Shopify's App Store has over 2,000 free and paid apps that come in handy for store owners looking to extend their store's functionality, streamline customer experience and improve site design. There are so many solutions available, but what happens when these apps breakdown? Here are 4 tips to prevent headaches and panic when your site stops working.
1. Four Stars Out of Five. Install apps with great reviews and positive feedback on user support. This goes a long way when your site is down and you need help getting it back in order.
2. Back that theme up. Keep a backup of your original theme. Many times apps will inject code into your site's live theme only, if you have a backup, you can test it in the customizer and publish if it's functioning properly.
3. Check Your Updates. Update your apps and theme as often as possible, sometimes developers do not provide support for older versions. If your theme has some custom code, it will sometimes require an experienced developer to update the code along with the updated theme.
4. Known Unknowns. If your site is having issues, it may not be the active apps you are currently using. If you install an app to your Shopify store it will often inject some line of code into your theme, if you then delete the app, the code will often remain. Have an experienced developer have a look at your theme file and see if this is what is causing issues for your store.