Shopify Editions is Shopify’s annual product release event, and this year’s edition is packed with new features and updates that will help merchants of all sizes grow their businesses.
In this article, our very own CTO, Philip, shares an exclusive overview of some of the most exciting new features in Shopify Editions Summer ’23. He highlights the benefits of these features for both merchants and developers, providing valuable insights into how they can make a positive impact. Additionally, Philip shares his personal impressions of the new additions, giving readers a firsthand perspective on their potential and significance.
So, let’s dive in!
- Shopify native apps
- Shopify theme design
- Shop channel
- Shopify checkout
- Marketing and B2B selling
- Improved development
- API updates
- AI in Shopify
Shopify native apps
Bundles and subscriptions apps
Firstly, I would like to draw your attention to the release of a series of native Shopify applications. Two of them are quite standard for a Shopify store – Shopify Bundles and Subscriptions. Notably, Shopify has developed these apps, but there are already several similar apps available, including our public applications for bundles and subscriptions. In some aspects, they surpass the native ones in terms of functionality.
However, this is of great interest to users because these native apps will continue to be developed and supported directly by Shopify. For merchants with fairly basic needs, these two applications will fully cater to their requirements.
Marketplace connector app
The other application I’d like to highlight is the marketplace connector. In our company’s outsourcing department, we often receive integration requests from various marketplaces. Typically, fulfilling such requests involves extensive development of an integrator application complete with its own admin panel, settings, and other features. However, based on the announcement, it appears that this new application eliminates the need for such substantial development when dealing with popular marketplaces.
While we haven’t tested it yet, we’ll rely on the announcement for now, and after conducting tests, we’ll be able to confirm its effectiveness. According to the claims, this application provides comprehensive control over the entire integration process with marketplaces. It facilitates tasks such as listing information placement, listing editing, setting different prices for both the store and marketplace and more.
Moreover, it enables seamless synchronization of stock orders and all other related trading procedures across various channels, while maintaining one central source of data — our store. This centralized approach seems incredibly convenient, and we’re considering implementing it in our development process.
Combining discounts
The expanded combinatorial capabilities of discount codes allow us to create more unique discount rules. This was not possible before, but we knew that it would be a valuable addition to the platform.
Payment applications
Regarding the checkout extensibility and changes, there’s a significant improvement when developing payment applications for Shopify. Now, we can integrate alternative payment methods more smoothly without redirecting customers to separate pages. Instead, the process feels like a natural part of the store, making it much more convenient for shoppers
Bring data from other surfaces
Also, the good news is that now you can integrate blocks from your custom or public application directly into the native Shopify admin. This means you can add unique features seamlessly and improve the overall experience for Shopify merchants. In the past, if you needed a specific feature, you had to come to us, and we would build a separate application for you. But the problem was that you had to switch between applications to use certain features. With the new integration, this inconvenience is eliminated. You can now access and use these custom blocks directly within the admin interface. This is a remarkable improvement that makes things more convenient for merchants and allows developers to create better solutions for Shopify users.
Shopify theme design
General design enhancement
Moving on, let’s focus on several updates that are particularly interesting to merchants rather than developers. One noticeable change is the enhancement of the design, making it more appealing. Although it’s a positive development, I must admit that, from my perspective, it may not hold significant value.
Flex sections
In the future, there’s something truly exciting for both merchants and agencies like ours, which create custom stores for clients – Flex sections. You might remember the release of Dynamic sections by Shopify earlier, which was already a game-changer, simplifying the lives of merchants and significantly reducing costs associated with custom section development in themes.
But hold on, they’ve taken it even further now, introducing Flex sections – highly flexible and customizable, allowing you to effortlessly modify the appearance of any section. Imagine dynamically adding these sections to your store’s pages, making everything crystal clear. Plus, this feature can be used to build entirely new section views, perfectly tailored to the specific needs of each individual page.
This isn’t just great news for merchants; it’s also a big win for developers. Accounting for this new feature during the development process will allow us to streamline projects, cutting down development time and costs significantly, while accommodating a much broader range of use cases.
