Not Sure What View Credits Are? View credits are counted each time a page on your Hydrogen theme is viewed, whether it’s a first-time visit or a repeat view. This ensures that our pricing is directly linked to how much value you’re getting from Weaverse. For more details, check out our pricing page here. If you have any questions or concerns, just drop me a message on Linkedin!

By Paul PhanRead
Shopify Tech Stack: A Developer’s Guide (2024)

Shopify Tech Stack: A Developer’s Guide (2024)

Imagine building a rocket. You don’t just grab a lawnmower engine, some duct tape, and hope for the best. No, you start with the blueprint, meticulously choosing each part—the thrusters, the fuel tanks, the guidance systems. Every piece has a purpose, and if one component is off, the whole thing could explode on the launchpad. The same goes for building an online store on Shopify. The tech stack you choose is like your rocket’s engine—it determines whether you’ll soar to success or crash and burn. You need the right thrusters (think of this as your core framework—hello, Liquid). Then, you need the fuel that powers it (your backend logic and APIs), then the advanced guidance systems, which keep everything on track (we’re talking about your frontend apps and frameworks). Finally, you need the structural integrity to hold it all together—this is where scalability, security, and performance come in. It’s a complicated process, but when done right, it’s nothing short of a marvel. Shopify is the go-to platform for millions of online stores, and for good reason. It’s powerful, flexible, and built to scale. But here’s the catch: as a developer, you’ve got to pick the right tools to unlock its full potential. Otherwise, you might find yourself trying to pilot a jet engine with bicycle gears. Not a great plan. This guide is your roadmap to navigating Shopify’s tech stack. We’ll cover everything from the tried-and-true Liquid framework, which has been powering Shopify stores for years, to the shiny new Hydrogen headless commerce solution that’s got everyone talking. Whether you’re a seasoned pro or just dipping your toes into the Shopify waters, understanding these tools will make all the difference. Core Technologies in Shopify's Tech Stack Building a Shopify store is like assembling a high-performance vehicle; each component plays a critical role in ensuring everything runs smoothly. Here’s a breakdown of the core technologies that form the backbone of Shopify’s tech stack: 1. Liquid Liquid is Shopify’s proprietary templating language, and it’s been the bedrock of Shopify theme development for years. Think of Liquid as the engine that powers your store’s visual presentation. It dynamically loads content on your storefront, making it possible to create custom themes that cater to your unique brand. Liquid is particularly powerful because it allows developers to build complex, highly customized pages without needing to dive deep into backend code. It’s a logic-based language that enables you to pull data from Shopify’s database and display it in a way that’s tailored to your store’s needs. Use Cases: Custom Themes: Build unique storefronts with tailored designs. Dynamic Content: Load products, collections, and customer information in real time. Flexibility: Modify existing themes or create new ones from scratch. 2. Hydrogen & Remix As Shopify moves into the future, Hydrogen is becoming the new star of its tech stack. Shopify Hydrogen is a React-based framework that supports headless commerce, allowing developers to build highly dynamic, fast, and customized storefronts. Unlike traditional setups, Hydrogen enables decoupling the frontend from the backend, giving developers more freedom to create unique experiences without being tied to Shopify’s standard themes. Paired with Remix, a full-stack web framework, Hydrogen offers tools to build high-performance, SEO-friendly pages that load quickly and handle complex interactions smoothly. Use Cases: Headless Commerce: Build custom storefronts that are independent of the backend. Dynamic User Experiences: Create rich, interactive user interfaces. Performance Optimization: Improve site speed and scalability. Shopify Hydrogen is ideal for stores that need to scale quickly or offer unique shopping experiences. Take a look at this case study. https://youtu.be/z7TzjyI5414 3. Shopify APIs Shopify’s APIs are the backbone of its flexibility. They allow developers to interact with Shopify’s platform programmatically, enabling custom app development, integrations, and automations. Key APIs: Admin API: Manage your store’s backend operations, such as orders, products, and inventory. Storefront API: Access product information, collections, and customer data to create custom storefronts. Partner API: Integrate with Shopify’s partner ecosystem for billing, app management, and more. These APIs are essential for developers looking to extend Shopify’s functionality beyond what’s available out of the box. They’re powerful tools for creating custom apps that meet specific business needs. 4. Shopify CLI Shopify Command Line Interface (CLI) is a game-changer for developers, streamlining the development process by allowing you to manage your project from the terminal. It’s packed with commands that make it easier to create new projects, themes, and apps without leaving your development environment. Tools & Commands: Theme Development: Generate new themes and sync changes with your Shopify store in real-time. App Development: Scaffold new apps with all the necessary files and configurations. Deployment: Easily push updates to your live store. Shopify CLI is a must-have for any developer looking to speed up their workflow and reduce manual tasks. You can learn more about the CLI and how to use it in your projects by visiting Shopify’s CLI documentation. Core Use Cases a Shopify Tech Stack Needs to Handle When building a robust eCommerce store on Shopify, it's essential to consider the various core use cases your tech stack must address. These use cases span from basic operations like payment processing to more complex needs like analytics and email management. Understanding which functions Shopify handles natively and where third-party apps come into play is crucial for creating an efficient and scalable store. 1. Payment Processing Shopify’s Solution: Shopify natively handles payment processing through its integrated gateway, Shopify Payments. It supports major credit cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and local payment methods, depending on the region. Shopify Payments simplifies the checkout process by keeping everything within the platform, ensuring a seamless and secure transaction experience. When You Need Third-Party Apps: For stores needing advanced payment solutions, such as subscription billing or alternative payment methods not supported by Shopify Payments, third-party apps like ReCharge (for subscriptions) or PayPal integrations are essential. These apps extend Shopify’s capabilities, allowing merchants to offer flexible payment options to their customers. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=plkkLsxSEWU 2. Accounting Shopify’s Solution: While Shopify provides basic reporting and financial summaries, it lacks a full-fledged accounting system. It offers an overview of sales, taxes, and expenses but does not handle more detailed accounting tasks like managing ledgers or tracking expenses in detail. When You Need Third-Party Apps: For comprehensive accounting, integrating with apps like QuickBooks or Xero is necessary. These apps sync with Shopify to automatically import sales data, manage expenses, and generate financial reports. They also help with tax calculations and compliance, making them invaluable for businesses looking to maintain accurate financial records. 3. Shipping and Fulfillment Shopify’s Solution: Shopify offers built-in shipping and fulfillment options, including real-time shipping rates, label printing, and integration with major carriers like UPS, USPS, and DHL. It also provides inventory management features to track stock levels and manage orders. When You Need Third-Party Apps: For more complex shipping needs, such as international shipping or managing multiple warehouses, apps like ShipStation or Easyship provide advanced features. These apps offer multi-carrier shipping, automate label printing, and even handle customs documentation, making them ideal for businesses with high-volume or global shipping requirements. https://youtu.be/VB6HcbDx1Bg 4. Analytics and Reporting Shopify’s Solution: Shopify includes basic analytics and reporting features that cover sales, traffic, and customer behavior. Shopify Plus users have access to more advanced analytics, including custom reports and deeper insights into customer segments. In Shopify Summer Edition 24, Shopify also announced a plan for a new in-app analytics product. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ls_bbvO7bc8&pp=ygURc2hvcGlmeSBhbmFseXRpY3M%3D When You Need Third-Party Apps: To dive deeper into analytics, especially for stores focused on data-driven decisions, tools like Looker and Google Analytics are essential. Google Analytics provides granular insights into site performance and user behavior, while Looker offers advanced analytics capabilities for more actionable insights. 5. Email Management Shopify’s Solution: Shopify includes basic email functionality, such as order confirmations and shipping notifications. However, it does not offer robust email marketing tools. When You Need Third-Party Apps: For comprehensive email management, apps like Mailchimp or Omnisend are crucial. These tools allow you to create targeted email campaigns, automate follow-ups, and segment your audience for personalized messaging. They integrate seamlessly with Shopify, ensuring your marketing efforts are aligned with your store’s data. 6. Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Shopify’s Native Solution: Shopify provides basic customer management tools, allowing you to view customer profiles, track purchase history, and segment your customer base. When You Need Third-Party Apps: For more comprehensive CRM capabilities, integrating with tools like HubSpot or Salesforce is crucial. These platforms offer detailed customer insights, lead management, and advanced segmentation, enabling more personalized marketing and sales strategies. https://youtu.be/PnRHwPP6NLY 7. Inventory Management Shopify’s Native Solution: Shopify’s built-in inventory management is suitable for basic needs, allowing you to track stock levels, set up alerts for low inventory, and manage product variants. When You Need a Third-Party App: If your store has a complex inventory structure or multiple sales channels, third-party apps like TradeGecko (now QuickBooks Commerce) or Skubana offer more robust inventory management solutions. These tools provide features like multi-warehouse management, demand forecasting, and automatic reordering. Here's a quick resource to get you started. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LtYD3E_ur2g&pp=ygUcc2hvcGlmeSBpbnZlbnRvcnkgbWFuYWdlbWVudA%3D%3D 8. Customer Support Shopify’s Native Solution: Shopify includes basic customer support tools, such as order tracking and a simple contact form. However, these tools may not be enough for businesses that require more sophisticated support systems. When You Need a Third-Party App: For advanced customer support, apps like Gorgias or Zendesk are recommended. These platforms offer live chat, ticketing systems, automated responses, and integration with social media channels, ensuring that you can provide comprehensive support across multiple platforms. 9. Sales Channels Shopify’s Native Solution: Shopify allows you to sell across multiple channels, including Facebook, Instagram, and Amazon, directly from the Shopify admin. This native functionality is powerful for omnichannel sales strategies. When You Need a Third-Party App: While Shopify’s built-in tools are strong, apps like ChannelAdvisor or Sellbrite offer more advanced features for managing sales across numerous channels, such as detailed analytics, bulk listing tools, and automated order routing. 10. Frontend Customization Shopify’s Native Solution: Shopify’s themes, powered by the Liquid templating language, allow for a high degree of customization directly within the platform using Online Store 2.0. When You Need a Third-Party App: For those looking to push the boundaries of frontend design, tools like Shogun or PageFly offer drag-and-drop builders that make it easier to create custom pages without diving into the code. These apps are ideal for creating landing pages, product pages, or other unique layouts that go beyond Shopify’s default capabilities. Best Shopify Apps for Your Shopify Tech Stack Selecting the right apps can significantly enhance the functionality of your Shopify store. Here’s a rundown of the best apps for each core use case: 1. Payment Processing ReCharge: Ideal for subscription-based businesses, ReCharge allows you to manage recurring billing directly through Shopify. It supports various payment gateways and offers robust tools for managing customer subscriptions. PayPal: While Shopify supports PayPal natively, integrating PayPal’s advanced tools can enhance checkout flexibility, especially for businesses targeting international markets. 2. Accounting QuickBooks Online: This app integrates seamlessly with Shopify, allowing for automated sales tracking, expense management, and financial reporting. It’s perfect for businesses that need detailed accounting records. Xero: Another excellent option for accounting, Xero offers real-time data syncing with Shopify, making it easy to keep your books up-to-date and accurate. 3. Shipping and Fulfillment ShipStation: ShipStation integrates with multiple carriers, allowing you to manage all your shipping needs from one dashboard. It offers automation features that streamline the fulfillment process, from label printing to shipment tracking. Easyship: This app is perfect for businesses that ship internationally. Easyship provides real-time shipping rates, handles customs documentation, and offers detailed tracking information for customers. 4. Analytics and Reporting Google Analytics: This is a must-have for any eCommerce store. Google Analytics provides detailed insights into your store’s traffic, user behavior, and conversion rates, helping you make data-driven decisions. Klaviyo: For email marketing analytics, Klaviyo is unmatched. It integrates with Shopify to track customer behavior and optimize your email campaigns for better engagement and higher conversion rates. 5. Email Management Mailchimp: One of the most popular email marketing platforms, Mailchimp allows you to create and automate email campaigns. It integrates with Shopify to sync customer data, making segmentation and targeting easy. Omnisend: This app offers more advanced features like SMS marketing, automation workflows, and detailed performance analytics, making it a powerful tool for managing all aspects of your email marketing. 6. Customer Relationship Management (CRM) HubSpot: This app is perfect for businesses that need a full-featured CRM solution. HubSpot allows you to manage customer data, automate marketing, and track interactions across multiple channels. Privy: Focused on growing your email list and converting visitors into customers, Privy offers tools for email capture, email marketing, and even text message marketing. 7. Inventory Management TradeGecko (now QuickBooks Commerce): For businesses with complex inventory needs, TradeGecko provides features like multi-warehouse management, demand forecasting, and automatic reordering. Skubana: This app helps you streamline your operations by unifying your inventory, orders, and sales channels. It’s ideal for businesses that sell across multiple platforms like Amazon, eBay, and Shopify. Stock Sync: If you’re looking for a more budget-friendly option, Stock Sync helps you update product stock levels automatically by syncing with your suppliers. 8. Customer Support Gorgias: This is the go-to app for managing customer support across multiple channels. Gorgias integrates with email, live chat, and social media, allowing you to resolve customer issues quickly and efficiently. Zendesk: Another industry leader, Zendesk offers comprehensive support solutions, including ticketing systems, live chat, and automation tools. Tidio: If you’re looking for a user-friendly live chat option, Tidio is an excellent choice. It integrates with Shopify and provides AI-powered chatbots to automate customer interactions. 9. Sales Channels ChannelAdvisor: This app helps you manage sales across various platforms, including Amazon, eBay, Walmart, and Google Shopping. It’s ideal for large businesses with complex sales strategies. Sellbrite: A simpler alternative to ChannelAdvisor, Sellbrite enables you to manage inventory, orders, and listings across multiple marketplaces from a single dashboard. Codisto: If you’re focused on Amazon and eBay, Codisto provides a robust integration with Shopify, allowing you to sync listings, orders, and inventory with ease. 10. Frontend Customization Shogun: This drag-and-drop builder makes it easy to create custom landing pages, product pages, and blog posts without touching a line of code. Shogun is perfect for businesses looking to create unique, on-brand designs. PageFly: Another powerful page builder, PageFly offers a wide range of customization options and integrates seamlessly with Shopify’s themes. GemPages: If you’re looking for an affordable but robust page builder, GemPages is a great option. It offers drag-and-drop functionality and advanced customization options, making it a solid choice for any store. Advanced Shopify Development Strategies Once you've got the basics down, it's time to level up your Shopify development game. Advanced strategies allow you to create more sophisticated, scalable, and efficient stores that stand out in the crowded eCommerce landscape. Let’s dive into some key areas where you can enhance your Shopify projects: 1. Custom App Development Creating custom apps tailored to specific business needs can significantly extend Shopify’s functionality. Whether it’s integrating with external systems, automating workflows, or adding unique features, custom apps provide the flexibility that off-the-shelf solutions might lack. Steps to Develop a Custom App: Define the Purpose: Clearly outline what problem your app will solve or what functionality it will add. Choose the Right API: Utilize Shopify’s Admin API or Storefront API depending on your app’s requirements. Set Up Development Environment: Use Shopify CLI to scaffold your app, ensuring you have all the necessary tools and dependencies. Develop and Test: Build your app using frameworks like Node.js or Ruby on Rails, and thoroughly test it in Shopify’s development store environment. Deploy and Maintain: Once tested, deploy your app and keep it updated with new features and security patches. Best Practices: Security First: Always prioritize data security and comply with Shopify’s security guidelines. User-Friendly Design: Ensure your app is intuitive and easy to use for merchants. Scalability: Design your app to handle growth, both in terms of user base and functionality. 