Using Shopify with AI and Smart E-Commerce Strategies (Part 2 with Deonnah Carolus)

📌 Episode Summary:
In this episode, Crystal continues her conversation with Deonnah Carolus, the founder of E-Commerce Savvy, diving deeper into launching and scaling Shopify stores with the help of AI tools. 

Deonnah shares practical insights on using Shopify’s built-in features versus third-party themes, optimizing SEO for long-term visibility, setting realistic timelines for launching a store, and the mindset shifts needed to succeed in e-commerce. 

Whether you’re transitioning from Etsy or building your first digital storefront, this episode provides actionable advice to help you go from idea to income—without the overwhelm.

🔑 Key Takeaways:

• Launch Imperfectly, Learn Quickly: Start with one product and iterate. Perfectionism delays progress.
• AI Can Accelerate Design, But Requires Human Input: Shopify's AI tools can speed up store creation but need customization to avoid generic results.
• Free Shopify Themes Are Powerful: Themes like Horizon and Dawn are flexible, optimized for speed, and ideal for beginners.
• Mindset Over Comparison: Focusing on your own vision helps avoid “comparisonitis” and analysis paralysis.
• Know When to Upgrade Plans: Shopify Plus is best for stores doing $1M+ annually and needing advanced customization.
• SEO is Non-Negotiable: Foundational SEO is critical to long-term growth and lower ad costs.
• Schema is the Future: As Google evolves, structured data will be key to visibility—Yoast can help.

🧠 Listener Action Items:

1. Launch Now: Choose one product and go live—don’t wait for perfection.
2. Use Free Themes: Start with Shopify’s Horizon to keep costs low and performance high.
3. Prioritize SEO: Set meta tags and use schema tools to improve discoverability.
4. Invest in Learning: Consider Deonnah’s Idea to Income course to build your Shopify store in 30 days.
5. Follow for More: Stay inspired and educated by following @ecommercesavvy on Instagram and TikTok.

Connect with Deonnah Carolus: Website

Does SEO feel confusing, overwhelming, or just plain impossible to figure out? You’re not alone. That’s why I created the AI SEO Foundations course, powered by Crystal GPT: your personal AI SEO coach designed for busy, creative business owners like you.

Ditch the overwhelm and discover what SEO can do for your business! Head to SEOin7days.com (with the number 7!) and get started today—let’s make your brand easy to find and impossible to ignore.

Chapters

• 0:00 Deonnah: just stay true to your vision and don't get caught up in the, you know,
• 0:46 Introduction to AI in Shopify
• 1:12 AI Theme Generator: Pros and Cons
• 1:52 Speeding Up Store Creation with AI
• 2:14 Challenges with AI-Generated Stores
• 2:32 Importance of Customization and Learning
• 3:05 Avoiding Common Store Setup Mistakes
• 3:43 Reasonable Timeframes for Store Setup
• 4:50 Launching with Minimal Products
• 5:40 Choosing Between Free and Third-Party Themes
• 9:54 Mindset for Shopify Store Owners
• 12:05 Shopify Plans: Basic vs. Plus
• 15:03 SEO and Marketing Strategies

Transcript

[00:00:00] Deonnah: just stay true to your vision and don't get caught up in the, you know, comparisonitis because that's really just gonna prevent you from moving forward. It's gonna prevent you from doing anything, and you're gonna stay stuck in that analysis paralysis mode forever.

You can launch with one product. It doesn't have to be perfect, and you're gonna learn so much just through the process of launching your store with that one product that you're gonna be able to iterate over and over again.

And just make it look better over time. It's not gonna prevent you from selling that one product. You just have to keep moving forward. ​

[00:00:39] Introduction to AI in Shopify

[00:00:39] Crystal: What do you think are the most exciting ways that Shopify's kind of integrated ai?

[00:00:45] Deonnah: Yeah, I think within their builder that you can use AI to help you create sections and different blocks. Different visual elements. That's really cool.

I think there needs to be a little bit more training on their [00:01:00] end as far as how to prompt. And just make it look... professional. 

