Do you run a store on Shopify? This relatively easy-to-use and powerful platform is becoming increasingly popular among Polish e-commerce companies. However, it's important to remember that opening an online store doesn't guarantee your offerings will be visible to buyers. They still need to find it. What's needed to make your store discoverable on Shopify? Online store positioning ! See how.
What is Shopify?
Shopify is a service created by Canadian programmers in 2006, enabling online sales without the need for additional services such as hosting, software, or technical support. It operates as a SaaS (Software as a Service), which simply means that Shopify rents a comprehensive system to businesses to manage their online business. Users pay a monthly or annual subscription fee and use the provided dashboard to perform the necessary actions to run an online store.
Remember…
Shopify is often confused with Shoper, which is slightly more popular in Poland. While there are many similarities between these SaaS applications, it's worth remembering that they are two competing platforms in the e-commerce market.
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Shopify store positioning – what does it offer?
Shopify is a Canadian e-commerce platform that allows you to quickly create an online store, customize it to your needs, and start selling. This system provides access to numerous plugins and extensions that allow you to integrate your website with Amazon and select payment systems, among other things. A well-configured store is user-friendly for customers, and allows sellers to process orders efficiently. However, to attract customers, SEO for your Shopify store is essential.
What exactly is Shopify store SEO ? It's the process of making your website visible to Google. As a result, when a customer searches for phrases related to your offer, they'll see a link to your store high in the search results. How high your website appears depends on how valuable Google considers it. Therefore, your online store must be tailored to the search engine's requirements and demonstrate that the information it contains is valuable to potential customers.
Many factors influence how well a Shopify online store ranks in Google, which we'll discuss below. However, it's worth knowing that well-thought-out SEO efforts can significantly increase its sales potential and make acquiring a single customer significantly cheaper . Online store SEO will:
- you will rank high in the search results for phrases related to your business,
- you will increase traffic on your store's website, which will give you a better chance of convincing customers to your offer,
- you will strengthen your brand online, which will allow you to better compete with other e-shops offering similar products,
- you will achieve long-term results – you will stay in high positions in SERPs for a longer period of time, and the cost of acquiring a customer will regularly decrease.
This is why positioning your store on Shopify is a fundamental SEO strategy worth investing in.
Is it worth positioning your store on Shopify yourself?
The Shopify platform itself offers a wide range of options when it comes to planning SEO activities. Among other things, the service offers the ability to:
- automatic generation of links with SEO-friendly addresses,
- generating a sitemap and a robots.txt file, which are important for indexing the website in Google,
- editing meta tags and creating them automatically,
- optimizing ALT attributes for photos uploaded to product pages.
These functionalities can be further enhanced through the use of appropriate extensions and add-ons, such as All In One SEO and similar tools. Admittedly, all of these tools can significantly simplify SEO efforts . However, the question remains whether they will be sufficient to deliver measurable results.
Remember that Shopify's functional tools alone aren't enough to effectively position your store. You also need to know how to use them . Effective SEO efforts consist of many elements that must be coherently combined within a single strategy – only then will you have a chance of achieving the desired success.
That's why, especially if you don't have experience with SEO for Shopify stores or any other website, it's best to entrust this task to the experts. While using a digital marketing agency can be expensive, it can actually save you significant money . The reason is simple: your budget for SEO for your Shopify store will be used wisely, and experts will skillfully refine your strategy to ensure more effective customer acquisition.
How to position your store on Shopify?
First things first: SEO for Shopify stores is a multi-step process that takes a lot of time . Don't expect results to appear within a week or two of placing an order for SEO. Why is this? SEO primarily requires refining your store's website—both technically and content-wise. It also begins with an in-depth audit, which forms the foundation for the work performed.
