Table of Contents

1. Enhanced conversion
   • 1.1. Product sales
   • 1.2. Enhanced search engine
   • 1.3. Official app and subscription support
   • 1.4. New checkout and App Store features
2. B2B sales channels
3. Marketing
   • 3.1. Shopify Audiences
   • 3.2. Shopify Collabs
   • 3.3. Integrated Reviews
4. Operations
   • 4.1. Artificial intelligence
   • 4.2. Shopify finance
   • 4.3. Automations with Shopify Flow
5. Summary

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Shopify, as a leader in the e-commerce industry, has just announced its latest updates in the Winter Edition 2024, offering online entrepreneurs and brands a range of exciting enhancements and new features. In today's world, where online shopping is an integral part of our lives, Shopify continues its mission to provide innovative solutions that help sellers succeed in the digital marketplace.

From advanced product merchandising to improvements in order fulfillment processes, to new AI-based tools – Winter Edition 2024 is full of innovations. With these updates, Shopify enables sellers to better adapt to changing consumer needs and growing competition in the e-commerce industry, while also making store management easier and increasing its appeal to customers.

Enhanced conversion

Product sales

Shopify introduces significant changes in product merchandising, offering new possibilities for stores with more complex catalogs. As part of the Shopify Plus plan, the "Combined Listings" app is one of the key features available to store owners. This feature allows for the presentation of products available in different variants under one main listing, with a unique description, media gallery, and URL for each version. This enhancement is specifically designed for Shopify Plus stores, providing them with advanced tools for more effective product management and better adaptation of the offer to customer needs. 

Additionally, enhanced product taxonomy and new APIs support up to 2000 variants per product, significantly facilitating the management of extensive catalogs. 

Furthermore, Shopify provides tools for managing multiple variants at once, including the ability to edit prices and availability for single and multiple warehouse locations. Support for color samples has also been introduced, making it easier for customers to find and purchase products. Shopify now offers a single access point to all multimedia files – images, videos, and 3D models – on product and variant pages. All of this makes Shopify an even more flexible and powerful platform for online sellers who want to effectively manage their products and enhance their online stores.

Enhanced search engine

The "Semantic Search" feature in Shopify is an intelligent search tool that uses artificial intelligence to better understand the intent behind a customer's search. This allows for more relevant search results. This feature, along with additional filtering options such as visual filters for samples, is available only to Shopify Plus users. It enables customers to more easily find products by specific colors, patterns, or materials, as well as customize filtering logic to individual needs. 

Official app and subscription support

Shopify has introduced new features to support sellers in increasing order value and retaining customers. With the Shopify Subscriptions app, sellers can now offer products in a subscription form, contributing to the growth of predictable revenue. The maximum number of products in bundles has also been increased to 30, allowing for greater flexibility in promotional offers. Shopify has also introduced improvements in draft orders, including support for discount codes and the ability to transfer metafields to final orders. New types of discounts, such as free shipping or discounts, aim to increase conversion and better present savings to customers.

New checkout and app store features

Shopify Checkout has been enhanced with new API features and UI components, enabling more personalized payment experiences. The new one-page checkout design shortens the transaction completion time, and Shopify's infrastructure is now significantly faster. The Shopify App Store offers over 90 new apps that further enhance the payment process. Shop Pay introduces new features, including installment options and integrated digital wallets that can be used across different payment systems. It is worth mentioning that these are mainly features available in the Shopify Plus plan.

B2B sales channels

B2B on Shopify offers many new features and possibilities that will help grow your business, available only in the Shopify Plus plan. Here are a few of them:

1. Allowing sales representatives to place B2B orders and view customer information only for their accounts. With new staff permissions, you can restrict data access while providing convenience to your sellers.

2. Trade is a new Shopify template optimized for B2B. It speeds up store setup, especially for wholesale businesses. Customers can easily place wholesale orders with new quick order features while customizing the template to their business needs.

3. The ability to create custom promotions for B2B customers. You can create special promotional discounts exclusively for your B2B customers using third-party apps or custom apps based on Shopify features. Additional discounts can be applied to wholesale prices assigned to catalogs.