2. Theme Customization While Shopify’s themes offer a great starting point, customizing them can help your store better reflect your brand and meet specific business needs. Advanced theme customization goes beyond simple tweaks, allowing for deep modifications that enhance functionality and user experience. Techniques for Advanced Customization: Liquid Mastery: Deepen your understanding of Liquid to create dynamic, data-driven templates. CSS and JavaScript Enhancements: Use modern CSS frameworks like Tailwind or JavaScript libraries like React to add interactive elements and improve the visual appeal. Integrate Third-Party Services: Incorporate services like animation libraries, advanced form builders, or custom sliders to enhance functionality. Optimize for Performance: Minimize load times by optimizing images, leveraging lazy loading, and using efficient coding practices. Tools and Resources: Theme Kit: A powerful tool for managing and deploying theme changes. Shopify Polaris: Shopify’s design system that provides guidelines and components for creating cohesive and user-friendly interfaces. 3. Testing and Deployment Ensuring your apps and themes work flawlessly before they go live is crucial for maintaining a professional and reliable store. Robust testing and streamlined deployment processes help catch bugs early and ensure smooth updates. Testing Strategies: Automated Testing: Implement automated tests for your codebase using tools like Jest for JavaScript or RSpec for Ruby. Manual Testing: Perform thorough manual testing to catch issues that automated tests might miss, focusing on user experience and edge cases. Staging Environments: Use Shopify’s development stores to create staging environments where you can test changes without affecting the live store. Deployment Best Practices: Version Control: Use Git or another version control system to manage your codebase and track changes. Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment (CI/CD): Set up CI/CD pipelines to automate testing and deployment, ensuring that updates are consistently and reliably pushed to production. Rollback Plans: Always have a rollback plan in place in case something goes wrong during deployment, allowing you to quickly revert to a stable version. Essential Tools: GitHub Actions: For automating your CI/CD workflows. Shopify Theme Inspector: To analyze and optimize your theme’s performance. 4. Performance Optimization A fast-loading store not only improves user experience but also boosts your SEO rankings and conversion rates. Optimizing performance involves a combination of best coding practices, efficient asset management, and leveraging Shopify’s infrastructure. https://youtu.be/6FnZ7e9Ibbw Key Optimization Techniques: Minimize HTTP Requests: Reduce the number of resources loaded on each page by combining files and using sprites for images. Optimize Images: Compress images without sacrificing quality using tools like ImageOptim or Shopify’s built-in image compression. Leverage Caching: Utilize browser caching and Shopify’s CDN to serve assets quickly to users around the globe. Code Splitting: Break down your JavaScript into smaller chunks that can be loaded on demand, improving initial load times. Monitoring and Tools: Google PageSpeed Insights: Analyze and get recommendations for improving your store’s performance. Shopify Analytics: Use Shopify’s built-in analytics to monitor load times and identify performance bottlenecks. 5. Security and Compliance Maintaining a secure store is paramount to protect both your business and your customers. Adhering to best security practices and compliance standards ensures trust and reliability. Security Best Practices: Use HTTPS: Ensure your store uses HTTPS to encrypt data transmitted between your site and your users. Regular Updates: Keep your apps, themes, and dependencies up to date to protect against vulnerabilities. Access Controls: Implement strict access controls and use Shopify’s user roles to limit access to sensitive information. Compliance Considerations: GDPR and CCPA: Ensure your store complies with data protection regulations like GDPR and CCPA by implementing proper data handling and privacy policies. PCI Compliance: If you’re handling payments directly, ensure you meet PCI compliance standards to protect cardholder data. Tools and Resources: Shopify Security Documentation: Stay informed about the latest security practices and updates from Shopify. Third-Party Security Apps: Consider using apps like Rewind for backups and Locksmith for advanced access controls. Shopify Headless Tech Stack Remember the spaceship earlier? Now let’s say you’re a genius, and you find the previous instructions too limiting - so you ditch the manual and build your own custom starship. You want this thing to fly faster, look cooler, and maybe even shoot lasers. That’s essentially what you’re doing when you opt for a headless architecture with Shopify: you’re building a custom spaceship that’s designed to blast off into the eCommerce stratosphere. Core Concepts of Shopify’s Headless Tech Stack In the traditional eCommerce world, your front end (the shiny part that customers see) and your backend (where the data magic happens) are bundled together like peas in a pod. But in a headless setup, you separate the two: Hydrogen: Shopify’s React-based framework, the engine room of your new spaceship. Hydrogen comes with pre-built components and hooks that make building fast, interactive user interfaces feel like a breeze. Think of it as the framework that helps you create a frontend experience that’s not just functional but downright slick. Storefront API: Storefront API lets you pull in product data, manage customer interactions, and handle orders, all without ever needing to touch the backend directly. It’s fast, flexible, and just what you need to keep everything running smoothly on your custom-built front end. Remix: Remix is a full-stack web framework that pairs perfectly with Hydrogen, helping you manage data loading, form handling, and routing—all while making sure your user experience is out of this world. GraphQL: Lastly, there’s GraphQL, the hyper-efficient fuel that powers your Storefront API. It allows you to request exactly the data you need—no more, no less—which keeps your site speedy and your customers happy. https://youtu.be/IHYlfEiTf3g Advantages of Shopify’s Headless Tech Stack So, why go through all this trouble of unbundling and reassembling your eCommerce spaceship? Customization: You’re no longer bound by Shopify’s theme framework. Want your store to look like a futuristic eCommerce wonderland? No problem. Using cutting-edge frontend technologies like React, Vue.js, or Angular, you can design anything you imagine. Performance: A faster spaceship means happier passengers, and in eCommerce, speed is everything. Headless setups can drastically improve your site’s performance by leveraging server-side rendering (SSR) and static site generation (SSG). This means your pages load quicker, which is a win-win for user experience and SEO. Scalability: A headless architecture makes it easier to scale, whether you’re handling a Black Friday-level traffic surge or adding new features. You’re not constrained by the typical platform limitations, so your growth potential is practically limitless. Multi-Channel Integration: Think of headless commerce as your universal docking system. It allows your Shopify backend to power any number of frontends—whether it’s a mobile app, a kiosk, or even a smart fridge (hey, we’re dreaming big here). This multi-channel flexibility is key in today’s omnichannel world. 💡 Weaverse is a theme customizer built for Shopify Hydrogen. With Weaverse, Shopify developers can cut down development time with reusable components and pre-made themes. Using a visual editor, non-technical users can easily iterate their websites without writing code or constantly seeking developer assistance. Challenges and Considerations Of course, no epic space journey is without its challenges: Development Complexity: A headless setup isn’t for the faint of heart. It’s more complex to develop and maintain, requiring a higher level of technical expertise—especially in frontend technologies and API integrations. Cost: All that extra customization and flexibility? It comes at a price. Headless solutions can be more expensive to implement and maintain, so it’s important to weigh the benefits against the added costs. SEO Considerations: While a headless setup can turbocharge your site speed, it can also complicate SEO. Search engines need to be able to crawl and index your content effectively, which requires careful planning and implementation. Getting Started with Shopify’s Headless Tech Stack Ready to launch your eCommerce spaceship? Here’s how to get started: Explore Hydrogen: Check out Hydrogen and its capabilities. Shopify’s Hydrogen documentation is a great place to start. Leverage the Storefront API: Familiarize yourself with the Storefront API and GraphQL by diving into Shopify’s API documentation. Plan Your Architecture: Before you blast off, plan your architecture carefully. Consider how you’ll manage data fetching, routing, and user experience. Tools like Remix can simplify some of these challenges, but a solid plan is essential. Consider the Costs and Benefits: Weigh the pros and cons of going headless. If your store needs advanced customization, high performance, and multi-channel capabilities, headless commerce could be your ticket to the stars. Just make sure you’re prepared for the complexity and costs involved.

