How to Add Recently Viewed Products in Shopify: Enhance Your Store for Better Customer Experience

Table of Contents

  1. Introduction
  2. Why Add a Recently Viewed Products Section?
  3. How to Implement Recently Viewed Products in Shopify
  4. Tested and Trusted: Implementing With Confidence
  5. FAQ Section

Introduction

Imagine this: You're online shopping, browsing through a myriad of products, and you suddenly get pulled away. Later, you return, wanting to find that one item that caught your eye, but alas, it's lost in the shuffle of endlessly scrolling. Frustrating, isn't it? This scenario is more common than you might think, and it's exactly why adding a "Recently Viewed Products" section to your Shopify store can significantly enhance the customer experience. In this blog post, we'll dissect the importance of this feature, dive deep into how you can implement it on any Shopify theme, and showcase why it's a game-changer for your online shop.

By the end of this read, you'll understand not just the 'how' but also the 'why' behind adding recently viewed products to your Shopify store, making it a more intuitive, user-friendly space that encourages purchases and customer return rates.

Why Add a Recently Viewed Products Section?

Before we get to the nitty-gritty of implementation, let's understand the compelling reasons for adding this feature to your store:

  • Enhances User Experience: Providing a seamless shopping experience is key in the digital age. A "Recently Viewed Products" section helps customers easily find and reconsider items they've already shown interest in, improving navigation and user satisfaction.
  • Increases Sales Opportunities: Reminder features like this can effectively nudge customers toward making a purchase, especially if they were previously undecided. It’s a subtle call-to-action that can significantly increase conversion rates.
  • Reduces Bounce Rate: By making it easier for customers to find previously viewed products, you're giving them more reasons to stay on your site, thereby reducing the chances of them leaving without making a purchase.
  • Customized Shopping Experience: This feature adds a level of personalization to your store, making customers feel understood and catered to. In a market saturated with choices, personal touches can set your store apart.

Now that we’ve established the 'why,' let’s move on to the 'how.'

How to Implement Recently Viewed Products in Shopify

While Shopify offers a plethora of features, a "Recently Viewed Products" section is not a default option on all themes. This means you might need to get a bit hands-on. Fear not, though; we've broken down the process into manageable steps.

Step 1: Create the Snippet

  1. Go to your Shopify Admin, click on “Online Store” and then “Themes.”
  2. Find the theme you're editing, click on “Actions,” and then “Edit Code.”
  3. Click on “Add a new snippet” in the snippets directory and name it recently-viewed-products.

Step 2: Add the JavaScript

The core of this feature lies in leveraging browser local storage to keep track of viewed products and display them. Here’s an overview of what needs to be done:

  1. You’ll need to fetch product data from pages that your customers visit and store this data locally.
  2. Create a JavaScript function that retrieves this stored data and displays the recently viewed products on designated pages.

This is achieved through a combination of Shopify Liquid (to fetch and display product data) and JavaScript (for storing and retrieving data from local storage).

Note: Due to the technical nature of this step, it’s crucial to have a basic understanding of JavaScript and Shopify’s templating language, Liquid.

Step 3: Insert the Snippet into Your Theme

After creating and populating your snippet with the necessary code, you’ll integrate it into your theme. This involves a minor edit to your theme’s liquid files to include your recently-viewed-products snippet in your product templates or wherever else you’d like these products to be displayed.

  1. Navigate to “Sections” or “Templates” in your theme code.
  2. Identify where you’d like the recently viewed products to appear (e.g., product pages, home page) and insert {% include 'recently-viewed-products' %}.

Step 4: Styling

The final step involves adding custom CSS to ensure that the recently viewed products section matches your store's design and layout. You can add your CSS directly within the snippet or in your theme’s main stylesheet for better organization.

Tested and Trusted: Implementing With Confidence

Implementing a "Recently Viewed Products" section is not just about following steps but understanding the impact such a feature can have on your store’s dynamics. It’s about improving user experience, increasing sales opportunities, decreasing bounce rates, and offering a personalized shopping experience. While the process may require some technical know-how, the benefits far outweigh the initial setup effort.

Remember, the goal here is not to make shopping on your site just a process but an experience that’s as intuitive and engaging as possible for your customers. Success in e-commerce comes down to details like these, and adding a "Recently Viewed Products" section is a detail that could significantly enhance how customers interact with your Shopify store.

FAQ Section

Q: Do I need any special apps or plugins to add this feature? A: No, you can achieve this with custom coding as outlined in this post. However, there are apps available in the Shopify App Store if you prefer a plug-and-play solution.

Q: Is it necessary to have coding knowledge to implement this feature? A: Basic knowledge of HTML, CSS, and JavaScript is beneficial, as it involves editing your theme's code.

Q: Can this feature slow down my website? A: If implemented correctly, it should not noticeably impact your site's loading speed. It's always good practice to monitor your site's performance after making changes, though.

Q: Will the recently viewed products appear for all users, including those not logged in? A: Yes, this feature uses browser local storage, which means it will display recently viewed products for anyone who visits your site, regardless of their login status.

Q: Can I customize which products to show in the “Recently Viewed Products” section? A: The standard implementation will automatically show products that a visitor has viewed. Customization beyond that would require more advanced coding or leveraging third-party apps that offer additional features and controls.

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