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On the latest episode of Winning With Shopify, host Nick was joined by Caroline Shelby and Alex from Yoast, diving deep into the ever-changing world of SEO – with a particular focus on AI’s impact on search, and what that means for your Shopify store.
The AI Revolution: Ready or Not
Nick opened with a frank look at the current landscape: AI search results are pushing some brand listings down, and no one quite knows how to stop it. The message? Don’t panic. AI is the biggest shift in search since the internet began, and the key is to adapt rather than fight it.
Caroline, Principal SEO at Yoast, explained that AI search is reshaping what it means to be optimised. AI is now more like a personal shopper than a traditional search engine, so your site needs to be ready to answer questions quickly and clearly.
SEO Basics: The Essentials
Caroline and Alex shared must-do tips for every e-commerce store:
- Say what you sell. Use plain text on your homepage and product pages to clearly describe what your business does.
- Fill in all the details. Product names, descriptions, and alt text should include the actual product name – “shoes” should be called “shoes,” not just “this great product.”
- Use proper product schema. Structured data helps search engines understand your products. Even though AI is evolving fast, schema is still essential to avoid confusion and improve your rankings.
Alex highlighted the importance of balancing detail with clarity – avoid stuffing your page with too many repetitive links or keyword-heavy descriptions that make no sense to humans.
AI, Keywords, and Staying Human
With AI rapidly changing how people search, keyword strategies need to evolve too. Caroline reminded us that while AI is smart, it can’t “remember” your site from one search to the next. That means every page should answer a user’s question on its own.
Colour naming was a fun example: you can call a product “olive,” but make sure to mention “green” too, so search engines (and people) actually know what it is.
Category Pages and Internal Linking
One big no-no? No-indexing your category pages. Caroline warned that doing this can stop search engines from crawling key parts of your site, killing your SEO. Alex also pointed out that while product pages are crucial, category pages help users navigate and can boost conversions.
What Yoast Brings to Shopify
Alex explained how Yoast’s app for Shopify makes implementing best practice SEO easier – especially around structured data for product variants. This helps search engines and AI better understand your product range, ultimately boosting your discoverability.
Caroline added that while raw traffic may go down in the AI search era, conversion rates could rise because the visitors who do click through are more likely to buy.
The Bottom Line
AI is transforming search faster than anything we’ve seen in a generation. For e-commerce brands, it’s all about staying relevant, structured, and user-focused. Yoast’s team summed it up perfectly: adapt, refine, and don’t forget the basics.
If you want to give your Shopify store the SEO edge, check out Yoast’s app (and grab that discount code: WWS15). You can also follow Caroline and Alex on social for regular insights.
Want to learn more?
Check out Yoast’s Shopify app and their fantastic knowledge base, or explore Search Engine Journal and Search Engine Land for articles by Carolyn and Alex.
Check out the full podcast here.
This episode was brought to you by Nick Trueman, Director of PPC & SEO Agency, Spec Digital