By Paul PhanRead
70-Point Checklist for B2B eCommerce Features

70-Point Checklist for B2B eCommerce Features

Hello, this is Paul at Weaverse, a Shopify Hydrogen theme customizer. After building a bunch of B2B Shopify stores, we quickly saw how different it is from B2C. But there's no clear guide to help developers and merchants align on what needs to be built, what’s essential, and what’s just nice to have. Most of the resources I found are just checklists for top B2B eCommerce platforms, not about building B2B stores. So, I created one, aiming to keep it as clear and structured as possible. That said, there's definitely (a lot!) room for improvement. I might have missed some features here and there. This doc is open for your feedback—let’s turn this checklist into a solid open-source resource. I'd love to hear your thoughts! 🧑‍💻 User Roles and Permission 💡 Support easy account creation and allow for multiple users with different roles within the same company account. Quickly sign up (e.g.: one-click signup) and create business accounts with comprehensive profiles and robust account management tools. (Via Customer Account API if your online store is on Shopify) Customize branding and design across their account pages. Create and manage different user roles and permissions (e.g.: buyers, managers, admins). Customers can add different users to their accounts and assign specific roles and permissions. This flexibility would allow them to effectively develop workflows aligned with their business processes. (optional) Allow multiple users to log in under one account, share order histories, and see what everyone in the account is doing. Each user has their own account but can view Order Histories shared by the managing Company. Allow multiple users to create their own accounts, but can Enable sales to place orders on behalf of customers within the admin or the online store. 🗿Self-Service Buying Experience You don’t want to treat your B2B websites as a catalog and take orders via phone or fax. The whole point of having an eCommerce B2B website is to simplify the buying process, eliminating the cumbersome steps often found in traditional B2B purchasing. So, you want to ensure the platform supports 24/7 self-serve options for customers to place orders, manage their accounts, and access order history. This section is designed to align with a simplified version of the shopper's journey on the website. Search the store for items using SKU, product parts, or fuzzy search. Fuzzy search allows for misspellings or typos to still yield relevant results (e.g., typing “sprung” will return results for "spring"). Predictive search offers a drop-down with the best matching products, similar to Google. Shoppers can refine search results by child categories, facets, flags, or tags (e.g., by brand) using checkboxes. Quick order button on each search result that allows shoppers to add an item to the cart without having to go to the product page. See up-to-date stock and inventory information. See prices with GST included or excluded for both B2C and B2B customers. Sharable product info, ability to email a product page or the info about a product easily to the purchasing team/ other buyer stakeholders. Easily request quotes for custom products or quantities. Place bulk orders through CSV file uploads for large-scale transactions. Have the option to mix and match products to reach the required quantities for wholesale orders. (Optional) See location-specific information for shipping, tax, and currencies at checkout. See lead time for made-to-order products. Vault a credit card for immediate payment or future use. View order history and tracking - customizable by user roles and permissions. Save important SKUs to a list for easy finding later. See a list of SKUs most recently purchased for easy placement of a new order. Reorder quickly using a previous order to build a new cart and place an order. Set automatic reordering - support for recurring orders with flexible frequency options. Set up alerts for order status, stock availability, and promotions. Backordering capability. Customers can either request an alert when items are back in stock or place a backorder, so the item is automatically shipped once it's available again. 🖼️ Personalization and Customization Your B2B website should allow you to offer personalized buying experiences, such as custom catalogs, product displays, and pricing. The checklist below outlines the merchant-side/admin capabilities needed to create these tailored experiences for your shoppers. 📡 Product Display Create custom forms and checkout fields tailored to specific customer needs and different scenarios. Provide customized product catalogs for different customers or customer groups. Define and display how products can be purchased (e.g., by case or unit) and set minimum/maximum order quantities. Rules can vary by customer group. Add custom flags (e.g., “SALE”, “NEW”) on product images. Products can appear in multiple categories, with the top category’s URL used for SEO purposes. Automatic related products/up-selling/cross-selling based on category, flags, or keywords. Different layouts for product pages and quick order pop-ups based on product types. Multiple images and PDFs (e.g., instructions, brochures, safety data sheets) on product pages. Ability to place any component (e.g., videos, accordions, tabs, related product carousels) on product pages. Optional custom inquiry forms on product pages. Include item weights in product data to support shipping and fulfillment pricing based on weight. Ability to hide prices and the add-to-cart button for visitors who are not logged in or belong to restricted groups. Ability to display custom product information, including but not limited to: Quantity price break tables. Recommended retail prices. Quantity price break percentage savings. Number of units per pack. Price per unit (e.g., $2.50 per meter for a 50-meter roll). Price notes (e.g., “Buy 20 to get a full carton”). 💵 Pricing & Quoting Offer tiered pricing based on user roles or purchase volume. Ability to set different MOQs for different customer groups/product categories. Set quantity thresholds where discounts apply for volume orders, either on a single product or across multiple products. Schedule sales with specific start and end dates, and apply them to different customer groups. Issue promotional pricing effectively, such as for overstock or clearance where products need to be moved quickly. 🛫 Checkout & Payment You almost won your customers - now is the time to make checkout and payment as convenient as possible. Let your customers pay however they prefer while ensuring payment collection is effortless for you. Here are some payment capabilities you should be looking for. Support for various payment methods, including credit cards, purchase orders, and bank transfers. Role-based checkout customization (e.g., approval workflows, specific payment methods). Payment terms tailored to customers (e.g., due on fulfillment net 30, net 60). Multi-currency support and tax handling based on customer location. Shipping options and taxes are calculated at checkout based on customer location. Divide an order into multiple payments, such as a deposit/balance scenario, or bill in increments over time as needed. (Deposit and balance billing). Set custom payment terms for each customer, allowing them to buy now and pay later. Easily track which orders are paid, open, or overdue. (Net Terms - Buy Now, Pay Later) Set credit limits for each account, letting customers buy now and pay later up to the approved amount. (Lines of credit). Options to get store credit instead of cash refunds to handle returns. Automated payment reminders and invoice management. Allows customers to view past orders, payment history, and outstanding payments on orders. Allows customers to reference PO numbers included on past orders. Automated payment reminders and invoice management. Remind customers to return and complete their purchase if they leave items in their cart. 🛳️ Shipping and Delivery Customizable shipping methods based on customer group. Advanced shipping cost calculators (e.g., based on size, quantity, or distance). Click and Collect options with real-time branch stock integration. Specific delivery date selection. Shipping options and taxes are calculated at checkout based on customer location. Accurate delivery updates using data from third-party logistics (3PL) systems. Support for multiple shipping addresses and "Care of" delivery options. Real-time tracking information for orders. Option for automated return processes 🧩 Integration Integrate with ERP systems for order management and inventory control. Advanced product information can be pulled from ERP (e.g., product images, specs). Synchronization of customer data, including pricing, orders, and inventory. Integrate with Account Receivable automation tools for e-invoice/statements. Connect with CRM systems to manage customer relationships effectively. Integrate with third-party logistics (3PL) systems for accurate delivery updates. Integration with marketing automation tools for better campaign management. Support for multiple payment gateways to offer flexible payment options. 🔏 Security & Compliance Granular access controls and user permission management Meet industry standards in compliance and security (PCI DSS, GDPR, SOC 2) 🍊FAQ: B2B eCommerce Websites and Platforms What's The Difference Between B2B & B2C eCommerce B2B eCommerce (Business-to-Business) is where companies sell products or services to other businesses online. While it might sound similar to B2C (Business-to-Consumer) eCommerce, where companies sell directly to individual customers, the two are quite different. Here’s why: Buyer Motivation: B2C: Buyers are driven by emotions, brand loyalty, and instant gratification. Think about buying a new pair of shoes because you like how they look. B2B: Buyers are focused on practicality, cost-effectiveness, and long-term value. For example, a company purchasing office supplies will consider the best price, quality, and vendor reliability. Transaction Complexity: B2C: Transactions are usually straightforward, involving a single payment and shipping address. B2B: Transactions are more complex, often requiring customized pricing, bulk orders, multiple approvals, and extended payment terms. Decision-Making Process: B2C: Decisions are often made quickly, sometimes impulsively. B2B: Decisions involve multiple stakeholders and a thorough evaluation process, focusing on what will benefit the business in the long run. Platform Features: B2C: Platforms prioritize user-friendly interfaces, quick checkout processes, and personalized marketing. B2B: Platforms need to support features like role-based access, advanced search, bulk ordering, and integration with ERP systems. What Are The Most Best B2B eCommerce Platforms? Magento Commerce Why it’s great: Magento is known for its flexibility and extensive customization options. It’s a powerful platform that supports complex pricing models, multiple storefronts, and robust integrations with ERP and CRM systems. Magento is ideal for large enterprises that need a highly customizable solution. Who it’s for: Best suited for large/enterprise businesses with specific needs and the technical capability to manage and customize the platform. Limitations: Magento’s flexibility comes at a cost—it's resource-intensive. Setting up and maintaining a Magento store requires significant technical expertise and a strong IT team, which can be a barrier for smaller businesses. Additionally, it can be costly, both in terms of initial setup and ongoing maintenance. OroCommerce Why it’s great: OroCommerce is built specifically for B2B eCommerce, offering features like multi-organization management, personalized catalogs, and advanced workflow automation. It also provides a strong focus on account management, which is critical in B2B environments. Who it’s for: Designed for mid to large-sized businesses looking for a platform with a strong B2B focus. Limitations: While powerful, OroCommerce can be overwhelming due to its complexity. It’s best suited for mid to large-sized businesses with the resources to manage its extensive features. The learning curve can be steep, and the platform may be overkill for smaller or simpler B2B operations. Shopify Plus Why it’s great: Shopify Plus combines ease of use with powerful B2B features, including seamless integration with major ERP systems and support for complex pricing models. It’s highly scalable and flexible, making it suitable for businesses of all sizes, and it doesn’t require extensive technical know-how to manage. Who it’s for: Ideal for businesses that want a balance between ease of use and advanced features without needing extensive technical resources. Limitations: Shopify Plus, while easy to use, has limitations in terms of customization compared to platforms like Magento. Businesses with highly specific needs may find Shopify Plus less flexible. Additionally, transaction fees and app costs can add up, making it more expensive as your business scales. BigCommerce Why it’s great: BigCommerce offers robust B2B capabilities, including advanced search functions, bulk pricing, and multi-storefront management. Its strong API allows easy integration with other business tools, which is a big plus for tech-savvy businesses. Limitations: BigCommerce, while powerful, can be less intuitive for non-technical users. The platform's built-in features are strong, but the limited selection of third-party apps compared to Shopify may require custom development to meet specific needs, potentially increasing costs. Salesforce Commerce Cloud Why it’s great: Salesforce Commerce Cloud provides a comprehensive suite of B2B features, including AI-driven personalization, powerful customer insights, and seamless integration with Salesforce’s CRM. It’s perfect for businesses that are already using Salesforce and want to leverage its full ecosystem. Who it’s for: Best for businesses that are deeply invested in the Salesforce ecosystem and need a platform that integrates tightly with their existing CRM. Limitations: Salesforce Commerce Cloud can be expensive, particularly for small to mid-sized businesses. It’s also highly complex, requiring significant time and expertise to implement and manage. Companies not already invested in the Salesforce ecosystem might find this platform unnecessarily complicated and costly. What Are The Common Features of B2B eCommerce Website? Customized Pricing and Catalog Management: Why it matters: B2B transactions often involve negotiated pricing and exclusive product catalogs. Unlike B2C, where prices are usually fixed and visible to everyone, B2B platforms must support contract-based pricing, volume discounts, and even personalized product catalogs based on the customer’s profile. How it works: The platform should allow businesses to create custom price lists and catalogs for different clients or business units. This level of personalization helps cater to the unique needs of each customer, ensuring they see only what’s relevant to them. Bulk Ordering and Quick Reordering: Why it matters: Businesses often purchase in large quantities, and they need a quick way to reorder the same items regularly. The ability to handle bulk orders seamlessly is crucial for B2B eCommerce. How it works: Features like multi-SKU cart additions and one-click reordering streamline the purchasing process, making it easier for businesses to manage their inventories without hassle. Account Management and User Roles: Why it matters: B2B platforms often serve large organizations with multiple departments and decision-makers. Different users within a company may have different roles and permissions. How it works: The platform should allow for role-based access control, meaning different users can have different permissions based on their role within the company. For example, a procurement officer might place orders, while a financial controller approves them. 📚 Further Resources https://www.shopify.com/plus/guides/b2b-ecommerce-checklist https://www.shopify.com/enterprise/blog/b2b-ecommerce-features-wholesale

