Shopify 2.0: Top 5 Changes

QUICK SUMMARY

Online Store 2.0 opens up huge opportunities for developers to be able to successfully build themes and apps for Shopify merchants.

Shopify has rebuilt the online store experience that includes new features and a new set of developer tools, for a smooth editing experience for merchants and a pleasant experience for shoppers. Not to mention the new reference theme Dawn, is 35% faster! 

The idea with the new editor was to centralize all available features and functionalities, thus making it easier for merchants to build their sites from scratch and allow them to add various theme extensions and easily manage their their apps The new Shopify Online Store 2.0 makes it easier for everyone to be able to create, customize, scale and monetize on Shopify. 

1. Updated theme architecture 

Shopify has upgraded their theme architecture providing more flexible customization options and making it easier for merchants to design a site that really fits their needs.

Sections on every page

Before you can only have the flexibility of sections on your Home Page, Now with Shopify 2.0 you can have sections on every page, unleashing a variety of new opportunities to customize every aspect of your Shopify store.

These changes are achieved by a new approach to how the storefront renders templates. Once the JSON template is added, a merchant is now able to navigate to the theme editor, and can add any dynamic section that contains presets exactly how you would add dynamic sections to the home page previously. The JSON template file specifies the default sections and settings for a page and in what order they will appear. Within this you can choose the sections that you want to appear for a specific page.

Theme app extensions via app blocks

Shopify also updated the way apps integrate with the storefront. Before, there was no way for apps to integrate with themes. As a result, developers had to code an integration logic for existing themes. This made it really difficult to make features that worked consistently across multiple themes. That’s no longer the case.  With the help oftheme app extensions for developers you can now extend the merchant’s site functionality by adding extensions. Theme app extensionscan be used to easily create, publish, and update with the use of versioning directly from the Shopify CLI, just like other app extensions, which allows you to now extend apps into merchants’ themes via app blocks.

App blocks represent a monumental change in the way apps are included inside of themes. App developers can now build UI components that can be added, removed, and configured directly through the theme editor without having to touch a theme’s code at all. This also means that uninstalling apps are now a lot cleaner, with ghost code now being automatically removed.

2. Flexibility with store content

With the Online Store 2.0, developers no longer hardcode, use third party apps or APIs to add metafields or make changes to product pages. 

Upgrades to Metafields

Metafields are pieces of data that can be assigned and categorized to specific parts of your Shopify site such as pages, customers, products or even orders. Previously Shopify only allowed the page title and one single rich text editor per page.The new Shopify 2.0updated theme editor allows merchants to add more specific fields of information into sections of a page without having to use a third party Metafield app or use of APIs or code. Now Shopify has launched its very own metafield capabilities that can be edited directly on the product or collection page so merchantswill be able to add exactly the content and information needed i.e size charts and ingredient lists. You can add any kind of information needed even if it's not on the core store editor via metafields.Additionally with Shopify’s file picker Metafields is also able to support a wide range of file types.

3. Enhanced theme editor

With Shopify 2.0 there areenhancements to the theme editor that make it easier for developers to navigate. For example,It is now even easier to visualize sections within a page with a tree view of all the content on a page that is located in the sidebar, you no longer have to search through a long list of sections to find the one you are looking for. You can also add liquid code directly via the theme editor itself. Merchants can alsohide most content blocks through this sidebar as well. These changes let merchants easily update the format and order of content of a page. 

4. New tools for developers

Shopify 2.0 has introduced a new suite ofnew developer tools that seamlessly integrate into Shopify and assist with the development process, testing, and deploying your themes. Some new developer tools include a shopify and GitHub integration, an updated Shopify CLI tool, and Theme Check for debugging. Developers will now experience a more robust theme development system.

5. A new reference theme

There is a new reference theme that has come along with the launch of Shopify 2.0! It is called Dawn and it includes all the features above.

Dawn has OS 2.0 flexibility and a priority on speed. This new reference minimizes complexity while it maximizes flexibility, which means that it gives merchants the freedom to make changes that they see fit for their business. Dawn is fast by default, no matter what, it loads 35 percent faster than Debut, the theme that more than half of merchants use today.

If you don't have Shopify yet, start using it now and receive 50% OFF when prepaying a full year subscription of Shopify! Take advantage of these great changes now! We at COR Commerce offer a professional Shopify services along with design services to make your site work exactly how you envision it. We are certified Shopify experts and guarantee customer satisfaction. If you are interested in upgrading your ecommerce site or if you are looking to elevate your Shopify contact us for a free discovery call to see how we can help you!