Shopify updates community section of website to be more than just a forum

By MixDex Article may include affiliate links

Shopify has relaunched its user community.

The site, which has existed for years at community.shopify.com, was primarily a user forum that often ended up filling search results with sometimes helpful but more often than not outdated or inaccurate answers to questions about the ecommerce platform.

The forum still exists but Shopify is billing the redo as going beyond a message board style approach, with a redesigned homepage that touts discussion, groups, events and a blog near the top.

“More than a forum. Your place to connect with brands and makers, partners and commerce shakers,” reads the subheadline at the top of the redesigned page.

There’s also a running list of recent conversations along with a large “ask a question” button, which appears to start a new discussion thread.

Groups appears to be one of the biggest new features, though they appear to be off to a rather slow start — with the largest having about 70 members as of Dec. 16, 2021, though that number is likely to grow as word gets out about the new community features.

Shopify introduced the forum feature under the community name in 2019, though it existed prior to that with at least some of the same features.