Shopify Course

Shopify Course / FAQs

Shopify Course Frequently Asked Questions

👋🏼 Have another question or want us to assess if this course is right for you? Email us at hello@ilovecreatives.com

Why is this course better than other Shopify courses?

At ilovecreatives we’re all about edutainment (that’s if education & entertainment had a baby), which is why we wanted to teach you Shopify in the most fun way possible. Our goal is to make you loooove clicking buttons in the Shopify Admin. Haha, it’s a joke, but not really.

We take extra time to make this course as edu-taining as possible by (1) creating a course portal system where you can level up (2) giving you the real talk about what it’s actually like working as a Shopify Developer and (3) exercises designed to be actionable so you’ll be able to apply your skills right away—because learning is way more fun when you can actually do something with it.

Not to mention we have a Discord community where you’ll have the chance to chat and network with other students!

From Megumi: “We researched other classes & books, and couldn’t find anything that talks about Shopify the way that we use it. Everything is either too technical or too surface level—not practical at all! And they didn’t make us laugh, so we made a course that covers practical skills AND is edu-taining AF!”

Should I take this or a coding course?

Good question! Well, do you want to be just a developer… or a designer/developer? We’ve gone through the other courses, and they usually go waaaay too deep into computer science / backend-y speak, which is too complex for people who are just interested in making a good looking Shopify Theme. If you want to know how to build a Shopify App using Node.js or a Headless CMS site, for example, then you should take a course dedicated to development. If you would rather skip that stuff and focus on actionable steps to customize your Shopify Theme, then this is the course for you!

Should I take this or the Squarespace Design Course?

First, watch this 1-800-HEYPUNO video comparing Squarespace and Shopify.

Next, think about the type of projects you want to work on. On Shopify (as it says in the name) every website is a shop. Ha-ha, get it, Shopify??! Whereas Squarespace sites can be a shop… or not. It’s like rectangles and squares, you know? (Ha, Squarespace). If you want to be a specialist in e-commerce, then Shopify is the course for you.

You should also consider how much flexibility you want to have in your designs. One major differentiator between Squarespace and Shopify is that Shopify lets you create custom designs using HTML, CSS, and product data for more parts of your site than Squarespace does. Depending on what type of store design you like, you might find it easier to build stores on Shopify.

From Megumi: “I recommend checking out the Shopify sites on Internet Gems and comparing these to the layouts and techniques you’ll learn in the Squarespace Course. If you can, it would be awesome to take both courses to become a super well-rounded web developer, but if you have to choose just one at first, you can make a decision by checking out designs for existing sites on each platform.”

Should I take this or the Graphic Design Course?

From Megumi: “If you want to be a generalist like me, you should take both. Butttt there’s probably not enough time in the day for that. What should you learn first, then? The Shopify Course is all about Shopify, with some UX thinking. That means problem solving from the perspective of multiple different people who might be interacting with your site, which ends up being very functional and tactical. The tools we use are Shopify Admin, Figma (Dev Mode), Developer Tools, and a Code Editor. The Graphic Design course, by contrast, is focused on visual problem solving, brand & identity design (like logos and packaging), of which the tools of the trade are Photoshop, Illustrator, and Figma (Design Mode). Wearing both of these hats is important to become a multifaceted designer and developer, but it’s up to you which one you want to grow your skills in first.”

I’m a business owner, is this course right for me?

Yes! You’ll see the benefits right from the beginning, if you’re the type of person who wants to make your own website on Shopify.

If you’ve hired developers to work on your store, this will help bridge the gap in communication and make sure you’re all on the same page. You don’t have to become a developer yourself, but knowing how to create a store from scratch will help you use Shopify Themes to their fullest potential—and provide better project scopes and feedback to your developer team.

I don’t want to be a Developer, but I do want to better communicate with devs I work with. Is this too advanced?

We love that you want to get into the weeds and this will probably be the most in-depth but straightforward way to learn about Shopify development. At Studio, it was really important that not only our designers, but our Project Managers, took this course so that they can better design, create deadlines, manage scope, QA and give better feedback to our developers. It’s definitely a lot, but it’ll make everyone on the team stronger and less reliant on your developer for all the answers.

I don't have any coding experience, is that OK?

Totally! The first part of the course is suuuper simple, and any coding you need to do is set up for you step by step, until you get the hang of it. The curriculum goes in layers from really easy concepts to slightly more advanced, broken down into bite-sized chunks. The goal is to give you a foundation so that you understand the big picture, so that over time, as you use our code snippets and resources, you’ll have an aha moment where it’ll all come together. We’re here to help you get there!

I've never developed a website before, is this too advanced?

