Choosing the Right Shopify Partner

(And Save Yourself a Rebuild in 3 Months)

  • 7 minute read

Choosing the right Shopify partner is one of the most impactful decisions you will make for your e-commerce business. The agency you pick will influence your store’s performance, your long-term growth, and how smoothly your team can operate day to day.

Knowing what to look for makes all the difference, and it starts with aligning on outcomes, not just deliverables.

Here’s what we’ll cover to help you make a smart choice:

10 Key Steps to Choosing the Right Shopify Partner

There’s no universal checklist for choosing a Shopify partner. Every brand has a different starting point, different headaches, different hopes. After seeing what works across many e-commerce stores and industries, we’ve narrowed it down to ten steps that consistently lead to better outcomes.

Define your eCommerce goals

Before you reach out to an agency, get clear on what success actually looks like. Are you launching something new, replatforming your existing e-commerce store, or finally sorting out the performance issues holding you back?

Everyone talks about SMART goals, and yes, you’ve probably heard it a hundred times. But it’s stuck around for a reason. If your goals aren’t specific, measurable and grounded in timelines and relevance, it’s easy to drift, overspend or walk away underwhelmed. Even broad goals like increasing e-commerce sales only work if you define what that means and when it needs to happen.

Be wary of the TikTok-style success stories. You know the ones. “We launched in 24 hours and hit six figures by the weekend.” They make great Reels, but terrible expectations. Real growth takes testing, analysis and strategy. Go slow to go fast. That’s the kind of thinking the right agency will support.

Set a realistic budget

Budget is often one of the first questions, and for good reason. It helps define scope and expectations early. Knowing what you’re willing to invest helps agencies recommend the right build, from theme customisation to full bespoke development.

Good agencies will often propose phased approaches or highlight ways to scale efficiently over time. You’re not just paying for a site, you’re investing in long-term value, performance and support.

A transparent conversation about budget makes it easier to filter out agencies that either overpromise or underdeliver. It’s not about spending more, but spending wisely.

Review Shopify-specific experience

Not all web agencies are built for Shopify. Look for teams that have a proven history working within the Shopify ecosystem. That means they understand Shopify’s quirks, the app ecosystem, and where over-customisation becomes a trap.

Shopify Partner status is a strong signal that the agency has met certain standards. But beyond that, check if they’ve built stores similar to yours. B2B stores, large inventory brands, and subscription models, each have their own technical needs.

You want a team that doesn’t need to guess how things work on Shopify. Their advice should save you time, not cost you more.

Review their portfolio and past work

An agency’s portfolio is more than a design showcase. Look for conversion-driven builds that demonstrate strong e-commerce store fundamentals. Does their work reflect conversion-first thinking? Are the sites fast, mobile-optimised and easy to navigate?

Ask to see case studies or walkthroughs. The best agencies will explain not just what they built, but why they made certain decisions based on data or business goals.

If you see work that resembles the kind of store you want to build, in scale, industry or features, you’re likely in good hands.

Prioritise mobile-first e-commerce design

Most online shopping now happens on mobile. Your agency should understand this and build accordingly, not just making it mobile-friendly, but designing a mobile-first e-commerce experience from the start.

This means simplified navigation, optimised checkout flows and fast-loading product pages. Good mobile-first e-commerce design isn’t about shrinking content to fit smaller screens. It’s about making the buying process seamless, intuitive and friction-free.

Check their previous work on your phone. If it feels clunky or slow, they may not be prioritising what actually matters in modern ecommerce.

Ask about post-launch support

A great Shopify agency won’t disappear after go-live. They’ll help with performance monitoring, bug fixes, new feature rollouts and even team training where needed. This is also where conversion rate optimisation becomes part of the long-term plan, helping you improve the store experience month after month.

Ask what kind of support is included, and what’s billed separately. Clarity here avoids frustration later. You want a partner who helps you maintain and evolve your site, not just build it.

If they offer flexible retainers or sprint-based support, that’s a good sign they’re used to growing with their clients.

Check for additional services beyond development

Development is only one piece of the puzzle. Many Shopify agencies also offer services like paid media, email marketing, Conversion Rate Optimisation (CRO) or product photography. These aren’t always essential, but they can unlock real value, especially if you’re building from scratch.

Ask what’s available and what’s handled in-house versus outsourced. A more integrated team means fewer gaps during launch and better post-launch traction.

Just make sure these services support your actual goals. Avoid paying for extras that don’t map back to what you really need.

Ensure culture fit and communication alignment

The technical side is only half the relationship. A good culture fit makes the process smoother, especially during fast turnarounds or unexpected challenges.

Jump on a call early. Do they ask thoughtful questions? Are they collaborative or rigid? How do they handle feedback?

You don’t need to become best friends, but you do want to feel like they’re part of your team for the duration of the project.

Choose a partner that understands your customer journey

Your agency should care about more than code. A strong partner will ask about conversion funnels, drop-off points and user pain. A partner who actively supports increasing e-commerce sales through funnel analysis will spot problems you might miss.

If the conversation is only about features and functions, you’re missing an opportunity to optimise performance.

The right agency doesn’t just deliver what you ask for. They help you uncover key opportunities to increase e-commerce sales without jumping on every new feature or app.

Search behaviour is shifting. AI tools like Google’s AI Overviews and ChatGPT rely on clear content, structured data and clean markup to understand and recommend content.

Your agency should know how to prepare your site for this. This includes schema markup, optimised FAQs, and content designed to answer real user intent.

Ignoring this now puts your store at a disadvantage later. The earlier you start thinking about AI visibility, the easier it is to scale content that performs.

The Takeaway

Choosing a Shopify partner isn’t just about finding a designer, especially as the e-commerce field becomes more complex. Your Shopify partner becomes a temporary extension of your team. Taking the time to find the right fit, coupled with the right questions, ensures you’re on track to building a store that drives real results.

Always remember:

  • Strategy over aesthetics.
  • Proof over promises.
  • Long game over quick wins.
  • Chemistry over chaos.

At EXPAND, we’ve rebuilt enough stores to know what happens when these questions aren’t asked early. We’re not just Shopify Partners. We’re partners in growth.

Check out our Shopify case studies to learn more about our work.

If you’re still unsure about hiring a Shopify agency, book a free consultation call with our Shopify experts and we will help you build a store that converts while still looking pretty amazing.