It is during the audit that specialists determine:
- what is the current state of your store and what needs to be changed to make it meet SEO requirements,
- how your direct competitors are positioning themselves and where there is potential to overtake them,
- Which keywords can be positioned well? It's worth remembering that those promoted by many stores in the same industry will be more difficult. This means that reaching the top 10 or a higher ranking will take longer and will require a higher financial investment. To limit these costs, you can start by choosing slightly less popular phrases and then broaden their scope by choosing a long-tail SEO model for your Shopify store.
- how to modify and expand the content in the store to achieve better positioning results.
The more thoroughly such an analysis is carried out and the better the experts understand the sales process and the specifics of the industry, the better the subsequent SEO activities will be "set".
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Shopify SEO Overview
You're probably wondering if SEO and Shopify are a good match. How can you tell?
According to many experts, the Shopify platform is SEO-friendly. To ensure our assessment is fully aligned with industry opinion, we'll take a detailed look at the service in two key areas:
- the possibility of making changes by SEO specialists,
- stability and reliability of servers that are beyond the control of application clients.
Let's start with the first analyzed area, i.e. what we can change in the Shopify online store to improve SEO results.
Shopify SEO Optimization – Key Features
Every CMS has more or less limited options for website changes. Shopify prioritizes simplicity and intuitiveness, so key SEO areas can be easily modified by users. SEO optimization for Shopify stores will be even easier if you familiarize yourself with the features below.
Modifying meta tags – meta title and meta description
Shopify automatically generates meta titles for subpages based on their names assigned in the admin panel. For example, the meta title for the "Stylish Kitchen" category will be identical, with only your store's name added. Therefore, it's worth striving for greater uniqueness by adding selected keywords.
How to change meta title and meta description in Shopify?
After logging in to the admin panel, depending on the type of subpage, follow these steps:
- change for the home page -> In the left side menu, click “Online Store” -> from the drop-down list, select “Preferences” and make the necessary adjustments.
- change for category -> In the left side menu, click “Products” -> “Collections” and then select the category you want to modify the meta tags for.
After clicking on a category, scroll down the page and find the "Search Engine Entry" section. Then click "Edit" and make the desired changes.
- change for products -> In the left-hand side menu, click "Products," then find a product by name or other attribute. Once you've entered the product details, follow the same steps as when editing a category by clicking "Edit" at the bottom.
- change for blog entries -> In the left side menu, click “Online Store” -> “Blog Posts” -> Selected Article -> “Edit Shopify Page SEO”, which is also located at the bottom of the subpage.
The Shopify commerce platform also allows you to automate meta title and meta description using variables. This can be done in two ways:
- purchasing one of the paid plugins (applications) e.g. Smart SEO or Avada SEO – you will find them after entering “Applications” in the side menu of the panel,
- making changes by editing the code and inserting your own variables – “Online Store” -> “Templates” -> “…” -> “Edit Code”.
Remember…
Any changes made to the website's code require at least basic programming knowledge. Any changes may disrupt the website's functionality and may not be covered by free technical support.
Friendly URLs
Shopify automatically generates friendly URLs by pulling keywords from the category, product, or blog post name.
To ensure that all links within your website can be trusted by users and search engines, check that your URLs comply with the following guidelines:
- they do not contain capital letters, spaces, or special characters,
- they refer to the content of a given subpage – they contain keywords taken from the name of the product, category or blog entry,
- consistently adhere to the established hierarchy associated with the category tree
- are unique to each product and contain its unique attributes such as color, packaging size and purpose.
Examples of friendly URLs:
- category -> https://twojastrona.pl/lampy-do-salonu-vintage/
- product -> https://twojastrona.pl/produkty/stylowa-lampa-do-salonu-vintage
- blog article -> https://twojastrona.pl/blog/jak-urzadzic-salon-w-stylu-vintage
If you want to make modifications, go to the category or product details and, just like when editing meta tags, look for the field called “URL handle” at the very bottom.
When you correct a "slug," the system will notify you that a 301 redirect has been performed from the old name to the new one. This is a crucial Shopify SEO feature built into the app, allowing you to maintain the visibility of the modified subpage.