[00:01:04] AI Theme Generator: Pros and Cons

[00:01:04] Deonnah: I do love the idea that there is an AI theme generator to help people just build a store based on their industry and what they're selling.

So you can literally prompt it, like I sell, you know, dog toys and accessories, for example.

And it will create a theme around that industry. 

Is it perfect? No, because when I was doing that, doing that for this specific industry, I would get a cat theme. Like I said, nothing about cats. Why are you giving me cats?

So like I said, I think there are going to be improvements and we'll just, this is the worst it's ever gonna be, right?

Because we are the very foundational level of AI. And people trying to figure this out. 

[00:01:44] Speeding Up Store Creation with AI

[00:01:44] Deonnah: But it is exciting and I think for people that struggle with design or aesthetics, it could be beneficial. It could speed up the process for them. a store more quickly instead of taking months. You know, that's a [00:02:00] possibility as well.

So long as, you know, you're still learning how your store functions and how to build things over time. 

[00:02:07] Challenges with AI-Generated Stores

[00:02:07] Deonnah: like I said, I just don't think letting Shopify create your entire store with AI and using it, like what, what it gives you and they're just switching out copy.

As someone who's been doing websites forever, I just don't think that that is a a smart way to go, like for an e-commerce store. 

[00:02:25] Importance of Customization and Learning

[00:02:25] Deonnah: But maybe to just get, get you up and started and familiar with the builder before you go live. And then learning how to customize different elements is definitely gonna help people. Which is also very exciting.

'cause I think people get tripped up with learning a new tool and, and a new system. And then it prolongs their whole like excitement. And idea from actually getting launched into the world.

And that's the part that That sucks. But with these innovative tools, I think it's going to be a better possibility for everyone to get up and going more quickly is the idea.

So I hope that's that, that's how it works, you know?

[00:02:58] Avoiding Common Store Setup Mistakes

[00:02:58] Crystal: Yeah, and I, I like the [00:03:00] idea of the themes by category.

Because I think we've all seen those stores that have some random text in the middle of the page.

And once you built a Shopify store, you're like, oh my gosh, somebody forgot to delete a block or something right there.

My son the other day, I wouldn't buy shoes from a particular website. Because it had something like that going on. I was like, I don't know that this is actually even legit.

Because if they have this little weird template piece right here in the middle of their homepage.

Something's not all the way right there.

[00:03:34] Deonnah: Yeah, exactly.

[00:03:36] Reasonable Timeframes for Store Setup

[00:03:36] Crystal: So when you talk about like a timeframe for a Shopify store.

What is a reasonable timeframe? Because I know for me, when I went from my GoDaddy whatever store to Shopify. I'm all about like getting it done.

Not perfect, but just getting it done and then learning over time.

But I did it in two weeks.

I had a frame of knowledge from my previous store.

If you're moving from [00:04:00] WooCommerce.

Or if you're building a store for the first time, like what are the, what are the ranges of the timeline?

Like some reasonable expectations for people?

[00:04:09] Deonnah: Yeah, that's a great question. I feel like it all comes down to. Are you a perfectionist? Or can you just do the work to get the idea up and launched and then iterate? Because I'll tell you. Over time, you're always gonna iterate.

Depending on the season, depending on what you sell, depending on the holidays that are coming up.

You're gonna be rearranging things, you're gonna be featuring different collections and different products. And changing out your banners.

So a reasonable time would be 30 to 60 days.

Depending on... your collections and how many products you have. 

[00:04:43] Launching with Minimal Products

[00:04:43] Deonnah: And I will say that you can launch your store with one product. You don't need a hundred different variants.

I've seen people with like t-shirt, trainings or whatever.

Like, oh, you should have a hundred different designs before you launch. And that's so much pressure to put on someone. all of these like POD [00:05:00] trainers and stuff.

That's their messaging. Have as many products as possible, but that actually really prevents someone from just launching their idea.

So if you have an idea in a product. Launch with one product, design your homepage around that product.

