Originally published on LinkedIn, September 2023.
Does SEO on Shopify sucks? π
I'm currently working on a new migration for a huge retailer from a custom solution to Shopify Plus. And their SEO consultants are not in love with me. Let me explain π
Imagine that you've been investing for the last 7 years on a perfectly optimised solution to gather as much organic traffic as possible. You've invested a lot of energy and resources to make sure you do everything by the book and you actually see the results of your hard work.
How would you feel to see all of that hard work suddenly "go to waste", because of an executive decision you were not even involved with? I'm not an SEO genius, but as a Shopify Expert, who guided the client through their decision to upgrade to Shopify Plus, I have some ideas on how to handle this tricky situation.
Connect, Engage & Be there
Before even starting to solve this massively risky situation, I had to position myself so I could have a fighting chance. To be completely transparent, this step involves some amount of luck, but for sake of the conversation, let's assume we can make our own luck to a certain extent.
During this period when I knew I'd have to face some unhappy SEO pros, I did my best to keep connecting on LinkedIn with all major players who could in theory explain me why is Shopify so bad for SEO, as many specialists claim. Funny enough, I connected with a popular consultant who shared with me on the DMs how unhappy he was about one of his clients migrating to Shopify. I was as curious as one could be at that point.
Hoping that we'd be able to sit for coffee some day to discuss his concerns, my prayers were attended waaaay faster than expected. In a couple of hours I get a meeting on my calendar organised by my client to speak with their SEO vendors. You can imagine my surprise when he was the same gentleman I connected with on Linkedin just moments ago.
Listen & Take Notes
As the philosophers realised a long time ago we have two ears and one mouth for a very good reason. Donβt be on the defensive. Instead be ready to empathise with everyoneβs concerns and assume thereβs something for you to learn out of that conversation. Not only you donβt want to be a jerk, but also you want to become a bit smarter than you were yesterday. Analysing complicated problems with the best from different fields is a rare educational opportunity. Donβt take those for granted - appreciate them. Besides all this apparent kumbaya, do your best to generate action points from those conversations. Verify if everyone is on the same page and get their buy-in on how to handle the specific challenge at hand.
Shopify URL structure
Oh no, my kryptonite β οΈ Shopify doesnβt allow you to change the structure of your URLs to be whatever you want. You can change handles, the last part of the link, but not the rest of it. What does this mean? If you sell airplane models, you cannot simply create a URL for their category like topgunshop.com/airplane-models , neither can you have a product URL as topgunshop.com/toms-favourite-airplane neither topgunshop.com/shop/toms-favourite-airplane . Instead you have some rules that work universally for any Shopify store:
domain.com/collections/cool-category β will lead you to the collection page with the handle βcool-categoryβ
domain.com/products/cool-stuff β will lead you to the product page with the handle βcool-stuffβ
domain.com/blogs/cool-blog β will lead you to the blog directory page with the handle βcool-blogβ
domain.com/blogs/cool-blog/great-article β will lead you to the article with the handle "great-article", which belongs to the blog with the handle βcool-blogβ
domain.com/cart β well, will lead you to the cart. My point is that you canβt change it for "basket" by default for example.
Most brands don't care too much about this. But we're talking specifically about high-level SEO pros, who take these things quite seriously. Their prediction is:
If we have to migrate to a different URL structure, even if we do it everything 100% correctly (which almost never really happens), the brand will loose up to 50% of their organic traffic temporarily for a period that could go from a few weeks to 6 months.
This sucks. It sounds terrible at least. Thankfully, we have some options to throw at the client for consideration. If we choose to implement an headless architecture (where the frontend is fully decoupled from Shopify's backend), we can indeed keep all the URLs as we want. This decision comes with its own drawbacks:
Much more expensive implementation
Not possible to use Shopify's theme editor
Harder to use apps that affect your frontend (custom integrations being required)
As you see, this not so simple SEO requirement is bringing to the table an interesting business decision: how much money will I loose in the worst case scenario? Is it a relevant enough number that should make me want to go for an headless solution?
