Customizing Sale Tags in Shopify: A Practical Walkthrough

Introduction
The Role of Visual Hierarchy in E-commerce
Method 1: Changing Sale Tag Text via the Shopify Language Editor
Method 2: Adjusting Sale Tag Styling in the Theme Customizer
Method 3: Advanced Customization Using CSS
Integrating Sale Tags with Digital Products
The Psychology of Pricing and Sale Badges
Leveraging Shopify Liquid for Dynamic Sale Tags
Building Brand Loyalty Through Consistent Design
Maximizing Revenue with Recurring Digital Products
Common Mistakes to Avoid When Changing Sale Tags
The Intersection of Physical and Digital Sales
Step-by-Step Summary for Different Shopify Themes
Enhancing the Mobile Experience
Conclusion
Frequently Asked Questions

Introduction

Did you know that nearly 60% of online shoppers look specifically for a "sale" or "clearance" section before browsing any other part of an e-commerce store? The visual cues we use to signal value are often the difference between a high-bounce rate and a record-breaking sales month. In the competitive ecosystem of online retail, a tiny red badge or a specific word like "Clearance" acts as a powerful psychological trigger that demands immediate attention. However, many store owners feel trapped by the default settings of their themes, wondering how to change sale tag in Shopify to better reflect their brand’s unique voice.

The purpose of this blog post is to provide a comprehensive, step-by-step roadmap for modifying, styling, and optimizing your Shopify sale tags. We will explore everything from simple text changes in the language editor to advanced CSS modifications for a truly bespoke look. Furthermore, we will discuss how these visual indicators play a vital role when you expand your business beyond physical goods into the world of digital learning and memberships. Our mission at Tevello is to turn any Shopify store into a digital learning powerhouse, and understanding the nuances of your store’s interface is the first step toward that goal.

By the end of this article, you will not only know how to technically alter your sale tags but also how to leverage them strategically to increase Customer Lifetime Value (LTV) and build a cohesive brand experience that keeps customers on your own URL.

The Role of Visual Hierarchy in E-commerce

Before diving into the technical "how-to," it is essential to understand the "why." E-commerce is a visual medium. When a visitor lands on your collection page, their eyes perform a rapid scan, looking for points of interest. A sale tag serves as a "stop sign" in that scan. If every tag looks the same or uses generic language, the impact is diluted.

When you learn how to change sale tag in Shopify, you are gaining control over your store's visual hierarchy. You can change "Sale" to "Save 20%," "Limited Edition," or "Member Exclusive." This customization allows you to align your promotional strategy with your brand's personality. For instance, a luxury brand might prefer a subtle "Curated Price," while a high-energy fitness brand might use "Flash Deal!" to create urgency.

At Tevello, we believe merchants should own their customer data and brand experience. This philosophy extends to every pixel on your site. If you are selling digital courses alongside physical equipment—perhaps a "Yoga for Beginners" course alongside yoga mats—having a distinct sale tag for the digital product can help differentiate the value proposition.

Method 1: Changing Sale Tag Text via the Shopify Language Editor

The most common request from merchants is simply changing the word "Sale" to something else. Fortunately, Shopify provides a built-in tool called the Language Editor (formerly known as "Edit Languages") that makes this process straightforward without touching a single line of code.

Step-by-Step Text Modification

From your Shopify admin dashboard, navigate to Online Store > Themes.
Find the theme you are currently using and click the three dots (...) button, then select Edit content (in some theme versions, this may still be labeled "Edit default theme content").
You will see a search bar at the top. Type the word "Sale" into this bar.
The editor will filter all the text fields across your store that contain the word "Sale." Look for the fields under sections like "Products" or "Product grid."
Locate the specific entry for the sale badge (usually titled "On sale" or "Sale").
Change the text to your desired phrasing, such as "Deal," "Offer," or "Discount."
Click Save in the top right corner.

