Vissla
Shopify SEO and Theme Optimization
Vissla is a surf and lifestyle brand from Southern California that sells boardshorts, wetsuits and apparel through its Shopify store at vissla.com. Creartful runs an ongoing program of SEO, content and theme work on that store, delivered in phases.
The work covers the parts of a store that search engines and shoppers both read: page titles and meta descriptions, headings, structured data, internal links and the written content on collection pages. Most changes are made in the Shopify theme templates, so they apply to every collection and product instead of one page at a time.
The route
How this project climbed.
- 01Origin Point
The brief: make the Shopify store easier to find in search and clearer for shoppers once they arrive.
- 02Blueprint Base Camp
A template audit of titles, headings, structured data, links and speed, then a phased plan agreed with the Vissla team.
- 04Wireframe Switchbacks
Collection pages restructured: heading, breadcrumb, intro, product grid, then a buying guide below.
- 05Commit Ridge
Claude Code edits the Liquid templates through the Shopify CLI, with the brand voice held in Claude Projects.
- 06Staging Camp
Every change lands on a development theme and is previewed and reviewed by a person.
- 08Go-Live Summit
Published to the live theme, with a status report after each phase.
Task
Vissla wanted its Shopify store to be easier to find in search and clearer for shoppers once they arrive. The task was to audit every theme template, improve titles, headings, structured data and internal links at the theme level, and give collection pages useful written content, in phases the Vissla team could review and approve.
Vissla is a surf and lifestyle brand from Southern California that sells boardshorts, wetsuits and apparel through its Shopify store at vissla.com. Creartful runs an ongoing program of SEO, content and theme work on that store, delivered in phases.
The work covers the parts of a store that search engines and shoppers both read: page titles and meta descriptions, headings, structured data, internal links and the written content on collection pages. Most changes are made in the Shopify theme templates, so they apply to every collection and product instead of one page at a time.
Collection pages
Collection pages are where most shoppers arrive from search. Each one has a clear heading, a breadcrumb trail, a short intro above the product grid and a written guide below it.
New bottom content
Below the product grid, collections now carry a buying guide written in the brand voice. The boardshorts page explains the types of boardshort, what each outseam length is for and how boardshorts differ from swim trunks. The wetsuits page helps a shopper choose a thickness by water temperature. Each guide links on to related collections and the size guide.
Titles, descriptions and structured data
Titles and meta descriptions were rewritten to say what each page sells in the words people search for. The theme templates also output JSON-LD structured data for each page type: organization and site search across the store, breadcrumbs and a product list on collections, and product groups with every color and size variant on product pages.
Across the store
The template work is not limited to product collections. The blog, the Creators and Innovators pages and event pages like the Cosmic Series contests run on the same theme, so they pick up the same titles, headings and breadcrumbs.
Built with Claude
The work is done with an agentic workflow. Claude Code reads and edits the theme code through the Shopify CLI, a Shopify MCP connection gives it access to store data, and Claude Projects keep the brand voice and SEO rules consistent across collection content. Changes go to a development theme first and are reviewed before they are published. Each phase ends with a status report for the Vissla team.
Program at a glance
Search work at the template level.
Technical SEO
- Crawlability
- Internal linking
- Metadata
- Structured data
Content
- Collection guides
- Titles and descriptions
- Lookbooks
Tools
- Shopify CLI
- Liquid
- Claude Code
- Flipsnack
Lookbooks and Shoppable PDFs
Seasonal stories matter to a surf brand. We integrated interactive lookbooks and shoppable PDFs through Flipsnack, so a lookbook can link straight to the products in it and support merchandising and content marketing.
Working With the Team
The program runs alongside Vissla’s brand, creative, merchandising and digital teams, so SEO and commerce changes line up with what marketing is doing that season.