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What is a Shopify Partner? Shopify Partners Program

Shopify Partners

Author: Lachezar Shoykov min read
What is a Shopify partner? How to hire a Shopify partner?

When reading about Shopify, one of the leading e-commerce platforms for online businesses in the world, you can often come across the term ‘ecosystem'.

Ecosystem refers to the multitude of Shopify’s technological solutions, such as apps, themes, and various integrations that are designed to work seamlessly together.

However, the technology is just one aspect of Shopify’s broader ecosystem. Shopify Partners and the Shopify Partners Program are another big part of the equation, which represents the human side of Shopify’s world.

In this article, we’ll discuss what Shopify Partners are, how they can help you, where you can find them, and how you can become one if you choose.

What are Shopify Partners and what services do they offer?

What is a Shopify Partner? what services do they offer? Shopify Partners Program

Source: Shopify

A Shopify Partner is an individual or company that is part of Shopify’s Partner Program and helps merchants complete various tasks.

Usually, these people are capable designers, developers, marketers, and affiliates who are experienced in using the Shopify platform and building stores, themes, or apps.

Many Shopify Partners have also completed courses in the Shopify Academy and have earned the title of Shopify Experts.

Overall, recognized Shopify Partners can be a driving force behind diverse e-commerce projects and help in different ways.

Web development and design

A Shopify Partner versed in development and design can help you leverage all of Shopify’s tools to create a stunning storefront and develop extended functionalities that will enhance your customer’s shopping experience.

Ensuring that your store is visually appealing is important as it helps establish a positive association with your products and brand from the very first click.

While Shopify has some great out-of-the-box options, a Shopify designer can customize how your store looks and feels by playing around with the themes, colors, fonts, and more.

When it comes to development tasks, a Shopify Partner can help you customize your store’s functionality and seamlessly include apps and integrations.

These can help businesses create stores that meet their specific needs and interact with customers just the way they want.

Moreover, Shopify developers can improve and optimize your store’s performance to ensure it’s lightning-fast, even when under heavy traffic.

Conversion rate optimization experts

Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO) experts among Shopify Partners are crucial for enhancing your e-commerce store's performance.

They specialize in optimizing user experience and the customer journey to increase the likelihood of converting visitors into customers.

By analyzing your site, conducting A/B testing, and optimizing the checkout process, these experts help reduce cart abandonment and boost sales, ensuring your store's traffic translates effectively into tangible results.

Custom app development

Custom apps are a powerful way to tailor your Shopify store to your unique business requirements. Through apps, you can automate processes, improve efficiency, enhance the shopping experience, and more.

More specifically, you can build a custom checkout process, a personalized recommendation engine, or a loyalty program integrated seamlessly into your store, to name a few options.

Shopify Partners who specialize in app development can create such custom solutions for your store and help it stand out from the competition.

Store setup and configuration

If you’re just starting in your e-commerce journey, setting up a store from scratch can feel like a daunting task. Even though Shopify is super user-friendly and doesn’t require any technical expertise to get started, there are still some caveats and best practices to follow.

A Shopify Partner can help you speed through the initial uncertainties and configure your store with ease.

They will help you:

  • Select and customize a theme

  • Build up your storefront

  • Upload your products

  • Create collections

  • Set up payment gateways

  • Integrate any third-party apps you want

  • Keep things running through ongoing tech support

Theme customization

Shopify comes with many pre-made themes out of the box. Some of them are free, while others require a one-time purchase.

Choosing the theme that's right for you greatly depends on your own business needs.

More basic themes are usually limited in terms of functionality and opportunities for customization.

A skilled Shopify Partner will help you select the theme that’s right for you, and customize it so your store looks and feels unique.

SEO optimization

SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is a critical aspect of any e-commerce strategy. Doing it effectively increases your store's visibility, drives organic traffic, and enhances the likelihood of attracting potential customers.

Shopify Partners who are experienced in SEO can be invaluable in helping to optimize your store for search engines.

Marketing strategy and implementation

Launching your store is just the start. Promoting it effectively, getting people to visit, and converting them into customers is a huge and continuous effort.

Shopify Partners who are experienced marketers can advise you on how to prioritize your marketing channels and efforts to create the biggest impact.

More importantly, they can also help you implement all of their advice.