4. The ability to record partial payments made outside the platform. Now partial payments, such as checks and bank transfers, can also be recorded in the admin panel for easier payment tracking. Paid and unpaid balances are visible for each order and available for both B2B and D2C orders.

5. Support for digital products in the B2B ordering process. You can increase B2B revenue by expanding your wholesale offer to include intangible products such as digital products, warranties, and services. This feature is available exclusively to Shopify Plus users.

6. The ability to sync wholesale data with Acumatica ERP integration. With a ready-made integration with Acumatica, you can speed up time to market by using the full set of B2B features offered by Shopify Plus.

7. Shopify Collective offers better filters and delivery details. You can expand your product range by accessing thousands of brands. You can narrow down your search using filters for retail prices, categories, margins, and free shipping. Additionally, you can assess product quality using verified reviews.

8. Shopify Collective also offers new timelines for order tracking. This allows you to easily track orders on a clear supplier timeline. You will know when orders are paid, when funds are transferred, when they should be fulfilled, and whether a cancellation request has occurred.

Marketing

Shopify Audiences

The ability to retarget twice as many potential customers with improved custom lists Retargeting Boost in version 2.2. With the introduction of smarter algorithms that maximize performance on key advertising platforms, most sellers at least double the size of their retargeting audiences. This feature is available exclusively to Shopify Plus users. New metrics have also been introduced to compare ad performance against similar stores or industry groups in Shopify Audiences. You can explore key metrics and separate seasonal trends from campaign performance using historical data.

Shopify Collabs

Intuitive creator filters and search

Easier discovery of creators on various social media platforms with new location and audience filters, as well as search options. You can find creators with network tags or quickly browse applications, saved profiles, and pending invitations.

Pay commissions automatically with Shopify Billing

Save time by paying creators through Shopify Billing. Automatic payments reliably track, monitor, and remove commissions for returned orders.

Consolidated creator profiles

Learn about a creator's social media statistics, invite them to promote your brand, and browse collaboration history, including current partnership offers and sales, in one consolidated profile.

Organize your creator connections in Shopify Collabs

View all your Collabs creator connections in one optimized table. Sort creators by partnership level, tags, driven sales, and easily access creator profiles.

Customize partnership offers by segment in Shopify Collabs

Set different commission rates for orders placed by new and returning customers, or adjust commission rates and discounts based on your own customer segments.

TikTok shop now available for all Businesses

Sync your products with TikTok, engage your community through organic product discovery, and convert new customers on the same platform where they consume content, all while managing orders in Shopify.

Integrated reviews

With new partners and surfaces, reviews and ratings can now be synchronized across more platforms, such as the online store, apps, and Shopify Collective. This is made possible with tools like Yotpo, Loox, Judge.me, Okendo, and Stamped.io.

Responses to reviews in the store are now synchronized across all channels, allowing for seamless data management supported by metaobjects. In the online store, store-generated reviews now include the "Verified by Store" badge, which builds trust with customers.

Marketing reports allow you to understand and predict the value of customer groups, as well as use historical and predicted spending metrics to gain insights based on long-term customer value and optimize customer retention over time.

In terms of metadata and metaobjects, the system allows for the import and export of customer metadata, enabling customization of imported customer information and export of metadata for analysis. Additionally, it is possible to review a customer's email history from their profile, allowing for informed customer support through a record of all transactional emails sent to each customer. Furthermore, filtering customers based on the app that created them enables more precise bulk actions and marketing activities by segmenting customers based on the app that created their customer ID.

Operations

Artificial intelligence

With new image editing features using artificial intelligence, you can create professional product photos without the need for design skills. Just a few clicks or keywords to generate, match, or remove backgrounds from existing photos. This revolutionary tool will be available in early 2024.

Can you imagine having a Shopify expert always at your fingertips? Now it's possible with Sidekick, who acts as a personal advisor. Sidekick offers tailored advice for your business, helping you achieve more, faster, and more effectively.

Creating content for your store becomes easier than ever with Shopify Magic. Now you can quickly create new pages, such as "About Us" or FAQs, using artificial intelligence. It's the perfect way to build customer trust in your brand.

