Shopify announces its own email marketing solution

Shopify has announced it’s taking the plunge into the world of email marketing.

• Shopify Email, which is only available to select merchants at launch, will rollout widely in 2020.
• The move is part of a growing suite of marketing tools Shopify directly developers and integrates with, as opposed to third party apps.
• The offering promises “highly customizable” templates, as well as the ability to directly import products images, text and links.
• Store owners can apply for early access, which Shopify says will be free.
• When the product officially launches, Shopify email will be a “low cost” add on fee.

The move isn’t surprising at all — talk that Shopify would eventually build its own email marketing solution has been circulating for years.

• As it was originally built, Shopify steered clear of the email marketing business, instead preferring to let third party services integrate with the platform.
• Then there was the high profile spat with leading email marketing company Mailchimp that resulted in that integration being pulled (but then restored) just days before Black Friday in 2018 — and eventually leading to a bitter breakup.
• As the battle between the two companies heated up — which were reportedly (at least officially) centered around privacy concerns — rumblings that Mailchimp was developing an ecommerce platform emerged.
• Though email marketing is a fairly crowded space, Shopify obviously has the advantage of being able to directly integrate with its existing customers, potentially reducing the barrier of having to switch email marketing services.