By Paul PhanRead
Headless Commerce: Pros, Cons and Things No One Really Tell You

Headless Commerce: Pros, Cons and Things No One Really Tell You

Ever heard of J.C. Penney? Of course, you don’t. They filed for bankruptcy in 2020, even though they used to compete against Nike. But here’s the thing: while Nike was sprinting ahead with cutting-edge digital strategies, J.C. Penney was still trying to figure out how to tie its digital shoelaces. In 2017, Nike decided to up their game by adopting a headless commerce architecture. This move allowed them to create ultra-customized digital experiences, launching sleek mobile apps, integrating AR, and seamlessly connecting their online and offline worlds. Meanwhile, J.C. Penney—bless their hearts—stuck with their traditional, all-in-one e-commerce platform. It’s the digital equivalent of showing up to a marathon in flip-flops. Their rigid infrastructure couldn’t keep up with modern consumer demands, and as Nike’s sales soared, J.C. Penney was left watching from the sidelines. Even though headless commerce wasn’t the silver bullet for Nike, it was certainly part of it. By 2020, the outcome was as predictable as a Nike swoosh: Nike was dominating the digital space, while J.C. Penney was filing for bankruptcy. This is one of the many benefits of headless commerce - among other things - it allows you to turn your vision into reality. Benefits of Headless Commerce and Why It Matters Flexibility and Customization One of the standout benefits of headless commerce is its ability to offer unparalleled flexibility and customization for your e-commerce platform. (Example below: Ghanda headless website is built with Next.Js) Imagine trying to run a modern website with a one-size-fits-all template—it's like trying to squeeze into a pair of jeans two sizes too small. Headless commerce liberates you from these constraints by decoupling the front-end user experience from the back-end infrastructure. This means you can use any framework or technology you prefer—React, Angular, Vue.js, you name it—to create a digital storefront that truly reflects your brand’s personality. But the benefits don’t stop at aesthetics. With headless commerce, you can build and iterate on your customer experiences without having to worry about the limitations of traditional, monolithic systems. Want to launch a personalized shopping app that looks nothing like your main website? Go ahead. Need to integrate an AR feature that lets customers try on shoes virtually? No problem. The decoupled nature of headless commerce allows you to experiment and innovate quickly, without the fear of breaking your entire ecommerce platform. This flexibility isn’t just a luxury—it’s a necessity in today’s fast-paced digital landscape. Consumer behaviors and preferences change rapidly, and businesses that can’t keep up risk being left behind. With headless commerce, you’re not just keeping up—you can proactively lead the pack, offering tailored, engaging experiences that set you apart from the competition. Scalability and Integration Headless commerce isn’t just about looking good—it’s about growing smart. One of its most powerful benefits is the ability to scale seamlessly and integrate with just about anything. Think of it as the Swiss Army knife of ecommerce architectures. Whether you want to expand your online presence with a mobile app, dive into VR/AR shopping experiences, or connect your e-commerce platform with physical POS systems, headless commerce has you covered, easily. (Example below: Timothy London headless storefront, built with Shopify Hydrogen and Weaverse) In a traditional setup, scaling often feels like trying to add floors to a house of cards—one wrong move, and the whole thing could collapse. But with headless commerce, your back-end operations remain robust as you build and expand your front-end experiences. This means you can introduce new features, enter new markets, or even overhaul your entire customer interface without disrupting the core functionality of your business. Integration is another benefit as you can easily plug in various third-party tools, APIs, and services that enhance your ecommerce capabilities. Whether it’s integrating with a CRM system for personalized marketing, connecting to a CMS for content management, or incorporating AI-driven product recommendations, headless commerce makes it all possible without the headaches of traditional ecommerce platforms. Faster Speed To Market for Marketing Team Managing content and commerce on a traditional, monolithic ecommerce platform might feel like juggling while riding a bicycle. Everything is so tightly integrated that a change in one area often causes a domino effect, leading to unintended consequences across your entire site. In a headless architecture, your content management system (CMS) and your ecommerce platform operate independently. This decoupling allows you to update, manage, and customize your content without worrying about breaking the ecommerce functionality, or vice versa. (Example below: StackedFarm headless storefront, built with Next.js) Your content team can work on the front end, rolling out updates and creating new pages, while your developers continue to focus on backend operations—both teams moving at their own pace without stepping on each other’s toes. This separation not only makes content management fosters better collaboration across your teams. Developers can focus on building robust e-commerce functionalities, while marketers and content creators can design and implement customer-facing content without the fear of technical setbacks. It’s like having your cake and eating it too—except this cake is made of streamlined workflows and happy, productive teams. Improved Performance Have you ever bounced off a website just because it takes too much time to load? I bet you have. All of us suffer from slow webpage at one point. Slow load times are a one-way ticket to abandoned carts and frustrated customers. Headless commerce allows you to fine-tune your website’s performance without getting tangled up in the complexities of the back-end systems. You can implement advanced techniques like server-side rendering, caching, and content delivery networks (CDNs) to ensure that your pages load at lightning speed, no matter where your customers are located. (Example below: Atoms headless storefront, built with Shopify Hydrogen) Moreover, because the front-end is independent, you can optimize it specifically for performance, without worrying about how those changes might impact back-end operations. Whether you’re handling a surge in holiday traffic or rolling out a new feature, your site’s speed and responsiveness remain intact, leading to higher customer satisfaction and better business outcomes. Future-Proofing Today’s cutting-edge technology can quickly become tomorrow’s outdated relic. 05 years ago AI-writing tools seemed like futuristic technology, now it seems like pen and paper. This is why future-proofing your digital infrastructure is crucial. Headless commerce excels in this area, providing the flexibility and adaptability needed to keep your business at the forefront of industry trends. (Example below: Silvercore headless storefront, built with Shopify Hydrogen) As the front-end and back-end are decoupled, you can easily swap out or upgrade individual components without disrupting your entire system. You can easily experiment with a new front-end framework, or integrate an AI-driven recommendation engine, with minimal risk and effort. This adaptability ensures that your e-commerce platform remains robust and competitive, regardless of how the digital landscape shifts. Instead of being locked into a monolithic system that becomes increasingly difficult to modify, headless commerce empowers you to stay agile, respond to market changes, and continuously evolve your digital strategy. It’s like having a crystal ball for your business—one that ensures you’re always ready for whatever the future holds. Omni-channel Selling Expectations are only getting higher from here on. Customers expect a seamless shopping experience whether they’re browsing on their laptop, swiping on their phones, or even interacting with your brand through a voice assistant. With headless commerce, you can design a cohesive customer journey that moves fluidly from one touchpoint to another. Whether your customers start their journey on a social media platform, continue it on a mobile app, and finish it on your website, headless commerce ensures that each of these interactions feels like part of a unified experience. This is possible because the API-driven architecture of headless commerce allows you to easily connect and synchronize various front-end interfaces, maintaining data consistency and functionality across all channels. Moreover, as new channels emerge—like AR/VR, IoT devices, or the next big social platform—you can quickly integrate these into your existing ecosystem without overhauling your entire commerce infrastructure. (Example below: Denim Tears headless storefront, built with Shopify Hydrogen) For more headless commerce website example, check out this article. Headless Commerce Is Not A Silver Bullet While headless commerce offers a host of benefits, it’s not without its challenges. Transitioning to a headless architecture can be complex and, if not managed carefully, can lead to significant drawbacks that may outweigh the advantages for some businesses. Here’s a closer look at some of the most common pitfalls and cons associated with headless commerce. 1. High Initial Costs and Complexity Unlike traditional e-commerce platforms that come as all-in-one solutions, headless commerce requires separate front-end and back-end systems to be developed, integrated, and maintained. This often means higher initial investment in both time, talent and money. Businesses may need to hire or train specialized developers who are proficient in multiple languages and frameworks to manage the decoupled systems. Additionally, the complexity of managing multiple systems can be overwhelming. Without a tightly integrated platform, businesses must ensure that their front-end and back-end are always in sync, which can require significant development resources and ongoing maintenance. This is particularly challenging for smaller businesses that may not have the same level of technical expertise or budget as larger enterprises. That said, while complexity is indeed a challenge, for businesses that need to differentiate themselves through unique customer experiences, this complexity is a worthy trade-off. Moreover, I believe that as the ecosystem matures, more tools and frameworks are emerging to simplify these processes (like Weaverse), reducing the complexity over time. 2. Increased Management Overhead The flexibility and customization are great, but they come at a price: increased management overhead. Updates and changes to one system often require careful coordination with the other. This can lead to more complicated workflows and the need for extensive testing to ensure that new features or updates don’t break existing functionality. Additionally, because headless commerce typically involves using multiple third-party tools and services, businesses need to manage these integrations closely. Each tool or service may have its own set of updates, security patches, and compatibility issues, which can add to the overall workload for your IT team. 3. Longer Development Times While headless commerce enables greater customization, it can also result in longer development times, especially during the initial setup phase. Traditional e-commerce platforms often come with built-in templates and features that can be deployed quickly, whereas headless commerce requires a custom front-end to be built from scratch. This process can be time-consuming, particularly if your development team is not familiar with the chosen frameworks or if they encounter unforeseen technical challenges. That said, newer technologies like Shopify Hydrogen has greatly shorten development times with better framework, and more robust toolings. 4. Learning Curve and Developer Experience While headless commerce offers great potential, the learning curve can be steep, especially with newer tools like Hydrogen and Remix. These tools are still evolving, and developers sometimes encounter unexpected issues, particularly with deployment and compatibility. The complexity of integrating various tools and frameworks into a cohesive system can be daunting, especially for developers who are new to headless commerce or those who are accustomed to more straightforward, traditional ecommerce platforms. That said, this learning curve, while steep, also equips developers with modern, in-demand skills that are highly valuable in today’s job market. As headless commerce becomes more prevalent, the initial investment in learning these new technologies can pay off in terms of both career development and the ability to deliver more complex e-commerce solution. 5. Loss of Built-In Features By going headless, businesses often lose access to the pre-built features and integrations that come with traditional e-commerce platforms. For example, Shopify’s Liquid-based themes offer a range of built-in functionalities and integrations that are not immediately available in a headless setup. This means that businesses may need to invest additional time and resources to rebuild or re-integrate these features manually. Yet, as the headless ecosystem continues to grow, more third-party integrations and tools are becoming available to bridge these gaps, making it easier to replicate and even enhance the functionalities offered by traditional platforms. For example, Weaverse, a visual editor for Shopify Hydrogen storefronts, offers the same variety of templates and pre-built features so that developers can build headless stores as fast as building regular Shopify storefronts. Final Words The decision to go headless should be based on your specific business needs and goals. If you’re looking to innovate and future-proof your ecommerce platform, the benefits can far outweigh the downsides. For me, it’s about weighing these factors and deciding what’s best for your business both now and in the long run. And if you're looking for the fastest way to build headless storefronts using Shopify Hydrogen, check out Weaverse. (I work here ;)).