Automatic generation of canonical links
Shopify offers automatically generated canonical links for all subpages within its website. This protects your e-commerce site from duplicate content. Popular in SEO naming, "canonicals" indicate the most important URL, which, through the use of filters, may have several "junk" versions. This is a crucial feature that allows for faster Shopify SEO optimization .
How to check the correct implementation of canonical links using the example of a Shopify-based store?
Step 1. Visit your online store's website
Step 2. Go to the category subpage, e.g. https://twojastrona.pl/collections/retro-ramki-na-zdjecia
Step 3. Click on any of the “Sort by” filters, e.g. “Alphabetical AZ”
Step 4. Check the URL. It should change to a longer one, e.g., https://twojastrona.pl/collections/retro-ramki-na-zdjecia?sort_by=title-ascending
Step 5. Right-click anywhere on the page and select “Inspect” or press “ctrl=u” on your keyboard
Step 6. Search for lines of code with the specified canonical link, in this case it will be:
Summary -> properly implemented canonical link:
You are on the subpage:
https://twojastrona.pl/collections/retro-ramki-na-zdjecia?sort_by=title-ascending
The canonical link in the page code should point to: https://twojastrona.pl/collections/retro-ramki-na-zdjecia
Sitemap – Sitemap.xml
A sitemap is a list of URLs that systematically shows web crawlers the structure of the entire website. The Shopify platform automatically generates this file by dividing one large sitemap into several smaller ones:
- https://twojastrona.pl/sitemap_blogs_1.xml – lista dodanych artykułów blogowych,
- https://twojastrona.pl/sitemap_collections_1.xml – lista dodanych kategorii,
- https://twojastrona.pl/sitemap_pages_1.xml – lista dodanych stron informacyjnych typu “kontakt”, “polityka prywatności”, “regulamin”,
- https://twojastrona.pl/products.xml – lista produktów
How can I check if the sitemap on my store is generated correctly?
Step 1. To find the main site map, enter in your browser -> https://yoursite.pl/sitemap.xml.
Step 2. Check that your pages are accessible in each map type and that their links lead to valid URLs.
Step 3. Check in Google Search Console whether web crawlers are correctly reading the number of subpages included in the map in the Indexing -> Sitemaps tab.
Remember that creating a clear category tree is crucial. Well-designed categories and subcategories will be included in the sitemap and will make it easier for both web robots to find the products they contain while crawling and for customers to make purchases.
Generating and editing robots.txt in Shopify
Shopify offers a ready-made robots.txt file template. Typically, the default configuration in its directives prevents indexing of URLs containing various special characters, as well as subpages such as the shopping cart, admin, or privacy policy. The following lines provide guidelines and block indexing for other web crawlers, such as Nutch, AhrefsBot, AhrefsSiteAudit, MJ12bot, and Pinterest, whose excessive activity can overload servers.
What do the individual directives mean?
- Disallow – do not index,
- User-agent – the name of the web robot analyzing the website,
- Crawl-delay – an expression in seconds that allows you to set the frequency of moving to subsequent subpages,
- Sitemap – indicating the URL of the sitemap file.
After entering https://yourwebsite.pl/robots.txt in your browser , you can check the file and its contents.
How to edit robots.txt file in Shopify?
- Go to the administration panel and click Settings -> Applications and sales channels -> Online Store -> Open sales channel -> Templates -> … -> Edit code -> Add new template -> robots.txt
- Make changes to the created file called robots.txt.liquid
Editing ALT attributes of graphics
ALT is used to insert an alternative description in images added to the website. Check your "alt" in the product details by clicking "Multimedia" and "Edit Alt Text ." The alt text should reflect the image as closely as possible, so keyword placement should be as natural as possible.
Shopify uses the product name to populate this attribute, which is a good thing. This is another positive point to consider when evaluating Shopify SEO.
