Goal: Update the SEO meta titles and descriptions of many collections at once with a spreadsheet, instead of editing each collection in the Shopify admin. This works for every kind of collection: smart (rule-based), manual (hand-picked), and collections that mix both.
Prerequisites:
You have Altera installed on your Shopify store
Collections already created in your Shopify store
Basic understanding of SEO meta titles and descriptions
Step 1 - Export your collections
In Altera, go to Export and select the Collections data type.
Select only the Basic Columns and Metafields and SEO field groups. Clear Sources & Conditions, because you don't change the collections' rules or products. Click Start export and download the file when the export is complete.
Step 2 - Prepare your spreadsheet
Open the downloaded spreadsheet and delete all columns except ID (identifies the collection to update), Title (helps you recognize each collection), Metafield: title_tag [string] (the SEO meta title), and Metafield: description_tag [string] (the SEO meta description).
Without Source: and Condition: columns, the import leaves the rules and products of every collection unchanged.
Step 3 - Fill in your SEO values
For each collection, enter the SEO meta title (keep it under 70 characters) and the SEO meta description (keep it under 160 characters).
Leave a cell blank to keep the collection's current value.
Step 4 - Import your updated data
Return to Altera and click Upload file on the home page. Select your modified spreadsheet. Check that Altera detects the Collections data type, then click Start import.
Outcome
Your collections now have updated SEO meta titles and descriptions that appear in search engine results. To check the changes, open a collection in the Shopify admin and look at its Search engine listing section.
Important notes
Shopify's SEO metafields behave differently from other collection fields:
Shopify stores SEO meta titles and descriptions as metafields (
global.title_tagandglobal.description_tag), not as direct collection properties.If no SEO title or description is set, Shopify generates them from the collection's title and description.
If a meta title exactly matches the collection title, Shopify shows it as blank in exports. The SEO title then follows the collection title when you change it. The same applies to meta descriptions that match the collection description.
If you see blank SEO columns in your export but know that you have SEO values set, this is likely why.
Example
ID | Title | Metafield: title_tag [string] | Metafield: description_tag [string] |
| Summer Dresses | Best Summer Dresses - Free Shipping | Shop our curated collection of summer dresses with free shipping on orders over $50. |
| Winter Coats | Premium winter coats and jackets for the whole family. Stay warm in style. | |
| Holiday Gift Guide | Holiday Gift Guide - Unique Presents | Find the perfect holiday gifts with our curated selection of unique presents. |
Next Steps
Collection fields for every column of the Collections data type