It is possible that you will be startled to hear that WordPress was not initially intended to be used for the creation of online stores. Instead, WordPress was conceived of as a content management system (CMS) for the purpose of managing content for websites.
A WordPress website can be transformed into a professional e-commerce business with the help of dozens of plugins available today. On the list, WooCommerce is perhaps the most well-known solution and has the biggest number of features.
Before I go on to explain how to install WooCommerce and how to go with this WooCommerce tutorial, I will first discuss the reasons why WooCommerce has been able to successfully conquer and maintain its position as the most popular e-commerce plugin for WordPress.
If WooCommerce is so popular, why is that?
WPecommerce, Cart 66, Jigoshop, Market Press, Shopp, and WP Shop are just a few of the e-commerce plugins that are created specifically for WordPress. Additional plugins are also available. For this particular scenario, the few examples of ecommerce plugins that I described provide the appropriate feature set for the purpose of establishing ecommerce stores on the WordPress platform.
In spite of this, WooCommerce stands out as a prominent e-commerce plugin, and you will soon be able to observe it in our WooCommerce lesson. In 2011, Woo Themes was released, and now, the process of setting up WooCommerce is both swift and efficient. Automattic, the company that created WordPress, purchased WooThemes in 2015. This ecommerce plugin is the most powerful, adaptable, and comprehensive one available for WordPress. As you will see in the following WooCommerce lesson, you are able to accomplish virtually anything with WooCommerce. I will demonstrate this capability below.
It is important to keep in mind that the process of constructing a WooCommerce store is distinct from the process of creating an e-commerce store using a platform that is built exclusively for e-commerce (such as Magento, Shopify, PrestaShop, etc.). If you want to do any of the following, WooCommerce is highly recommended:
Maintain full command of your retail establishment. Most of the time, you are restricted by platform restrictions when you are using proprietary platforms. For instance, it is not always possible to set SEO factors (such as the URL, the description of the meta tag, etc.). However, in a broader sense, you have a limited number of alternatives available to you for editing the code of the platform (for instance, putting tags in the header). You are able to manage, update, and personalize everything because you are using WooCommerce.
Having the ability to run an online store that is not only a store but also a website that manages a blog, a number of pages, and other features is a desirable feature. If you use WordPress, you will have access to the most powerful blog editor of all time.
In the same way, as Shopify does not require you to pay commissions on sales or a monthly subscription, all proprietary platforms do not require you to do so.
You should be able to begin with a modest offering and expand your online store as your company expands. WooCommerce makes it possible to develop stores that are extremely simple, but it also has the ability to meet all of the sophisticated needs that are currently and will be in the future. For instance, when it comes to the management of payments, you can begin with technologies that are easy to maintain, such as PayPal, Amazon Payments, or Google Wallet, before introducing SSL for improved store performance.
Guidelines for Installing and Configuring WooCommerce:
The WooCommerce plugin for WordPress needs to be installed on your WordPress site before we can proceed with this WooCommerce tutorial series. The first thing you need to do is make sure that your WordPress website has the WooCommerce plugin installed.
Install the WooCommerce Plugin as the first step.
This is not complicated at all. Go to the Plugins menu and select Add New. After that, look for WooCommerce for WordPress and install it on your WordPress site. You will find the WooCommerce link under your Plugins once you have successfully installed it.
When you log in to the WooCommerce Dashboard, you will see the following message:
Welcome to WooCommerce – You are nearing the point where you are ready to begin selling.”
When it comes to the issue of store configuration, WooCommerce for WordPress provides a very clear and straightforward solution. For the Setup Wizard to be executed, click the button. Even if you happen to hit the Skip setup button by accident, you can still proceed with the setup wizard by going to the Help menu and selecting Setup Wizard.
Setup of your WooCommerce store is the second step.
If you want to proceed with our WooCommerce tutorial, the first step requires you to specify the location of the store.
Because WooCommerce for WordPress would use this information to calculate the shipping costs and the taxes that would be applied to the invoices, accuracy is of the utmost importance.
During the course of our WooCommerce setup, all or some of the fields will be displayed, depending on the country that you choose to use:
Where is the location of your store? A country should be selected.
- Address
- The City
- state
- ZIP Code or Postal Code
Once you have WooCommerce installed, the next step is to choose the currency that you would accept at your store. In addition to this, you are required to specify the kind of product that you intend to sell.
At long last, the installation wizard for WooCommerce will inquire about your authorization to gather data regarding your usage. To proceed to the following section, click the Let’s go!.
The next step is to select the payment gateway.
In this second part of our WordPress WooCommerce tutorial, you will be required to choose the payment platforms that you will incorporate into your WooCommerce store. The two choices that are available to you are as follows:
- stripe
- It’s PayPal.
Although PayPal is more convenient, Stripe has lower commissions than PayPal does. Your clients have the option of selecting either of these two choices. In addition, the clients are able to finish the transactions without having to leave the page where they are checking out.
When you select Offline payments, you will be presented with more conventional means of payment, including the following:
Check:
- Bank transfer
- Cash on delivery is accepted.
Depending on your option in this phase of the WordPress WooCommerce tutorial, WooCommerce will install different plugins necessary for your store. Click Continue to advance to the next stage of our WooCommerce tutorial.
Configuring the Shipping Methods is the fourth step.
The WooCommerce platform creates two distinct zones from which you can send items from your store. In addition, as you progress through this WooCommerce tutorial, you will be required to select a price model and a Shipping Method. You can choose between Free Shipping and Fixed Shipping.
If you are going to sell your products in a number of different countries, it is possible that you may need to make additional modifications to the WooCommerce settings after you have completed the process.
Choosing the Recommended Extensions is the fifth step.
There are a variety of extensions that can be installed by the setup wizard in order to add the necessary functionality. These extensions are installed based on your location and the settings you have in WooCommerce.
I would recommend that you select all four extensions and then click the Continue option that appears.
Automation of Taxes: This extension ensures that the calculation of taxes is handled at each and every sale. To compensate for this, the buyer will not be shown the tax rates until he has given his consent to complete his transaction (it is important to display your tax rates in a location that is easily accessible).
This email marketing service, known as MailChimp, is responsible for collecting subscriber data and sending emails to stimulate new sales.
You have the option of incorporating the functions of social networks into Facebook, as well as including tracking pixel and catalogue synchronization.
The sixth step is to activate your store by connecting it to Jetpack.
The following step in this WooCommerce tutorial is for you to determine whether or not you wish to link the WordPress Jetpack extension with your WooCommerce store. Taking this step is essential in order to activate all of the settings that you choose in the steps that came before it.
To proceed with Jetpack, click the Continue button and then proceed to follow the instructions. Following the completion of the process, the final page of the setup wizard will be displayed to you. It is important to keep in mind that Jetpack is not technically a WooCommerce plugin; rather, it may also be used independently with WordPress websites.
Conclusion:
Should you be interested in learning how to install WooCommerce, this WooCommerce tutorial will provide you with all the information you require!
The first settings, the selection of a theme, the particularities of the publisher of product pages, and other aspects are some of the most important considerations that are taken into account while creating a WooCommerce store. I wanted to highlight these aspects in this article. It would have been possible for me to devote more attention to certain technical aspects, such as the configuration of delivery alternatives, for instance. On the other hand, doing so would have resulted in an unnecessary lengthening of this tutorial.