WordPress-Woo-Commerce Platform
Woo Commerce is the number one E-Commerce platform in the world, edging Magento which was the leader for years.
Years from now, when we’re old and gray, with a few marbles rolling around, we’ll recall the great E-Commerce platform wars of the 2000’s, and where we were when the dust cleared and the war was over. And because we would have a few marbles rolling around, we won’t recall that there really wasn’t a war at all. Woo Commerce came, saw and conquered and here we are today.
Over 90% of all WordPress E-Commerce websites worldwide use the Woo Commerce plugin and it’s the most popular plugin on the entire internet. However, in 2020 it’s a three-horse race as Shopify is also gaining ground.
Woo Commerce platform for T&T Online Stores
Woo Commerce is by far the easiest E-Commerce platform to use for the non-tech. WordPress is the most user friendly content management system out there as well. If there were top and lower tier platforms, WordPress would be in the middle, which is why I recommend it for any size store be it a handful of products or thousands, it can handle it no problem.
WordPress/Woo Commerce is already the most popular online store platform being used in Trinidad & Tobago. Most of the stores launched in 2019 have been Woo Commerce.
Default features of Woo Commerce
Woo Commerce is a free plug-in that ‘adds on’ to a WordPress installation. If you already have a WordPress site and adding a shop, it’s a simple case of installing it right from your admin area. It also works seamlessly with any template (as plug-ins are designed to do). Some templates are Woo Commerce ready, i.e designed to blend better, particularly with the visuals.
As E-Commerce platforms go the standard shopping cart features you expect are all there. From the pure functional: Choose category > Browse > Add to cart > Checkout/Pay, to essential: Promotion tools like coupons, stock management, Variable/Configurable product catalog. Value-added features on the other hand, need additional plug-ins, available via free or paid. However, there are some other default features (or lack thereof) you may not be aware of:
- Woo Commerce only shopping cart that integrates WiPay
- Default shipping methods only Flat Rate and Free
- UPS/DHL/FedEx shipping methods NOT pre-installed
- Wide range of plug-ins to extend shopping cart features
- Bulk product import and updates via CSV file upload
- Much easier to use than Magento
Product catalog preparation tips
You may bulk import your products into Woo Commerce via CSV (comma-separated values) file. It typically starts out as a regular Excel file, then saved with the .csv extension. The importer has a neat feature to map your column headings to the product import fields so there’s less room for error.
When we get started, I usually provide a sample file to work with. Generally you put each product field in its own column, like Name, Sku, Description, Price, Category, Image, Stock etc.; one product per row.
Does Woo Commerce require any special hosting?
Woo Commerce per se doesn’t require any special hosting generally. However there are special hosting plans for WordPress websites as too WordPress websites with Woo Commerce. It’s like cars, there are Nissans, Toyotas, BMWs, and Benz’s. All get you from point A to point B, yet all are still in business.
Forward Multimedia does have a recommended host for Woo Commerce online stores (only if asked) and clients are free to use their preferred host.
