Running the store without touching code

Nine tasks that cover everything the shop needs day to day. Each one is written as the exact click path in the Shopify admin, so it can be followed by someone who has never seen it before.

01 · 3 min

Add a new product

Products, Collections and Navigation are already structured, so a new SKU only has to be filled in - nothing has to be wired up.

Products → Add product. Title first: use the product name only, no keywords stuffed in. The URL handle is generated from it and should not be edited afterwards.
Description: two or three short paragraphs. The template pulls the first line into the collection card, so make the first sentence do real work.
Media: drag in the images. The first image is the one shown on collection pages. Upload at 2000 × 2500 px or larger and Shopify makes every smaller size itself.
Pricing: enter the price and, if it is on sale, the Compare-at price. The theme shows the strikethrough and the red Sale badge automatically when compare-at is higher.
Inventory: SKU, and tick Track quantity. Set the quantity per location. Leave Continue selling when out of stock off.
Variants: add the Colour and Size options. Use the exact same option names as existing products so the swatches and filters keep working.
Organisation: set Product type, Vendor, and tick the collection it belongs to. Add tags for anything you want to filter by later.
Search listing: click Edit website SEO and write a 55-character title and a 150-character description. The app fills a default in, but a written one converts better.
Set the status to Active, choose the sales channels, then Save. It is live and already in the menu, the collection page, the search index and the sitemap.

Worth knowing. The colour swatch is driven by a metafield called custom.swatch_hex. Paste a hex value like #B9744C and the round swatch appears everywhere in the theme. No hex, no swatch - nothing else breaks.

02 · 2 min

Run a promotion

Three different tools, and picking the wrong one is the most common way a sale goes wrong.

A code the customer types - Discounts → Create discount → Amount off products, set a code like AUTUMN15. Best for newsletters and influencers because you can measure it.
An automatic discount - same screen, choose Automatic. Applies itself in the cart with no code. Best for "spend $150, save 15%" and for the free-shipping threshold.
A marked-down price - edit the product, move the current price into Compare-at price and type the new lower price. Only this option shows the strikethrough and the Sale badge on the storefront.
To put a sale banner across the top of the site: Online Store → Themes → Customise → Announcement bar. Change the text, pick a colour, Save. It is a theme section, not code.
To end a sale, remove the compare-at price or set the discount to expire. Diarise it - an expired-looking sale that is still running is the fastest way to train people to wait for the next one.

Worth knowing. Set an end date on every discount when you create it. A code with no end date will still be circulating on a coupon site two years from now.

03 · 5 min

Change the homepage

The homepage is built from sections. Every one can be reordered, hidden or duplicated from the theme editor.

Online Store → Themes → Customise.
The left column lists the sections: Announcement bar, Header, Hero, Trust bar, Featured collection, Collection list, Editorial split, Quote, Journal, Footer.
Drag to reorder. Click the eye to hide one for a while without deleting it.
Add section puts another block in - a second featured collection for a seasonal edit, for example. Point it at a collection and it fills itself.
Theme settings → Colours changes the whole palette. Typography changes both fonts. Every page follows immediately, because nothing anywhere hard-codes a colour.
Save. Or use Save as draft theme to try something without the public seeing it, then publish when you are happy.

Worth knowing. Duplicate the live theme before any big change: Themes → ... → Duplicate. It is the undo button, and it takes four seconds.

04 · 2 min

Stock and reordering

Stock is tracked per variant, and the storefront reacts on its own.

Products → Inventory shows every variant and its quantity. Edit the number inline, or use Adjust available to add a delivery.
Bulk update: Export as CSV, edit the quantity column in a spreadsheet, Import. This is the fastest way to reconcile after a stocktake.
When a variant hits zero the swatch is greyed out and the Add to cart button becomes Sold out. Nothing needs to be switched off.
Analytics → Reports → ABC analysis by product tells you what to reorder before it tells you what to discount.
Set a low-stock email: Settings → Notifications, or use the Stocky app if you want per-variant thresholds.

05 · 1 min

Fulfil an order

Orders arrive in the admin, the phone app, and by email.

Orders → open the order → Fulfil item.
Buy the label through Shopify Shipping - it is cheaper than the counter rate and the tracking number is attached to the order automatically.
The customer is emailed a tracking link the moment the label is printed. You do not have to send anything.
For a refund: open the order → Refund, choose the lines and whether to restock. Partial refunds are fine.
On a phone: the Shopify app does all of the above, including buying labels.

06 · 4 min

Shipping and taxes

Set up once, and left alone unless the carrier changes their prices.

Settings → Shipping and delivery → the Domestic profile holds the Australian zone: Standard $9.95, free over $120, and Express $14.95.
The International profile holds New Zealand, Singapore, the UK and the US, priced by weight. Weight comes from the product, so fill the weight field in when adding a SKU.
To change the free-shipping threshold, edit the rate and the announcement bar text and the cart progress bar setting. Three places, all in the admin.
Settings → Taxes and duties: Australia is set to prices including GST, which is what Australian shoppers expect to see.
Duties and import taxes are collected at checkout for international orders so customers are never surprised at the door.

Worth knowing. Local pickup is configured for the Brighton studio and switched off. Turn it on in Shipping and delivery → Local pickup when you want it.

07 · 2 min

The apps, and why only these

Every app adds JavaScript to the storefront, and every script slows it down. Four is what this store needs.

Judge.me Reviews (free plan) - review request emails, star ratings in Google results. Lazy-loaded, so it costs nothing until someone scrolls to it.
Shopify Email + Abandoned checkout - the recovery emails are built into Shopify itself, so there is no third-party script at all. Three sends: 1 hour, 24 hours, 72 hours.
Yoast SEO or Shopify's built-in fields - structured data, meta titles, redirects. The theme already outputs Product, Store and FAQ schema, so a heavy SEO app would only duplicate it.
Shopify Forms - newsletter capture. Free, first-party, no external script.
Before installing anything else, ask what it adds to the page weight and whether the theme already does it. Most "must-have" apps are re-selling something Shopify includes.

Worth knowing. Uninstalling an app does not always remove its code. After removing one, check Online Store → Themes → Edit code → theme.liquid for leftover script tags, or ask us to check.

08 · 3 min

Keep the SEO tidy

The technical side is done. What is left is the writing, and it is monthly, not daily.

Every product needs a written meta title (under 60 characters) and description (under 155). Products → product → Edit website SEO.
Never change a product handle once it is live. If you must, Shopify offers to create a redirect - accept it.
Collection pages need a real paragraph of text at the top. Google has nothing else to read on a page of thumbnails.
One journal post a month, answering a question customers actually ask, beats ten thin posts about the brand.
Check Online Store → Navigation → URL redirects after any restructure, and Google Search Console for 404s once a month.

09 · 1 min

What not to touch

Everything above is safe to change. These are the few that are not.

Do not edit files under Edit code unless you know Liquid. Everything designed to change is exposed as a theme setting.
Do not rename or delete the existing product options (Colour, Size). The swatches and filters key off those exact names.
Do not delete a collection that is in the menu - remove it from Navigation first, or the menu will point at a dead page.
Do not change a product handle on a product that has been live and indexed.
Do not install two apps that do the same job. Two review apps means two sets of scripts and two sets of stars.

Still stuck?
Thirty days of support are included after launch, and there is a written answer for every question in this handbook. Contact the studio.