And then after you launch, you can upload more products and expand on your idea. Instead of just sitting around and waiting for the right time, quote unquote, right time.

[00:05:22] Crystal: That is such a good point. And one thing that I've meant to follow up on is third party themes.

I think I've purchased one third party theme in my whole life and I'm like, why did I do that? 

[00:05:32] Choosing Between Free and Third-Party Themes

[00:05:37] Crystal: Can you talk about like why you would recommend or not recommend, using Shopify themes?

And, and also, if you get a Shopify theme in their store. Is that the same as like using a Shopify free theme?

[00:05:47] Deonnah: Yeah, so the free theme within Shopify. Like the more I've designed over the years too in Shopify, and use their own tools. I don't wanna use third party.

If you're making of dollars a year, [00:06:00] then yeah. Up, up level, the theme. Make it look insanely good. Like you can still do that with the out of the box Shopify themes.

But you're gonna get a little more structure and bells and whistles and extras. That come with third party developed themes.

So there's that. But you don't need to go that route.

So Shopify has their default theme. And then under that default theme, they have additional look and feel themes that go under that theme.

So for example, with the Dawn theme, all of their free themes, I think there's 12 or 13. Something like that. Those are iterations of the Dawn theme.

They're just different designs and perspectives and starting points for business owners that like a different vibe.

But within all of the free themes, those are all developed by Shopify. And they are essentially the exact same thing. They are just designed differently. So there's that.

And then with Horizon, it's the same bag.

So if you go to the Horizon Landing page, there's gonna be other themes within Horizon that [00:07:00] are differently named, right? And they look different. But they're all the same theme, essentially. They're just designed differently. So, now Shopify has double the free themes. 'cause they had everything that's under Dawn, which is free.

And then now everything under Horizon, which is free. I don't know what they're gonna do again with all of the things Dawn oriented. But we'll, we'll find out in the future. So third party themes. 

They're really great if you're gonna go that route. They just come with a lot of extra bells and whistles.

Different sections, some things, they come right out of the box where you're just, you can switch out different elements. Images, copy, those types of things.

I would say there is no such thing as a best theme for SEO if we're gonna get into that. I will say though, the horizon theme, there's been a lot of tests done around site speed and page loading time.

And this is the fastest theme they have ever built for the Shopify platform. So it's already beneficial in that way.

Also, with [00:08:00] updating a third party theme, you would have to essentially download the new version and then upload it to your store.

And you can't just switch things over. And update it right away.

Especially if you have a bunch of custom pages, you'll have to redo all of those things. So there are some pros and cons with third party themes and Shopify's free themes. But if you're just getting started, use the free theme. 

You go through the process of learning Shopify as a whole.

You're find that you can customize the look and the feel of a free theme. 

So much so that you would never even know that it was a free theme. So especially with Horizon.

Having so much more design capability and flexibility, you are going to be able to use a free theme and make it look insanely good. That you're not gonna need to spend that money. I will say if you do go the route of a third party theme, only buy on Shopify.

Because they go through a very [00:09:00] extensive vetting process. It's like a 35 step process. Don't go through theme, forest or creative market. 

Or Etsy, any of those other platforms that are selling you templated stores.

I would highly suggest to not go that route just because there's no one really to talk to. They're not with Shopify's standards, and they're not approved by Shopify either.

So by going through the theme store on Shopify and getting a third party theme from them, you still are getting a really good functioning, highly functioning website.

That goes through very rigorous testing and processes to even be able to sell a theme on their store is highly coveted.

You're in good hands either way you go. But if you're just getting started, use a free theme, 100 percent.

[00:09:46] Crystal: that is great advice. 

[00:09:47] Mindset for Shopify Store Owners

[00:09:49] Crystal: Okay, so let's talk about mindset stuff.

I feel like I've already had to kind of work through a little bit of that.

In my beliefs about what I wanted to do. Versus what is just the most efficient.

What do you think mindset [00:10:00] wise, Shopify store owners need to do in the next year or two? To stay competitive in the e-commerce space?

