What are related collections (and why do they matter)?

When building a user-friendly e-commerce site, especially on platforms like Shopify, the challenge of organising products effectively is both an art and a science. One of our favourite methods for this is related collections.

But what are they, and how do they enhance SEO, user experience (UX), and conversion rate? Let’s take a closer look.

Shopify's flat structure

Shopify excels in simplicity, but it comes with a significant limitation: it has a flat URL structure without native sub-categories. While filters provide some level of product organisation, a major challenge is that these can't be indexed by search engines or integrated effectively with Google Ads.

This creates a gap for store owners who want to implement a robust site taxonomy and improve discoverability without cluttering navigation menus. Enter related collections.

What are related collections?

Related collections, also known as "secondary navigations," are curated links between similar or complementary product groups, presented on a page to guide users through logical pathways. They serve as a middle ground between simple filters and full-fledged faceted navigation systems, requiring less custom development while still enhancing navigation.

For example, Marks & Spencer uses secondary navigations effectively. Take their Women’s Jeans page: links to related categories such as skinny jeans, straight-leg jeans, or cropped jeans are displayed prominently. These curated links feel intuitive to users, presenting options in a clear, manageable way.

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The Blink related collections module

We have built a customisable related collections module that makes implementing this feature straightforward and scalable. Unlike static links, our module is driven by metafields, allowing for deep customisation at the collection, product, or page level.

Flexible data sources and display modes

The updated module allows merchants to choose exactly what type of content to surface. You are no longer limited to just linking to other collections.

• Product collections: On product pages, the module can automatically surface every collection that a specific product belongs to. It includes logic to exclude certain collections (like an "All Animals" tag) to keep the navigation relevant.

• Mixed navigation menus: You can link the module to a standard Shopify navigation menu. This allows you to mix collections, specific products, and even content pages (like a Contact or Sizing guide) within the same visual bar.

• Multiple display types: Choose between standard grid layouts, "pill" buttons for a clean mobile look, or image-heavy circles and squares.

Design control and theme awareness

To ensure the module looks native to your store, we have built in granular design controls that respect your theme's architecture.

• Width constraints: The module recognises theme-specific classes like "Section" for the Horizon theme or "PageWidth" for Dawn, ensuring margins and padding always align with your layout.

• Interactive states: Full control over border radius, thickness, and hover colours for text and backgrounds.

• Desktop and mobile parity: You can set the module to stack in multiple rows or use a "scroll on desktop" mode with navigation arrows and a fade-out effect on the right edge to signify more content.

Smart image fallback logic

One of the biggest points of friction in large catalogues is maintaining images for every sub-category link. Our module uses a "cascading fallback" system to ensure you never have a dead or missing image link.

• Priority 1: A specific "Related Image" set in the metafields.

• Priority 2: The native collection or product image.

• Priority 3: The image from the first product in that collection.

• Priority 4: A global default image (like a brand logo) to act as a safety net.

Why schema matters

One often overlooked advantage of related collections is their potential to enhance structured data. With proper schema markup, your related collections help search engines understand the relationship between categories on your store. Our custom module handles this automatically, ensuring your site taxonomy is clearly communicated to crawlers.

Final thoughts

For Shopify merchants navigating the challenges of flat site architecture, related collections are an extremely valuable feature. They not only enhance the browsing experience but also drive real results by improving search visibility and conversions. By treating these links as a "secondary navigation" tool rather than just a design element, you can build a store that is easier for both humans and search engines to navigate.