This method is incredibly effective because it updates the tag globally. If you are running a special promotion for a new digital product, changing this text to "Founder's Price" can add an air of exclusivity. For merchants using Tevello to offer all the key features for courses and communities, this small change ensures that your digital academy feels integrated into your store's overall marketing language.

Method 2: Adjusting Sale Tag Styling in the Theme Customizer

If you want to change the color, shape, or position of your sale tag, the Theme Customizer is your next stop. Most modern Shopify themes (like Dawn, Sense, or Refresh) offer built-in settings for "Badges."

Navigating Badge Settings

Go to Online Store > Themes and click Customize.
On the left-hand sidebar, click on the Theme settings icon (it looks like a gear).
Look for a section titled Badges.
Here, you can often find options to change the "Sale badge color scheme." Shopify uses color schemes to maintain consistency. You can choose from your theme’s predefined accent colors.
Some premium themes also allow you to change the badge's corner radius (making them square or rounded) and the font size.

While the Customizer is user-friendly, it can sometimes feel limited. If you want a specific hex code for your sale tag that isn't in your theme's primary palette, you might need a more advanced approach. Remember, the goal is to create a unified login that reduces customer support friction and a consistent visual journey. If your sale tags match your brand's primary colors, the entire shopping experience feels more professional and trustworthy.

Method 3: Advanced Customization Using CSS

For those who want total control over the aesthetics, adding custom CSS is the way to go. This allows you to add animations, gradients, or unique borders to your sale tags. This is particularly useful for high-volume stores that want to stand out during major shopping holidays.

How to Add Custom CSS to Sale Tags

In the Theme Customizer, go to Theme settings > Custom CSS.
To target the sale badge specifically, you need to know its CSS class. In most Shopify 2.0 themes, the class is .badge--bottom-left or .price__badge-sale.

You can add code like this:

.badge--bottom-left {
  background-color: #ff0000; /* Bright Red */
  color: #ffffff; /* White Text */
  border-radius: 0px; /* Square edges */
  font-weight: bold;
  text-transform: uppercase;
}

If you want to create a "pulsing" effect to draw more attention, you can use a CSS animation.

Advanced styling helps when you are generating revenue from both physical and digital goods. Imagine a merchant selling crochet kits. By styling the sale tag on their "Mastering the Magic Ring" course differently than the tag on the physical yarn, they can visually segment their catalog, helping customers understand exactly what they are buying.

Integrating Sale Tags with Digital Products

At Tevello, we often see merchants struggle with how to present their digital offerings. If you are using our platform to host courses, your digital products live directly in your Shopify admin, just like a physical t-shirt or book. This means when you learn how to change sale tag in Shopify, it applies to your courses as well.

If unifying your stack is a priority, start by a simple, all-in-one price for unlimited courses.

When you run a sale on a course, the Shopify sale tag will automatically appear. This is where the power of our "Native Shopify Integration" shines. Because Tevello keeps customers on your own URL, the sale tag they see on the collection page carries through to the product page and the checkout, all powered by Shopify’s trusted payment gateways. This seamless transition is vital for maintaining the trust required to sell high-ticket digital content.

Scenario: The "Barista Basics" Upsell

Consider a merchant selling premium coffee beans. To increase their average order value, they create a "Barista Basics" video course. By applying a custom sale tag that says "FREE WITH PURCHASE" or "50% OFF BUNDLE," they can drive traffic to the digital product. Using Tevello, this merchant can offer strategies for selling over 4,000 digital courses natively, ensuring that the digital learning experience is just as polished as their physical packaging.

The Psychology of Pricing and Sale Badges

Understanding the technical side of how to change sale tag in Shopify is only half the battle. The other half is strategic application. The way you present a discount can significantly alter customer perception.

Percentages vs. Absolute Value

Research suggests that for products under $100, a percentage discount (e.g., "25% OFF") is often more compelling to the human brain. For products over $100, an absolute dollar value (e.g., "$50 OFF") tends to perform better. When you customize your sale tags, consider which format makes the "deal" look larger.

