How to Display Metaobject in Shopify

Table of Contents

1. Introduction
2. What Are Metaobjects?
3. How to Add and Display Metaobjects in Shopify
4. Advanced Tips
5. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
6. Conclusion

Introduction

Imagine visiting a beautiful online store. The product descriptions are clear, the images are striking, and information is elegantly presented. As an online retailer, wouldn’t you want your Shopify store to inspire the same admiration? One of Shopify's less-talked-about yet incredibly powerful features can help you achieve this: metaobjects. But how exactly can you implement metaobjects to elevate your store's aesthetic and functionality?

In this blog post, you'll learn everything you need to know about metaobjects in Shopify, from their definition and creation to displaying them effectively on your store. We’ll delve into tips, examples, and a step-by-step guide to ensure you can integrate this feature seamlessly.

What Are Metaobjects?

Metaobjects are structured pieces of data that you can define and reuse across your Shopify store. They are especially useful for products, collections, customers, and other parts of your Shopify ecosystem. By leveraging metaobjects, you can store additional information in an organized way, which enables you to make your store as informative and engaging as possible.

Why Use Metaobjects?

• Reusability: Define once, use multiple times.
• Customization: Add specific fields like product features, size charts, or ingredients.
• Efficiency: Simplify the data management process.
• Consistency: Maintain uniformity across various sections of your site.

How to Add and Display Metaobjects in Shopify

Here is a detailed guide on incorporating metaobjects into your Shopify store, starting from creating a metaobject to displaying it on your product page using Liquid.

Step 1: Creating a Metaobject

1. Navigate to Shopify Admin: Go to your Shopify Admin dashboard.
2. Create Metaobject Definition: Select 'Custom Data' then 'Metaobjects' and create a new metaobject definition.
3. Define Fields: Add the fields you want. For example, if creating a metaobject for product highlights, you might include Feature Name and Feature Description.

Step 2: Creating Entries

After defining the metaobject, you can create individual entries:

1. Navigate to Metaobjects: Click on the metaobject you created.
2. Create New Entry: Fill in the values for each field. An 'entry' will be a specific instance of the metaobject, like ‘Water Resistance’ for a watch.

Step 3: Connecting Metaobject to Products

You need to link these metaobject entries to your products:

1. Navigate to Products: Edit the product you want to add metaobject entries to.
2. Create Metafield Definition: Add a new metafield in the 'Metafields' section and select the metaobject type.
3. Link Entries: Choose the metaobject entries that you want to associate with the product.

Step 4: Displaying Metaobject on Your Shopify Store

Now comes the coding part where you display these metaobject entries.

1. Edit Theme Code: Go to Online Store > Themes > Actions > Edit Code.
2. Create Custom Section: In the Sections folder, create a new Liquid file (e.g., product-metaobject.liquid).

Your Liquid file might look something like this:

{% assign overview = product.metafields.custom.product_overview.value %}
<div>
  <p>{{ overview.ingredients_content }}</p>
  <p>{{ overview.feature_name }}</p>
  <p>{{ overview.feature_description }}</p>
</div>

3. Add Section to Product Template: Finally, include this section in your product template via product.liquid or a JSON template file:

{% section 'product-metaobject' %}

Example: Displaying Product Ingredients

Let's say you want to display product ingredients using a metaobject. The metaobject might contain fields such as ingredient_name and ingredient_quantity.

1. Create a Metaobject for Ingredients: Define fields like ingredient_name and ingredient_quantity.
2. Link to Product: Add this metaobject to the product's metafield definition.
3. Liquid Code:

   {% assign ingredients = product.metafields.custom.ingredients.value %}
   <div>
     {% for ingredient in ingredients %}
       <p>{{ ingredient.ingredient_name }}: {{ ingredient.ingredient_quantity }}</p>
     {% endfor %}
   </div>
   

This code iterates through the ingredient entries and displays each ingredient and its quantity.

Advanced Tips

Handling Multiple Metaobjects

If you have multiple metaobjects and want to display them conditionally, you might use if conditions combined with loops.

{% assign highlights = product.metafields.custom.product_highlights.value %}
{% if highlights %}
  <ul>
    {% for highlight in highlights %}
      <li>{{ highlight.feature_name }}: {{ highlight.feature_description }}</li>
    {% endfor %}
  </ul>
{% endif %}

Using JavaScript

For dynamic updating without page reloads, you can fetch metaobject data using Shopify's Storefront API and manipulate the DOM accordingly.

fetch('/admin/api/2021-07/products/' + productId + '/metafields.json')
  .then(response => response.json())
  .then(data => {
    // Process the metaobject data
  });

Leveraging Custom Storefronts and Hydrogen

For more complex needs, consider using Shopify's Hydrogen framework to build custom storefronts that can handle metaobjects more dynamically and interactively.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q: What themes support metaobjects?

A: Metaobjects are supported in Online Store 2.0 themes and some compatible third-party themes.

Q: How many metaobject entries can I create?

A: You can create a limitless number of entries, but displaying more than 50 entries may involve pagination or further customization.

Q: Can I use metaobjects across multiple stores?

A: Metaobjects are specific to each store. To use the same metaobject setup in multiple stores, you’ll need to configure it separately for each store or use API automation.

Q: What happens if a product is deleted?

A: When a product is deleted, the link to the metaobject entry is also removed. However, the metaobject entry itself will still exist unless manually deleted.

Q: Are metaobjects searchable within Shopify?

A: Yes, data within metaobjects can be searched and referenced using Shopify's internal search functionalities and API queries.

Conclusion

By now, you should have a thorough understanding of how to create, link, and display metaobjects in your Shopify store. Incorporating metaobjects can streamline data management while making your store more captivating and user-friendly. Take your Shopify store to the next level by leveraging this powerful feature, and watch your product pages transform into informative, engaging showcases.

Feel free to experiment with metaobjects and share your experiences. Happy coding!