Shopify Return Window Overrides: What Ecommerce Brands Need to Know

If your Shopify conversion rate has moved recently, it is tempting to credit a new campaign or worry that something on the site has broken. Before making that call, check the date. Shopify changed how it measures sessions and filters bot traffic between 21 and 23 September 2026. That can change your reported sessions and conversion rate even when customer behaviour has not changed. For eCommerce managers preparing reports or planning the next round of site improvements, this matters because it affects the baseline used to judge performance. What has Shopify changed? According to Shopify’s announcement, the update changes session reporting in three ways: Sessions follow continued customer activity. A visit that continues past midnight UTC is no longer split into two sessions solely because the date changed. Some journeys without a standard pageview now count. For example, someone going directly to checkout from a cart link may now be included as a session. Identified bot sessions are excluded by default from session-related reports. In reports that support the Human or bot session filter, you can change the filter to inspect them. One change may reduce your session count while another may increase it. Shopify says the update does not change orders, sales or customer counts. Why might conversion rate change without more sales? Shopify calculates online store conversion rate using sessions. If the number of reported sessions changes, the conversion rate can change even when order volume stays the same. Imagine a store with 100 orders and 5,000 reported sessions. Its conversion rate is 2%. If revised reporting shows 4,000 sessions for the same 100 orders, the reported rate becomes 2.5%. That looks like an improvement, but the store has not gained any additional orders. The reverse can happen if newly counted journeys increase the session total. Shopify says other session-based measures, including add-to-cart rate and checkout conversion rate, may also look different. What should eCommerce managers do now? 1. Mark the update on your reports. Add a note around 21–23 September so anyone reviewing performance knows that Shopify changed its measurement. 2. Check orders and sales alongside sessions. If conversion rate changes but orders and revenue remain steady, investigate the reporting change before treating it as a commercial result. 3. Establish a new baseline. Use data from after the update to assess future trends in sessions, conversion rate and other session-based metrics. 4. Keep bot filters consistent. In reports that support it, check the Human or bot session setting when comparing periods. Shopify notes that using the same filter does not make sessions measured before and after the update directly comparable. 5. Review custom reports and connected apps. If they use session data from Shopify Analytics, their figures may change too. Check how each report defines its metrics before comparing results with historical targets. You can start in Shopify Admin → Analytics → Reports, then open a sessions report such as Sessions by landing page or Sessions by device. Shopify’s help guide walks through the available comparisons. What does this mean for marketing decisions? A dashboard metric needs context. If conversion rate rises but orders and revenue do not, it is too early to say that a new design or campaign worked. Equally, a lower rate does not automatically mean your checkout has worsened. Look at the full customer journey: the quality of traffic reaching key pages, product engagement, basket activity, checkout behaviour, orders and revenue. If paid traffic is growing without corresponding sales, the next step may be to review targeting and landing pages. Our PPC approach considers the page customers reach as well as campaign performance. For organic traffic, our SEO work focuses on attracting relevant visitors, not simply increasing visits. The takeaway Shopify’s September update is a measurement change, not a trading result in itself. Annotate your reporting, establish a new baseline and check commercial outcomes before drawing conclusions. If the data then points to a genuine customer journey problem, turn that finding into a specific improvement to test. If your team needs help interpreting store performance and prioritising the next steps, explore our Shopify Priority Support or get in touch.