By Paul PhanRead
Going Headless With Shopify: How Much Does It Cost?

Going Headless With Shopify: How Much Does It Cost?

Going headless is pricey. We all know it. It’s more pricey than having a regular Shopify store with out-of-the-box features. But how much exactly? Let’s get straight to the point here. First, you need to break down the setup cost for a Shopify headless storefront. I. Initial Setup Costs Breakdown To go headless, you’d need the right tech stack. Here’s the typical tech stack of a headless Shopify store: Platform: Shopify ($25 - $2000) Frontend: Hydrogen ($0) CMS: Weaverse + MetaObjects (if needed) ($12-$250) Deployment: Oxygen ($0) Filter & Search: Shopify Predictive Search & Filter ($0) Analytics: GA, Pixel, Clarity, Plausible Additional Apps: Reviews, Support (CRM), CX, Email, Filter, Subscription. ($1,000-$10,000) Now let’s break further the cost for each of these components. 1. Shopify Subscription Yes, with Hydrogen and Oxygen, you can go headless even when you’re on Shopify regular tiers. Shopify offers several subscription tiers: Basic Shopify ($25 per month): This plan is suitable for small businesses just starting out but has limitations in API call capacity and feature set. Shopify ($79 per month): A mid-tier plan that offers more features and higher API limits, suitable for growing businesses. Advanced Shopify ($299 per month): Ideal for larger businesses needing advanced reporting and more significant API usage. Shopify Plus ($2,000+ per month): The go-to choice for most headless implementations. It provides unlimited API calls, advanced customization options, and priority support. This plan is crucial for businesses looking to fully leverage the capabilities of headless commerce, ensuring a smooth and efficient operation Most merchants who go headless go with Advanced Shopify or Shopify Plus - which is a necessity for accessing advanced features and ensuring you have unlimited API calls. The starting cost is $2,000 per month. This subscription acts as the gateway to the full potential of your headless setup, providing the essential infrastructure and support you need to start building your custom front-end experience. 2. Frontend: Hydrogen In case you don’t know, Hydrogen is Shopify’s headless stack engineered for performance and UI flexibility. It’s a Remix-based framework that helps developers build custom storefronts quickly and efficiently. Using Hydrogen, merchants can create content-rich and dynamic shopping experiences without being tied to Shopify's traditional front-end limitations. Hydrogen allows you to leverage modern development tools and frameworks, ensuring your site is fast, scalable, and performant. It also provides built-in components and hooks that simplify common tasks, making the development process smoother and faster. And the best part? It’s free. 3. Visual CMS (Weaverse) + Metaobjects Hydrogen is great - but it lacks a visual preview and a theme customizer, one that’s similar to Online Store 2.0, for easy content editing. There are plenty of CMS that are well-integrated with Shopify Hydrogen (i.e.: Storyblok or Sanity - both of which start at $99/month ), however, Weaverse is the only visual CMS that’s native to Hydrogen, without the huge price tag. Weaverse starts at only $12/month and is priced by traffic. Even when your store has over 1M traffic, it only costs you around $100 - no more than Sanity’s starter plan. With Weaverse, you can use SDKs, pre-made Hydrogen themes, and a visual editor to launch Shopify headless stores faster. Meanwhile, non-technical team members can easily edit content and design using a familiar section-based editor. (Imagine Online Store 2.0, but for Hydrogen instead). MetaObjects further complements this setup by providing structured content types within Shopify. They enable you to create reusable content blocks, which can be used across various pages and products, making it easier to maintain consistency and efficiency. You can update a MetaObject once and have it reflected wherever it’s used across your site. 4. Deployment: Oxygen Oxygen is Shopify’s global hosting solution, designed to work with Hydrogen for easy deployment and scaling of your headless storefront. Oxygen is completely free to use with Shopify plans. It ensures that your storefront is hosted on a global CDN, providing fast load times and high availability regardless of where your customers are located. This seamless integration with Hydrogen simplifies the process of deploying and managing your custom storefront. 5. Analytics: Google Analytics Tools like Google Analytics, Facebook Pixel, Microsoft Clarity, and Plausible provide necessary insights and data for optimizing your store’s performance and user experience. These tools often have free tiers with optional premium features. Google Analytics, for instance, helps track user interactions, providing valuable data to improve marketing strategies and user experience. 6. Additional Apps Review Apps: Needed for building trust with customers, review apps allow customers to leave feedback on products, which can significantly influence purchasing decisions. CRM/Customer Support: CRM tools help manage customer interactions and ensure a seamless support experience. Email Management: Tools for handling email campaigns and customer communication are vital for maintaining engagement and driving sales. Of course, these are only the essential apps. The cost of these additional apps can range from $1,000 to $10,000, depending on the features and service providers you choose. 7. Deployment Development costs represent a significant part of your initial investment. Agencies can charge anywhere from $100,000 to $500,000 for a complete headless Shopify project, covering design, development, and testing. Alternatively, an in-house team offers more control but requires substantial investment in salaries, training, and development tools. These costs are essential for creating a robust, customized storefront that meets your business needs and provides a superior customer experience. 8. Ongoing Maintenance Costs Once your headless setup is live, ongoing maintenance is essential to keep everything running smoothly. This includes: Regular Updates: Both frontend and backend updates to ensure security, performance, and compatibility with new features. Bug Fixes and Optimizations: Addressing any issues that arise and optimizing the site for better performance and user experience. Additional Feature Development: As your business grows, you might need new features, which requires additional development time and resources. These maintenance activities typically cost between $5,000 and $20,000 per month, depending on the complexity of your setup and the level of support required. Conclusion Based on the breakdown above, going headless with Shopify would cost you anywhere from $2000 to $100,000, depending on your requirements and the scale of your project. However, its worth noting that going headless with Shopify has become a lot more affordable in recent years. You can easily go headless with a basic stack (Hydrogen + Oxygen + a Visual CMS like Weaverse), which would cost you around $2000 - given that you have some experience with React. When planning your headless development plan, you also need to take into account the following costs. Key Considerations Before Going Headless With Shopify (Beyond Just Costs) Technical Expertise and Resources A headless setup isn’t for the faint-hearted. You’ll need a team that knows its way around modern web technologies like React (which Hydrogen uses) and can handle API integrations. If your current crew isn’t up to speed, you might have to hire new talent or bring in an agency. Both options can get pricey. Business Needs and Objectives Even though Shopify makes it a lot more affordable to go headless, you’d still need to ask yourself if going headless aligns with your business goals. If you’re feeling constrained by your current setup and need advanced customizations or better performance, headless could be the answer. But if your current setup is doing just fine and you don’t need those extra bells and whistles, it might be more hassle than it’s worth. Flexibility and Customization One of the big draws of headless commerce is the ability to create a unique shopping experience. You can tailor every aspect of your site to fit your brand perfectly. But remember, this flexibility means ongoing development work. Your team needs to be ready for the constant updates and tweaks that come with maintaining a custom setup. Integration Capabilities Think about the tools you currently use. Some might not play nice with a headless setup, meaning you’ll need custom integration solutions. Check how your CRM, marketing automation tools, and other essential services will work in a headless environment to avoid any nasty surprises. Future Scalability Consider your long-term plans. A headless setup is great for scalability, letting you add new features and sales channels as your business grows. If you’re planning significant expansion or need to frequently update your site, headless commerce could provide the flexibility and scalability you need. Risk Management Lastly, don’t forget about the risks. Moving to a headless setup means you’ll rely more on developers, and you might face some downtime during the transition. Managing a decoupled system can be tricky, so plan carefully, choose reliable partners, and set aside a contingency budget for any bumps in the road. Time to Market Switching to a headless setup can be time-consuming. It involves extensive planning, development, and testing phases before you can go live. If your business needs to launch quickly or adapt to market changes rapidly, consider whether you can afford the time investment. A prolonged development cycle could delay your go-to-market strategy and impact your revenue targets. Final Words In short, going headless is resource-consuming, yet, with the recent innovations, the cost is going down. I believe that going headless will soon be as affordable as using Shopify out-of-the-box features, but at the end of the day, you still have to ask yourself - does this make your beer taste better? Godspeed, and happy selling!

By Paul PhanRead
Shopify Headless Checkout vs Checkout Extensibility: Which One Is Right For You?

Shopify Headless Checkout vs Checkout Extensibility: Which One Is Right For You?

