Please note that some of the changes recommended in this guide involve making direct changes to the theme code. If you encounter difficulties with this, please contact a third-party developer for more troubleshooting, customization, or functionality.
Your store's URL structure is predefined by Shopify but there could be several reasons why you, as a store owner, might want to remove the collection name from the product URL on your Shopify store:
- Simplified and Cleaner URLs: Removing the collection name can lead to shorter and cleaner URLs, making them more aesthetically pleasing and easier to remember.
- Improved SEO: In some cases, having shorter, more concise URLs can positively impact search engine optimization (SEO). Search engines often prefer clean and relevant URLs, which may potentially improve the visibility of the product in search results.
- Branding and Consistency: Some store owners may prefer a consistent URL structure for their products, especially if they want to emphasize their brand name in the URL rather than highlighting the collection.
- Easier Sharing: Shorter URLs are generally easier to share, especially in situations where character count matters, such as in social media posts or printed materials.
- Changing Product Placement: If products move between collections frequently, having a static URL without the collection name ensures that the URL remains the same even if the product is in different collections at different times.
It's important to note that while these reasons might apply to some situations, the decision to remove collection names from product URLs should be made carefully, considering the specific needs and goals of your online store. Additionally, any changes to URLs should be implemented with proper redirects to avoid SEO issues and analytics disruptions and provide a seamless transition for existing customers and search engines.
Steps on how to update the product URL format and remove the collection path
To remove the collection from the product URL when browsing from a collection. First, navigate to Online Store> Themes, click ... on a copy of your theme, and then click Edit code.
You'll be looking for the product-grid-item.liquid file in your snippets folder. Use Ctrl+F (Windows) or Cmd+F (Mac) to search for any instances of | within: collection and remove them from the file.
For Vino, look for the list.product-card.liquid template under the snippets folder instead.
Please note that implementing the workaround mentioned above will remove the "Back to collection" button from the product page and the collection name from the product breadcrumbs.