Running a Shopify store rarely stands still. New campaigns need landing pages, customer feedback highlights usability issues, apps need integrating and small technical problems can quickly become barriers to growth. However, not every business needs a complete website redesign or a large development project. Sometimes, you simply need an experienced Shopify team that can step in, understand what needs to be done and help you move forward. That is where ad hoc Shopify design and development support can make a real difference. We support Shopify and Shopify Plus merchants with flexible design, development and ecommerce expertise. Whether you have a list of improvements ready to go or need help deciding what to prioritise, we can work alongside your team to keep your store moving forward. What Is Ad Hoc Shopify Support? Ad hoc Shopify support gives merchants access to specialist design and development help without commissioning a full website build every time an improvement is needed. It can be useful when you: Have a specific issue that needs resolving Need extra development capacity during a busy period Want to improve an existing page or customer journey Have an internal ecommerce or marketing team but need specialist Shopify expertise Need several smaller improvements completed in priority order Want ongoing access to design and development support as your store evolves Rather than allowing a backlog of changes to grow, flexible Shopify support enables your business to make improvements in a structured and commercially focused way. What Can a Shopify Design and Development Team Help With? Every Shopify store is different, so the work should be shaped around the specific challenges and opportunities within your website. Support may include a mixture of design, development, user experience and technical improvements. Shopify design and UX improvements A website can be technically functional while still making it difficult for customers to browse, compare products or complete a purchase. Our Shopify designers can help improve areas such as: Homepage layouts and promotional sections Navigation and collection journeys Product page layouts Collection page design and merchandising Landing pages for campaigns and product launches Mobile usability Calls to action Basket and customer journey improvements Trust signals and product information Visual consistency across the store The purpose is not simply to make the website look better. Good ecommerce design should make the customer journey clearer, reduce friction and help users take the next step with confidence. For larger design projects, you can learn more about our Shopify website design service. Shopify development support Development requirements can range from small theme adjustments to entirely new features. Having access to Shopify development support means changes can be planned, built and tested properly before they are released. This may include: Shopify theme updates and customisation New sections and page templates Product and collection page functionality App installation and configuration Third-party integrations Subscription, loyalty or review functionality Improvements to filtering, search and product discovery Bug fixes and technical troubleshooting Site-speed and performance improvements Tracking and analytics updates Support with Shopify Markets or international storefront requirements The right approach will depend on the issue, theme, existing technology and commercial value of the proposed change. Sometimes custom development is appropriate. In other cases, native Shopify functionality or a carefully selected app may provide a more efficient solution. Why Flexible Shopify Support Is Valuable 1. Deal with priorities as they arise Ecommerce priorities can change quickly. A new campaign, seasonal collection, operational requirement or customer issue may create work that was not part of the original roadmap. Flexible support gives your team a way to respond without needing to scope a new standalone project every time. 2. Access several areas of expertise What appears to be a simple design request may also involve theme development, mobile testing, analytics or SEO considerations. Working with a Shopify ecommerce agency gives you access to a wider range of skills, helping ensure that changes work visually, technically and commercially. 3. Help your internal team move faster Many merchants already have capable ecommerce and marketing teams. The challenge is often capacity rather than ideas. An external Shopify partner can provide additional resources when needed, helping your team launch campaigns, resolve issues and deliver improvements without placing every task into an already busy internal queue. 4. Prioritise improvements by impact Not every requested change carries the same value. A long list of website tasks should be reviewed and prioritised according to customer impact, commercial importance, effort and urgency. This helps ensure the available time is used on the improvements most likely to support the customer experience and your wider business goals. 5. Allow your store to evolve continuously A Shopify store should not remain unchanged after launch. Customer expectations, products, campaigns and technology all continue to develop. Regular design and development improvements allow your website to evolve alongside the business instead of relying on occasional large redesigns. Ad Hoc Project or Ongoing Shopify Support? The best support model depends on what your business needs. An ad hoc project may be suitable when you have one clearly defined requirement, such as creating a new landing page, resolving a theme issue or adding a specific piece of functionality. Ongoing Shopify support may be more appropriate when: You have a growing backlog of design and development tasks Your store changes regularly You want to improve conversion and customer experience over time You need dependable access to Shopify specialists You want help building and delivering a prioritised roadmap Your internal team needs ongoing additional capacity Our Shopify Priority Support service gives growing ecommerce businesses access to ongoing design, development and strategic support. We work collaboratively with