As a Shopify expert, I often recommend having external links, such as social media icons, open in a new tab. This simple change ensures that users stay on your website while still being able to view your social media pages. This approach enhances user experience and keeps your store in view, which can potentially increase engagement and sales.
Why Open Social Links in a New Tab?
Setting external links to open in a new tab offers several benefits:
- Increased Engagement: Users can explore your social media pages without leaving your store, which keeps them engaged with your content.
- Enhanced User Experience: Providing a seamless browsing experience by allowing users to open links in new tabs helps them navigate easily between your website and social media pages.
- Retention: Keeping users on your site for longer can lead to higher chances of conversion and lower bounce rates.
How to Open Social Links in a New Tab
Step 1: Access Your Shopify Admin
- Log in to your Shopify admin panel. From the home screen, navigate to Online Store and then click Themes.
Step 2: Edit Code
- In the Themes section, find the theme you're using and click Actions, then select Edit code from the dropdown menu. This action will open the theme's code editor.
Step 3: Locate the Social Links
- In the code editor, look for the Sections directory in the sidebar. Within this directory, locate the file that contains your footer or header where the social media icons are displayed. Commonly, this might be named footer.liquid or header.liquid.
Step 4: Add Target Attribute to Links
- Find the HTML anchor tags (<a>) for your social media links within the code. Modify each anchor tag to include the target="_blank" attribute. This attribute ensures the link opens in a new tab.
Example:
Step 5: Save Your Changes
- Once you have added the target="_blank" attribute to each social media link, click the Save button at the top right of the code editor.
Step 6: Preview Your Store
- After saving the changes, preview your store to ensure the social media links open in new tabs as intended. Click on each social media icon to verify they open in separate tabs while keeping your store page active.
Conclusion
Opening social media links in a new tab is a simple yet effective way to enhance the user experience on your Shopify store. By following these steps, you can ensure that your users remain engaged with your store while still being able to explore your social media pages. This approach not only improves navigation but also increases the likelihood of retaining users on your site, which can lead to higher engagement and conversion rates.