Episode Number:

45

October 6, 2025

In this episode of The eCom Growth Show, Danan Coleman sits down with Sheldon Adams, Head of Growth at Enavi, to uncover why most Shopify stores misread their performance and what brands can do to actually scale. With a decade of eCommerce experience, Sheldon shares how a data-driven approach to conversion rate optimization (CRO) can unlock major growth opportunities for Shopify brands.

Meet Sheldon: Human-Obsessed CRO for Shopify

Sheldon Adams has spent the last four years at Enavi helping Shopify brands rethink conversion optimization. Rather than chasing hacks or gimmicks, Sheldon and his team focus on creating approachable systems that help stores consistently increase revenue per visitor. Their “Human-Obsessed” approach has helped dozens of brands achieve double-digit revenue growth.

Why Most Stores Struggle With Priorities

Sheldon explains that most Shopify merchants face the same trap:

  • Too many shiny objects, too little prioritization.
  • Adding endless apps and funnels without knowing what’s working.
  • Burning cash and energy without a clear source of truth.
Big Takeaway: Without data clarity, most brands are simply guessing at what’s broken.

The Danger of Flying Blind

Sheldon warns that nine out of ten Shopify stores are making decisions with very little insight:

  • The shift from Universal Analytics to GA4 left many with weaker visibility.
  • Global conversion rate is misleading—traffic quality, seasonality, and promotions all skew it.
  • Shopify’s built-in analytics often fall short when it comes to granular tracking.
Pro Insight: Focus on the intra-site funnel—micro steps like product views, add-to-cart, checkout, and purchase—to uncover where users actually drop off.

Fundamentals First: Fix What’s Broken Before Scaling

Enavi’s research shows only 9.4% of Shopify stores meet foundational performance benchmarks. Most brands skip the basics, chasing complex strategies without ensuring the core journey works:

  • Users can’t find or view products easily.
  • Product pages don’t reflect the brand’s real sales pitch.
  • Navigation and search features often frustrate instead of guiding.
Key Move: Treat CRO like football, nail the basics before running trick plays.

Metrics That Actually Matter

Instead of obsessing over store-wide conversion rate, Sheldon recommends:

  • Track user flow across product discovery, cart adds, checkout progression, and purchases.
  • Benchmark each step with defined ranges by channel (email, paid, organic).
  • Use GA4’s funnel explorations to identify weak points.
Actionable Tip: Find your “metric on fire”—the single biggest underperforming stage—and go deep on fixing it.

Why Amazon Sellers Should Care

Amazon sellers used to plug-and-play traffic are often shocked by Shopify’s complexity:

  • On Amazon, conversion is about images and keywords.
  • On Shopify, the customer journey is longer and needs deliberate design.
  • CRO is not optional—it’s survival.
Pro Tip: The skill Amazon sellers already have—creating scroll-stopping product pages—is exactly what Shopify founders need to master.

Where to Start Without Getting Overwhelmed

Sheldon’s advice to founders drowning in ideas:

  • Identify the 25% of your site that’s broken.
  • Safely ignore the other 75% for now.
  • Channel all energy into fixing the most painful bottleneck.
Smart Play: Depth beats breadth. Solving one core issue drives outsized results.

Connect with Sheldon

Final Thoughts

eCommerce growth isn’t about chasing the latest tool or metric—it’s about clarity. As Sheldon puts it, a single store-wide conversion rate number won’t tell you the truth. Instead, merchants need to measure step-by-step behavior and double down on fixing what’s truly broken. Nail the fundamentals, and growth will follow.

Stay tuned for more episodes of The eCom Growth Show—where eCommerce leaders share real strategies to grow smarter, not just bigger.