What Are Shopify Product Types – How To Add

Shopify product types are important for organizing inventory, creating a structured product catalog, and improving store management. Unlike predefined categories (collections), custom product types offer more flexibility to fit specific needs.

Product types can be utilized as a custom category to label unique product types within Shopify, allowing for better organization and management of products. This enables merchants to easily organize products based on their attributes, facilitating better navigation for both store owners and customers.

For example, in a clothing store, you can define product types such as “Shirts,” “Pants,” or “Accessories.” This organization improves product availability, simplifies stock tracking, and helps customers easily find items.

Custom types also enhance search engine visibility, leading to happier customers and better sales outcomes.

The Role of Product Types in Inventory Management

Product types streamline inventory by enabling precise product sorting and organization. Product variants, which are different features or configurations of a product within Shopify, play an important role in inventory management by offering customers various options and enhancing sales.

Shopify’s admin panel offers tools to categorize items by type, making it easier to manage bulk edits or manual collections. Efficient product organization reduces errors, saves time during stock updates, and ensures accurate reporting.

For instance, if managing an online store with 500+ products, you can use product types to segment inventory into categories like “Electronics” or “Apparel,” thus simplifying SKU management. This aids in tracking sales performance across different product lines.

Creating and Assigning Product Types in Shopify Admin Panel

Creating product types in Shopify is simple. Start by navigating to the Shopify admin panel. From there, access the Products section, and open the product you want to edit. Under the Product details tab, scroll to the Product type field. Here, you can either select from a list of existing product types or create a custom product type by typing directly into the field. A Shopify collection is a feature used to group related products by category or theme, enhancing customer navigation within a store. After making changes, click save.

For bulk product uploads, you can assign product types using a CSV file. This option is efficient for stores managing large catalogs.

Bulk Editing Product Types

You can also bulk edit product types using the Shopify admin dashboard.

From your Shopify admin dashboard, navigate to Products.

Choose the products you want to update by using one of these options:

• If you wish to modify specific items, tick the checkbox next to each one.
• To adjust the variants of a single product, select just that particular product.
• To select all items displayed on a page, tick the box at the top of the product list.
• To select every product in your store, tick the checkbox at the top, then choose Select all 50+ items from your store.

Next, click on Bulk edit.

If the Product type column isn’t visible, go to Columns, then select Product type from the dropdown.

Assign a Product type to each item. For new product types, click + Add to introduce the new category to your store.

Finally, click Save to apply your changes. also Bulk edit product types.

Shopify Standard Product Types vs Custom Product Types

Shopify offers two ways to categorize products: standard product types and custom product types.

Shopify collections are important for organizing products in a Shopify store to enhance customer navigation and improve overall user experience. Standardized types are predefined by Shopify and should be used when possible, as they align with Shopify’s product category framework, helping with tax rates and external marketplaces like Google Shopping.

On the other hand, custom product types allow merchants to tailor categories to meet unique store needs. For example, a shop selling niche items like “Handmade Ceramics” can benefit from a custom type.

Using standard types where applicable enhances your store’s integration with search engines and third-party channels.

Product Type vs Collection

When it comes to organizing products in a Shopify store, two terms often come up: product type and collection. While they might seem similar, they serve distinct purposes and are crucial for different aspects of store management.

Product types categorize products based on shared characteristics like material, size, or color. This classification is primarily for the store owner’s benefit, aiding in efficient inventory management and product organization. For instance, in a clothing store, product types might include “Tops,” “Bottoms,” and “Outerwear.”

On the other hand, collections are designed to enhance customer navigation and marketing efforts. Collections group related products together, making it easier for customers to find what they’re looking for. They can be displayed on separate pages or within the navigation menu of your Shopify store. Collections can be either manual or automated, allowing for flexibility in how products are grouped. For example, a collection could feature “Summer Sale” items or “New Arrivals.”

In summary, while product types are optional and used for internal organization, collections are essential for customer navigation and promotional activities in your Shopify store.

Optimizing Shopify Store SEO with Product Types

Organizing your products into well-defined types directly impacts SEO performance. Product types help to structure metadata effectively, ensuring better ranking in search engines. This improves your store’s visibility in organic search, making it easier for customers to find products.

For instance, stores using accurate product types in categories like “Outdoor Gear” or “Fitness Equipment” are more likely to appear higher in relevant search results. Additionally, correct categorization assists search engines in indexing your pages properly, increasing traffic and conversions.

Best Practices for Managing Product Types in Large Shopify Stores

Large Shopify stores with extensive inventories require advanced strategies for managing product types. Utilize automated collections and bulk edit tools to maintain consistency and efficiency. Automation tools allow product types to be assigned based on specific rules (e.g., price, tags), minimizing manual effort.

For example, a store selling 10,000 products can use automated collections to automatically sort products based on certain criteria like brand or price range. This reduces the need for constant oversight while maintaining product organization.

Product Type Examples

To better understand how to utilize product types in your Shopify store, here are some examples across various industries:

• Clothing: Tops, Bottoms, Dresses, Outerwear
• Electronics: Smartphones, Laptops, Tablets, Smartwatches
• Home and Garden: Furniture, Decor, Kitchenware, Bedding
• Beauty and Personal Care: Skincare, Haircare, Makeup, Fragrances

These examples illustrate how product types can be customized to fit the specific needs of your store. For instance, a clothing store might further break down “Tops” into sub-types like “T-Shirts,” “Blouses,” and “Sweaters.” Similarly, a home and garden store might categorize furniture into “Sofas,” “Chairs,” and “Tables.”

By defining clear product types, you can streamline inventory management and improve the overall shopping experience for your customers.

Product Type and Online Store Navigation

Product types play a crucial role in enhancing online store navigation, making it easier for customers to find what they’re looking for quickly and efficiently. By categorizing products into distinct types, store owners can create a clear and intuitive navigation menu.

For example, a clothing store might organize its navigation menu with categories such as:

• Tops
• Bottoms
• Dresses
• Outerwear

Within each category, customers can further filter products by sub-categories, such as “T-Shirts,” “Blouses,” and “Sweaters” under “Tops,” or “Jeans,” “Skirts,” and “Shorts” under “Bottoms.”

Using product types to structure your online store not only improves the user experience but also encourages customers to explore more products, potentially increasing sales. A well-organized navigation menu helps customers find what they need with ease, leading to a more satisfying shopping experience and higher conversion rates.

By implementing these strategies, you can ensure that your Shopify store is both user-friendly and efficient, ultimately driving more traffic and sales.

This also is typically achieved using collections and sub collections.

Troubleshooting Common Issues with Shopify Product Types

Issues with product types can arise from CSV file errors or data synchronization problems between Shopify and third-party platforms. The most common problems include missing product types, incorrect categorization, and sync errors.

If you encounter these, check the right-hand side panel of the Shopify admin for any manual collection or bulk edit errors. You can also use Shopify’s built-in troubleshooting tools or contact Shopify support for further assistance.

For example, CSV import errors often stem from formatting issues, so ensure the file follows Shopify’s guidelines.

Summary

Shopify product types are an indispensable tool for improving inventory management, enhancing store SEO, and ensuring smooth customer navigation. Whether using standard categories or custom product types, correctly configuring and maintaining these types leads to a better-organized store, happier customers, and ultimately increased sales. Properly optimized product types also improve search engine performance, driving more traffic to your online store.

Popular Questions

Below are common questions we get asked about Shopify product types.