I won't answer to this question right now - it will be the client's decision in the end. From my side, As of 2026, Shopify still enforces these URL prefixes β though its broader SEO, Shopify Markets, and hreflang capabilities have improved significantly, to make all of our lives much simpler.
Filtering
Here are only a few of the SEO requirements that were presented to us:
Filter functionality should work even when JavaScript is disabled.
Important filter combinations should have separate sitemaps.
Filters should be optimized to limit crawling based on keyword analysis.
Prohibit multi-select options in filters for crawling in robots.txt and mark them as "no-follow" for links.
Do not allow combinations of more than 3 parameter values for crawling in robots.txt and mark them as "no-follow" for links.
Filters must be accessible for search engine crawling robots.
Ensure that filters generate unique URLs with unique content (titles, meta descriptions, headings, excerpts).
Unfortunately, this won't be super simple to achieve on Shopify by default. Shopify has its own solution that covers most basic search and filtering functionalities, but for more complex needs we have the Shopify App Store to rely on. We'll need to make a deep-dive into some of the most popular solutions out there, to see if we could rely on them to implement these requests. I'm not super optimistic about it though.
Should I despair? Not also πͺ Shopify's flexible and powerful enough to give us the tools to build whatever we want. That's the magic of this platform. Many may still believe that Shopify is a closed box with its functions and capabilities. To some extent, yes - it has its pros and cons as any solution. But Shopify is first and foremost a toolbox built by developers for developers to create whatever needed on top of it. And that's what we're gonna do.
Which SEO Features Does Shopify Provide?
Aside from its search engine-friendly nature, Shopify provides a range of integrated SEO capabilities, including:
Automatic sitemaps and XML sitemaps
The ability to customize your store's URL structure
URL optimization
Support for meta tags
Implementation of canonical tags
SSL certification
Structured data support
Mobile-friendliness
Auto-generation of a robots.txt file (a text file that guides web spiders)
301 redirects
You can check here as well the support resources from Shopify's documentation on SEO.
Conclusion
In conclusion, migrating a major retailer to Shopify Plus while addressing SEO concerns isn't without challenges. Maintaining connections with SEO experts, understanding URL structure impacts, and meeting specific SEO requirements like filters and unique URLs can be tricky. While addressing these requirements can be complex, Shopify offers the needed flexibility for custom solutions.
So, does SEO on Shopify suck? It depends on how well you navigate these challenges. With a strategic approach and a focus on business goals, Shopify can indeed deliver effective SEO results.
Reminder: SEO isn't everything
As we navigate the SEO challenges of transitioning to Shopify, it's essential to recognize the myriad advantages this platform offers. Beyond SEO, Shopify presents a comprehensive suite of benefits that can substantially boost your retailer's success:
E-Commerce Powerhouse: Shopify stands as an e-commerce juggernaut, providing a robust, scalable platform for online businesses. Your growth knows no bounds.
User-Friendly Interface: Shopify's intuitive interface empowers your team to efficiently manage your store. Effortlessly add products, update content, and process orders without complications.
App Ecosystem: Access a diverse array of apps and integrations that extend your store's functionality. These tools can enhance marketing, streamline operations, and improve customer experiences.
Security and Reliability: Your customers can trust Shopify's top-tier security and dependable performance, ensuring a safe and seamless shopping journey.
Cross-Sell and Upsell Potential: Leverage Shopify's wealth of tools and data to implement cross-selling strategies, increasing Average Order Value (AOV) and Customer Lifetime Value (LTV).
Vendor-Lock Avoidance: Embrace the flexibility to escape vendor-lock pitfalls often associated with local custom solutions. Shopify gives you control and independence.
E-commerce and Technological Innovation: Join the ranks of those at the forefront of e-commerce and technological innovation. Shopify continually evolves to keep you competitive in the ever-changing digital landscape.
In summary, while SEO remains paramount, Shopify equips you with a comprehensive toolbox for holistic success. Make the most of these capabilities, leverage data-driven insights, and position your retailer as a leader in e-commerce and technology.
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