# Publishing by platform: a path for Shopify and BigCommerce

> Reading path on publishing by platform: how data gets from your Shopify or BigCommerce admin to the page, with one branch for each platform.

URL: https://clione.ai/learn/publishing-by-platform/
Lang: en

First what is the same on any platform, then one branch per platform, and last what applies to both again. A value saved in the admin only reaches the page if the theme, an app or the frontend writes it there, and that works differently on Shopify and on BigCommerce. That is why the path has four stretches and you read three: the first, the last and the branch for your platform.

1. **Steps 1 to 3 · How a page reaches whoever reads it (both platforms).** With [SSR](/glossary/server-side-rendering/), the content travels in the first HTML response. With [JavaScript rendering](/glossary/javascript-rendering/), the browser assembles it afterward, and not every [bot](/glossary/web-crawler/) waits for that. [Headless commerce](/glossary/headless-commerce/) is the other way to build a store, with the frontend separated from the backend.
2. **Steps 4 to 8 · Shopify branch.** [Liquid](/glossary/shopify-liquid/) is the templating language of themes. [Metafields](/glossary/shopify-metafields/) store data the standard model has no field for, and the [metaobject](/glossary/shopify-metaobject/) groups them into a reusable record. The [app embed](/glossary/shopify-app-embed/) is how an app adds code without touching the theme, and [Shopify Catalog](/glossary/shopify-catalog/) is how your products reach AI channels.
3. **Steps 9 to 12 · BigCommerce branch.** [Stencil](/glossary/bigcommerce-stencil/) is the theme engine. [Custom fields](/glossary/bigcommerce-custom-fields/) are name and value pairs on the product, and the [widget](/glossary/bigcommerce-widget/) only appears where the theme declares a region for it. [Catalyst](/glossary/bigcommerce-catalyst/) is the headless frontend that replaces Stencil.
4. **Steps 13 to 16 · When another system touches your data (both platforms).** A [catalog API](/glossary/catalog-api/) lets other applications read and write your products, and a [webhook](/glossary/webhook/) notifies you when something changes. If two systems write the same field you get [field overwrite](/glossary/field-overwrite/), and [content versioning](/glossary/content-versioning/) is what lets you know what was published and roll it back.

**If your store is on Shopify**, read steps 1 to 8 and 13 to 16. To follow a value down that branch, end to end, there is the guide [from metafield to published page](/guides/metafield-to-published-page/).

**If your store is on BigCommerce**, read steps 1 to 3 and 9 to 16. For the same thing on that platform, the guide [from widget to published page](/guides/bigcommerce-widget-to-published-page/).

Once the data is on the page, the [measurement and verification](/learn/measurement-and-verification/) path shows you how to check it.