Not at all! All you need to know is how to click buttons—and if you’re on this website, you already know how to do that! Once you get the basics down, we’ll work up to development concepts before getting to more advanced stuff. You always have access to the Discord community where you can ask questions if you get stuck. Plenty of people sign up for our courses with zero website experience!

I'm a Shopify developer already, what can I learn?

If you already know CSS, this course provides a way of thinking about fluid widths instead of responsive breakpoints, which makes your site look better across all screen sizes. If you already know Liquid, then this will contain some insights into Megumi’s unique approach to creating different features with semantics and accessibility built-in. But the thing you’ll probably be most interested in is the section on Freelancing, where we go over pricing, project management, templates, and how to grow your practice to cover UX thinking and design instead of just development.

Is it worth learning so much about one platform?

Yeah, dude. Especially when that platform is Shopify. I don’t know if you noticed, but over the last couple of years, demand for Shopify experts has gone through the roof. In 2020 alone, the number of Shopify stores increased by 71%, and there’s still plenty of room for growth. Adding Shopify Theme chops to your toolbox will increase your value as a designer/developer!

From Megumi: “I don’t see Shopify going anywhere. It’s one of the most popular e-commerce platforms for a reason. I think it’s going to be popular for a looooong time”

How will this help me be a better designer?

When you hand off a website to a client, you have no idea how it’s going to be edited and changed throughout its lifetime. By learning Megumi’s “Future-Proof Design” principles, you can learn to consider unknowns and create designs for a future we can’t see… at least not yet! The end result is designing websites that are more likely to make developers and clients suuuper happy!

Is it crazy to leave my job for this?

From Megumi: “If you’re passionate about websites, then this is absolutely something to take a chance on. If you’re like me, and you get excited looking at design patterns, and you take screenshots and screen recordings of your favorite websites, or bookmark them for later, that means you’re obsessed with websites. You don’t have to just admire them from afar—you can absolutely make cool websites of your own! And get paid for it! As long as you’re excited to learn, you'll have the drive you need to succeed in this career path”

I don’t want to be a freelancer, is this still right for me?

Totally! Plenty of people are here just to augment their skills for full time jobs, or to pick up the skills to launch their own businesses. You’re going to learn a lot about project management, organization, and general life skills from the tools we go over in the section on Freelancing. Even though it’s called “Freelancing”, Megumi’s designed the lessons to cover all kinds of use cases—if you’re a designer, a full time employee, a developer, or a project manager.

Do you go over the full client process in the course?

Absolutely. In the section on Freelancing, we cover everything from portfolio creation to self-limiting beliefs. Plus some actionable tips on talking to strangers and which techniques actually work to get your first clients. And if you’re having trouble applying the learnings, you can always ask for personalized help during our live office hours, workshops, or in the Discord channels.

Is the course content dripped over time or do we get access to everything right away?

You get content as you progress through the levels, but you can finish the levels as quickly as you want. So, it's kind of both? You'll have access to the course forever so if you ever get behind, no worries.

What is the Discord community about?

We often hear that our Discord community is one of our students’ favorite parts of the course! We trade design tips, give/receive critiques, and share potential opportunities. We're huge fans of open-source learning, which is why we encourage all students to post their questions in our public Discord channels for each level. With such a supportive community working through material together, someone else might have the same question (or answer!) as you do. Plus, you’ll be making tons of design friends your first day!

Is the Live Office Hour 1-on-1 or a group call?

From Megumi: “The Live Office Hour is a live group video call (recorded if you can’t make it). If I’m unable to answer the question in the live call, I usually just take it to Discord and answer it there. My past students have told me the most valuable part of the online course format was the live office hours where any question is welcome!”

What if I miss the Live Office Hour?

From Megumi: “No worries! It’ll be recorded and added to the resources library. If you have any questions you want me to answer, feel free to add them in Discord, and you can watch the recorded clip to get your answer(s).”

What’s in the curriculum?

Here is a quick breakdown of the curriculum. Hot tip: join the waitlist for the full Curriculum PDF.

Section 1: Shopify Basics

In this foundational section, we’re learning how to work with Figma, create free Shopify stores, add store content, and edit theme settings—all without touching code!

Section 2: Customizing CSS

How do you navigate a Shopify theme? Why are there so many files? We'll break it all down and help you find the parts that do the heavy lifting. You’ll learn how to customize the CSS.

Section 3: Learning Liquid

We’re diving into Liquid to create our own custom sections — unlocking endless possibilities for layout and design. We’ll even put on our UX Design hats as we customize the Theme Editor itself.

Section 4: Finishing Touches

There’s more to Shopify stores than just theme development. There’s a whole suite of apps that add new features, plus some hidden store settings that make your store feel more unique. This section covers custom scripts, test orders, transferring store ownership, and all the steps you’ll need to take before launch.

