Theme editing tips for Shopify 2.0
First, familiarise yourself with editing basics:
Understand level of support available:
- Shopify’s Help Centre for everything Shopify
- Then, Theme developer for guides on theme sections
- Finally, Tower for customisations added to your theme or new development requests.
Add content to launch later
Simply add new content such as homepage promotions through sections or banners. Then, hide the block or section & hit Save. When ready, make visible & publish!
In contrast, when looking for a complete overhaul, work on an unpublished copy, then publish when you're ready to share.
Backing up is your friend
When starting off it’s a good idea to make a copy or backup the theme before making major changes.
TIPS:
- Keep your themes labelled with a date or small description of change.
- Instead of copying themes, download your live theme periodically - also avoids confusion & saves space within your theme list
Can't edit text within your theme? It may be default text!
In addition to customising your theme, you can also change the default text for theme or Shopify labels. For example, you can change "Cart" to "Shopping bag", or "Sold out" to "Unavailable". Each theme includes a language editor where you can edit the text for your theme. Checkout page included.
Group menu items without a collection or page link
Headings can be created within a menu by adding an empty link.
Use it as a 1st or 2nd level menu item. Add link collections underneath. Especially helpful when exploring megamenu theme features.
- Enter “#”, wait for link to load and select “#” again to confirm.
{This is the current behaviour when pasting an external link anywhere within Shopify) - Add a menu label relevant to the product ranges.
- Drag & Drop or add links underneath, as necessary.
More on menus:
Update your Storefront Filters
Product data can be enabled as website filters making it easier for customers navigate your site. So, if you add any products with new Variants or Classifications, don't forget to enable it within your site.
TIP: If you have many choices, consider grouping options for a better customer experience.
Become familiar with how to edit filters (also Recommended Products)
And TWC sync preferences
Create & assign page layouts with templates
Included in your theme are templates (default layouts) for the homepage, pages, collections, products and more. You can now create your own layouts and assign to pages as needed.
Editing a template applies the changes to every page that uses that template and so recommended for unique layouts.
More on templates:
Feature more content with Metafields & Metaobjects (advanced)
Metafields are a great way to use one template yet display different content.
Examples:
- Change a promotion on certain pages but not all
- Add logos associated with a collection or page
- Display custom info for products
Take Metafields a step further and organise them into Metaobjects to fit your theme, specifically a block or a section. This means managing something like your promotion via the Admin page instead of Theme editor.
TIP: Pin Metafields to make them easier to update within Shopify admin
If you would like advice on website development or moving to faceted filtering, get in touch via webdesign@towersystems.com.au
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