The store loads quickly and works flawlessly
What do you do when you want to visit a website, but instead of loading in the blink of an eye, it takes forever to load? These days, no one likes waiting. That's why most people simply close the page and move on to the next. Your customers would do the same. Google's algorithms, which determine the positioning of individual pages in the SERPs, are designed to present users with the most precisely tailored and easily accessible results. Therefore, if your Shopify online store loads slowly, don't count on good SEO results. Google will lower your ranking.
What could be causing a Shopify store to be slow? Shopify is a SaaS platform, meaning you're not responsible for hosting the servers —though the service itself ensures their high performance and reliable operation. But these aren't the only factors that impact the site's loading speed. Equally important are factors such as:
- the number of installed plugins and add-ons – if there are a lot of them, some may conflict with each other, delaying the opening of the page,
- the sizes of graphic files that have been posted on product pages – if they are “heavy” and there are a lot of them, they will download slower.
Shopify SEO step by step
From the previous chapters, you already know what Shopify is and how to modify some areas yourself to improve your visibility in search results.
The art of effective SEO lies primarily in the skillful use of these solutions. Many of them require acquired experience and technical knowledge. By entrusting your work to the experts at Verseo, you can be assured of comprehensive service and complete knowledge of the CMS in question.
In the following text, you will learn what activities our specialists base their SEO strategy for Shopify e-stores on.
Audit of an online store based on Shopify
Although the work of an SEO specialist does not follow strict rules, it is always based on three main SEO pillars, which are:
- analysis,
- optimization,
- linking.
An SEO audit is one of the foundations of on-site work. It has a significant impact on the second pillar of SEO, Shopify SEO optimization. It not only identifies areas for technical and content improvements but also examines the competition, suggests keywords, and suggests category expansions. It can be dozens of pages long, but it's a pleasure to read thanks to the numerous screenshots, tables, charts, and statistics that facilitate error detection.
What will a Verseo SEO specialist need to perform a comprehensive analysis?
- Shopify access data,
- access data to Google Search Console and Google Analytics,
- information about direct competition,
- indication of the most important categories in the context of sales,
- indication of the most important products in the context of sales.
Thanks to the above information, which you can provide via email or during a meeting, the SEO specialist will begin an analysis tailored specifically to your website.
Configuring analytical tools and monitoring results
Why do we all agree at Verseo that SEO works? Because we have the evidence to prove it. Simple. From the very beginning of our collaboration, we'll help you set up your revenue analysis tools. If anything's unclear, we'll be happy to explain.
It is worth knowing that Shopify keeps its own sales statistics, which can be viewed in the “marketing” tab.
Of course, for data protection purposes, we've obscured sales figures. The dashboard allows you to view values related to store sessions, conversions, average order size, and statistics for the various sales channels your store operates.
To sync Shopify with tools like Google Search Console or Google Analytics, use the Google & YouTube plugin available in the Shopify App Store. You can also connect a verification code using Shopify's code editor.
Learn how to check your keyword performance using Google Search Console.
Thanks to the analytical tools implemented in Shopify, you'll know how fast your online business is growing. We guarantee knowledge and experience that delivers long-term, systematic results.
Choosing the right keywords
Shopify does not offer a keyword “generator” and does not keep statistics for queries or individual subpages.
How to choose SEO keywords for your business?
Selecting and curating the most valuable keywords together with the client is one of the first steps we take together. In this area of activity, we will adhere to the following principles:
- we will select phrases that are reflected in your store's offer,
- we will use several types of keywords – general, long-tail, local or question words,
- we will check and show the number of monthly searches,
- we will generate phrases with potential, i.e. those whose position is in the range of 11-20, to accelerate the effects of actions.
Matching and monitoring popular keywords is one thing. Search trends, seasonality, and changing times are another. We'll constantly monitor selected keywords that are profitable for your business, and as soon as we notice a decline in their ranking in search results, we'll find a suitable solution. That's what we're here for!
