How a Shopify Expert Can Elevate Your Online Store

I often say that I’m the second choice for most of my clients. Why? I don’t sell my services aggressively. I’m not the most expensive in the market and my agency is fairly young (even though I’ve been working in this industry since 2008). So, prospective clients often choose someone with a well-oiled sales process. Then, when they don’t get the results or client experience they want — they start looking for a replacement. That’s usually when they find me — a Shopify expert ready to maximize your potential.

From design and development to marketing and SEO, their specialized skills can help you save time, increase efficiency, and ultimately boost your sales. Let’s dive into the benefits of hiring a Shopify expert, how to find the best one for your needs, and what red flags to watch out for in the process.

Benefits of Hiring a Shopify Expert

The situation where you don’t need a Shopify expert is pretty easy to describe. If you’re a small 1-person operation and you’ve only been in business for a few months, you probably don’t need to hire anyone to help you with your eStore. Shopify was intentionally created to be simple to start. However, it’s also scalable and can support large, multi-location shops. Between these two phases of your business is the perfect time to hire someone to support your store’s growth.

1. Tailored Website Design

A Shopify expert can help craft a website that better reflects your brand’s identity and appeals to your target audience. With their knowledge of current design trends and best practices, they can create a visually stunning and user-friendly site that stands out from the competition. Most out-of-the-box themes are lovely and require little customization. They look great and are mobile responsive. But, sometimes, you might want to get more out of your theme (or fix a quirk of the original settings that drives you nuts). That’s where someone who understands the apps and knows CSS can tailor the website’s design to exactly what you want.

For example, I often have clients that already have perfectly nice sites. But, they’re using a lot of apps (which slow down your site’s page speed) to get that perfect look. So, they hire me to make those edits directly in the theme. This speeds up the site tremendously.

Also, there are often situations where you want to integrate an app or tool. But, that connection leaves you with some clunky styling. That’s another situation that I’m often fixing for my clients. I redesign the look of those sections and widgets to flow better with the site.

Finally, there are often ideas in your head that you can sketch out but, your theme doesn’t have a section pre-built for it. That’s where I can develop a “custom liquid” section that looks exactly how you imagined.

2. Improved User Experience

Enhancing the user experience (UX) is crucial for ensuring visitors stay longer and convert into customers. Experts can optimize your site’s navigation, speed, and overall functionality, making it easier for customers to find what they need and complete purchases.

The key area for this is usually on product or subscription pages. Most themes don’t have pre-built ways to feature all the lovely specifics of your products. But, it’s a key point in the conversion process.

3. Advanced Technical Support

From setting up custom apps to troubleshooting issues, Shopify experts can handle the technical side of things. This means less downtime and fewer headaches for you, allowing you to focus on other aspects of your business. The emotional energy that goes into dealing with website troubleshooting can be spent on connecting with customers and enhancing your product catalog.

4. Effective SEO Strategies

A well-optimized website is essential for driving organic traffic. Experts can implement SEO strategies that increase your site’s visibility on search engines, helping you attract more visitors and potential customers. There are a few key areas that many store owners miss.

To begin, alt text on images is important for ranking on search engines. But, most people don’t take the time to fill in this field when they upload. So, my team follows up on this to add alt text that search engines will like and also includes your target keywords.

Similarly, many people don’t optimize their page’s SEO titles and meta descriptions. This lowers your click-through rate and impressions from search engines.

Finally, there are technical areas like page speed that can be hard to optimize without a developer. Even though some apps can automatically minimize images and implement lazy load, there are limits to how fast they can make your site.

Someone with the right experience can ensure your site is attractive to search engines.

5. Strategic Marketing and Growth

Shopify experts often have experience in digital marketing and can offer insights into effective strategies for growing your business. Whether it’s email marketing, social media campaigns, or pay-per-click advertising, they can guide you in reaching a broader audience. In a world with so many marketing channels, they can create a plan that actually works for your budget and time.

Finding the Best Shopify Expert

Whenever possible, I recommend finding Shopify support through someone you know. If another shop had a good experience then, you probably will as well. But, if you don’t know where to start, you can find them through google searches, social media or even talent website (UpWork, Fiverr).

1. Define Your Needs

Before searching for an expert, clearly outline your goals and what you want to achieve with their help. This will make it easier to find someone whose skills align with your project.

2. Check Credentials and Experience

Look for experts with a proven track record and positive client testimonials. Experience in your specific industry can be a plus, as it means they understand your market’s nuances.

3. Explore the Shopify Experts Marketplace

Shopify has an official directory of experts categorized by their specializations. This is a great place to start, as all listed experts have been vetted by Shopify.

4. Interview Potential Candidates

Once you’ve shortlisted potential experts, conduct interviews to gauge their communication skills, knowledge, and enthusiasm for your project. This will help ensure a good working relationship.

Red Flags to Watch

I’ve heard enough horror stories from new clients to know there are a lot of people who claim to be Shopify experts who have no idea what they’re doing. While they’re not scams, exactly — they typically oversell their abilities. In some cases, the opposite is actually a detriment. Some Shopify experts are great but, they’re used to working with large shops with large budgets. And they might not be able to help you adequately if your budget is lean. So, finding the right match is vitally important.

1. Lack of Transparency

Be wary of experts who are vague about their pricing, timelines, or processes. Transparency is key to building trust and ensuring a smooth collaboration. If you don’t understand their deliverables, keep asking until you get a clear answer. Anyone who you work with should be able to outline their tasks, provide an estimate, and put deadlines on them.

2. Poor Communication

If an expert is difficult to reach or slow to respond, it might be a sign that communication will be a challenge throughout the project. Clear and timely communication is essential for success.

That’s why one of our rules at The Shop Shop is the weekly email. Every Friday, every client gets an email listing all the tasks that were done during the week. They also list what we still have left to work on and what we need from our client to move forward (approvals, assets, etc.). We also require a regular schedule of meetings. These are usually once a week at the same time. This allows us to check in and get feed back from the client.

3. Overpromising Results

Be cautious of anyone who guarantees unrealistic outcomes. While experts can significantly improve your store, no one can promise overnight success. In general, you’re going to need to invest in your business for a while before you start seeing results. So, the “break-even” on spending won’t come until later.

If someone promises you’ll make a profit right away, they’re likely overpromising.

4. Limited Portfolio or Testimonials

A lack of previous work examples or positive reviews can be a warning sign. Ensure your chosen expert has a solid reputation and history of delivering quality results. If you don’t see a project that matches yours, feel free to reach out and ask for other examples. Sometimes, projects don’t make the portfolio but, they might be a better reflection of what you need. Then, you can make an informed

The Takeaway

By enlisting the help of a qualified Shopify expert, you can unlock your store’s full potential and achieve the growth you’re aiming for. Just remember to thoroughly evaluate candidates and stay vigilant for any red flags. With the right expert by your side, your Shopify store can be a better reflection of everything that makes your shop special.