your team to plan priorities, deliver improvements and keep your Shopify store aligned with your wider commercial goals. How Our Shopify Support Process Works The exact process depends on the size and nature of the work, but it always begins with understanding your store, the problem you are trying to solve and the outcome you want to achieve. Reviewing your requirements We start by reviewing your current Shopify setup and the work you would like us to complete. If you already have a task list, we can assess it with you. If not, we can help identify the areas that may need attention. Agreeing priorities We organise the work around urgency, expected impact and the available budget or hours. This gives everyone a clear understanding of what will be addressed first. Design and approval Where design is required, we create the proposed solution around your brand, customer journey and commercial objectives before it moves into development. Development and testing Approved changes are developed and tested across the relevant devices and customer journeys. We work safely within the existing store and avoid unnecessary disruption. Launch and review Once the work has been approved, the updates are released. Where appropriate, we can review performance and use what we learn to shape the next set of priorities. You can also view examples of our work in the Lionheart Marketing Shopify portfolio. Choosing the Right Shopify Support Partner Before appointing an agency or developer, it is worth asking: Do they have relevant Shopify experience? Can they support both design and development? Will they take the time to understand the commercial reason behind each task? How are requests prioritised and scoped? How will time and progress be communicated? Is the work properly tested before it goes live? Can they consider UX, conversion, SEO and site performance as part of the wider picture? Can the relationship scale if your support requirements grow? The right partner should do more than complete a list of tickets. They should help you make informed decisions about what to change, why it matters and how it supports the wider growth of your Shopify store. Need Design or Development Help With Your Shopify Store? Whether you have one specific Shopify task, a backlog of improvements or need ongoing support from an experienced ecommerce team, Lionheart Marketing can help. We support merchants with Shopify design, development, UX improvements, technical updates, new functionality and structured growth roadmaps. Our team can work alongside your existing resources or become the Shopify support team you do not currently have in-house. Speak to our team of Shopify experts  about the changes you would like to make to your Shopify store, and we will help you identify the most practical next step.  

A proprietary ecommerce platform can provide a business with a website built around its exact requirements. Over time, however, that flexibility can become restrictive if the platform is difficult to update, expensive to maintain or dependent on a small number of developers. If everyday improvements take too long, integrations are becoming harder to manage or the platform is no longer supporting your growth plans, moving to Shopify may be worth considering. Replatforming is a significant decision. It affects much more than the appearance of your website; it can influence your internal processes, customer experience, organic visibility, technology costs and ability to grow. This guide explains the advantages and disadvantages of moving from a proprietary ecommerce platform to Shopify, along with the areas your business should review before making a decision. What is a proprietary ecommerce platform? A proprietary platform is an ecommerce system owned, developed or controlled by a particular software provider, agency or internal development team. Unlike widely adopted platforms such as Shopify, a proprietary system may rely on custom code, specialist infrastructure and technology that only its original developers fully understand. This can give a business considerable control when the platform is first developed. It may be tailored around specific products, workflows, pricing structures or operational systems. However, the business can also become dependent on the platform owner for: Website updates and maintenance New functionality Security improvements Hosting and infrastructure Systems integrations Technical support Access to data Platform documentation Future development The key question is not whether proprietary technology is inherently good or bad. It is whether the platform continues to support the business commercially and operationally. Why do brands consider moving away from proprietary platforms? Many businesses do not begin exploring Shopify because their current website has completely failed. More often, a collection of smaller problems has started to slow the business down. Common warning signs include: Routine changes require developer support Development costs are increasing New functionality takes too long to deliver The platform has a limited development roadmap Integrations are unavailable or expensive to build The internal team cannot easily update content Website performance is difficult to improve The checkout experience is dated or restrictive Only one provider understands the technology Reporting and tracking are unreliable International or B2B growth is difficult to support The business does not have complete control over its data or code These challenges can affect more than the website. Marketing campaigns may be delayed, staff can spend time working around platform limitations and opportunities may be lost because the technology cannot respond quickly enough. Shopify recommends defining the intended business outcome before beginning a migration. That could include improving conversion, reducing maintenance costs, entering new markets or giving internal teams greater control. Its official ecommerce replatforming guide provides a useful overview of the wider process. What are the advantages of moving to Shopify? Reduced technical maintenance Shopify is a hosted Software as a Service platform. Hosting, core platform updates, SSL certificates and much of the underlying