Color Psychology

Red: Evokes urgency and excitement. Best for flash sales and limited-time offers.
Green: Associated with growth and savings. Often used for "everyday low prices."
Black/Gold: Suggests exclusivity and luxury. Perfect for "Member Only" sales within a Tevello community.

By securing a fixed cost structure for digital products, you can afford to experiment with these psychological triggers without worrying about escalating platform fees eating into your margins. We believe in predictable pricing without hidden transaction fees, which gives you the financial breathing room to focus on creative marketing strategies.

Leveraging Shopify Liquid for Dynamic Sale Tags

For the truly tech-savvy merchant, Shopify’s templating language, Liquid, allows for dynamic sale tags. Instead of a static word, you can display the actual percentage saved.

Example Liquid Snippet

In your price.liquid or card-product.liquid file, you could replace the standard sale text with something like:

{% if product.compare_at_price > product.price %}
  {{ product.compare_at_price | minus: product.price | times: 100.0 | divided_by: product.compare_at_price | round }}% OFF
{% endif %}

This automatically calculates the discount for every product on sale. This level of automation is essential for stores with large catalogs or those migrating over 14,000 members and reducing support tickets. When your store handles the "heavy lifting" of displaying accurate savings, you can spend more time building your community and less time manual-editing product descriptions.

Building Brand Loyalty Through Consistent Design

A sale tag isn't just a marketing tool; it's a piece of your brand's visual identity. If your store uses soft pastels and elegant typography, a jarring, bright neon "SALE" badge can disrupt the user experience and diminish the perceived value of your products.

When you take the time to unifying a fragmented system into a single Shopify store, every detail matters. This includes the sale tags on your membership tiers and digital downloads. A consistent design language builds brand equity. Customers start to recognize your specific style of "Sale" tag as a sign of a high-quality opportunity rather than just another advertisement.

Maximizing Revenue with Recurring Digital Products

While sale tags are great for one-time purchases, the most stable business models often rely on recurring revenue. Tevello allows you to sell memberships and subscriptions directly through Shopify. You can even use sale tags to promote "Introductory Rates" for your subscription tiers.

Instead of a "get rich quick" scheme, we focus on the long-term benefits of the business model: diversifying revenue streams and increasing Customer Lifetime Value. By using a flat-rate plan that supports unlimited members, you can grow your subscriber base without seeing your costs skyrocket. This stability allows you to be more aggressive with your "Sale" tag promotions to acquire new members, knowing that your overhead remains fixed.

Common Mistakes to Avoid When Changing Sale Tags

While customization is powerful, there are several pitfalls to watch out for:

Over-tagging: If every product in your store has a sale tag, none of them feel special. It creates a "bargain bin" atmosphere that can devalue your brand.
Poor Contrast: Ensure your sale tag text is easily readable against the background color. Accessibility is key for modern e-commerce.
Clashing Styles: Ensure your custom CSS doesn't interfere with other elements of your theme, such as product titles or price displays.
Inconsistent Messaging: If your tag says "Discount" but your email marketing says "Clearance," it can confuse customers.

By seeing how the app natively integrates with Shopify, you can ensure that your digital products follow all the same rules and best practices as your physical ones, avoiding these common errors.

The Intersection of Physical and Digital Sales

The modern Shopify merchant is rarely just selling one type of product. The most successful stores are those that create an ecosystem. A sale tag on a physical "Starter Kit" can lead to a long-term relationship if that kit includes a "Getting Started" course hosted on Tevello.

This hybrid model—selling "the thing" and "how to use the thing"—is a cornerstone of modern e-commerce. It reduces the likelihood of product returns (because the customer knows how to use what they bought) and increases the chances of repeat purchases. When you how one brand sold $112K+ by bundling courses, you see the real-world impact of combining physical sales tactics (like sale tags) with digital product delivery.

