Twice a year, Shopify Editions launches a batch of product updates to help business owners fuel growth and reach customers everywhere. For theWinter 2023 Editions, the Shopify team released more than 100 product updates.
To better understand how these new releases impact business owners, we spoke to our VP of product, Glen Coates, and our VP of product marketing, Desiree Motamedi.
How Shopify builds and markets product releases
When it comes to the guiding principles behind product releases and updates, it all comes down to making things easier for business owners. This is especially important as expenses are on the rise, online advertising becomes more restricted, and consumers are bombarded with choice. “Can we even the score back toward entrepreneurship and independent merchants?” asks Glen.
With so many updates, the biggest task for the product marketing team was getting the right information to the right business owner. And it was important to tailor the message to different business owners. Des says, “When you have different audiences, it’s super important that you’re talking to them in the way they care about.”
“The easy button” for selling globally
Shoppers aren’t thinking about where a business is based or how a product gets to them, while business owners are burdened with the logistics and legality of selling cross border. The product team wanted to change that.
With updates toShopify Markets and the release of our full-stack solution Markets Pro, it’s now easier to enter new markets and cross borders with your business. From localizing your online store to translations to currency exchange rates or filing taxes, Des says the product team wanted to “make the super complex really easy for our merchants.”
Collaborate with the right creators for your brand
It has become more challenging for businesses to reach the right audiences through online advertising. With tracking limitations across channels, “It provided some benefits to privacy, but it’s also made advertising a lot less effective,” says Glen.
Shopify Collabsoffers a network of more than 300,000 creators. It gives business owners access to new ways of reaching potential customers. Des is most excited about the customization that comes with tapping into affiliate marketing with Shopify Collabs. “It looks at the industry that you're in, and the types of followers these creators have,” she says. “It also tries to figure out their demographics. It tries to match you up based on what you’re trying to sell.”
The guiding principles behind these new releases, selling cross border, and finding content creators are just some of the topics Glen and Des shared. Tune in to the full episode to learn more about product updates, and hear Glen and Des dispel some of the myths about Shopify.
