Shopify Plus Store Automation with Flow
At Shopify Unite 2018 in Toronto, Lynsey Thornton, VP of UX / GM of Core Product at Shopify made a simple but important point about the direction and philosophy of Shopify. She pointed out that, in listening to many merchants using the platform, one of the challenges merchants have is time. They found it a continuous challenge to prioritise the time to make their stores more efficient in order to grow their businesses.
The Shopify platform is being developed not only to help merchants sell more but also help them run their businesses around their online store more efficiently. The more time you spend doing things that add value to your business the more productive it is.
What is Shopify Flow?
Shopify Flow slots perfectly into that philosophy. Shopify Flow is an ecommerce automation platform for Shopify Plus clients. Merchants can use Flow to automate common tasks that are being repeated.
The Shopify Flow system works by creating workflows that are triggered based on events within the store. A simple event could be gifting a repeat customer with a free gift. Or, triggering an email to your store manager to reorder stock once inventory reaches a certain limit.
So what could a store owner automate? Here are some simple examples:
- Create an email to the store manager if Shopify triggers a fraud alert on a store
- If inventory is running low on a popular item, Flow can trigger a stock order
- If the customer is a repeat purchaser, Flow can automate a personalised email to thank that customer
The list of automations are endless and when Flow is connected to the apps in your store through 'connectors', it really does allow merchants to superpower their Shopify Plus store.
In the last 6 months, Shopify app providers have begun to build connectors that directly connect into Flow. Merchants can reduce the time and effort to manage their stores, by taking advantage of these apps that are already helping them sell more.
Here is the official update from Shopify.
Find out more about Shopify Plus here