[00:10:07] Deonnah: Yeah, I feel like it just comes back to your own vision that you have. For your store and what you're selling.

Don't get wrapped up in comparing yourself to what other people are doing. What bigger brands are doing. 

And how it looks on the outside.

All that matters is that if, if the idea came to you, it came to you for a reason.

And it's true for you. So just put your blinders on and focus on your own vision.

And your own mission.

And how you want to be presenting what you wanna sell in the marketplace. I think that more and more people are becoming aware of the opportunity to be self-sufficient and independent and make their own money.

However that looks for them.

Market research is fine, right? Do your due diligence, see if you have competition. If you do, that's a [00:11:00] good sign. That means there's room for you.

That means that you have a good idea and you should move forward with it. If there's no competition, that's probably a red flag.

Like, oh, well this hasn't been done before, so maybe it wouldn't sell at all.

Or you're gonna have to carve out a whole new section of the market to turn people onto your idea.

Which can be cool, you know, maybe you'll end up on Shark Tank someday.

If you have a new product idea. 

But just stay true to your vision and don't get caught up in the comparisonitis because that's really just gonna prevent you from moving forward.

It's gonna prevent you from doing anything. And you're gonna stay stuck in that analysis paralysis mode forever.

Just like with launching your store, you can launch with one product. It doesn't have to be perfect, and you're gonna learn so much just through the process of launching your store with that one product that you're gonna be able to iterate over and over again.

And just make it look better over time. It's not gonna prevent you from selling that one product. You just have to keep moving forward.

[00:11:57] Crystal: Okay. And what about 

[00:11:58] Shopify Plans: Basic vs. Plus

[00:11:58] Crystal: the tiers within Shopify. So you've [00:12:00] got like your regular kind of starter, $39 a month-ish, whatever that is now, shopify plan.

And then you have Shopify Plus.

I think most people listening to this podcast would want to know like, how do I know which one of those two options to choose for my Shopify store?

[00:12:16] Deonnah: Sure. It all really just comes down to you get different, like discounts.

So say you're on Shopify payments depending on your plan, you can get different discounts.

And there's different benefits through upgrading your plan.

[00:12:35] Crystal: How can you identify that, oh, it would be better for my business to do the upgrade to shopify Plus.

[00:12:42] Deonnah: Okay, so it would just be a question of growth and customization, right? So you're gonna get different benefits per different tier.

So as a Shopify starter plan, that's gonna get you up and running.

And once you're to the 5K, 10 KA month in [00:13:00] sales, that might be a good time to move up to the next level. Once you're doing a couple hundred thousand, then go to the 2 99 a month level. After you reach that you know, a million dollars in sales per year.

That's when I would suggest anyone move to Shopify Plus, because you're gonna get the most value at that stage. Getting your wholesale partners to have different logins.

I mean, there's apps for that, right? But they are clunky at best.

And shopify Plus is going to give that customized experience.

If you have wholesalers, you wanna attract and have them have their own logins and be able to buy from you.

Also the different, deeper customizations you can have on your store with a Shopify Plus store.

A lot of people that are in that 1, 2, 3, 4, $5 million a year range.

They want that greater flexibility. Where they're just out of the box doesn't work for them anymore.

You also get higher touch points with Shopify when things come up if [00:14:00] problems arise and they do, a lot of the time.

The simpler you can keep your business longer, I just, I, I would recommend that.

Growth is good, don't get me wrong. Lots of sales is good as well.

But with more traffic and more buyers, you just have more complex issues and more complicated problems.

That's why there's different tiers to help store owners along their journey, not just with their growth, but how they take payments, how they're getting paid, different discounts for getting paid.

Transactionally, like with your credit cards and things like that.

So Shopify's just offering you different perks, I guess you would say, with those different plans.

But you can stay on the basic for a while. It's not going to prevent you from making more money. But you will find that when you do upgrade to those different tiers, you do get more benefits.

