Shopify table shortcode on pages: drop Us vs Them into the story

`/pages/why-us` is a story: copy, photos, then a Us vs Them table in the middle of a rich-text section. Customize on that page has no *Add block* in that section. The product template does — that is where the Size chart block lives. This page does not.

A Shopify table shortcode on pages is that exception: `[oo-table id=…]` in a Shopify page or blog body, not in the product description. Shortcodes (optional) calls out *blog posts or pages where app blocks are awkward* and custom page builders.

The general shortcode post is already live. Yesterday was specs from a metaobject field. This one is only the page/blog: where you paste the ID, what the embed must do, and why PDP visibility rules do not travel with you.

The app is OO - Advanced Table Builder (Free, 5.0 from 1 review). Handle `tables-specs-comparisons`. Docs still say Tables, Specs & Comparisons in places.

A page is not a product JSON template

Shopify Help on pages is a template plus sections. Some themes expose app blocks on `page.json`. Many rich-text or HTML sections — and almost every blog body — do not. Theme structure stays empty until you drag a block, or until the embed finds a shortcode in the HTML.

Native Shopify has no table type. A `<table>` in page HTML is copy. No Design step, no Settings translations per locale, no metafield. On a phone it folds.

Native also will not, shortcode or not:

• Auto-inject Specs next to Add to cart. Specs = the Product specs block. No ATC auto-inject.

• Run the compare tray without the app embed. The embed is required for shortcodes, tray/modal, Compare under the price, and size-chart auto above ATC when no Size chart block exists.

On `/products/hoodie`, use blocks or auto-placement. The shortcode docs: *Prefer theme blocks or auto-placement for standard product templates.* On `/pages/size-guide`, the shortcode is fair game.

How pages get a table until they do not

Paste the full size HTML into the page and into fifty products. One cell, three places. A shortcode points at one table ID. Change Structure, every page or blog with that ID follows — if the embed is on and the table is enabled.

Shortcode on the page, embed off. Without the app embed (Theme settings → App embeds → Tables, Specs & Comparisons) `[oo-table id=…]` prints as literal text. Theme blocks alone do not power shortcodes.

Visibility “this product only,” then the page. Shortcodes are *one-off placements that are not tied to product visibility rules*. A size chart limited to product X in Settings can still render on `/pages/size-guide` if you paste that ID. If the page is for everyone, keep visibility wide — or accept that the page shows the ID regardless of the PDP rule. Check the URL. Do not guess.

Invent the ID before the first Save. The string comes from the Settings step after Save. No real ID, no render. Copy it into the page or blog HTML, not into a Liquid comment.

A page-shaped table, then the paste

1. Build the table (Structure → Design → Settings). Types: size chart, specs, comparison, tabbed, Us vs Them. On a brand page, Us vs Them or tabs beat specs for “the current product” — a page has no current product. Modules that read the product stay empty. Pick a self-contained table: Us vs Them, tabbed content, or a size chart that does not depend on the variant.

2. Enable it for the storefront. Copy `[oo-table id=…]`.

3. Turn the embed on. Save the theme.

4. Page or blog: put the shortcode in the HTML or rich-text section, in the story. No extra app block on that template.

5. Preview as a shopper. Phone. Second locale: translate customer-facing strings in Settings → translations (titles, labels, trigger, empty state). You do not translate the shortcode; you translate the table.

An AI draft is fine (description or screenshot, max 4 MB). Then review modules. Listing: Free, works with AI / Excel / Google Sheets. Do not invent a paid tier.

Worked example: `/pages/why-us` and a fabric guide post

Shop “Wool & Line”. The PDP already has a Size chart block and Compare auto-injected under the price. The brand page uses a vintage rich-text section. The Us vs Them table (feature rows, yes/no, CTA to a collection) gets an ID in Settings. Shortcode in the page, after the second heading. The embed was already on for the tray. Live: the table sits in the story. No second Customize pass.

A week later: blog *Which merino should you buy?* The same tabbed table (care, warmth, itch) via the same shortcode in the blog body. One ID, two URLs. Edit a row in Structure; page and blog both move.

Do not drop that ID into the hoodie product description. The Size chart block stays there. Otherwise you maintain two placements for the same PDP.

Get it on the page

1. Install OO - Advanced Table Builder.

2. Build a table that makes sense without “the current product.” Save, enable, copy the shortcode from Settings.

3. Theme settings → App embeds → Tables, Specs & Comparisons → on.

4. Paste `[oo-table id=…]` into the page or blog HTML, where the copy needs it.

5. Check storefront and mobile. Leave the PDP on blocks.

Do not pitch another OO app. Do not name competitors.

Wrap-up

A Shopify table shortcode on pages is for rich text and blogs that have no Add block. Format `[oo-table id=…]`, embed on, table enabled, ID from Settings after Save. Not a stand-in for the Size chart block on the product template. Not Specs auto-inject. PDP visibility is not a page rule — open the URL.

Paste the ID from OO - Advanced Table Builder on `/pages/…` or in a blog, and keep the hoodie on theme blocks.