Woocommerce development

Originally, WordPress was not designed to build eCommerce sites. As the name suggests, WordPress is primarily used to design and manage content and information sites. But things have changed. Today there are dozens of extensions that can turn a WordPress site into a professional-level eCommerce store. The best known and arguably the most complete is WooCommerce, now available in French. In this guide, we explain step by step how to create a WooCommerce site without the hassle!

WooCommerce, the reference eCommerce plugin for WordPress
WooCommerce is the most complete plugin to create an eCommerce site under WordPress. Before taking you step by step through how to install WooCommerce on your site, how to configure it, and, more generally, how to create your WooCommerce online store, a few background elements are in order. First, what is WordPress? Next, what is an eCommerce plugin? And more specifically, where does WooCommerce fit into the myriad of existing plugins?

WordPress, a leading editor around the world
WordPress is the go-to CMS worldwide, with over a quarter of sites worldwide using it and nearly a billion downloads. Launched in 2003, WordPress allows you to create websites very advanced in terms of customization without requiring great programming knowledge.

CMS Definition:
CMS is the abbreviation for "Content management system", This term includes all software for editing websites (creating and managing them).

But here it is, WordPress has historically been designed for content creation, that is to say, editing blog or magazine-type sites. WordPress is called WordPress for nothing. However, it is possible to create an eCommerce site using WordPress, thanks to the multiple extensions (= plugins) which have gradually been offered by developers. Moreover, this incredible wealth of plugins can be explained by the fact that WordPress is open-source software.

Unlike what we see with publishers like Shopify or Wix who are “owner” publishers, it is possible for anyone to come up with a new theme or plugin designed for WordPress. You can also modify all the elements of the code of your WordPress site. In short, this is an extremely flexible and modular editor that meets all needs and allows you to do whatever you want.

WooCommerce, THE plugin to create an eCommerce site under WordPress
You will find dozens, and even hundreds, of eCommerce plugins designed for WordPress: WP eCommerce, Cart 66, Jigoshop, MarketPress, Shopp, WP shop, etc. Since everyone can offer their own plugin, you can of course find anything and everything on WordPress plugin platforms. In this case, the few examples of eCommerce plugins just mentioned are all good eCommerce plugins. They have a lot of quality, some flaws, but all do pretty well.

Still, there is an eCommerce plugin that clearly stands out. This plugin is WooCommerce, launched in 2011 and published by WooThemes (acquired by Automatic in 2015, the creator of WordPress). It is, in our opinion (but not only in our opinion!), The most powerful, flexible, and complete eCommerce plugin. You can do almost anything with this expansion as we will have the opportunity to see. Powerful, WooCommerce is also very popular (which in itself is revealing about the quality of the plugin). It’s by far the most popular eCommerce plugin. Today, nearly 30% of eCommerce sites in the world are powered (as they say) by WooCommerce.

This represents, still globally, more than 700,000 sites (and more than 13 million downloads according to the publisher of the plugin).

Before starting the tutorial, remember that WooCommerce is available in almost every language. It is also free, although some extensions of WooCommerce (extensions of the extension ...) are paid. If you need complex and specific features (like for example an advanced inventory manager), you will probably have to go through the purchase of extensions.

Remember also that creating a WooCommerce site is different than creating an eCommerce site from a platform specifically dedicated to eCommerce (such as Wix, Shopify, Prestashop, Magento, etc.). WooCommerce is especially recommended if you want to:

Have complete control over your website. With proprietary software, you are often limited. For example, you can't always adjust SEO settings (meta description tag, URL, etc.). And then, more generally, you are very limited in modifying the code (for example: adding tags in the header, etc.). WooCommerce is WordPress, so you can edit everything, customize everything, manage everything.
Being able to have an eCommerce site that is not just an eCommerce site, but a site that also hosts a blog, various and varied pages, etc. By using WordPress, you benefit from the best blog editor around the world!
Do not pay commissions on your sales or a monthly subscription like you do with all proprietary software.
Be able to start small and build your site as your business grows. WooCommerce makes it possible to create very simple sites, but can also meet all the complex needs possible and imaginable. Regarding payment management, for example, you can start with very easy-to-manage tools like PayPal, Amazon Payments, or Google Wallet before implementing SSL technology after a certain level of development.
Install and configure the Woocommerce plugin on your WordPress site

Before installing WooCommerce, you must install WordPress

WooCommerce is, again, an extension (= a plugin) for WordPress. Before even installing WooCommerce, you should already have WordPress installed. It’s quite logical. Which involves choosing a hosting for your WordPress site, defining a domain name, etc. When it comes to accommodation, don't aim too low. An eCommerce site consumes a lot more resources than a simple blog. For starters, shared hosting can do the trick, as long as you have more than 64M of memory. Personally, we advise you to go directly for dedicated hosting. This will save you from having to change accommodation after 6 months. On this point, we highly recommend WP Engine.

If you really don't know how installing WordPress works, we recommend that you read our full WordPress advisory article. We will avoid spending too much time on this initial phase, which is nevertheless decisive, to avoid overloading this already very extensive guide!

Download and install WooCommerce on your WordPress site
Downloading and installing WooCommerce on your WordPress site is extremely easy. You just have to go to your WordPress interface (your dashboard), and go to the "Extensions" tab ==> "Add". You type WooCommerce into the search bar. The plugin appears right away.
Click “Install Now” and activate it. Once the WooCommerce plugin is activated, you can launch the WooCommerce wizard which will allow you to make the first settings.
A WooCommerce site needs several structuring pages, such as the store page, the cart page, the order page, or the “my account” page. WooCommerce offers you at the start of the wizard to automatically generate these pages. Accept by clicking on “Continue”. You can customize these pages later.

