The Benefits of Using Drag & Drop Page Builder For Shopify

on 27 Nov 2024, by Bogdan, in Blog, Shopify, Guides

by Bogdan

If you want to learn about the benefits of using a drag and drop builder for Shopify and use one on your Shopify store, this guide is for you.

Setting up a Shopify store is pretty simple. But once you get to setting it up, you’ll realize the basic themes and the default page builder won’t suffice. Especially if you want an easier way to build your Shopify store and you also want it to stand out and differentiate itself from your competitors.

This is where drag and drop builders for Shopify come in. In this guide, we’ll walk you through the benefits of drag and drop builder for Shopify pages and give you reasons to use one.

Right off the bat, let’s go over why you should use a landing page builder for Shopify.

Why use a landing page builder for Shopify

Back in mid-2021, Shopify released Online Store 2.0, a major update to the platform that saw improvements to its theme editor and default page builder. These improvements were meant to:

Add more customization options to Shopify themes.
Make it easier for Shopify store owners to build unique online stores.

But even with these changes, the default Shopify page builder and theme editor have inherent issues that you would need to address when building your online store.

Common issues with Shopify’s default page builder

In the default Shopify setup, you can build your store’s pages by first selecting a theme and then customizing it to suit your brand. Shopify has a handful of free themes you can use including, Dawn, Studio, Sense, and Craft. You’ll find more in the Shopify Theme Store.

After installing your theme, let’s say, Dawn, you can make global changes to it, i.e. changing fonts or colors using the theme editor. You’ll also be able to leverage the default page builder to create and edit new pages in your store.

If you use these solutions to build your ecommerce store, you’ll find that the default options leave much to be desired. This is because Shopify’s default page builder has several issues such as the following.

1: Overdependence on themes

What your Shopify store looks like and how it works highly depends on what your theme is. The theme you use dictates your site’s layout, design, and functionality. For instance, if you want features like upsells and cross-sells in your store, you’ll need to select a theme that has a related products section.

Overdependence on themes presents two major problems:

Free themes are overused - Free themes like Dawn, Sense, and Craft are overused. If you use them, you risk having a generic online store. With nearly 27 million online stores currently active, you just can’t take that chance.

Paid themes are expensive - The best premium themes are all above $300, which adds to the cost of setting up your Shopify store.

On top of that, if you switch to a new theme that has the look and features you want, you’ll lose your customizations and need to redo them.

2: Limited customization options

Depending on the theme you’re using, you’re very limited in what you can do to customize it. Most themes will only allow you to change fonts and colors, and move a few (not all) elements here and there, but that’s it.

Sense theme customization page

A common complaint is that if you want to do something as basic as move an embeddable element, like Google Maps, and add text to it, you might need to hire a developer to do it for you.

Also, you can’t add features that will optimize your conversion rates, such as product variation swatches, without installing an app (another added expense).

3: You’re limited to standard pages

Shopify’s page builder and themes limit you to standard pages such as the homepage, shop page, product pages, cart, and checkout. If you want to add custom checkout pages (to invite customers to keep engaging with your store), custom landing pages for your marketing campaigns, and so on, you’ll have to do it some other way.

Doing it the default way will not only take up too much of your time but also not offer you a good level of customization to create truly custom pages.

4: Responsive design challenges

According to mobile ecommerce studies, 56% of online sales come from mobile devices. So when building your ecommerce store, you must cater to mobile users. With Shopify however, your site’s mobile optimization entirely depends on your theme.

Also, themes offer limited mobile-optimization features. For instance, if your shop page has a hero section which obviously won’t look good on a mobile device, you can’t hide it for smartphone users.

In essence, the default Shopify theme editor and page builder aren’t enough to build a competitive online store. You need a landing page builder app to get it done. We’ll look at the benefits in this article, but first, let’s see the different types of pages you’ll need to create in your online store.

The different types of pages needed in your Shopify store

Unless you’re completely new to ecommerce, you probably know that your Shopify store needs the following pages:

Homepage
Product pages
Shop page/Product Archive
Cart and checkout
Order confirmation/Thank you for shopping with us page.

What you might not know is that you could have some ‘out-of-the-box’ pages for your loyalty programs (if any), user stories/testimonials/unboxing, size guides, etc.

Also, if you’re running marketing campaigns, you’ll need popups to pitch on-sale products, a banner to announce your sales, etc.

Doing all of this in the default Shopify page builder is a daunting task. But this is where a landing page builder app steps in. So let’s go over the perks of a no-code Shopify website builder.

The Benefits of Using a Drag-and-Drop Page Builder for Shopify

We’ve been talking about drag and drop page builders and you might not know what these are, especially if you’re new to website creation. To set the records straight, a drag and drop builder is a tool that enables you to create ready-to-use, professional websites without writing any code.

It allows you to select elements (images, buttons, menus, etc.) from its menu, drag them and drop them on your web page. Hence the name ‘drag and drop’. You’ll also hear them being referred to as ‘no-code website builders’ or ‘landing page builders’.

Landing page builders are powerful tools for beginners to create great-looking websites with little to no knowledge and experience. As a Shopify store owner, a drag and drop builder can benefit you in the following ways.

1: No coding skills required

You can build a completely customizable Shopify store without writing even a single line of code with page builders. All the elements you would need in your Shopify store are pre-built for you. All you have to do is select them and place them where you want on your web page.

Also, these page builders typically have a visual interface that is easy to navigate. Everything is either labeled or has an icon. It won’t take you long to know what you need to do to create your web pages. This way, anyone can build an online storefront on Shopify for their business.

2: Numerous customization options

Earlier on we touched on how free themes like Dawn are overused leading to most Shopify stores looking generic. With a landing page builder app, this is something you won’t have to worry about.