Benefits of Working with a Shopify Partner

What is a Shopify Partnerv and benefits of working with one? Shopify Partners Program artner program by Jeanette Lau, Director at Jumpstart Commerce

Source: Shopify

There are many advantages to working with Shopify Partners. Here are a few:

  • Expertise in the Shopify ecosystem

  • Access to specialized skills

  • Time and cost efficiency

  • Custom solutions for unique business needs

  • Ongoing support and maintenance

Expertise in the Shopify ecosystem

As mentioned earlier, the Shopify platform boasts a multitude of technological solutions that work well together.

In their specifics, they are unique to Shopify’s platform and have to work with Shopify’s native templating language, Liquid.

Moreover, when building a Shopify app, there is also a native design system, Polaris.

From a development point of view, a Shopify Partner is invaluable, as they will help you navigate the plethora of options and choose the best ones for you.

Access to specialized skills

Experts, who work with Shopify’s platform on a daily basis have a unique set of skills that help them operate with precision and efficiency.

Moreover, they have knowledge of the platform’s limitations and common problems and can have ready workarounds for you .

Time and cost efficiency

Shopify Partners can help you understand, prioritize, and execute development, design, and marketing tasks quickly and effectively. Without them, you’ll have to set up your store in the old ‘trial and error’ way.

Customized solutions for unique business needs

Shopify Partners can leverage their expertise in design and development to create custom solutions for your store, depending on your business needs.

These usually concern how your store looks, or how your users interact and buy from it.

Ongoing support and maintenance

Lastly, Shopify Partners can help you with ongoing support and maintenance.

In the world of e-commerce speed is king, and you never want to be slowed down by unpredictable errors or technical malfunctions.

That’s why it pays to have someone help you with support and maintenance.

Finding a Shopify Partner

If you’re looking for a Shopify Partner, craftberry is a certified Shopify Partner with over 1,000 completed projects over the last decade.

There are a few good ways to find a Shopify Partner.

Firstly, you can check out Shopify’s official Partner Directory.

Other good places to look at are freelance platforms like Upwork, Fiverr, People per Hour, and more.

Lastly, don’t forget to leverage your personal network and ask for recommendations and referrals from people who already have a Shopify store.

Alternatively, you can get in touch with our team for a free discovery and consultation.

Perks of Being a Shopify Partner

Being a Shopify partner has many advantages. For starters, you join a community of experts who can assist you in your business and professional development.

As a partner, you can join Shopify’s Partner Academy to complete courses and get certified in various areas related to business, design, development, marketing, and more.

Moreover, as a partner, you get access to exclusive tools, training, and information about new features.

The Shopify Partner Program has another set of lucrative advantages for merchants.

All partners have the opportunity to earn commissions by referring Shopify to other merchants.

The referral process is made easy, and you can use the partner dashboard or share an affiliate link.

On top of that, you can earn more money by offering your services in the Partner Directory, and by building themes and apps.

Joining the Shopify Partners Programme

Applying to become a Shopify Partner is quick and easy. To become a Shopify Partner, you need to join the partner program by creating an account on the Shopify Partner page.

After filling out the registration form and agreeing to the terms, verify your email and complete your profile with detailed information about yourself and your business.

Engage with training programs offered by Shopify Academy to understand the platform better, choose the partner programs that suit your skills and goals, and utilize the Shopify Partner Program's marketing materials to promote your services.

Keep in mind that being a Shopify Partner is different than being a Shopify Plus Partner, as the latter needs to conform to more advanced criteria.

Summary of a Shopify Partner

To sum things up, Shopify Partners are a vital part of Shopify’s ecosystem.

They offer specialized services like web development, theme customization, design, app creation, store and account setup, SEO optimization services, and more.

They’re valuable for any e-commerce business due to the expertise, efficiency, and customized solutions that they bring.

Being a Shopify Partner has many benefits which include unlimited access to training, community support, and earning opportunities through client referrals and product development.

Joining the Shopify Partner Program is easy and an advantageous move for new merchants and those looking to excel in the e-commerce space.

See also: Shopify Pricing Plans and Fees

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Author
Lacho Shoykov

Lacho is a Senior Content Writer at craftberry. With over six years of writing experience, he is proficient at creating long-form educational content that positions e-commerce and SaaS brands as industry thought leaders.

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