In October 2024, Shopify introduced a variety of exciting new features for merchants that both increase efficiency in day-to-day business operations and provide new opportunities for automation and target publishing. These include the introduction of the ‘meta item entry created’ trigger in Shopify Flow, the targeted publication of products and collections in various Hydrogen storefronts, and the ability to purchase shipping labels for up to 100 orders at a time.
These new functions offer retailers the opportunity to optimise their processes and create individual workflows. In addition, numerous Shopify shops have been nominated for the Shop Usability Award again this year!
Find out more about the latest developments at Shopify in this article.
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15 Shopify Shops beim SUA 2024 nominiert
The SHOP USABILITY AWARD ( SUA) 2024 is just around the corner and will once again put the spotlight on the most innovative and user-friendly online shops. Around 200 shops took part in the three-month application phase for the K5 SHOP INSIGHTS. Now the renowned expert jury, which includes Linda Hoffmann from Shopify, will decide which shops will win the race. Shopify is not only a sponsor this year, but also prominently represented: No fewer than 15 Shopify shops are taking part in the award, including well-known brands such as Braun Büffel, Jacks, Lucy Balu, Hecht & Barsch, Sabro, Asphaltgold, ZOÉ LU, Hunter, Smilodox, Vetain, Neuland, VeeCollective, Got Bag, Tuk Toro and emma & noah. It is particularly pleasing that Latori customers are among the nominated Shopify shops, namely Neuland, Asphaltgold, Hunter and Hecht & Barsch. The award ceremony will take place on 14 November 2024 at the grand gala in the Gloria Palast in Munich, where the winners will be honoured in a festive setting.
Reading tip: You can find out more about our references here.
Retail and consumption compass 2024
To coincide with the presentation of the SHOP USABILITY AWARD 2024, Shopify has published the new Retail and Consumer Compass 2024, which offers exciting insights into current trends and challenges for retailers in Germany. Despite economic uncertainties, 87% of German retailers are optimistic about the global economy - a figure that is well above the international average. In addition, 51% of retailers in Germany feel well prepared for future challenges.
A key trend is the growing use of artificial intelligence (AI): 54% of retailers already use AI tools for content creation, for example to automate product descriptions or social media posts. Social commerce, especially via platforms such as Instagram and TikTok, is now the most important sales channel for 62% of German retailers. This dynamic in social commerce emphasises how crucial a targeted presence in social media is for market success.
Another focus is on personalisation and hybrid shopping experiences: 21% of consumers prefer personalised offers, while many hybrid shopping options such as the combination of online and offline shopping are gaining in importance. 47% of retailers are also optimistic about Christmas 2024 and expect a successful season.
The Shopify Retail and Consumer Compass 2024 clearly shows that German retailers are increasingly digitalising and relying on innovative technologies in order to be optimally positioned for future market requirements.
Triggering workflows for the creation of meta object entries
Shopify Flow offers an innovative way to automate business processes with the new ‘meta object entry created’ trigger. This trigger automatically starts workflows as soon as a new entry is created in a specific meta object definition and makes all relevant fields of the meta object available for subsequent actions. This allows retailers to react flexibly to individual requirements and tailor various workflows precisely to their needs.
A practical example is the automation of form responses: merchants can create customised forms in Shopify Forms that are integrated directly into Shopify Flow. As soon as a customer submits a form, the associated workflow is triggered, for example to send an automatic confirmation email or to record a customer enquiry for the further sales process.
This trigger opens up many possibilities for seamless integration with other Shopify apps and services:
Meta object data can be used in marketing,
for automatic tag management,
as well as for the creation of orders
This gives retailers a greater overview and efficiency in processing their customer interactions.
The application is very simple: as soon as a new meta object entry is created, the workflow starts and can be used for actions such as sending automatic emails, adding specific tags or creating new orders.
Further details on how it works can be found in the Shopify documentation.
Reading tip: You can find out more about automated Shopify flows here.
Targeted publishing of resources with publishablePublish
Shopify extends the functionality of Hydrogen storefronts by allowing products and collections to be published to different Hydrogen storefronts. This means that merchants with multiple Hydrogen storefronts can now release specific products and collections for each storefront individually. In the Shopify admin area, the individual Hydrogen storefronts are now displayed with their own names as publication targets, instead of the generic term ‘Hydrogen’. This change also affects the order overview and other areas in the admin area, treating each Hydrogen storefront as a separate sales channel. For API calls that previously used the publicationId for the generic Hydrogen channel, it is now necessary to use the publicationId of the specific Hydrogen storefront to publish targeted content.
Collective ordering of shipping labels
With the new bulk order shipping labels feature, Shopify users can now purchase labels for up to 100 ready-to-ship orders at a time. This option can be activated via the ‘Shipping labels’ page by simply selecting ‘Buy labels for X orders’. Orders can also be grouped by item type and quantity on the Create Shipping Labels page to process similar orders more efficiently and fulfil them faster.
Conclusion
Shopify's latest features, such as the trigger for creating meta object entries in Shopify Flow, the targeted publication of products in Hydrogen storefronts and the ability to buy shipping labels in bulk, open up numerous opportunities for merchants to optimise their business processes. From automatically triggering workflows for form submissions to efficiently processing shipping labels, Shopify helps you automate time-consuming processes and increase your efficiency.
Latori: your partner for Shopify Plus
As a Shopify partner and the first Shopify Plus agency in Germany, Latori has first-hand knowledge and is always up to date with changes to the store system. We have had the pleasure of helping numerous national and international brands switch to Shopify Plus.
You would also like to switch to Shopify Plus? We will discuss the possibilities for your project in a non-binding initial meeting. We look forward to getting to know you! Contact us now.