You must then specify the location of your store, the currency used, and the units of measure for the weight and dimensions:
You must then indicate whether you offer a delivery service (which it probably is) and whether you charge VAT.
Last step: payment. Setting up payments is perhaps the most delicate step when setting up an eCommerce site. We recommend that you add PayPal to get started. You can then add other payment methods.
That's it for the basic setups. Needless to say, the job isn't done. A WooCommerce site is mostly made up of product pages. To familiarize yourself immediately with the product page editor, click on "Create your first product!".
If you're already a WordPress user, the product page editor shouldn't take you out of place. This is, more or less (the important thing is in this nuance, as we will see), the same editor that is used to create blog posts. We will come back to this editor later. But first, let's focus on some aspects of settings. You may see a block displayed explaining that your theme is not compatible with WooCommerce (red box):

Choose a WordPress theme compatible with WooCommerce

WooCommerce is a WordPress plugin, we have seen it. A plugin is an extension (a kind of small piece of software) that allows you to add new functionality to WordPress. The theme is the element that controls the design of your site, that is, the way your site appears to your visitors. WooCommerce adds loads of functionality to WordPress, but the concern is that some themes are not built to incorporate these features.

You must therefore absolutely choose a theme that is compatible with WooCommerce. Otherwise, all the work you have done on the interface (the back office) will have been wasted. At one point or another (quite quickly, in fact) your site does not display well and you have to start from scratch with a new theme.

A theme that is not only compatible with WooCommerce but also sufficiently versatile and customizable. To choose your theme, you have several possibilities.

Search for a theme directly from your WordPress back office, by going to Appearance ==> Themes ==> Add a theme. You can choose a default and free WordPress theme like Twenty-Twelve. This is the most economical solution, but it does require some technical knowledge (you will need to adapt the theme for WooCommerce).

Configure your WooCommerce store settings
Configuring your WooCommerce site settings is done directly from your WordPress dashboard, by going to WooCommerce ==> Settings.

You will notice that there are a lot of default settings. These include the settings you configured in the software wizard, but also settings automatically installed by WooCommerce. Start by going through the sections and sub-sections of all the tabs on the “Settings” page to check the default settings and possibly change them.
You can also customize the design of your store (the shape of the buttons for example) by modifying the CSS (the style.css file). It requires technical knowledge. We also recommend that you check the box "Activate the lightbox for product images" in the "Products" tab of the settings menu. This feature allows Internet users to click on the images of your products to enlarge them without leaving your site.
Product pages are, again, the most important parts of your eCommerce site. You need to spend time setting up these pages, in the "Products" tab. Pay particular attention to the configuration of the dimensions of the images (in the “Display” sub-tab). You must verify that the images of your products are displayed correctly on your site, on product pages, on catalog pages, etc. Spend time on this before importing the hundreds or thousands of images in your catalog. WooCommerce offers very comprehensive documentation on the subject.

There is no question of going into the detail of all the configuration elements here. Most are self-explanatory and should be customized to suit your needs and tastes. Do not hesitate, if you are blocked on a particular element, to refer to the excellent documentation offered by WooCommerce, available at this address. Take into account all the details to get the most out of the features and options that WooCommerce gives you.

The configuration of automatic emails sent to your customers:
The settings for your WooCommerce site are not only made from the “Settings” section of the WooCommerce tab. You should also take into account the sections “System Status” and “Extensions”. The "System Status" section allows you to access technical information on your WooCommerce site and check its configuration status. To learn more, we recommend reading this article. The “Extensions” section is what makes WooCommerce great software. WooCommerce offers a huge store of extensions (= plugins) that allow you to add new eCommerce features.
The richness of this extension store allows you to avoid having to contact a developer each time you want to add an element to your site (a new payment method, for example). Some extensions are free, others are chargeable. But are you saying that the price of the extension you are interested in will always be cheaper than a developer's bill! We invite you now to browse the extensions store to identify extensions that may be of interest to you. The extensions are classified by category:

Now that you have completed the settings and installed your extensions (which takes time), you will need to create your product pages.

Create the product pages for your WooCommerce site
The design of your product pages depends a lot on the theme used. You must go to the Articles ==> Add menu to edit your various product pages. WooCommerce allows you to create very comprehensive product pages, including all the necessary details about your products and their attributes. As we said before, the editor is identical to the one used for classic WordPress sites (non-eCommerce):

You must, for each product page, define the title, write a description of the product, choose the category and tags (labels) to which the product is attached, add the images of the products, etc. You can customize the URL path. Until then, editing a product page works the same way as editing a blog post on WordPress. What changes is the "Product Data" block, which appears under the central part of the editor? This is also one of the great strengths of WooCommerce. This block is used to manage all the elements specific to the product pages: price, delivery, stock status, dimensions and weight, options (color, size, etc.), complementary/similar products, etc. This block allows you to create very complete product pages giving all the information your customers need. We invite you to take a look at all the tabs in this block to familiarize yourself with and optimize your product pages.
You will find that creating a product page on WooCommerce is a snap. It will not take you long to get to grips with this editor. If you want to offer multiple products on your WooCommerce site (which it probably is!), You will need to organize these products into different categories. For this, you must go to Products ==> Categories. What's very handy, especially if you have a large catalog, is that you have the option to create sub-categories.

And after?

We wanted to emphasize in this guide the key points take into account when creating a WooCommerce site: the first settings, the choice of the theme, the peculiarities of the product page editor, etc. We could have spent more time on certain technical points, such as setting the delivery options for example. But that would have unnecessarily lengthened this guide. To go further, we advise you to refer once again to the excellent documentation made available to you by WooCommerce. You can also consult the tutorial videos, which cover many topics related to the creation of your WooCommerce site.