Ten years ago, if you were running an online store, your website was like a tightly packed suitcase. Everything was crammed together, and if you wanted to change one thing, you had to unpack and repack the whole thing. This was the era of monolithic eCommerce platforms. They were all-in-one solutions, but they were also rigid and inflexible. Today, you have headless commerce. Imagine your online store as a modular wardrobe instead of a packed suitcase. You can change your shirt without touching your pants. Headless checkout is a key part of this trend. It separates the front-end (what customers see) from the back end (where the transactions happen). With headless checkout, the checkout and payment processes are separated from the back-end of an online store. This allows for “on the spot” purchasing across multiple touchpoints, such as a promotional email, sponsored article, social post, a QR code at an event, and much more. Using headless checkout, online shoppers can fully complete a retail transaction without having to go to your eCommerce website at all. For example, let’s say Tom is scrolling through his Instagram feed. He sees a post from your brand about a limited-time offer on his favorite product. He is ready to buy. Without headless checkout, it might go like this: He clicks on the “Buy now” link in the Instagram post. The link opens his default browser, landing on your eCommerce website. He has to find the product that is on sale and add it to her cart. Then he has to type in her name, credit card, and billing address, and possibly even reenter shipping information and details. If he is on a mobile device, she has to do this all on a tiny screen, making it an even worse experience—possibly so bad she abandons her cart and forgets about the sale. With headless checkout, the experience is much smoother: Tom clicks the “Buy now” link in the Instagram post. A seamless checkout window pops up directly within Instagram. His payment and shipping details are pre-filled from her saved preferences. She completes the purchase in just a few taps, without ever leaving Instagram. What makes this all possible? APIs. The unsung heroes of headless checkout. They act like translators, allowing different parts of your system to communicate smoothly. For example, when a customer clicks "buy," an API call sends this information from the front-end to the back-end, where the transaction is processed. This seamless integration ensures that the user experience remains smooth and uninterrupted, even as you make changes or add new features. APIs also enable integration with third-party services like payment gateways, inventory management systems, and customer relationship management (CRM) tools. This means you can pick and choose the best tools for your business without being locked into a single platform’s ecosystem. Now, if you’re putting together a pitch, a slide deck to convince your CFO that you need a budget for headless checkout, you’d love this section. When You Need Headless Checkout Extensive Customization and Personalization With headless checkout, you’re not confined to the templates and limitations of a traditional platform. You can design your checkout process from scratch, incorporating unique features that set your store apart. This allows you to easily add new features to your checkout page like a one-click purchase button, a loyalty program, or build and integrate your own shipping insurance add-on to their checkout. That said, you also need to be aware of the cost that comes with customization. In an episode of the 2X eCommerce Podcast, Simone Martinelli, Founder and CEO of Volume, shared: Many businesses underestimate the ongoing maintenance costs of a highly customized headless setup. It's not just about the initial implementation; it's about the long-term commitment to keeping everything running smoothly" For example, Lululemon customized their checkout page with Shipping and Gift Options. Snappy Experience A snappier experience means happier customers and higher conversion rates. You don’t want to lose a customer at the checkout step, it’s like getting people to your shop and slamming the door in their faces. Headless checkout can significantly improve load times as the front end can be optimized independently, reducing the amount of data that needs to be processed and delivered. This is especially important when shoppers now have the habit of purchasing on mobile. During an interview on The E-commerce Toolbox: Expert Perspectives, Dan Wardle, VP of Sales at Noibu, emphasized the necessity of a performant, mobile-first approach. If you're not designing your headless checkout for mobile first, you're already behind. Over 70% of our clients see more than half their conversions coming from mobile devices Flexibility and Scalability Headless checkout offers the scalability to handle increased traffic and transactions without compromising performance. For example, Best Buy uses headless commerce to handle high traffic during peak shopping seasons like Black Friday. The decoupled architecture allows them to scale their systems effortlessly, ensuring that their site remains fast and responsive even under heavy loads. One noteworthy mention is that with headless checkout, you have the flexibility to run more A/B testing. This flexibility enables businesses to experiment with different checkout designs and features, optimizing for the highest conversion rates without disrupting the overall system. More Checkout Touchpoints With headless checkout, customers aren’t limited to buying just from your e-commerce website. They buy your products or services wherever and whenever they’re ready. You can place a checkout button on several touchpoints with just a short block of code. This omnichannel capability ensures a consistent and seamless shopping experience, no matter where your customers are. For example, Canadian minimalist luggage retailer Monos employs headless checkout to provide a consistent shopping experience across multiple channels. This allowed them to streamline their checkout across the different online stores. Implementation Considerations Technical Requirements Implementing headless checkout isn't a plug-and-play solution. You’ll need a solid understanding of APIs, front-end frameworks like React or Vue.js, and back-end systems. Additionally, a robust content management system (CMS) that supports headless architecture, such as Strapi or Contentful, can be incredibly helpful. Ensure your team is well-versed in these technologies or consider hiring experts to guide the process. Privacy and Compliance Requirements Everyone wants to sell globally, but this comes with a caveat. Different countries have different rules about data and privacy. Take GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) here in Europe, for example. It’s one of the strictest regulations out there. With headless checkout, you’re decoupling the front-end from the back-end, which means customer data could be scattered across multiple locations and applications. This isn’t just a technical challenge; it’s a regulatory minefield. You’ll need to scrutinize how customer data is transferred and stored at every step of the buying process. And it doesn’t stop there. If you’re integrating with third-party applications and tools, you need to ensure these vendors can handle customer data compliantly. If they can’t, you might have to find specific vendors for global transactions that meet data privacy, security, and other compliance requirements. It’s like being a chef who not only has to cook the meal but also ensures every ingredient meets the highest safety standards. Performance Overhead Headless checkout relies heavily on APIs. API calls are the lifeblood of your checkout process, handling everything from inventory management to pricing calculations and payment processing. But here’s the rub: the more features and options you offer in your checkout process, the more API calls you end up making. Each of these calls has to travel over a network, which can slow down your entire system. It’s like trying to have a conversation in a crowded room; the more people talking, the harder it is to hear. Too many API calls can bog down your checkout performance, turning a seamless experience into a sluggish ordeal. Headless Checkout vs Checkout Extensibility Of course, with Shopify being as innovative as they have always been, you might not need to go headless to bring a customized checkout experience. Checkout Flexibility brings merchants the benefits of headless checkout, but in a way that’s app-based, easily upgraded, and optimized for high performance. One of its standout features is its seamless integration with Shop Pay. Shop Pay is an accelerated checkout option that offers customers a faster way to buy your products and services. Imagine your customers breezing through checkout with just a few clicks, thanks to Shop Pay’s streamlined process. Checkout Extensibility also offers no-code customization options, perfect for those who want to tweak their checkout process without diving into the complexities of coding. Using apps and branding tools, you can easily make adjustments to fit your brand’s aesthetic and functional needs. For those with technical resources, Shopify’s collection of components and APIs offers the ability to build bespoke checkout experiences. You can create a tailored checkout flow that meets your specific requirements, providing a unique and engaging experience for your customers. For example, Snow, the leading dental care brand, customized their check-out page with social proof. Checkout Extensibility also comes with this nifty “Buy Now” feature to add purchasing options to multiple channels outside of your eCommerce website. With a quick snippet of embed code, you can drop a “Buy Now” button into a blog post, email, or social media post. This gives your customers a faster, simpler way to purchase, no matter where they are. It’s like setting up mini checkout counters all over the internet, making it incredibly convenient for your customers to buy from you. That’s said, there are some essential differences between headless checkout and checkout extensibility. FeatureHeadless CheckoutCheckout Extensibility ArchitectureDecouples the front-end from the back-end, allowing for complete customization of the user interface and experience.Provides a suite of tools and APIs to customize the checkout process within the Shopify ecosystem, maintaining a connection to the back-end. CustomizationAllows for extensive customization of the checkout experience, including the ability to integrate with various front-end technologies like React or Vue.js.Offers no-code and low-code customization options through apps and APIs, enabling merchants to modify the checkout process without deep technical expertise. FlexibilityHighly flexible, enabling businesses to create unique, tailored checkout experiences across multiple touchpoints such as social media, QR codes, and more.Focused on enhancing the Shopify checkout process, allowing for custom logic, branding, and additional functionalities through a sandboxed environment. IntegrationUses APIs to connect the front-end with the back-end, allowing seamless integration with third-party services like payment gateways, tax engines, and inventory systems.Integrates seamlessly with Shop Pay and other Shopify services, ensuring a consistent and secure checkout experience. PerformanceCan potentially introduce performance overhead due to the need to manage multiple systems and ensure effective communication between them.Designed to be performant and secure, with customizations running in a sandbox to prevent performance degradation. MaintenanceRequires ongoing maintenance and updates to ensure all components work together smoothly, which can be resource-intensive.Easier to maintain as it leverages Shopify’s infrastructure, with updates and optimizations handled by Shopify. ComplianceBusinesses must ensure compliance with privacy laws like GDPR and CCPA independently, which can be complex.Shopify handles much of the compliance burden, making it easier for merchants to adhere to privacy and security regulations. Use CasesIdeal for businesses that need full control over the checkout experience and want to integrate with various digital touchpoints.Best suited for businesses looking to enhance their Shopify checkout process with additional features and customizations without extensive development. Examples of Headless Checkout/Checkout Extensibility 1. Monos Monos, a Canadian minimalist luggage retailer, moved to a headless approach using Shopify Checkout Extensibility. This allowed them to streamline their checkout across different online stores and offer new features like one-page checkout, discount combinations, and pre-orders. Read more about this case study here. 2. Hismile Hismile is an Australian-based brand, notable for teeth whitening and oral hygiene products that bring fun, flavor, color, and excitement to an otherwise uninspired oral care industry. With Checkout extensibility, Hismile's checkout now processes a thousand orders in minutes, stress-free, easily handling peak traffic with the speed and reliability that customers expect. Read more about how Hismile uses Checkout Extensibility here. 3. Lululemon Lululemon takes advantage of headless checkout to create a unique and streamlined checkout process. They can easily integrate features like one-click purchases and loyalty program rewards, providing a seamless and engaging shopping experience for their customers. This customization has helped Lululemon build a loyal customer base and drive repeat purchases. 4. SaturdayClub Headquartered in Singapore, SaturdayClub is a fashion retailer that perfectly balances style and ease, offering chic designs to modern muses. Their curated mix of versatile staples, wardrobe essentials, and statement pieces are both current and timeless. SaturdayClub used the Shopify Plus Checkout Extensibility feature to seamlessly add new third-party payment gateway solutions, giving customers in different international markets more choices when buying from the brand. This added flexibility has been particularly important in markets like Malaysia, where sales have surged. More details about SaturdayClub’s checkout extensibility use case here. 5. RUDIS RUDIS is a top sports brand dedicated to empowering wrestlers with high-quality gear and apparel. Known for their commitment to performance, innovation, and the wrestling community, RUDIS delivers top-tier products that boost athletic excellence and inspire confidence on and off the mat. Thanks to Shopify’s checkout extensibility, RUDIS optimized their buy stack with engaging content and simplified the purchase workflow, contributing to an impressive 80% revenue growth. 6. En Gold En Gold is a distinguished Australian brand that specializes in thoughtfully designed, timeless furniture and home decor. With Checkout Extensibility, En Gold effectively handled the problem of underestimating shipping costs for large orders, ensuring customers are charged accurately. They also improved customer service by customizing the checkout process and collecting more customer information. By creating a blended storefront, En Gold expanded its B2B operations while easily managing both DTC and B2B sales. They were able to introduce tiered discounts, offering bigger savings to larger B2B buyers, which they expect will boost their total B2B sales