infrastructure are managed as part of the service. This can reduce the responsibility placed on your internal team or development provider. You will still need to manage your theme, apps, integrations and custom functionality, but you are no longer responsible for maintaining the core ecommerce platform and hosting environment. Easier day-to-day management Shopify gives teams a central admin area for managing products, collections, orders, customers, discounts, content and reporting. For many businesses, this means marketing and ecommerce teams can make everyday changes without raising a development request. Products can be updated, landing pages created and promotions launched more quickly. That greater control can make the business less dependent on a single developer or platform provider. Access to a wider technology ecosystem A proprietary platform may require bespoke development every time the business needs to connect a new system. Shopify has an established ecosystem of apps and integrations covering areas such as: Email and CRM Reviews and user-generated content Loyalty programmes Subscriptions Affiliate marketing Shipping and fulfilment Inventory management Customer service Accounting Analytics and tracking International selling Marketplaces and social commerce At Lionheart Marketing, we work with a range of ecommerce technologies through our Shopify partner network. An app should still be selected carefully. It must solve a genuine requirement, integrate with the wider technology stack and avoid adding unnecessary cost or performance issues. A more scalable platform Shopify supports businesses at different stages of growth, from smaller ecommerce stores to established international organisations using Shopify Plus. This gives brands the ability to introduce new functionality, markets and sales channels without automatically needing to rebuild the platform from the ground up. Shopify’s international sales tools can support localised storefronts, currencies, domains and market-specific experiences. More complex organisations can also assess Shopify Plus for advanced B2B, checkout, international and operational requirements. The right Shopify plan will depend on your transaction volume, staff requirements, reporting, international strategy and required functionality. Current features and fees can be reviewed on the official Shopify UK pricing page. Security and reliability With a proprietary platform, responsibility for hosting security, payment compliance, patches and technical maintenance may sit with the platform owner or your internal team. Shopify states that its platform is certified Level 1 PCI DSS compliant, covering stores powered by Shopify. Further details are available through Shopify’s PCI compliance information. Your business will still have responsibilities around account security, permissions, customer data and app selection, but the underlying commerce infrastructure is managed within Shopify’s environment. More freedom to choose support partners One of the biggest risks of proprietary technology is supplier dependency. If only one provider understands the system, changing agency can be difficult. Documentation may be limited, development skills may be hard to find and the cost of replacing the original provider can be significant. Because Shopify is widely used, businesses have access to a much larger community of agencies, developers, designers and technology specialists. Choosing the right partner still matters. Our guide to selecting a Shopify ecommerce agency explains what to look for beyond platform badges and sales claims. Opportunities to improve the customer journey A migration should not simply reproduce the existing website on a different platform. It creates an opportunity to review: Navigation and site structure Product discovery Collection pages and filtering Product-page content Mobile usability Basket and checkout journeys Trust signals Cross-selling and recommendations Site search Accessibility Page performance Our Shopify website design service brings together website strategy, UX, UI, SEO and conversion considerations so that the new store is built around customers and commercial goals. What are the disadvantages of moving to Shopify? Shopify can solve many challenges, but it will not be right for every business. Less control over the core platform With a fully proprietary system, the business may be able to control almost every aspect of the underlying technology. Shopify provides extensive flexibility through themes, apps, APIs and custom development, but its core platform remains controlled by Shopify. Some areas of the system operate within defined structures and certain advanced features may require Shopify Plus. If your business relies on highly unusual workflows or deeply customised checkout functionality, these requirements must be assessed before choosing Shopify. Existing functionality may need to be rebuilt Custom features from a proprietary platform will not automatically transfer to Shopify. Each feature should be reviewed to determine whether it can be: Replaced with native Shopify functionality Delivered through a suitable app Recreated through custom development Connected through an integration Simplified or removed This discovery stage is essential. Assuming that every part of the existing website can be copied directly may lead to unexpected costs or compromises later. App and subscription costs can increase Shopify provides a substantial amount of functionality, but many stores also use paid apps for reviews, loyalty, subscriptions, search, shipping or other specialist requirements. App fees can accumulate, particularly if several tools provide overlapping features. Shopify explains how recurring, usage-based and one-time app fees can appear on its app-charges guidance. When comparing costs, look at the complete cost of ownership rather than the Shopify subscription alone. Consider: Platform fees Payment fees App subscriptions Theme costs Initial design and development Custom integrations Ongoing support Internal training Future optimisation This should then be compared with the full cost of maintaining your current proprietary platform. Data migration can be complex Products are only