How do I choose the right theme for my online store?

[OMandUP]

Hello:  I'm creating an online store (15-20 items). The Shopify intro video showed how to check off needed features in order to search and find the right theme. But, I'm not sure what features I will need as I've never done this before! Is there a checklist? A webinar? Any tips, ideas, and suggestions would be much appreciated.  Many thanks, Lisa  

[simple-loyalty]

Hey Lisa!

One trick I rely on when trying to determine what features and functionality will be needed is to look at websites I shop from regularly and determine what features I like (and even the ones I don't like!).  I find that it helps to look at other websites from the view of a shopper, as it helps form the customer experience you want your own store to have. Once you have an idea of what features you want or definitely don't want, picking a theme will be easier! Try to look out for things like:

• Website style - do you like the style of the website? Is it bold, subtle, clean, modern, fun, etc? Do you like a grid style, or lots of photos or more content? Identifying the kind of style and layout you like on other websites can be helpful picking a theme!
• Home page - do you like when stores provide upfront information about their story and values or do you want to get straight into the shopping? Do you like product suggestions or do you already know what products you're after? This can help guide your store layout.
• Product detail pages - what do you like about how others do product details? Do you like more or less info? Do you like more photos? Do you like a certain layout of information when shopping?

Another thing to consider when choosing a theme is whether you would like to use a Vintage Theme or an Online Store 2.0 Theme. Online Store 2.0 supports different and newer features, but not all themes and apps work with Online Store 2.0. It might be worth comparing Vintage theme functionality against Online Store 2.0 theme functionality.

When looking at the theme store, you can also browse by industry type. Viewing examples in your industry may provide you additional insights into what features and layouts are common in your industry.

Hope this helps. Best of luck!

[OMandUP]

Very helpful! Thank you.

[Marty · Accepted solution]

Hi, @OMandUP.

Thank you for your message, It looks like @simple-loyalty has made some excellent points already, however, I would be happy to offer you some further resources. First I would like to share this fantastic video that talks about how to pick the right theme for your shop. It breaks down, questions you will need to ask yourself before choosing a theme, such as:

• Will I be selling 1 product or many products? (You mentioned 15-20 products, so this is a great start)
• How do I want my products to be displayed?
• How familiar am I with customization?
• What unique features do I want in my store?

It will also walk you through, How to choose a theme:

• Use the theme store filters to find what is important to you (Which you mentioned you started doing)
• Look at reviews
• Demo the theme
• Consider theme support
• Trust your gut

I would also recommend going through our Choosing themes guide, for additional ideas. Some features you may want to consider including on your theme are:

• FAQ page
• About Us page
• Instagram feed
• Product filtering
• Quick buy
• Related products
• Search engine optimization
• Sticky navigation
• Video
• Wide layout

You can also search themes based on the collection or industry your products could fall under:

1. Go to the Shopify Theme Store.

2. At the top of the page, click Collections or Industries, and then select a category.

3. To refine your search results, use the filters on the sidebar menu.

Lastly, I would love to include this fantastic article that showcases 50 Shopify stores to help inspire new shops and entrepreneurs.

I hope some of these further suggestions help you out moving forward, please do not hesitate to reach back out here with any questions you may have!

[OMandUP]

So helpful. Many thanks!!

[OMandUP]

Hello Marty,

Thanks again for all the great info. I'm looking through the "50 sites" article. Is there a way to find out the names of the themes these sites were built upon? I really like Flourist, for example. 

Best,

LIsa 

[Marty]

Hi, @OMandUP.

It's tough to say for sure without chatting to the store owners of that shop specifically, however, it does look like it could be our new Dawn theme. The important thing to remember with Shopify themes, is they are designed to be modular. With most free Shopify themes and many third-party paid themes, you can move around, add and remove sections to your theme to make it look exactly how you want! 

I would recommend checking out Dawn and a few more of our free themes to start playing around with the platform and getting used to adding, removing and manipulating sections of a theme to see if you can't come up with something exactly as how you picture it. If you wanted to take a closer look at the Dawn theme specifically, feel free to check out our helpful guide here on it. It will walk you through features and customizations that are possible with the theme, as well as: 

• Page types available in Dawn

• Sections available in Dawn

• Dawn color schemes

• Theme customizations for Dawn
  

I hope these ideas help you out moving forward, please do not hesitate to reach back out here with any questions at all!