Shopify SEO basics for a store that has just opened
What to set before a new Shopify store goes live so search engines can find and understand it, in the order that matters, and what to ignore for now.
A new Shopify store is invisible to search for a while however good it is, because Google has not yet found it, read it or decided what it is for. The basics are about shortening that wait and making sure that when Google does read the store, it reads the right thing. None of it is clever. Most of it is filling in boxes Shopify already gives you.
What does Shopify already handle for you?
More than most owners realise. Every Shopify store gets a sitemap generated automatically, a secure connection, a canonical tag on each page so duplicate addresses are not counted twice, a robots file that keeps the checkout and cart out of search, and product markup in most modern themes so Google can read prices and stock. You do not need an app for any of these, and installing one that claims to add them often adds a second, conflicting copy.
What should you do on the first day?
- Remove the storefront password once the store is ready. A password page blocks every search engine.
- Add the store to Google Search Console, verify it, and submit the sitemap, which lives at your domain followed by sitemap.xml.
- Set the homepage title and description under Online Store, Preferences. Say what you sell and where, in plain words.
- Connect your own domain and make it the primary one, so the myshopify address redirects to it.
- Add the store to Bing Webmaster Tools too; it can import straight from Search Console, and Bing feeds several AI assistants.
Our guide to reading Search Console, at /blog/read-your-own-search-console-in-ten-minutes, covers what to look at once data starts arriving.
How should product pages be written for search?
Each product page should answer the search a buyer would type for it. That means a title that names the thing the way a customer would, not your internal code; a search title and description, set under the search engine listing section at the bottom of the product editor, that are unique to that product; and a description written for a person deciding whether to buy, covering what it is, what it is made of, how it fits or is used, and how it ships.
| Field | What to write | Common mistake |
|---|---|---|
| Product title | The plain name a customer would search for | Internal codes or the brand's own nickname |
| Search title | Product name, the key detail, and your store name | Left blank, so every page reads the same |
| Search description | One or two sentences that make someone want to click | Copied from the supplier, word for word |
| Image alt text | What the photo actually shows | Blank, or the file name |
| Handle | Short, readable words | Changed after launch without a redirect |
Why do collection pages matter more than people think?
Because collections match the broad searches. Someone looking for one product types its name. Someone shopping types the category: linen bedsheets, kids' party dresses, leather wallets for men. Those searches land on collection pages, and most collection pages carry nothing but a grid of products and a title. Add a short paragraph that says what is in the collection, who it suits and what to look for, written for a shopper, and give the collection its own search title and description.
What should you ignore for now?
- Search apps that promise automatic results. Most add scripts that slow the store and change nothing Google cares about.
- Publishing dozens of blog posts in the first month. A few that answer real buyer questions beat many that do not.
- Chasing links from directories. A handful of real mentions from people in your trade are worth more.
- Checking rankings daily. A new store moves slowly, and daily checking only produces worry.
Speed is the one technical thing worth watching from the start. Every app you install can add code to every page, and a theme stuffed with sliders and pop-ups loads slowly on a phone. Our plain-English piece on speed is at /blog/website-speed-in-plain-english, and once the store is live, the next step is our list of fixes that matter for a running store, at /blog/shopify-seo-the-fixes-that-matter.
What about a store in more than one country?
If you sell in more than one country or language, set that up through Shopify Markets rather than by copying the store. Markets gives each country its own address, currency and, if you translate, its own language version of every page, and it adds the tags that tell Google which version to show to whom. A copied second store splits your reputation in two and competes with itself in search.
Keep the plan simple at first. Start with the country where most of your buyers are, get the basics right there, and add a second market only when there is demand for it, not because the setting exists. A store that does one country well is found more often than one that does three badly.
When do you not need help with this?
For a store with a few dozen products and an owner willing to spend a weekend filling in fields, everything above is doable alone, and we would rather you did it than paid for it. Help earns its fee on a large catalogue, a migration from another platform where old addresses must redirect, or a store where the basics are done and sales from search still are not coming. That work is described at /services/shopify-seo.
Questions we get asked
Yes, for most small stores. It handles the technical basics well. What it cannot do is write your titles, descriptions and collection copy.
Submitting the sitemap in Search Console usually gets pages found within days. Ranking for competitive searches takes much longer and depends on the words on the page and the store's reputation.
Usually not at the start. The built-in fields cover the basics, and many apps add code that slows the store down.
Yes. Supplier text copied across many stores gives Google no reason to choose yours. Write your own, even if it is short.