What are Shopify Tags and How to Use Them Effectively
Shopify tags are labels you attach to products, customers, orders, and other items in your store to organize and categorize them. While they might seem simple, tags are one of the most powerful tools for store organization, enabling everything from automated collections to targeted marketing campaigns.
Understanding Shopify Tags
Tags act as searchable keywords that help you and your customers find items quickly. You can add tags to:
- Products: Categorize by attribute, season, vendor, or any custom criteria
- Customers: Segment by behavior, status, or marketing preferences
- Orders: Track fulfillment status, special handling, or order sources
- Blog posts: Organize content by topic
- Transfers: Track inventory movements
- Draft orders: Categorize quotes and pending orders
How Tags Power Automated Collections
One of the most valuable uses of tags is creating automated collections. Instead of manually adding products to collections, you set rules based on tags:
Example: Create a "Summer Collection" with the condition "Product tag equals summer"—every product tagged "summer" automatically appears in the collection.
Common tag-based collection strategies:
- Seasonal tags: spring, summer, fall, winter, holiday
- Status tags: new-arrival, bestseller, clearance, featured
- Attribute tags: organic, handmade, eco-friendly, vegan
- Price tier tags: under-25, under-50, premium
Product Tagging Best Practices
Create a Tagging System
Before adding tags randomly, establish a structured system:
- Use prefixes for categories: color-red, size-large, material-cotton
- Maintain consistent formatting: Choose lowercase with hyphens and stick to it
- Document your tags: Keep a master list of approved tags
- Review periodically: Remove unused tags and consolidate duplicates
Tag Categories to Consider
Build your tagging system around these common categories:
- Product attributes: Color, size, material, style
- Use cases: Gifts, everyday-wear, special-occasion
- Customer segments: Men, women, kids, teens
- Marketing campaigns: Sale, featured, limited-edition
- Vendors/brands: brand-nike, brand-adidas
- Inventory status: Low-stock, backorder, preorder
How Many Tags Per Product?
Shopify allows up to 250 tags per product, but more isn't always better:
- Recommended: 5-15 strategic tags per product
- Focus on: Tags that serve specific purposes (collections, filtering, search)
- Avoid: Redundant tags that don't add organizational value
Using Tags for Store Navigation
Many Shopify themes allow customers to filter products by tags. This creates powerful navigation options:
- Filter by color on collection pages
- Sort by size or material
- Show only items on sale
- Display vendor-specific products
For filtering to work well, use consistent tag names and apply them uniformly across your product catalog.
Customer and Order Tags
Customer Tags
Segment customers for targeted marketing:
- Purchase behavior: vip, repeat-buyer, high-value
- Acquisition source: instagram, referral, wholesale
- Preferences: newsletter-subscriber, sms-opted-in
- Account status: b2b, retail, member
Order Tags
Track orders through fulfillment:
- Processing notes: gift-wrap, rush-order, fragile
- Fulfillment status: backordered, partial-ship
- Source tracking: marketplace, pos, wholesale
Tag Management Tips
Bulk Tagging
For large catalogs, use Shopify's bulk editor or CSV imports to add tags to multiple products at once. This is much faster than editing products individually.
Finding Tag Inconsistencies
Common issues to watch for:
- Spelling variations: "grey" vs "gray"
- Format inconsistencies: "New Arrival" vs "new-arrival"
- Singular vs plural: "shirt" vs "shirts"
- Unused tags: Tags that no longer apply to any products
Automating Tag Application
Consider apps and tools that can automatically apply tags based on:
- Product title or description keywords
- Vendor or product type
- Inventory levels
- Price changes
Tags and SEO
While tags themselves aren't directly indexed by search engines, they contribute to SEO indirectly:
- Collection organization: Better collections create more targeted, keyword-rich pages
- Internal linking: Tag-based filtering creates crawlable paths to products
- User experience: Easy navigation reduces bounce rates
Learn more about SEO for Shopify collections.
Common Tagging Mistakes
- No system: Random tags without consistency make organization impossible
- Too many tags: Creates noise and makes filtering confusing
- Inconsistent naming: "Blue" vs "blue" vs "Color: Blue" fragments your data
- Not using tags: Missing out on automation and organization benefits
- Single-use tags: Tags that only apply to one product add no value
Integrations and Automation
Tags work with many Shopify apps and integrations:
- Collection management: AWSM Collections for automated collection rules
- Email marketing: Segment campaigns based on purchase tags
- Inventory apps: Trigger alerts based on product tags
- Fulfillment: Route orders based on order tags
Conclusion
Shopify tags are simple to use but powerful when implemented strategically. Start with a clear tagging system, apply tags consistently, and use them to power automated collections and improve store organization. The time invested in proper tagging pays off through better automation and easier management.
Ready to put your tags to work? Try AWSM Collections to create smart, tag-based automated collections.
Related Resources
Explore More Guides
Information may be outdated or incorrect, and we recommend verifying any information before relying on it.
