What store owners need to know about Shopify 2.0

Shopify is bringing major changes to the world of e-commerce with the release of its 2.0 update, significantly improving the online store experience. One of Shopify's biggest updates ever, Shopify 2.0 includes a host of new features that are redefining the store design experience—a reimagining designed to improve the experience for both Shopify developers and Shopify merchants. As one of the fastest-growing e-commerce platforms in the world, Shopify continues to meet the requests of its merchants and developers by releasing a new version of the online store build, which includes improvements to the themes and online store editor, store content, and developer tools. All of this is designed to comprehensively enhance store development and overall store performance for its merchants. In this article, we'll take a quick look at 5 new features in Shopify Online Store 2.0 and how this update is changing your Shopify experience as an online store owner and Shopify merchant. Let's get started.

1) Theme update

One of the most exciting and anticipated changes seen in the update is the theme architecture update. The theme architecture update is designed to provide merchants and developers with a more flexible customization experience. This means that merchants will no longer be limited to the number of blocks available in their store, as the 2.0 update allows users to insert new sections into each page without being restricted by templates. Where previously you could only add and move sections on the home page, you can now have sections with additional functionality on your website. The new update offers creative freedom and flexibility to merchants and developers to design and customize sites to suit their needs.

2) Improved Metafields

One of the big improvements that comes with the updated theme editor is that it allows merchants to add metafields and properties without the use of APIs or coding. If you're wondering what metafields are, they're additional fields you can use to display information about your products, pages, or collections. Metafields you might be familiar with include information like product title, supplier, product type, variants, and product descriptions. With the new update, improved metafields allow merchants to add new information fields that lead to a more personalized store. Examples include fields such as size charts, ingredient lists, composition, care instructions, and so on. This update applies not only to product pages, but also to other pages with the 2.0 update. Before the 2.0 update, users were required to edit their code to add additional product information, which could be difficult for some. Now, however, you can edit and customize your metafields more easily. Additionally, metafields now support media such as PDFs. The new metafield file selector makes it easier to upload selected media to product pages for use.

3) Modularity of the app

Another feature worth highlighting is the theme's app extension, which allows you to extend apps into themes via app blocks. This update fixes the previous issue of having to access a theme's code every time you wanted to add or remove an app from your store, to avoid leaving unused code in your theme. The new theme app extension moves things faster directly through the theme editor. App Blocks represent a major shift in the way apps are now included in themes, as app developers can now create UI components that can be added, removed, and modified directly through an intuitive theme editor without merchants having to touch a theme's code. With the 2.0 update, app installations and deletions are simply easier and much cleaner.

4) Faster checkout

One of Shopify's main focuses with their new update is loading speed, reporting that the new default theme called Dawn is up to 35% faster than the previous Debut theme. Online Store 2.0 also boasts checkout updates, allowing stores to process tens of thousands of transactions per minute. Not only will a store be able to handle more transaction volume, but Shopify has also announced new payment apps you can add to your store. This offers more options for Shopify merchants, with even more customization options for Shopify Plus users. ‍

5) Improved developer tools

Shopify's Online Store 2.0 update introduced a new way for developers to build apps and themes for their merchants, with new tools to help with theme development, testing, and deployment. Among the tools launched by Shopify is a new integration with GitHub, which simplifies the tracking and management of theme development and maintenance. The Shopify CLI helps developers create themes and apps by automating many common development tasks, while Theme Check is a language server for Liquid and JSON that analyzes themes for errors, performance issues, and more. All of this makes it easier to develop your store and debug issues quickly and efficiently. We can't help but look forward to seeing how the network of apps, themes, and services surrounding the new update will grow in the future thanks to new and improved developer tools.

Are you excited about the new Shopify update?

It's officially a new era for Shopify e-commerce, merchants, and developers. One of the main reasons to be excited about the new update is the freedom and increased control merchants will have over the look and feel of their online store. With Online Store 2.0, merchants and developers have greater opportunities to design, develop, and monetize their stores.

What does this mean for merchants with stores created before the Shopify 2.0 update?

All new online stores created with Shopify will now come with the default Dawn theme, Shopify's improved base theme. If you're concerned about your store running on an older version of Shopify, there shouldn't be anything to worry about. Your store will function normally, and you shouldn't notice any changes other than the theme editor interface. Upgrading to Online Store 2.0 is not mandatory, but for those who wish to upgrade and use certain features of Online Store 2.0, there are several ways, including:

Manual theme migration

Download a new version of the current theme (if the theme offers an updated 2.0 version)

Download a 2.0 theme from the Shopify Theme Store

For merchants who want to understand the best option for their online store when it comes to Shopify's Online Store 2.0, there is also the option of consulting with an experienced Shopify developer to take a closer look at the details of Online Store 2.0 and help them run a better online store.

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