While other applications like page builders won’t lose their current audience entirely, they might see a decrease in attracting new users, as this functionality becomes native to Shopify – a testament to the platform’s dedication to innovation and user-friendly solutions.
Theme adopted for specific markets or B2B
One of the most noteworthy enhancements is the ability to create specific page versions tailored to different customer types from various markets. Within a single storefront, it’s now possible to display various functionalities on, for example, a product page. For instance, you can have a specialized template only visible to B2B customers, while retaining a standard version for others.
This is a game-changer as it eliminates the need for separate B2B stores, enabling the seamless integration of B2C and B2B within one store. In the past, users had to resort to applications or custom developments, often resulting in mere workarounds rather than real solutions. However, now developers can take full advantage of this valuable functionality.
This feature can now be efficiently and swiftly implemented. For example, one can effortlessly customize pages to present market-specific information. By tailoring content based on location, taxes, return methods, and other variables, businesses can offer more relevant experiences to their diverse customer base.
Built-in support for theme animations
Shopify also features improved animations for themes that make the store more lively and interactive. Animation effects are great and often sought after to add creativity to a store. While it’s not something special, why not give it a try?
Shop channel
Shop Store optimized for mobile shoppers
Another thrilling addition is the improved capability to create a mobile application based on one’s store without the need for actual app development, thanks to Shop App. This is undoubtedly a cool feature that merchants will find highly useful. However, I still believe that a well-designed mobile version remains more convenient, functional, and versatile compared to a dedicated mobile application.
Shopify checkout
World’s best checkout
Here’s an interesting fact that even agencies like ours find fascinating: a conversion rate study comparing Shopify checkout with other competing platforms revealed that it boasts a 15% higher rate! This is definitely a compelling argument for business owners who are still undecided about which platform to choose. It’s pretty cool that such valuable information is being published and real research is being done.
One-page checkout
What everyone has been eagerly waiting for is finally here – the One-Page Checkout and the new API for customizing the checkout. It’s undeniably cool, and everyone has been expecting it for quite some time.
This fantastic announcement is undoubtedly something we’ll be incorporating into our projects. However, it’s worth noting that while Shopify announced it as “coming soon,” I’ve already enabled it on my store. Just Shopify’s magic. So, that’s why we’ve already started investing our efforts in this direction, conducting research, and familiarizing ourselves with these new features.
Early, we received many requests for checkout development, but unfortunately, we had to decline most of them due to the limited customizability of the checkout process. This was primarily because the checkout system was always designed to be super secure, reliable, and of the highest quality, ensuring that it remained impervious to any disruptions or unauthorized access.
However, things have taken a turn for the better now. While there are still some limitations in place to maintain the integrity of the checkout process, it’s understandable and ensures that everything flows seamlessly without any foreign elements disrupting the experience.
Address validation in checkout
Address validation in the checkout is a powerful feature that can help boost conversion rates by reducing errors and improving the checkout experience. It uses an API to apply custom validation logic, which helps boost conversion rates for certain businesses’ customers. Many customers face difficulties and misunderstandings when entering their addresses and other information, which can lead to errors in the checkout process. These errors might cause order returns or cancellations. But with the application’s custom validation logic, these issues are effectively addressed, making the checkout process much smoother and hassle-free for everyone involved.
Customized delivery methods
The ability to create customized delivery methods and, for instance, implement a date-picker feature is highly convenient. I find myself addressing such requests frequently due to their growing popularity in our development projects. As a result, we will streamline the process, making it more user-friendly.
Customized validation logic
One of the updates involves customized validation logic, which I’ve mentioned before, so we won’t go into detail on that now. However, there’s something else worth noting. Shopify has expanded the ways developers can interact with Shopify Point of Sale during development. They’ve introduced POS extensions, which allow developers to create more integrated interfaces within Shopify. This means store owners can have a more consistent and unified interface, matching the native Shopify design rather than having custom elements that look completely different. It’s a great improvement for the overall user experience.
