Shop Local and Shopify

Using Shopify and Shop Local

We have more than 100 merchants that use Shop Local and Shopify. The two services have different features and strengths. A retailer may use Shopify as its primary website, and use Shop Local's Gift Registry software and Product Syncing service. (Shopify does not offer its own registry software — it only offers those by outside, third-party app developers, and has no product syncing service.) Merchants often add a link “Gift Registry” on their Shopify store that leads to their Shop Local Gift Registry home page. Stores also often use their Shop Local account to source product data from many brands, and then import this product data into their Shopify store.

View live examples of stores using Shopify and Shop Local's Gift Registry service:

The Boutique in Charleston, SC
The Cook's Station in Greenville, SC
The Finery in Jackson, MS

Integration Help:

Switch From Shopify to Shop Local

We have retail clients that have left Shopify to use Shop Local Store as their primary website. (They may still use Shopify as their POS.)

Below please find a comparison of a retailer's online offering once it switched from Shopify to Shop Local.

Switch From Shopify to Shop Local

“We left Shopify and moved to Shop Local. Shop Local helped us double the number of registries at our store and double our registry sales. And, Shop Local is easier than Shopify and costs less.”
Jeffrey Bannon / Owner / Jeffrey Bannon in Charleston, SC


Jeffrey Bannon Shopify Store	Jeffrey Bannon Shop Local Store
Shopify	Shop Local Store
Slow setup. Start with an empty online store. You have to enter all brands manually, find their logos, and more. You spend massive amounts of time and money adding brands and products. Tedious process.	Quick setup. Choose from 3,235 brands to add to your store. Of these brands, Shop Local has partnerships with 115 brands (Product Syncing). If approved, your store can instantly offer up to 71,143 products from these partner brands.
Not easy to manage many products. Interface makes it hard to manage more than 100 products. Since most businesses need thousands of products to compete online, Shopify doesn't scale well.	Easy to manage many products. Allows your business to easily manage 1,000s of products.
No built-in gift registry software. Registry software is an add-on from a 3rd-party developer and costs an additional monthly fee. Not seamless.	Powerful gift registry software. Immediately offer your registrants best-in-class gift & bridal registry software. The software is built-in and works seamlessly.
Old-fashioned home page. The site structure consists of a traditional slideshow and static content.	Dynamic home page. Shop Local's dynamic home page keeps shoppers engaged, keeps them on your Store page longer, and boosts your Google ranking.
No built-in review software. Reviews are very important for customer satisfaction and ranking well in Google. Review software is an add-on from a 3rd-party developer and costs an additional monthly fee.	Reviews. Your Shop Local Store comes with built-in review software. Shop Local helps your store collect and share reviews on social media.
Not affordable. No free plan and most features are paid add-ons.	Affordable. Offers your business a free plan. There is no time limit. Shop Local offers a true free plan and not just a free trial.
Flawed software design. Shopify's software has a separate ‘front’ and ‘back’ end. The front end is consumer-facing, and the back end is what account owners use. Administering two separate interfaces produces confusion and takes more time. Generally accepted software rule: there should not be 'modes' in software. Shopify uses modes.	Unified front and back end software. Viewing and editing content go hand in hand. There are no 'modes.' Administering the software is intuitive and fast.
Complicated business model. Does not include basic features with software. It makes you sign up with third-party apps for basic features (reason: it makes a commission on what you pay these third-party app developers). Your monthly charges grow, and you are forced to deal with many third-party app developers.	Simple business model. Basic features are free and created by Shop Local. They work seamlessly. Your service fees and the number of parties you deal with are manageable and easy to understand.
Issues with Google. Shopify's service often relies on apps, and the apps don't work well with Google's indexing. The apps result in page content that Google may not deem notable or unique. Therefore, stores using the apps receive a lower Google ranking and less traffic than they would using other software.	Rank higher in Google. Shop Local's software is designed to be indexed by Google and search engines. The software, including the gift registry software, often helps stores rank highly in Google. For some searches, Shop Local software helps businesses appear on page 1 of Google.

Cost to Manage Online Store

Shop Local helps businesses keep their expenses low:

Shop Local offers an ongoing free plan while Shopify does not. A business could use Shop Local and stay at the free plan continually.
When managing an online store, a key expense is adding and managing products. Shop Local has free services for retailers to quickly add products to their online stores. A retailer can add thousands of products without increasing its management costs.
Shop Local offers many important features for free as part of its out-of-the-box offering. Shopify does not; it encourages clients to pay for apps to collect commissions on these app subscriptions.

Case Study: Jeffrey Bannon Gift Shop

Jeffrey Bannon, a gift shop in Charleston, SC, changed e-commerce providers from Shopify to Shop Local. The business made this choice after comparing the two providers. Below please find a comparison of the business's Shopify site and Shop Local Store.

Using Shopify Software

Using Shop Local Software

Jeffrey Bannon's Home Page

Shopify Home Page

Shop Local Home Page

Easier to search for products.
Easier to start a registry.
Easier to see news.
Displays a dynamic slideshow.
Easier for the store to update slides and banners.
Easier for the store to update products.
More inviting design.

Jeffrey Bannon's Juliska Home Page

Shopify Juliska Home Page

Shop Local Juliska Home Page

Easier to search for Juliska products.
Easier to see the number of collections and products.
Displays professional lifestyle pictures.

Jeffrey Bannon's Product Page

Shopify Product Page

Shop Local Product Page

Displays the brand's logo above the product. This increases the perceived value of the item.
Easier to view product features. Displays product dimensions.
Easier to shop. Shopping bag and registry buttons are green and act as clear 'calls to action.'
Offers multiple product pictures.
Easier to browse to the next product.
Easier to keep shopping (e.g. by tags or department).
Easier for the store owner to edit products.
Easier for the store owner to make profitable transactions since the software uses our Price Floor technology.

Jeffrey Bannon's Gift Registry Home Page

Shopify App's Gift Registry Home Page

Shop Local's Gift Registry Home Page

More visually appealing.
Easier for friends and family to find registrants.
Easier for registrants to log in and update their registries.

Jeffrey Bannon's Wedding Registry List

Shopify App's Registry List

Shop Local Registry List

Displays the registry couple's picture.
Displays date of registry event.
Share feature makes sharing registry page easy.
Promotes four reasons to shop on the retailer's site.
Displays product pictures in large format. This makes viewing the product easier.
Displays the brand's logo above the product. This increases the perceived value of the item.
Displays the product dimensions.