By Paul PhanRead
How Brand42 Launches Timothy London’ Storytelling-Infused Storefront with Weaverse & Hydrogen

How Brand42 Launches Timothy London’ Storytelling-Infused Storefront with Weaverse & Hydrogen

It is a truth universally acknowledged that a brand in possession of a great vision must be in need of a stellar digital experience. Such was the case with Timothy London, a premium British travel goods brand, and their vision to immerse their customers into their world with beautiful storytelling and aesthetic finesse. It was an ambitious vision, by all means. This was where Brand42, a prominent London-based design and digital agency, came into play. About Brand 42 Brand42 is a prominent London-based design and digital agency, well-known for delivering strategic branding solutions to premium brands like BBC, Johnnie Walker, Rakuten, and Top Gear. At the heart of their success is the innovative One-Team Approach. With the One-Team Approach, Brand42 seamlessly integrates its creative and development teams from the outset, fostering a collaborative environment where developers contribute to functional decision-making early in the process. This ethos of collaboration enables Brand42 to deliver tailored, innovative solutions that transform their clients’ visions into immersive realities, driving impactful results. Brand42’s commitment to customization is further exemplified by its technology-agnostic approach. They don't limit themselves to specific stacks like WordPress or Shopify. Instead, they choose the best tools for the job. For the Timothy London project, Brand42 knew that the complex requirements and unique brand personality required a headless approach. The Challenges: Steep learning curve and Herculean development effort Timothy London is building a one-of-a-kind brand for travelers. They combine superior design and engineering excellence to bring out a product that can truly be THE travel companion of a lifetime - offering comfort, ease of use, utility, and just a bit of flair, wherever the travelers go. With its new website, the brand wanted to find a way to translate these unique physical qualities into the digital space. It’s a challenging goal for Brand42. How do you tell such a unique story in the digital space while keeping the shopping experience fast and functional, optimized for both desktop and mobile, supporting videos and 3D images, and enabling discovery through movement? The answer is headless, and to be more precise,Shopify Hydrogen. Yet, going headless is not the silver bullet. Despite how feature-rich and powerful Hydrogen is, it wasn’t all smooth sailing for the Brand42 team. They found quite a learning curve with Hydrogen and Remix as this is their first project using this framework. Additionally, the nascent state of Hydrogen meant a limited availability of 3rd-party apps and plugins. This meant they had to develop a lot of features from scratch. Secondly, Brand42 development team also found Shopify Hydrogen to be particularly quite limited in the setup of page layouts, hindering their efforts to achieve a more flexible, fluid design layout that they’ve planned, for example, Hydrogen lacked the drag-and-drop module functionality that they are accustomed to in other Content Management Systems. In an ideal world, they should have the best of both worlds - the performance and extensibility of Hydrogen, and the user-friendliness that comes with a drag-n-drop editing experience. Turned out the ideal world is just one app away. Without Weaverse, we feel like Hydrogen was in beta. — Harry F. Senior Designer at Brand42 They discovered Weaverse while researching alternatives that offered more flexibility than Shopify’s rigid structure. Weaverses allows development teams to build Hydrogen stores much faster by providing SDKs and pre-made templates, while also supporting a drag-and-drop framework, allowing Brand42’s clients considerable control over their content without the usual constraints. The Solution: Weaverse, the first theme customizer for Hydrogen Brand42 chose Weaverses as it’s the only solution on the market that could offer what they needed to meet project requirements: A more CMS-like content editing experience within Shopify Hydrogen, which made it easier for everyone to manage and edit content. SDKs and templates to facilitate easy development of components and seamless integration with Shopify's backend. Flexible route structure that allows for custom nested pages, aligning perfectly with child pages in the site structure. Custom markets and localization features, including an automatic copy-to-locale functionality developed at the development team's request. These unique advantages made Weaverse the ideal solution for the Timothy website project. But that’s not all. What stood out to Brand42 was Weaverse's integrated support - echoing their own One Team Approach ethos. When I found you guys, you only had one review. Five stars, but it’s just one review and for me, it was a bit suspicious. But when I started and got all this kind of support to make all these pages really manageable, to build something new and custom, it made me feel confident that it’s possible to deliver this project. — Jev S., Senior Web Developer Weaverse team provided a dedicated Slack channel, offering quick problem-solving, continuous support, and 24/7 assistance. This close collaboration helped Brand42 quickly fix bugs, implement custom features on time, and stress-test new functionalities, allowing them to achieve the client’s requirements and meet deadlines. Our experience working with Weaverse has been excellent! What stood out to me very often when you're working with software as a service providers is that it can feel a bit like a faceless organization. There's no point of contact that you can get hold of. It was quite the opposite with you guys. You were quite happy to have face to face interactions, put a name to a support issue and were reactive in terms of requests. There are other CMS we've used, and if you find a bug and it gets logged in the pipeline for 12 months before they'll even look at it. But it’s completely different with Weaverse. I think even the communication chain went from Jamie or I saying to Jev, can we achieve this? And then Jev saying, I'll speak to Paul. And then within 10 minutes or so we have a response, which was just unheard of in terms of our support response that we've been used to. — Jamie H. Project Director at Brand42 The Result: Elevated brand experience went live in time for the international product launch With Weaverse, building a Hydrogen storefront was faster and easier. Brand42 team was able to streamline their workflow using Weaverse components. Additionally, they could easily improve the quality of their page layouts to match designs, thanks to Weaverse’s intuitive drag-and-drop functionality. This resulted in the successful launch of Timothy London’s storefront. The new website is fast, interactive, and pixel-perfect. The shopping experience feels immersive and smooth, allowing users to explore and discover the products effortlessly. We've experienced major improvements in efficiency and productivity with Weaverse. The Pilot theme provided an excellent foundation for developing our Hydrogen theme, which saved us valuable time and effort! [..] We're very satisfied with our experience with Weaverse and certainly recommend their services. We look forward to continuing our collaboration to further enhance Timothy's website and for future projects. — Jev S., Senior Web Developer For development agencies like Brand42, diplomacy is of utmost importance. Clients might change their minds, ask for last-minute iterations, or see a different option. The success of a development agency depends on how flexible it can adapt to these requests and feedback. As an award-winning design agency, Brand42 team wants to manage clients’ expectations with tact and diplomacy. For that, they need a design tool that’s flexible enough, and Weaverse fits nicely into this vision. Weaverse allows the design team to quickly iterate the website in response to clients’s feedback, making it easier for the strategy team to live up to client expectations and build a long-term relationship. As an agency, we like to be quite flexible. Sometimes when a client changes their mind, or wants to see a different option, or wants to iterate, we won’t say no. We're not the sort of agency that says no, or brings out a timesheet to review and say why we're not going to do that. So having the tools that allowed us to react to some of that feedback through the course of the project was really useful, especially when it doesn't limit the design team in terms of how they can respond to that feedback. From a client management perspective, it allows us to kind of live up to what our clients expect from us. — Jamie H. Project Director at Brand42

By Paul PhanRead

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