Marketing and B2B selling
Volume pricing
One of the new features for B2B businesses is Volume Pricing, exclusively available for Shopify Plus users. But what makes this even more remarkable is that in the past, achieving such functionality necessitated custom development. Now, with Volume Pricing, you have the flexibility to set varying prices for different quantities of the same product within your store. For instance, you can charge $100 for 10 units and $50 for 20 units, and so on. This new capability allows for easy configuration, ensuring that the order price is automatically adjusted based on the selected quantity. It’s undoubtedly a game-changer for businesses looking to offer diverse pricing options to their customers.
Quick Order List
The Quick Order List is a great feature that is not limited to Shopify Plus. It is especially useful for B2B customers who need to quickly add multiple units of different product variations from one section. This is a feature that we have encountered in our practice, and we have had to develop it from scratch in the past. However, having this feature available off-the-shelf will allow us to accelerate project development time and reduce the budget.
Filter by metafields in the admin
Filtering product searches by metafields in the admin panel is a fascinating and useful feature for both merchants and developers. With this functionality, users can easily find specific products using filters that are available to all website visitors. This convenience is particularly valuable for developers when setting up a store or creating applications that require precise product searches.
Improved development
Build headless faster
A number of improvements have been made to headless channels, including a new endpoint, headless storefronts, and a slightly improved approach to starting development on Shopify. These changes are worth exploring, and we plan to provide more detailed information about them in the future.
Streamlined deployment process
Shopify has introduced a new version and streamlined deployment process. One exciting feature to note is the improved usage of Bridge. However, to fully grasp these updates, we need a detailed description from a development perspective.
Speed up functionality
The following points will also be useful for merchants who are considering using the Shopify platform. Shopify has made a number of optimizations that increase the speed and loading of Shopify stores, which can help you improve your customer experience and increase sales.
Improved testing
In addition to these improvements, the testing methods have also been upgraded. Now, developers can check their work in real time without the need for extra setups or hassles. It’s a fantastic feature that streamlines the development process.
API updates
Fulfillment Constance API
Pay attention to the Fulfillment Constance API, as it’s likely to be used in our projects. Custom solutions for fulfillment and delivery processes are frequently requested, making these APIs essential in this context.
Admin API rate limits increase for Shopify Advanced plan
The limits for the Admin API have been doubled, which is a fantastic improvement. In the past, larger businesses sometimes faced challenges when they reached these limits, having to come up with creative solutions to work around them. But now, with the increased limits, developers for Shopify Advanced merchants will have more freedom to carry out their tasks without restrictions.
In general, there have been many updates to the Shopify platform’s API. These updates make it easier to create smarter and more refined solutions without using any hacks or workarounds. They utilize the native features of Shopify, resulting in a smoother and more seamless experience for developers.
Functional API
Also, I want to highlight the upcoming functional API. They offer powerful tools to work with the logic typically found on the Shopify backend. Some of them are already accessible in various ways. The best part is, there are countless possibilities for developing applications using this API, which will require exploring different use cases. It’s engaging to see how we can utilize these functions to create a wide range of functionalities. It’s really an adaptable and promising tool that deserves our attention. Personally, I’m really excited about it!
AI in Shopify
And, last but not least – the introduction of AI. One of the most notable developments is the Sidekick assistant which lets you simply ask for help through text requests. With Sidekick, you can get things done, like receiving information about your store or creating different versions of web pages. You can also make changes to the layout, shipping conditions, or discounts effortlessly.
The best part is that Sidekick takes care of tasks that would normally require manual work. By doing so, it saves you time and allows you to focus on more important aspects of your business. For example, you can easily create product descriptions for your store’s sections and handle responses effectively. And one more thing, Sidekick is easy to train, making it a valuable tool for businesses seeking to optimize their processes with AI.
Conclusion
Shopify Editions Summer ’23 brings a plethora of exciting new features and updates that promise to revolutionize the eCommerce experience for both merchants and developers. As we await the chance to thoroughly test these new innovations and offer a detailed overview, we’re here to answer any questions you may have and help turn your ideas into reality. Feel free to reach out to us for further discussions.
