7 Summer ’22 Shopify Updates That High Growth DTC Brands Will Love

Shopify released a monster update on the 22nd of June, with approximately 100 new features.

We looked through the list and thought long and hard about the features that would be of particular interest to you, a small to mid-sized fast-growing DTC brand that:

• need to tell a coherent brand story,
• maintain a consistent growth trajectory in the face of adverse macroeconomic headwinds, and
• would like to roll out store enhancements while dev keeping costs low.

We came up with a list of 7 updates that you might be excited about.

1. Reach out to high intent customers with Shopify Audiences

What is it?
Shopify Audiences aggregates customer data across its entire merchant network, lets brands export it to Facebook, and runs ads using that list.

The details are encrypted to guarantee customer privacy but the algorithm becomes better at finding better fit audiences with time.

Shopify Audiences are available for Facebook/Instagram ads right now for Shopify Plus merchants.

Why should you care about it?

Shopify Audiences can be a better replacement for Facebook Lookalike Audiences, especially after the iOS14 privacy updates degraded Facebook ad targeting because:

• It’s made up of high intent audiences i.e. buyers compared to Lookalike Audiences that are often based on self-reported interests.
• ROAS has increased by as much as 6X for ads run using Shopify Audiences because the conversion rate is much higher.
• You can create custom audiences for each product you sell right from the Shopify dashboard and track the performance of ads right there, reducing reporting complexity.

Shopify Audiences might be the most important feature update since it has the potential to lower CAC and improve operating margins.

Here’s what Chloe Thomas, host of one of the top podcasts for Shopify store owners says about Audiences:

“If I was running the ads for an eCommerce brand right now – I’d be busy testing the Shopify Audiences on all our ad platforms to find some sweet spots I could roll out for Q4”

2. Make checkout a memorable experience

What is it?
The Baymard Institute estimates that the average eCommerce cart abandonment rate is 69.82% and a whopping $260bn of lost sales could be recovered by improving checkout experience.

The Jun update makes one-click checkout through Shop Pay available across all Shopify stores, while Shopify Plus merchants can customize their checkout experience with multiple options using custom apps.

Customizing the Shopify checkout experience (Image source)

Why should you care about it?

These updates and enhancements to one-click checkout (coupled with Shop Pay) will let brands:

• Improve checkout to order rate by 70% compared to multiple-step checkouts, while 4Xing the speed of checkout and improving conversion rate by 11%.
• Offer multiple discounts, show one-time offers, change the UI of the checkout, layer on multiple discounts or capture additional data post checkout.
• Get access to valuable insights like customer behavior metrics, campaign, and coupon performance data, or returning customer data.

This video shows an example of how the new checkout extensions could look like

3. Supercharge B2B  eCommerce on Shopify

What is it?
After years of being walloped by the likes of BigCommerce and Magento, Shopify finally dropped a workable B2B offering with quite a few long-demanded features like custom price lists for different customers and tiered pricing.

It is designed to help brands start selling B2B and B2C  using the same store and is open to Shopify Plus merchants as of now.

Why should you care about it?

If you have a significant percentage of revenue coming from B2B, you might still find the new update lacking – check out this LinkedIn post for more details.

But if you are thinking of diversifying from pureplay B2C to B2C eCommerce and running some experiments, Shopify just made your life much easier and would have saved your brand plenty of time and resources.

4. Reward fans through tokengated commerce

What is it?
Shopify has finally made it simple for any merchant to take advantage of NFTs and reward their loyal customers with exclusive experiences and merchandise through tokengated commerce. 

Merchants can download any of the 8 Shopify tokengated commerce apps and get started with NFTs almost immediately.

Check this video for more insights (the feature is available right now in early access beta mode).

Why should you care about it?

NFTs are out of favor right now but the core concept undergirding them remains solid- check out our previous post on blockchains in eCommerce, and an example of how NFTs work in the real world:

Shopify had previously offered limited support for NFTs but now with expanded support for NFTs:

• The Invisible Friend project is giving out exclusive merch to fans who have the Friend NFT through a tokengated vending machine
• IKONICK is collaborating with Okay Bears to create an exclusive tokengated store open only to Okay Bears holders.
• DTC brands can use tokens to reward loyal customers and grant them privileged access to events and experiences.

Done well, NFTs can help DTC brands strengthen their community of fans and advocates and make them feel part of something big.

5. Bring storytelling front and center with custom storefronts

What is it?
Long in beta, Shopify has now made it simple for DTC brands to create dynamic, custom stores using Hydrogen and deploy it for free on Oxygen.

Here’s how Shopify pitches the new update

Why should you care about it?

At Talkoot we have always championed product storytelling as a way for high-growth DTC brands to break through the clutter.

But visual storytelling is also critical, and Shopify brands need to do a lot of custom coding to balance form and function.

Hydrogen makes that job much easier, and also makes sense for brands if they want to:

• Build a unique and memorable website, like the apparel brand Denim Tear’s immersive site.
• Roll out critical product updates quickly like Allbird’s store locator which loads extremely fast and yet is hyper-personalized.
• Use custom CMSes, run A/B tests at the server level or create customized API endpoints for third-party services.

Hydrogen could make your store load blazingly fast as this demo shows.

Some frequently used apps are now compatible with Hydrogen, ensuring that the whole experience is as smooth as butter.

6. Improved logistics with SFN and order management upgrades

What is it?
In its quest to be an end-to-end alternative to Amazon, Shopify has introduced several upgrades (like international shipping) to its 3PL, aka  Shopify Fulfillment Network.

SFN will also take care of returns and tracking through newly developed Return APIs.

The order fulfillment and management section also has new features like presets, automation, bulk printing, and fulfill-by-date.

Why should you care about it?

There are several reasons why you might want to look at SFN (check out a review) but here’s why these feature upgrades might help:

• SFN takes care of all shipping and returns and guarantees you 2-day delivery, improving conversion rate and boosting customer satisfaction.
• Order fulfillment and management upgrades, including automation, allow you to scale your store without having to install a whole bunch of third-party apps.
• SFN’s features like 6-month free storage and predictable shipping costs can help you plan your logistics budget with more confidence throughout the year.

7. Empower creators with Youtube integration

What is it?
Shopping videos, hauls and unboxing content was always a hit on YouTube, but brands (and creators) found it clunky to send traffic from YouTube to Shopify.

But with a YouTube X Shopify integration, the customer experience will get a massive boost (check out YouTube’s blog post for more details)

Why should you care about it?

Modern DTC brands can’t just grow through paid ads- that ship has sailed a long time back.

The fastest growing DTC brands, especially in fashion and beauty have wholeheartedly embraced influencer marketing and community building (check out a post we did on how brands like 100 Thieves and Chubbies create massive demand for a T-shirt or pair of shorts). 

You can now:

• Sync products automatically from Shopify to YouTube, ensuring that prices, names, and inventory details are always updated
• Easily sell products on livestreams
• Track YouTube channel performance inside the Shopify dashboard

Conclusion

This update comes at a time when Shopify stock has lost around 70% of its value in the last 6 months, and news about job cuts and employee disquiet hit the headlines. 

But this massive update will renew the confidence of brands and developers in the platform, and we will see a lot of exciting stuff in the coming months.

Which update are you most stoked about?