Section 5: Freelancing

Now that you’ve got the skills to make a Shopify store, let’s talk about how to get work. We’ll touch on clients, pricing, logistics, and also how to make designs in Figma and how to present yourself as a multifaceted designer/developer.

What kind of work can I expect to create?

The course covers Shopify Theme customization in depth, which means how to customize the fonts, colors, layout, and design of Shopify stores. And of course, how to work with the content and data that a store needs before designing it out.

You can expect to work on two separate themes during the course—one that’s more basic, as we go over the no-code options for styling, and another one that’s more advanced as you code custom Liquid sections.

Your tools will be the Shopify Admin and the built-in Shopify Code Editor. So, even though we’re using developer tools, you’re actually designing a site in the browser. And don’t worry, you don’t have to be good at design to take this course—we provide pre-designed Figma mockups for you to follow along with.

The work you’ll create is a good example of a full Shopify Theme Development project (including project management tips & templates!) We’ll also be thinking about things from a UX/UI Design perspective as we go through each page on a typical store. This will help you excel in future Shopify projects, no matter what your role.

Does this course cover Online Store 2.0? Also, what is 2.0?

Yes! This store covers the most cutting edge Shopify 2.0 techniques, including sections everywhere, metafields, dynamic sources, templates, and app blocks.

2.0 is a major update in the way Shopify themes work, introduced in 2021 with the new Dawn theme. The biggest difference for merchants is more flexibility in the layout components they can use on different pages. Before, you could only add custom sections & blocks to the home page, but now you can add them anywhere. Plus, metafields allow you to customize the data that shows up on different products or pages and display them in super cool custom ways (that’s what we go over in Section 3!).

Your Shopify store’s version (1.0 or 2.0) depends on the theme that is currently published. So you can upgrade your store to 2.0 just by following the lessons in this course and creating a new 2.0 theme!

What does this course focus on?

The breakdown of the lessons looks something like this:

60% technical (Shopify and CSS)
25% design confidence
15% client - freelancing

The bulk of the course is spent breaking down complex topics into bite-sized chunks, so you can understand Shopify inside and out. We’ve peppered in confidence boosters and design tips throughout, and we wrap up the course with actionable steps on how to work with clients and manage projects. Once you graduate, you’ll know how to build out a Shopify store and how to start a career making stores for others!

Is this course fun?

YES. Haha, but for real, we went out of our way to make sure the content is super engaging and full of information. We want to ensure that your brain AND your stomach (because of belly laughs?) are fully exercised. TBH, this online course world can be really weird and fake and you knowwwwww … that’s not us. We want to be the good weird. ✌🏼

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Why is this course $2,400?

From Megumi: “Fair question! We really thought hard about the amount of education you receive with the course. The curriculum will prepare you to get started with Shopify as soon as you graduate, so it’s something you’ll be able to apply right away. Additionally, if you plan on freelancing, you can charge from $2,000-12,000 for most Shopify sites. Obviously, budgets can be larger than that depending on scope of work, but most of my clients are around $12K. If you are building your own website, that’s about how much you’ll be saving. Plus, you won’t need to hire anyone for on-going maintenance! Another way to think about it is, my hourly rate is $150/hr. So instead of hiring me to train you 1:1 for 16 hours, you can get a much better value by getting access to the contents of my brain in a structured curriculum, and I’ll still be around for personalized help in the office hours!”

Do you have a payment plan?

Yes! You won't be able to "graduate" the course until all the payments are made, but you can work through all of the content. Here’s the payment plan.

What is your refund policy?

We are happy to do a partial refund within 7 days of purchase if you mistakenly purchased the course and have not started watching any of the videos. Once you start watching the videos, we won’t be able to refund your purchase.

How can I convince my employer to reimburse my education fees?

Did you know that $5,250 of education assistance benefits are tax-free per employee (US only)? That means your employer wouldn’t have to be taxed on this course. See Employer-provided educational assistance.

If you’re unsure whether or not your company offers education assistance benefits, just ask! Here’s a sample letter template we created to open up the conversation with your boss. Feel free to change it up and make it your own.

We also have this resource written by Graphic Design Course Graduate, Dani Boyd, who gives a comprehensive guide on how she got her employer to pay for her education and advance her career.

How long does this course take to complete?