Shopify Finance

Don't know when unexpected expenses will appear? Now you can be ready with Shopify's flexible Line of Credit. Request funds at any time, pay interest only on the funds used, not the entire limit. No setup or withdrawal fees, no unexpected surprises.

Get access to financing tailored to your needs with Shopify Long-Term Loans. You can customize your offer and set a payment schedule that best suits your operations. No credit checks and no hidden fees.

Save time paying bills by automatically syncing invoices from Gmail, QuickBooks Online, or Stocky. As an owner, you can now grant employees access to handle money transfers. You'll receive a notification when a bill is paid.

Automations with Shopify Flow

Shopify Flow brings innovative solutions for entrepreneurs who want to further automate their operations.

Now you can write your own JavaScript code to perform custom operations, aggregate data, calculate dates, and more using the "Run code" action. It's a great tool for handling more complex business needs.

Find ready-made automations even faster with the natural search feature. Now in the editor, you can search all available tasks in one central place, saving time and making it easier to find the right solutions.

You no longer have to worry about failed processes. Shopify Flow will automatically notify you when something goes wrong, allowing you to quickly respond and minimize disruptions to your business operations.

With these new features, Shopify Flow becomes even more user-friendly and effective in managing your store's automation. Try them now and see how they can streamline your business!

Summary

In the latest Shopify Winter Edition 2024 update, a range of significant enhancements have been introduced. In the area of conversion, Shopify Plus stores gained the "Combined Listings" feature, making it easier to manage products with different variants. Additionally, product taxonomy has been optimized, allowing for the handling of up to 2000 variants per product. For Shopify Plus users, "Semantic Search," an intelligent search tool, and the Shopify Subscriptions app for offering products in a subscription form have also been introduced. Checkout has been improved, and the Shopify App Store offers over 90 new apps that facilitate payments. For the B2B sector, many new features have been introduced, such as the ability for sales representatives to place orders and custom promotions. In the area of marketing, Shopify Audiences and Shopify Collabs provide greater control over campaigns and collaboration with creators. In terms of operations, AI-based tools, Shopify's flexible Line of Credit, and automation features in Shopify Flow have been introduced. These enhancements allow sellers to adapt to changing customer needs and increase the appeal of their online stores.

FAQ

1. What is the "Combined Listings" feature for Shopify Plus stores? - The "Combined Listings" feature is a new capability available for stores using the Shopify Plus plan. It allows for the presentation of products available in different variants under one main listing, with a unique description, media gallery, and URL for each version. This enhancement is specifically designed for stores with extensive catalogs, enabling more efficient product management.

2. What changes have been made to the search engine? - The new search engine in Shopify uses artificial intelligence to better understand customer intent during searches. As a result, search results are more relevant. This feature is available only to Shopify Plus users and allows customers to more easily find products by specific colors, patterns, or materials.

3. What benefits does the Shopify Subscriptions app offer? - The Shopify Subscriptions app allows sellers to offer products in a subscription form. This enables the generation of predictable revenue and customer retention. Improvements have also been made to draft orders, including support for discount codes and the ability to transfer metafields to final orders.

4. What new features have been introduced in terms of payments and the checkout process? - Shopify Checkout has been improved with new API features and UI components, shortening transaction completion time. The Shopify App Store offers over 90 new apps that facilitate payments. Shop Pay introduces installment options and integrated digital wallets that can be used across different payment systems. These features are mainly available in the Shopify Plus plan.

5. What capabilities does the B2B sector offer on the Shopify Plus platform? - The B2B sector on Shopify Plus gains many new features, such as the ability for sales representatives to place orders, custom promotions, and support for digital products. This facilitates starting and growing a B2B business on the Shopify Plus platform.

6. How does Shopify assist in managing marketing and collaboration with creators? - Shopify Audiences and Shopify Collabs enable more advanced management of marketing campaigns and collaboration with creators. They allow for better control over target groups, campaign performance analysis, and more effective collaboration with influencers.

7. What AI-based tools have been introduced in the Shopify update? - The update introduces AI-based tools that allow for easy creation of professional product photos, the personal advisor Sidekick, and quick content creation with Shopify Magic. These tools help sellers manage their stores and brands more efficiently.