When it's time to get help on your Shopify store

We moved into our home in April and since then, we’ve been working hard on the backyard. Going from a wood deck, and ornamental greenery to a food forest and natural wildlife habitat. And when I say “we” I mean my husband. He’s been doing most of the work. I lend muscle once in a while.

Investing time and money into the backyard, at a time when there was a lot of uncertainty in the world – setting goals was important to guide our decisions.

For example, one goal we had was to create a wildlife habitat for the many animals that live near us. We live at the top of a wildlife refuge. Most of the animals we see are bald eagles, woodpeckers, robins, finches, sparrows, hummingbirds, and have seen rabbits and skunks.

Can’t forget the pesky squirrels!

The other goal was to create a food forest. We’ve tried growing food in the past but rarely succeeded for a variety of reasons.

The better part of the last seven months we spent making incremental changes, each one with a purpose to get us to our end goals.

Neither of us had designed a backyard before so we didn’t know if we were on the right path, but we gave it our shot anyway. It was a challenge to see the backyard as it was and imagine what it could be. Then make it happen. Or at least try.

Fast forward to the beginning of November, we were finally ready to seek help. We’ve had luck with the garden and we’ve seen more wildlife recently than when we first moved in. So we’re doing something right. But could it be better??

Since we didn’t know what we were doing, it was time to get feedback, hear some ideas, and determine the next steps.

The question was whether we were creating a natural habitat for wildlife in our area?

We called in the professionals and had them check our work so far.

To our surprise, they were impressed with the work we’ve (he’d) done and commended us (him) on the transformation. During the evaluation, they provided some more ideas, areas we can continue to improve on, and shared what’s worked for others in our neighborhood. Some of these ideas, we had never thought of or considered.

The timing was everything though. Had we called them earlier, we wouldn’t have known what we know today. We wouldn’t know the types of animals who grace us with their presence or where exactly the sun shines during peak growing season.

The same goes for your Shopify store.

Asking for help too early could set you down the wrong path.

Asking for help at the right time means you fully understand your customers and the questions they have about your products.

Asking for help at the right time means you work towards a goal that is meaningful to your business and your customers.

That’s why when I work with Shopify store owners, two things I ask at the beginning of a Website Rescue, is what are your goals for this project and why?

Sure everyone wants to make money. The most successful Shopify store owners set goals based on their customers’ needs and experiences.

We wanted to create a place where our wildlife would find food and shelter (their needs, not mine).

Creating a good customer experience on your Shopify store that is easy to navigate and answers all their questions, will keep them coming back.

What are you doing today to improve your customer experience?