Reading Shopify Metrics Like a Pro
You don’t need 40 dashboards. You need a few numbers that steer daily choices. Here’s how to read Shopify and ads metrics like an operator, not a spectator.
The three ratios that run the store
CAC < Contribution Margin = scale. If CAC rises above CM, pause and fix creative or landing page.
AOV and LTV buy you freedom. Higher AOV widens acceptable CAC; higher LTV funds future tests.
- Contribution Margin = (Revenue − COGS − Shipping − Fees) / Revenue
- Target CAC = CM × conversion rate × AOV safety buffer
- LTV:CAC target ≥ 3:1 for paid growth
Build a simple weekly scorecard
Track only what you act on: Sessions, CR, AOV, Revenue, CAC, Blended ROAS, Refund Rate, Repeat %, Net Profit.
Make red/green thresholds explicit so decisions are mechanical, not emotional.
- Green if CR ≥ site baseline by +0.2pp
- Green if blended ROAS ≥ 1.5 (or your breakeven)
- Alert on refund rate spikes > +30% WoW
Cohorts beat averages
Averages lie. Cohorts show if you’re acquiring the right customers. Compare 30/60/90-day revenue by first purchase month.
If recent cohorts lag, fix targeting, offer, or onboarding emails.
Attribution sanity check
Trust blended first. Channel ROAS is directional. Validate big moves with holdout tests or geo splits.
Expect paid social to under-report in-platform; keep a media-mix view weekly.
Daily operator loop
Scan spend and CAC pre-10am, pull losers, back winners, ship one small on-site test, queue one new creative.
Close the day with a five-line journal: what moved, what broke, what’s next.