one part of an ecommerce migration. Depending on the business, you may also need to transfer: Product variants and images Inventory Customer records Historical orders Website pages Blog content Reviews Discounts Gift cards Customer groups Subscription information SEO metadata Redirects Proprietary systems can make this more difficult if data exports are limited, inconsistently structured or controlled by the existing provider. Shopify’s official migration guidance outlines the general process, but the data must still be cleaned, structured, imported and tested properly. There is an SEO risk Any platform migration can temporarily affect organic performance because URLs, internal links, page structure and technical signals may change. A poorly managed migration can result in: Broken links Missing pages Lost metadata Incorrect canonical tags Unhelpful redirects 404 errors Reduced rankings Lost organic traffic and revenue This is why SEO cannot be left until the final stage of the build. Google’s site-move guidance recommends mapping old URLs to their new destinations, using permanent redirects and monitoring the site following launch. Our Shopify migration service includes SEO migration planning, URL mapping, redirects, quality assurance and post-launch monitoring. Our wider SEO services can then support continued organic growth after launch. Your team will need to adapt Shopify is generally straightforward to manage, but it will still introduce new processes. Your ecommerce, marketing, customer-service, warehouse and finance teams may all interact with the platform differently. Training, permissions and clear internal ownership should form part of the migration plan. What should you consider before moving to Shopify? Why are you moving? Start with the business problem, not the platform. Document what is holding you back and what the new platform must improve. This could include faster development, easier content management, lower maintenance, better mobile conversion or international growth. Agreeing measurable objectives will make it easier to judge whether Shopify is the correct solution. What functionality do you currently use? Create a complete list of customer-facing features and back-office processes. Review each feature and categorise it as: Essential for launch Valuable but suitable for a later phase No longer required Available natively within Shopify Requiring an app or integration Requiring custom development This prevents forgotten requirements from appearing late in the project. Which systems need to integrate with Shopify? Review the full operational journey, including: ERP and finance systems Warehouse and stock management Shipping providers CRM and email platforms Product information systems Customer-service tools Reviews and loyalty platforms Affiliate networks Marketplaces Analytics and advertising platforms Confirm how data will move between each system and who will be responsible for maintaining the integration. Do you have complete access to your data? Before giving notice to an existing provider, establish what data can be exported and in which format. You should also confirm ownership of: Domain names Customer and order data Product imagery Website content Design files Custom code Analytics accounts Google Search Console Advertising accounts Email and CRM data Do not assume that everything is automatically available because your business paid for the platform. What must be protected for SEO? Before development begins, identify: Indexed URLs High traffic landing pages Revenue generating pages Keyword rankings Backlinks Existing metadata Valuable content Structured data Internal linking patterns Every important old URL should be mapped to the closest relevant destination on Shopify. Redirecting everything to the homepage is not a suitable migration strategy. When should the migration take place? Avoid launching during your busiest trading period wherever possible. Allow enough time for: Data migration Design and development Integration testing Content population Redirect preparation Staff training Quality assurance Test orders Launch planning Post-launch monitoring A fixed date should only be confirmed once the main dependencies and risks are understood. What happens after launch? A new Shopify website will still need to develop after going live. Customer behaviour, search performance and sales data should be reviewed to identify improvements. This could include new functionality, CRO, SEO, landing pages, merchandising or retention activity. Our Shopify Priority Support provides ongoing design, development and strategic support, while our Shopify marketing services connect visibility, conversion and retention after launch. Is moving from a proprietary platform to Shopify right for your brand? Shopify may be a strong option if your business wants: Less responsibility for infrastructure and maintenance A platform that is easier for internal teams to manage Access to a wider ecosystem of integrations Greater flexibility when choosing development partners A scalable foundation for future growth Stronger support for ecommerce, B2B or international expansion However, the decision should follow a detailed review of your current functionality, data, integrations, costs and future requirements. In some situations, improving the existing platform may be more practical than migrating. In others, remaining on proprietary technology can become increasingly expensive and restrictive. The right starting point is an honest platform and requirements review. Planning a proprietary platform to Shopify migration? Lionheart Marketing supports established businesses moving from proprietary and legacy ecommerce platforms to Shopify. We can help with: Platform and requirements discovery Migration strategy and planning Product, customer and order migration UX and UI design Shopify development App and systems integrations SEO migration and redirect mapping Analytics and conversion tracking Quality assurance and test ordering Launch management Post-launch monitoring and growth support If your existing platform is becoming difficult to manage, costly to maintain or restrictive to future growth, speak to the Lionheart Marketing team about your Shopify migration.