Technical Shopify SEO Optimization
Technical guidelines that need to be implemented are often the biggest challenge for the client. Programming services are another expense, with long waiting times. Fortunately, our SEO Department employs people who make less complex changes to website code on a daily basis. Shopify allows for code editing within the CMS , which is a very useful and beneficial feature for any website because:
- The client does not bear any additional costs related to the implementation of most guidelines,
- with small changes to the code you don't need to install additional paid plugins,
- you can view the change history,
- Access to the website template is simple and intuitive.
Remember, don't try this at home! Sometimes a small change can disrupt the online store.
All technical aspects will be analyzed and presented as simply as possible. As mentioned, editing a store template in Shopify is easy, but it requires knowledge and experience.
On-site and off-site optimization of Shopify stores
The activities undertaken by SEO specialists preparing a detailed SEO analysis can be divided into two main areas:
- On-site audit
- Off-site audit.
On-site website “research” focuses on all factors that can be improved within a given website, including:
- crawl budget — a properly optimized crawl budget allows you to generate higher revenues for the company.
- Indexing — errors of non-existent 404 subpages, redirect chains or repairing sitemap.xml and robots.txt files.
- Page structure — structure of meta-title and meta-description from a global perspective, semantics of Hx headers, correct implementation of graphics and canonical links.
- Website architecture and usability — online store functionality, i.e. navigation menu, breadcrumbs, correct URLs, hierarchy of subpages.
- Page load time.
- View on mobile devices, computers and tablets.
- Content analysis and checking.
An off-site audit is an analysis focused on external aspects that impact the organic search engine rankings of Shopify sites. Highlights include:
- Domain analysis in Google Analytics, Google Search Console and other Google tools.
- Visibility analysis — using Semstorm, Senuto, Ahrefs or Screaming Frog.
- SERP display analysis – these are activities aimed at, among other things, checking the list of indexed subpages.
- Link profile analysis — i.e. links that lead to a given page.
- Analysis of the competition's link profile.
How long does it take to position Shopify stores?
Wondering how long you'll have to wait to see the results of your Shopify store's SEO? Be patient, as this process can take up to six months. However, it's worth the wait – the effects of good SEO efforts will last for a long time.
But be careful! A one-time SEO "setup" isn't enough. In later stages, it's worth adding new content to your online store and updating existing texts, focusing on SEO for specific keywords. A good digital agency will handle all of these tasks, along with monitoring SEO effectiveness , so you can be sure of visible results.
But what if you need faster results from advertising your Shopify store? Then you can invest in solutions like Google Ads or Facebook Ads. Paid campaigns, especially those utilizing remarketing elements, will allow you to quickly attract buyers' attention. However, they are relatively expensive, and their effects, while immediate, are short-lived. Therefore, it's best to combine SEO and paid advertising into a single, well-thought-out, cohesive strategy. This will help you avoid problems and achieve synergies.
The price of positioning online stores on Shopify
The price of SEO for online stores based on the Shopify platform depends on factors such as:
- number of categories and products,
- reach – local, national or international
- language – one version or several,
- industry,
- competition.
We have a simple and intuitive e-commerce SEO pricing plan that lets you know exactly what you're paying for. We play our cards squarely, so SEO pricing is always tailored to our shared success.
Effective Shopify SEO with Verseo – Marketing Agency 5.0
Okay. Now you might be wondering why we offer SEO for Shopify when we've already shown you where and how to make changes? Of course, this is only part of what we do, because as you already know, Shopify SEO is made up of many factors. We strive to prove to our clients, both current and prospective, that we know what we're doing. This time is no different. Shopify is an SEO-friendly platform, and we're happy to leverage that and share our findings.
When you partner with us, you can be sure you're working with an experienced individual who has "eaten bread from many ovens." We work with dozens of different CMSes and employ over 30 SEO specialists. This isn't the time for experiments; it's time for a proven agency with knowledgeable people!
