Shopify SEO for Beginners

Heard of Shopify? It’s a platform that provides businesses with the tools they need to sell their products online. But before we dive into the nitty-gritty of how to apply SEO to Shopify, we need to ask some important questions.

1. Why do you need a platform to build your online store? Can’t you build an e-commerce store without using a platform like Shopify, WooCommerce or BigCommerce?
2.  SEO is that thing that makes your website rank higher on Google, right? If that’s the case, then how does SEO apply to Shopify?
3. Thirdly, if SEO does apply to Shopify, which SEO tools and techniques should you be using to make sure that people are finding your store?

Why do companies use Shopify?

It’s a user-friendly platform designed to simplify the e-commerce experience for entrepreneurs and businesses of all sizes. The perfect combination of customizable templates, built-in tools for product management, payment processing, shipping, marketing, and analytics make it an all-in-one solution for building and growing an online store.

How Shopify works

Here’s a simplified overview of how it works (#6 is relevant to this article):

• Create an account
• Set up your store
• Add products
• Set up payment options
• Choose your shipping options
• Utilize marketing tools to promote your store
• Set up your analytics

Can you set up an e-commerce store without Shopify?

You most definitely can, but it requires web development knowledge and maintenance. In order to build the store by yourself, you’d need to (in an average situation):

• Organize the web hosting & domain
• Design the frontend
• Develop the backend
• Create an admin dashboard
• Integrate payment processing
• Build the shopping cart & checkout
• Set up shipping & tax
• Secure your store

That’s a lot of admin for most businesses.

Shopify offers businesses an easier e-commerce experience

Choosing a platform such as Shopify offers you a whole lot of business benefits:

Easy to use

The user-friendly interface lets you set up a store quickly, even with limited technical knowledge.

Pre-built features

They provide essential e-commerce features like product management, checkout, payment processing, shipping calculations, and inventory tracking right out of the box.

Secure shopping

Shopify also handles security, including SSL, data protection, and PCI compliance, saving you the hassle of setting up and maintaining these standards.

Reliability

Their hosting infrastructure is optimized for e-commerce, ensuring high uptime, fast load speeds, and a good user experience.

Great support structure

With Shopify, you get access to dedicated customer support, along with extensive guides and a large community for troubleshooting.

App integrations

The Shopify App Store offers thousands of integrations for marketing, analytics, and design, making it easy to expand your store’s capabilities without custom coding.

How does SEO relate to Shopify?

SEO helps improve your website’s visibility on search engines like Google. When people search for products or services related to your business, you want your Shopify store to appear high in the search results. The way to do that is using SEO techniques and tools.

First apply these SEO fundamentals to your Shopify store

1. On-page optimization: Shopify lets you edit page titles, meta descriptions, and URLs for your products, collections, and pages. By including relevant keywords, you improve your chances of ranking for search terms your customers are using.
2. Product descriptions and images: Writing unique, keyword-rich product descriptions and using descriptive alt text for images enhances your visibility on search engines, particularly for image searches and long-tail keywords.
3. Mobile optimization: Shopify themes are responsive, meaning they adapt to different screen sizes, which is crucial since Google prioritizes mobile-friendly sites. Optimizing for mobile improves your chances of ranking well in mobile search results.
4. Site speed: Shopify’s hosting is optimized for speed, but you can further enhance loading times by compressing images and minimizing apps. Faster load times lead to better SEO performance since Google considers speed a ranking factor.
5. Blogging: Shopify has a built-in blogging feature that lets you create content around relevant keywords. Blogging helps attract traffic, build authority, and gives search engines more pages to index from your site.
6. Link building: Building high-quality backlinks to your Shopify store (e.g., from guest posts, product reviews, and partnerships) can improve your store’s authority and search engine ranking.
7. URL structure: Shopify automatically structures URLs to be search-friendly, although you may need to manually adjust them to remove unnecessary words. Clean URLs make it easier for search engines to understand your site’s structure.
8. Apps for SEO: Shopify’s App Store includes SEO tools like SEO Booster and Plug in SEO, which provide insights, help fix SEO issues, and automate tasks like meta tag optimization and broken link checks.

Then use these advanced SEO techniques

9. Keyword research: Conduct keyword research to find profitable keywords. Tools like Google Keyword Planner and SEMrush can help you discover search terms that attract more traffic.
10. Local SEO: If you have a physical location, optimize for local SEO by adding location-based keywords and setting up Google My Business.
11. Voice search optimization: Optimize for voice search by targeting question-based keywords. Voice search queries often have different wording than typed ones.
12. Track your performance: Use Google Analytics and Google Search Console along with Shopify Analytics to monitor traffic, click-through rates, and bounce rates to make data-driven improvements.
13. Optimize for different seasons: Adjust SEO strategies around holidays or sales events by updating keywords and creating seasonal landing pages to attract more customers.

Shopify vs WooCommerce vs BigCommerce: How to choose the right e-commerce platform

1. Shopify

   We recommend it for:

   Entrepreneurs and businesses looking for an easy setup, a full suite of e-commerce features, and reliable scalability.

   Pros:

   • Intuitive and beginner-friendly, allowing easy setup even for those without coding knowledge.
   • E-commerce functionality with built-in tools for payment processing, inventory management, and shipping.
   • Scalable with access to a large app store, offering plugins for dropshipping, marketing, and analytics.

   Cons:

   • Monthly fees plus transaction fees unless you use Shopify Payments.
   • Limited customization on URL structures and backend flexibility.

2. WooCommerce

   We recommend it for:

   Businesses or individuals with experience in WordPress or those who need maximum control over customization.

   Pros:

   • Built on WordPress, providing complete customization with access to thousands of plugins and themes.
   • Free to use, with additional paid plugins as needed, making it a cost-effective option.
   • High SEO flexibility with tools like Yoast SEO and customizable URLs, giving control over SEO settings.

   Cons:

   • Requires a self-hosted WordPress site, SSL certificate, and domain, adding complexity to the setup.
   • Less beginner-friendly; technical knowledge or development skills are helpful for setup and ongoing management.
   • Security, updates, and backups are the user’s responsibility.

3. BigCommerce

   We recommend it for:

   Established businesses or fast-growing brands that need advanced e-commerce functionality and multi-channel sales.

   Pros:

   • Includes robust built-in features like bulk pricing, custom shipping rules, and multi-channel integration (Amazon, eBay, and social media).
   • No additional transaction fees, which can be cost-effective for high-volume sales.
   • Optimized for scalability, offering an enterprise plan for large businesses with advanced needs.

   Cons:

   • More complex than Shopify for beginners; may require more time to set up and manage.
   • Limited design flexibility compared to WooCommerce and Shopify.
   • Some advanced features, such as abandoned cart recovery, are only available on higher-tier plans.

Get an expert to help you improve your Shopify SEO

Whether you are just starting your e-commerce journey or looking to improve an existing store, leveraging Shopify’s tools alongside proven SEO practices will help you attract more customers and achieve sustainable growth.

Contact us to get started on improving your Shopify store’s SEO score.