Shopify just dropped its Summer 2024 Editions, packed with over 150 new features aimed at making your life as a merchant easier. From AI-powered tools to enhanced global selling capabilities, we’ve digested their report so you don’t have to. Here’s all you need to know about the latest admin features in Shopify.
What’s New?
Shopify’s reimagined Markets feature is a centralized command center for international expansion. Managed Markets, the revamped version of Markets Pro, handles taxes, duties, and regional restrictions seamlessly, making global selling simpler and more efficient.
Our Take:
This update could be a game-changer for brands looking to expand internationally. By consolidating various aspects of cross-border selling, Shopify makes it easier to manage international operations from one hub. Brands can leverage this to streamline their global strategies, ensuring compliance and reducing administrative overhead. This means more time to focus on growth and less on the logistics of international sales.
What’s New?
Shopify is doubling down on AI with several exciting updates:
• Media Editor: AI-powered image editing available across the admin interface, including on mobile.
• Product Creation: AI suggestions for attributes like color, size, and style.
• Customer Interaction: AI-generated responses in Shopify Inbox.
• Sidekick: An AI assistant providing tailored advice and generating customer segments
Our Take:
AI tools can significantly enhance operational efficiency and customer experience. Brands can use the AI Media Editor to maintain consistent, professional visuals across platforms without needing a dedicated graphic designer. The AI-powered product creation can reduce listing errors, ensuring customers find what they need easily. Customer interaction tools like AI-generated responses can improve response times, enhancing customer satisfaction and retention.
What’s New?
Shopify’s rebuilt analytics stack offers faster, more flexible, and intuitive real-time insights with customizable dashboards and the ability to build custom reports.
Our Take:
Better analytics mean better decision-making. Brands can leverage these tools to gain deeper insights into their performance, track marketing campaign success, and make data-driven decisions. Customizable reports allow brands to focus on the metrics that matter most to them, whether it’s conversion rates, sales performance, or customer behavior patterns.
What’s New?
Improvements to Shopify’s checkout process include:
• Split Shipping: Allows customers to choose different shipping options for parts of their order.
• Checkout Blocks: Now free and easy to customize without coding.
• Payment Capture: Automates payment capture upon partial order fulfillment
Our Take:
A smoother checkout process can lead to higher conversion rates and improved customer satisfaction. Split shipping options provide customers with more control over their delivery preferences, potentially reducing cart abandonment. Checkout customization without coding lowers the barrier for creating a branded checkout experience, making it easier for small businesses to compete with larger retailers. Automated payment capture can streamline financial operations and reduce errors.
What’s New?
Shopify’s Split Shipping feature allows customers to choose different shipping options for parts of their order. This means that if a customer orders multiple items, they can opt to have some items shipped faster while others take a standard shipping route. This flexibility is especially useful for customers who need some items urgently but are willing to wait for others.
Our Take:
The introduction of Split Shipping can significantly enhance the customer experience by providing more control over delivery preferences. This flexibility can reduce cart abandonment rates, as customers no longer need to choose between waiting for all items to arrive together or placing multiple orders. For merchants, this feature can optimize fulfillment processes, as it allows for better distribution of shipping loads across different locations, potentially reducing shipping costs and delivery times.
What’s New?
Shopify’s Semantic Search feature leverages advanced AI to improve the search functionality within online stores. Unlike traditional keyword-based search, semantic search understands the context and intent behind a search query, delivering more accurate and relevant results. This feature helps customers find what they are looking for more quickly and efficiently.
Our Take:
Enhanced search capabilities can dramatically improve the user experience on an e-commerce site. By understanding the context of search queries, semantic search ensures that customers are presented with the most relevant products, even if their search terms are not exact matches. This can lead to higher conversion rates, as customers are more likely to find and purchase products they need. For merchants, this feature can reduce the bounce rate and increase customer satisfaction by making the shopping experience more intuitive and user-friendly.
What’s New?
Shopify now allows merchants to stack multiple discounts on a single order. This means that customers can take advantage of various promotions, such as product-specific discounts and order-level discounts, simultaneously. This flexibility is crucial for creating complex promotional strategies that can appeal to different customer segments.
Our Take:
The ability to stack multiple discounts can significantly enhance promotional campaigns, making them more attractive to customers. For instance, a customer could use a holiday discount alongside a loyalty program discount, increasing the overall value they receive. This can drive higher sales volumes and improve customer loyalty. Merchants can leverage this feature to create targeted and layered promotions that can attract new customers while rewarding existing ones, ultimately boosting sales and customer retention.
What’s New?
The new Style Settings give merchants more control over storefront layouts and designs across different devices. The Hydrogen Visual Editor allows non-technical team members to design and build headless commerce stores visually
Our Take:
Enhanced customization tools mean brands can create a unique and consistent shopping experience that reflects their brand identity. The Hydrogen Visual Editor can facilitate better collaboration between design and development teams, ensuring that the storefront looks great and functions well without extensive coding. This can result in a more engaging and seamless customer experience, ultimately driving higher sales and brand loyalty.