Step-by-Step Summary for Different Shopify Themes

Depending on whether you are using a Vintage theme or a Shopify 2.0 theme, the process might vary slightly.

For Dawn and other Shopify 2.0 Themes:

Use the Language Editor for text.
Use Theme Settings > Badges for basic colors.
Use Custom CSS for advanced styling.

For Older (Vintage) Themes:

You may need to look for product-grid-item.liquid or product-card.liquid in your Edit Code section.
Search for the HTML class related to the sale badge (often sale-tag or badge--sale).
Manually wrap the sale text in a <span> tag with your own class for styling.

Regardless of your theme version, our goal is to help you create a "digital learning powerhouse." We believe you should keep 100% of what you earn, which is why we charge 0% transaction fees. This allows you to reinvest those savings into better theme design, professional photography, or even custom development for your store’s UI.

Enhancing the Mobile Experience

A significant portion of your customers will be shopping from their phones. A sale tag that looks great on a desktop might be too small or too large on a mobile screen. When you are editing your CSS or theme settings, always use the "Mobile" view in the Shopify customizer to check the results.

A well-placed, thumb-friendly sale tag can significantly improve the click-through rate on mobile collection pages. This is especially true for digital content where the "impulse buy" factor is high. Since digital products require no shipping, the gratification is instant—making that sale tag even more effective.

Conclusion

Customizing your Shopify store is about more than just aesthetics; it's about creating an environment where your customers feel guided and valued. Learning how to change sale tag in Shopify is a fundamental skill that allows you to control the narrative of your promotions, whether you're selling physical goods or high-value digital courses. By utilizing the Language Editor, the Theme Customizer, and custom CSS, you can ensure your store stands out in a crowded market.

At Tevello, we are committed to providing an all-in-one ecosystem where your physical products and digital communities live side-by-side. Our Unlimited Plan is just $29.99 per month, offering you a robust toolset to amplify your efforts without the burden of per-user fees or hidden costs. We invite you to explore our all the key features for courses and communities and see how our platform can help you scale your brand while keeping your customers on your own URL.

Remember, every small detail, from the color of your sale tag to the clarity of your course curriculum, contributes to the trust and loyalty you build with your audience. Start your journey toward a more professional and profitable store today.

To build your community without leaving Shopify, start by reviewing the Shopify App Store listing merchants install from.

Take advantage of our 14-day free trial to build your entire curriculum and customize your store’s look before paying a cent. With Tevello, you keep the focus on your brand, your data, and your success—all with install Tevello from the Shopify App Store today and 0% transaction fees.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I have different sale tags for different products in Shopify?

By default, Shopify applies one sale tag style globally across your theme. However, you can achieve different tags for different products by using "Liquid" conditions and "Tags." For example, you can write code that says: "If the product has the tag 'Digital,' show a blue 'Course' badge; otherwise, show the standard red 'Sale' badge." This is a great way to differentiate your Tevello courses from your physical inventory.

Does changing the sale tag text affect my SEO?

Changing the text of a sale badge (e.g., from "Sale" to "Offer") generally has a negligible effect on SEO, as search engines focus more on your product titles, descriptions, and meta tags. However, it can significantly improve your click-through rate (CTR) and conversion rate, which are indirect signals of a high-quality site that search engines do value.

Can I display the percentage saved instead of just the word "Sale"?

Yes, this is a popular customization. While some premium themes offer this as a built-in setting in the Theme Customizer, most standard themes require a small snippet of Liquid code to calculate the difference between the compare_at_price and the price. This dynamic tag is very effective at showing customers exactly how much value they are getting.

Will my Tevello courses automatically show sale tags?

Yes! Because Tevello is a native Shopify integration, your courses are treated as standard Shopify products. If you set a "Compare at price" in the Shopify product settings for your course, the sale tag will automatically appear based on your theme's settings. This allows you to use all the customization techniques mentioned in this guide to promote your digital learning content effectively.