The effects of Shopify store positioning
You can see results in the form of higher sales from search results after just six months. As mentioned, SEO results take a bit longer to appear, but they are significantly more durable than other sales channels, such as Google Ads.
Sometimes, a higher ranking for a few important phrases can significantly boost sales for a given product. We also approach SEO from a global perspective, meaning we focus not only on selected keywords but also increase the website's visibility through specific guidelines and unique, multi-dimensional content.
FAQ – Shopify store positioning
To summarize our article, we present the most frequently asked questions about the positioning of a store whose CMS is the Shopify platform.
What are the basic principles of Shopify store positioning?
Shopify is a platform that allows for a variety of changes. Shopify SEO optimization is described in detail in the "Shopify Platform Overview" section, where you'll learn how to modify meta tags, URLs, and the robots.txt file, among other things.
How can I improve the page loading speed of my Shopify store?
First and foremost, check whether your website doesn't have too many plugins, which could slow down your website. Also, verify whether product images, for example, aren't too large. It's generally accepted that any images larger than 100kb can significantly slow down your website's performance.
Can I optimize meta tags for SEO in my Shopify store?
Yes, optimizing Shopify's SEO for meta tags is very simple. Go to a product or category, scroll to the bottom of the page, and click "edit." For details, see "Modifying Title and Description Meta Tags."
Is Shopify SEO friendly compared to other e-commerce platforms?
Yes, Shopify offers a range of solutions to aid in technical SEO optimization . Access to your website's template code is particularly useful, allowing you to make changes with the help of an SEO specialist. Some e-commerce platforms prohibit changes or require additional fees for making adjustments.
Can I integrate my Shopify store with Google Analytics and Google Search Console?
Yes, you can integrate your store with Google tools using a dedicated Google plugin called "Google & YouTube," available in the Shopify App Store. You can also embed a verification code generated from Google tools by editing your website template.
Are there specific SEO plugins for Shopify stores?
Yes. They're available in the Shopify App Store from the admin panel and offer a range of features, as described above. However, keep in mind that having too many active plugins can slow down your site's performance.
FAQs about Shopify SEO
Yes, Shopify is a very search engine-friendly solution. Although it's a SaaS platform (operating on a subscription model), it has a solid technological foundation and many built-in features that allow you to effectively optimize your store for Google's guidelines, even without advanced programming knowledge.
The Shopify dashboard allows for intuitive, hands-on editing of key SEO elements. Users can easily complete meta tags (Title and Description) for products, collections, and information pages, add ALT attributes to images, edit page headers, and create 301 redirects. Additionally, the system automatically generates and updates a sitemap (sitemap.xml) and robots.txt file.
The most frequently cited drawback is the rigid, pre-defined URL structure. Shopify automatically adds prefixes like /products/, /collections/, and /pages/ to links, making it impossible to create 100% custom, perfectly flat URLs. Furthermore, due to the proprietary nature of the software, very deep technical modifications to the server or advanced speed improvements can be difficult.
While the basic features are built into the engine, the Shopify App Store offers a wealth of additional, third-party optimization plugins (e.g., Yoast SEO for Shopify, SEO Manager, and Plug in SEO). These tools significantly speed up and automate workflows, including bulk meta tag editing, lossless image compression, and advanced integration with structured data (Rich Snippets).
Absolutely. Shopify comes with a built-in, easy-to-use blog module. Regularly publishing valuable, how-to content is the absolute foundation of a content marketing strategy. This allows you to build visibility for long-tail keywords, educate customers, and attract valuable organic traffic to your store.
Summary
The above article covers the following topics:
- what exactly is Shopify,
- what are the benefits of SEO for Shopify stores,
- how to optimize a Shopify-based store,
- SEO in Shopify,
- how to perform an SEO audit of a Shopify store,
- how long do you have to wait for Shopify positioning results,
- how much does SEO for Shopify stores cost?