This course is self-paced, so it’s entirely flexible with your schedule. Some students are able to work on the course full-time, others only part time! How long it will take to finish completely depends on your schedule and other commitments. Students who join can access a syllabus that breaks down roughly how long each section will take, so they can plan accordingly! Here’s a rough estimation of how long the course will take based on these dedicated hours:

Full-time working on SHOP (25+ hours per week)
Course Completion Estimate: 2 weeks - 1 month

Part-time working on SHOP (10 - 25 hours per week)
Course Completion Estimate: 6 weeks - 2 months

Part-time working on SHOP (10 hours or less per week)
Course Completion Estimate: 8 weeks - 4 months

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Testimonials

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Featured

Bentleigh Albert

This is a fantastic course that is well worth the investment. It is far and away the most professional, thorough, and helpful course that I've taken. The quality of ilovecreatives is truly unmatched. Aside from how much I learned, I was routinely just blown away at how impressive the presentation is. This was more put together than some of my college courses!!! And it sure didn't cost as much as those!! Megumi is an incredible educator. They are extremely talented and knowledgeable, and a resource that you will feel insanely lucky to have in your corner. And on top of that, they are entertaining and a lovely, calming presence-- exactly the vibe you want when learning a tricky new platform!

Elena Tsangaris

The fact that it's very interactive, in the sense that you have a project to follow and in each video you learn something new in bite-sized pieces and, by the end of it, you have an actual website created!! Also love having Discord and access to the teacher. That is invaluable!

Pascal Morgenthaler

I literally loved everything. From the amazing video lessons with funny meme's and cool music and design to the notion workbook that really helps and of course the incredible support from Megumi and Yewande in Discord the whole course is a absolutely perfect and 100% worth it to start your career as a Shopify Developer. It is perfect to understand Shopify and jumpstart your motivation to develop also several other skills outside of this course. I quickly learned in Web Development that you basically never ever can't stop learning and improving your skillset and this course it definitely the one for developing your Shopify Developer Skill.

Diep Le

It has been great to actually have proper knowledge about the store object, the product object, the collection object, to really learn about all of these, technically, what is available to be manipulated, to what extent can we manipulate it. I had a good time looking into the theme “Spoons” because Megumi has a custom font selector written in there. The basic Dawn doesn’t have that customization. It has been great for me to look into the code and to see how Megumi implemented the custom code into the theme settings. That has been great to really see what are the possibilities to offer to clients.

Raf Lumang

I have tried many courses before and they can be a snooze with the length of the videos, delivery, and tone. This course was divided into digestible pieces that made this easy to refer back to when I needed to be reminded of something while infused with Megumi's fun personality which kept me up and energetic to follow along.

The first client I took on after the course was a queer small business brand that I won dress giveaways from. I always felt bad because these dresses are stunning and not cheap - but now I've been able to pay them back and support them with my new skills!

Náyade Bermúdez Brito

I took another Shopify course that was more about getting clients and how to position yourself and stuff like that. But I didn't get the feeling like I was able to tweak it and create stuff that was different and custom, like I'm used to on Squarespace. And when I took this course, it was like giving me the permission to play.

Tara Leavitt

I was looking at the Glowe Cookie Theme, and trying to be like, okay, how can I make this work for the case that I have? And kind of dismantling pieces in my mind of how it was going to chunk out and build it. And even just being able to think like that felt so much more natural than before when I would have just stared at it for like 20 minutes before having a panic attack.

Kaiya Inouye

I feel like Megumi did a really good job showing both the structure of how this works, but then also, this is what it’s visually doing on the website. So they actually connect. For me as a learner, the logic and the language of the coding is so intimidating because I’m not sure what that’s supposed to look like on the other end. I feel like Megumi did a really good job connecting the two.

Jennifer Riess

By presenting the course in sections from freelance to liquid and design basics, I was able to find my areas of interest (liquid/code) and apply these learnings to my current role as a PM for an e-commerce web design project.

Mel Webb

I came into this course thinking that the visual aspect of creating websites would be what I loved most, but turns out I love coding. I've loved nerding out on and leaning into my developer side. I started the course with zero coding knowledge, and while there's still tons to learn, I feel equipped to develop custom websites on my own!

Megumi is a phenomenal instructor! They make every topic approachable and are always ready to help.

This course has enabled me to step into a new direction in my career that felt overwhelming and impossible before taking this course.

Bennett Queen

The course is awesome! I enjoy how thorough the videos are and the supporting notion document. If you follow both, the course is sooo understandable and even easy. I love how Megumi explains the purpose behind changes instead of just showing us because it teaches us to problem solve instead of monkey-see, monkey-do. Today, I was setting up Klaviyo for a client on their Shopify site and I had to edit some Liquid and I wasn't scared to touch it because I knew what everything meant off of this course.

Yewande Konigbagbe

Megumi has done such a wonderful job in lifting the veil behind how Shopify is structured with very simple explanations of how HTML, CSS, JSON, and Liquid all work together. The simplicity is truly amazing and very much appreciated!

If you love designing for e-commerce but really want to strengthen your coding muscles to transform your creativity into dope Shopify websites, this course is for you!