When it comes to how you take payments and how Shopify payments is charging you 

[00:14:56] SEO and Marketing Strategies

[00:14:56] Crystal: obviously we both believe in the power of SEO. I feel like [00:15:00] a lot of people go ads first with Shopify.

One of the biggest things I've seen, helping other Shopify store owners.

Is just the, the lack of knowledge of like duplicating pages that you're like duplicating like the SEO information at the bottom of the page.

Like, it's just not even a consideration in the beginning.

So why do you think that that happens? Why do you think Shopify store owners overlook SEO when they're building.

[00:15:23] Deonnah: I think it's because a lot of people, they get excited about what they're doing.

And they wanna set up their store and they wanna start marketing right away.

So they set everything up, they get ready to sell, and they're like, okay, now I have to start promoting.

And they skip all of the kind of technical foundational stuff.

Or they just don't know about it, and they instantly jumped to like, okay, I need to start getting on social.

I need to run an ad, or I need to do my email.

When really your store is your home base.

Everything that functions properly starts with foundation. It's like a house. When you build a house, you [00:16:00] can't skip the foundation.

Otherwise you just have a slew of problems later. Starting with that foundational level is going to help lower ad costs. 

It's gonna help people find you more organically.

It's going to help you with Google Merchant Center. It's gonna help your SEO in the long run there as well. Because you can treat that like a storefront on Google for free. So not skipping your SEO is important on so many different levels.

[00:16:26] Crystal: Do you happen to have a schema recommendation?

Do you feel like really focusing on schema for Google Merchant Center is gonna be important? 

[00:16:35] Deonnah: Yeah. So I've been listening to a lot of experts lately around google shopping and having, you know, your AI shopper. And how AI is gonna be playing into Google Merchant Services down the road, or Google Merchant Center.

And schema is gonna be important.

There are a couple of different apps I've been playing within Shopify for SEO, just testing them out.

[00:17:00] Yoast I love, but it's like 19 bucks a month.

You do have to be on that paid plan to have the schema and keep everything, you know, you have your foundational stuff that you do, like your meta tags and your page titles and descriptions.

Those can stay once you are done with, Yoast. But having the schema capabilities that are in intertwined with the app, is you have to pay for that. 

[00:17:20] Crystal: you haven't told me about idea to income!

[00:17:22] Deonnah: Idea to income is my DIY Shopify course.

Basically what it is, is for new shop owners, ideally someone who's selling on Etsy, who really wants to start their own Shopify store.

Someone who has been thinking about their product idea for a while.

They want to do Shopify, but they're just not sure how to get started with it. Or they're nervous to get started with it.

They don't think they're technical enough or savvy enough to start their Shopify store.

Idea to income will get their store set up and launch for them in 30 days.

We go through setting up the foundation of the store, picking the plan.

Getting that set up, building their framework.

Go [00:18:00] diving deep into the horizon theme.

Which is funny because when I had the idea for this program, it was all based around dawn and that changed in May. So they came out with that and I had to course correct myself and go all in on Horizon.

So I've been learning that this year. And the last cohort, we all learned it together. And it was funny and also really fun.

So we then go into integrating different apps and optimizing your store from a foundational standpoint. Like we chatted about with the SEO.

And then we have launch week, which we go through launching everything, pointing your domain and just make it really easy, manageable, bite-size for people.

Literally just getting started. Not knowing anything about the platform to getting launched in 30 days.

So that's coming up and it's really exciting and I have had so many people that have had really great results with it.

And have launched beautiful stores that I'm just so, so proud of them.

[00:18:54] Crystal: Yeah. Awesome. So I'll definitely link to that in the show notes. And then if anybody wants to follow you or [00:19:00] connect with you to learn more about that or just, you know, follow you on TikTok, 'cause I love your TikTok videos.

Where should they go? 

[00:19:06] Deonnah: I am e-commerce savvy everywhere. You can find me on, Instagram and TikTok are like my main things. But e-commerce savvy will get you to me anywhere.

[00:19:17] Crystal: Okay. Awesome. Well, thank you so much for your time today. I know we're gonna have to do this again in the future.