They come with more elements than what the default Shopify page builder offers. Case in point, Brizy – a newer Shopify landing page builder app, comes with up to 48 elements to help you build a customized Shopify store. What’s more, you can create your own layouts, position these elements as you wish, and size them accordingly.

This allows you to create different pages and page sections, including the custom pages we talked about, offer/ on-sale popups, attribute swatches, etc. In addition, some page builders (such as Brizy) allow code injections which you can leverage for further customization if the default features don’t cut it.

3: Faster development time

If you’ve imported a free theme, you can attest that it doesn’t start you off with much. You have a long way to go before you can create a ready-to-use ecommerce site. For example, here’s how Sense looks before customization:

It would take you quite some time to get from this (above) to something like this (below).

But with a drag and drop builder, you won’t have to worry about this because these tools come with templates. Although you have the option to create your pages from scratch, you don’t have to. You can import a template closest to your brand and customize it to make it your own.

4: Cost savings

Landing page builders not only save your time but also the costs you would incur to customize your Shopify store. We touched on how you would need to hire a developer to help you customize your online store. And developer services don’t come cheap.

A drag and drop Shopify builder enables you to do everything yourself and avoid this cost altogether. It doesn’t matter if you have no coding or design experience.

5: A better shopping experience

Did you know that 74% of ecommerce customers will likely make a purchase based on their experience alone? We can’t emphasize enough just how important customer experience is in online shopping. Shopify page builders can help you get there.

With page builders, you can create engaging elements that encourage potential customers to stay longer on your website and buy more products. This includes:

Carousels for your New Arrivals, Best Sellers, and Trending Products sections.
Swatches to help customers visually browse through product variations.
Image hover effects that give your customers a satisfying browsing experience.

Also, these tools come with mobile optimization features to ensure your sites look great on mobile phones.

6: Integrations with other Shopify apps

One thing we love most about Shopify is its extensibility. There’s an app for virtually everything. From email marketing tools, sales-boosting apps, and analytics tools, to product review plugins.

Shopify page builders are designed to be compatible with these tools. Meaning, you can still use these apps together with your page builder.

7: Ongoing support and updates

Web design isn’t a static field, in fact, it’s almost unrecognizable from what it was 5 years ago. So how do you stay on top of current security updates and web design trends? Your page builder’s service provider will handle this for you.

You’ll get regular feature updates, patching up security vulnerabilities and ensuring you always have access to the latest tools. This way you can focus on what really matters – sales and marketing.

With a Shopify drag and drop builder, you can take control of your store’s design and functionality without any technical expertise.

So after understanding the advantages of a Shopify instant landing page builder, you might be wondering which one you should use (seeing as there are a few). We’ve got just the right one in Brizy’s Shopify builder.

Brizy: The No-Code Shopify Page Builder Everybody Can Use

Are you looking to a create high-converting Shopify store, quickly, easily, and with zero code? Brizy’s Shopify page builder has got you covered. With this app, you can leverage simple drag and drop to create a fully customizable website your customers will love shopping from.

It provides you with everything you need to create the online store you’ve always wanted, no coding or design experience is needed. This includes:

Well-designed templates to get you started

You can start with a blank page and run with your imagination. Or select a template that matches your industry and customize it to fit your brand. Brizy has up to 97 templates spanning different industries you can pick from.

You don’t have to start from nothing, there’s something for everyone. These templates are crafted and optimized for conversions. They’re well-set up to help your store convert more visitors into paying customers.

Design flexibility with numerous elements and customization options

Remember when we said Shopify’s themes have limited customization? Brizy will help you break through these design limitations. With up to 48 elements each with unlimited customization options (margins, padding, size, etc.), you can create a truly unique store that stands out from your competition.

Within these 48 elements, 14 are created specifically for your Shopify store. These include products, product titles, add to cart button, etc.

Improved copy with AI text generation

Putting design aside, Brizy allows you to leverage AI to improve your copy. If you feel your copy is not meeting your standards you can use Brizy’s AI text generation to make it precise.

It can extend, shorten, or simplify your messaging to appeal to your target customers.

Highlight your promotions with alert bars and popups

If you have a sale in your online store, you can use Brizy’s popup builder to highlight products on sale. Here you can either create one from scratch or import a template that best suits your promotions.

Are you taking part in the upcoming Black Friday sales promotion? Use Brizy to create an alert bar that notifies your customers to get ready for this promotion.

Capture leads with the form builder

This page builder makes it easy for you to capture your customers' information through forms. You can add a form as an element and customize it with the form builder.

You’ll also be able to create all page types you need, including a landing page, home page, product page, blog, contact, about us pages, etc. This is only a takeaway snapshot of what Brizy can do. There’s so much more for you as a Shopify store owner or developer.

The bottom line is that Brizy is a fantastic tool for you to build your Shopify store. But don’t just take our word for it. Install it and try it out for free.

The long-term results of using a Shopify landing page builder

The long-term result of using a Shopify landing page builder is that you’ll be able to fully enjoy the benefits we’ve covered earlier. As an ecommerce store owner, you can build a high-converting online store that will get you more conversions. On the other hand, as a Shopify developer, you’ll roll out high-quality Shopify stores faster than ever.

Use a Drag-and-Drop Builder for Shopify Today

The default Shopify page builder and theme editor are not sufficient to build great-looking, ready-to-use online stores. But where the default page builder falls short, drag and drop page builders come in. They give you more design flexibility, features, and control over your online store looks like – all with zero coding. Leverage a drag and drop builder today and build the Shopify store you’ve always wanted. Try out for free Brizy landing page builder for Shopify and start selling.

Article by Bogdan

Co-founder & Head of Design, Bogdan has a passion for everything that works great and looks awesome. Guilty for most of the UI and UX around this place, you can say "Hi" to him at bogdan at brizy dot io