What’s New?
Shopify has introduced new tools for B2B merchants:
• Bulk Management: Improved tools for managing and publishing supplier products.
• Managed Markets: Simplifies international B2B operations.
• B2B Trade Theme: Customizable themes for wholesale operations
Our Take:
These updates can significantly streamline B2B operations, making it easier to manage large inventories and complex transactions. Bulk management tools can save time and reduce errors, while customizable B2B themes can help create a professional and tailored shopping experience for wholesale customers. Simplified international operations mean that even smaller B2B companies can consider expanding globally without the usual headaches.
What’s New?
Shipping and fulfillment updates include:
• Supplier Shipping Rates: Real-time shipping rates based on supplier costs
• Shopify Collective: Synchronizes product fields for efficient management
Our Take:
Accurate shipping rates and synchronized product management can enhance the fulfillment process, leading to faster delivery times and improved customer satisfaction. Brands can leverage these tools to optimize their logistics, reducing costs and increasing efficiency. This can also help in providing transparent and reliable shipping options to customers, which is crucial for maintaining trust and loyalty.
What’s New?
Shopify’s marketing tools have been enhanced with:
• Shopify Audiences: Custom retargeting lists and campaign promotions
• Shop Minis: Simple shopping experiences within the Shop app
• Advanced Analytics: Enhanced tracking of ad performance across channels
Our Take:
Effective marketing is crucial for growth, and these tools provide brands with powerful ways to reach and engage their audience. Custom retargeting lists and advanced analytics can help brands fine-tune their marketing strategies, improving ROI. Shop Minis can drive engagement within the Shop app, potentially increasing sales from mobile users. These updates provide a comprehensive toolkit for brands to expand their reach and boost their marketing efforts.
What’s New?
This feature enables store transfers to enhance pickup points for customers. If a product is not available at the preferred pickup store, it can be relocated there from another store or distribution center.
Our Take:
Increasing the number of pickup points improves delivery and stock management, enhancing customer satisfaction by providing more flexible and convenient pickup options.
What’s New?
Allows retail staff to ship orders from store locations, reducing pressure on any single store and cutting down expensive shipping costs.
Our Take:
This workflow can optimize logistics by distributing the shipping load across multiple stores, leading to faster fulfillment and cost savings.
What’s New?
Synchronizes in-store and online fulfillment operations to offer more delivery options and a seamless shopping experience.
Our Take:
By integrating online and offline operations, brands can provide a more cohesive customer experience, enhancing satisfaction and loyalty.
What’s New?
US-based merchants can offer premium Shop Pay Installments, allowing customers to pay in interest-free installments or over longer periods with interest.
Our Take:
Flexible payment options can increase sales by making high-ticket items more accessible to a broader audience.
What’s New?
Allows you to create and manage subscription-based products directly from your Shopify admin, offering customizable delivery schedules and discounts.
Our Take:
Subscriptions can provide a steady revenue stream and increase customer loyalty. This feature makes it easier to implement and manage subscription models.
What’s New?
Marketplace Connect integrates your product catalog with Amazon, eBay, and Etsy, simplifying the management of listings and inventory.
Our Take:
Integrating with major marketplaces can expand your reach and streamline operations, saving time and effort in managing multiple sales channels.
What’s New?
Allows merchants to customize their storefront with a drag-and-drop interface, changing alignments, adding new elements, and resizing sections.
Our Take:
This feature makes it easier for merchants to create visually appealing and functional storefronts without needing coding skills, enhancing the customer experience and driving sales.
What’s New?
Enables the creation of single product listings that showcase multiple items, such as gift baskets or bundled outfits.
Our Take:
Combined listings can increase sales by promoting complementary products together and providing customers with convenient shopping options.
What’s New?
Merchants can issue store credits to customers directly within Shopify, which can be used for future purchases.
Our Take:
Store credits can improve customer retention by encouraging repeat purchases and providing a flexible return policy.
What’s New?
AI suggests the most relevant categories and attributes for new products, improving product organization and SEO.
Our Take:
Better product categorization can enhance the shopping experience by making it easier for customers to find what they’re looking for, ultimately boosting sales.
What’s New?
Updates for Shopify POS users include remote grid management and mandatory customer information collection during checkout.
Our Take:
These updates can improve the efficiency and accuracy of in-store operations, leading to better customer service and streamlined sales processes.
Shopify’s Summer 2024 Editions bring a host of new features designed to make running your e-commerce business smoother and more efficient. From AI-driven tools to advanced analytics and streamlined global selling capabilities, these updates are all about helping you scale your business and provide a better customer experience. Whether you’re a small merchant or a large enterprise, there’s something in this update for everyone.
Need help navigating these new features or optimizing your Shopify store? Reach out to us! Our team of experts is ready to assist you in leveraging these updates to grow your business. For a deeper dive into all the new features, you can explore the full Shopify Editions Summer 2024 report here.
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