In this lesson you will learn the basics of using the WooCommerce plugin for WordPress. By the end of this lesson, you will understand installation, general store settings, adding and editing products, order management, sales reporting, and the system status report.
After completing this lesson, participants will be able to:
- Identify and evaluate the eCommerce options available for WordPress
- Identify multiple ways in which WooCommerce satisfies the needs of an eCommerce retailer.
- Install the WooCommerce plugin and complete the initial setup wizard.
- Modify products, review orders, and change the store settings.
Who is this lesson intended for? What interests/skills would they bring? Choose all that apply.
- Users
- Designers
- Developers
- Speakers
- All
How much experience would a participant need to get the most from this lesson?
- Beginner
- Intermediate
- Advanced
- Any
Which strategies will be used for this lesson plan? Choose all that apply.
- Demonstration
- Discussion
- Exercises
- Feedback
- Lecture (Presentation)
- Show & Tell
- Tutorial
How long will it take to teach this lesson (in minutes)?
60 minutes
Participants will get the most from this lesson if they have familiarity with:
- Basic knowledge of installing and activating WordPress plugins
- Basic knowledge of installing and activating WordPress themes
- Managing Media
- Categories vs Tags
- Are you familiar with the concept of a plugin in WordPress?
- Do you have a self-hosted WordPress website?
- Do you have a user role that allows you to install plugins and themes?
- WooCommerce plugin, version 3.4.4
- Installation of WordPress, version 4.7 or higher
- Sample pictures to represent the products: Phewa lake, Karelian forest (any other may be used)
- It's recommended that you take students through some of the factors they need to consider when selecting an eCommerce plugin. Then show them how to search for eCommerce plugins in the WordPress Directory [Teacher Resources] (https:https://wordpress.org/plugins/) page.
- It's recommended that you model the process for completing each example task first. Then the students should repeat the actions using their own devices. Make yourself available for questions and troubleshooting if something doesn’t work out.
- It is easiest for students to work on a locally installed copy of WordPress. If possible, send instructions on how to do this to all students before the class. In case need help, set time aside before class to assist with the local installation. For more information on how to install WordPress locally, please visit our Teacher Resources page.
- The preferred answer to the screening questions is “yes.” Participants who reply “no” to question 1 might need a bit of explanation. If they answer “no” to questions 2 & 3, you can group them with other students to work in pairs on the installation.
- You may print out the Example Lesson part to use it as handouts. To keep it green and preserve the links used throughout the document, send it out as a PDF file.
- This lesson is an introduction to using WooCommerce. It does not cover its full functionality. At the end of the lesson, please refer your students to the WooCommerce documentation. It will be helpful to show what the documentation looks like and how to use it to help them fine-tune their shops.
- What if the participant doesn't have the correct version of WordPress and plugin?
- What if the participant's user role doesn't allow plugin and theme installation?
- What if the participant's site is hosted on WordPress.com and doesn't have the access to install plugin and theme?
- Evaluating Introduction to WooCommerce and its usage
- Installing WooCommerce plugin and setting up the store
- Adding and managing products
- Understanding WooCommerce menu items
- Practice exercises to have participants install the plugin and setup their own e-commerce store
Add new product
Practice adding a new product. Participants can use the Karelian forest picture attached in this lesson or other images of the liking.
- Go to Products > Add New
- Set the attributes of the product to have 3 different sizes: 27x39", 18x11" and 36x54''
- Set different prices for each size of the poster
Change currency
Practice changing the currency accepted by the store.
- Go to WooCommerce > Settings.
- At the General > Currency options, change the currency to Malaysian Ringgit (RM).
Add new shipping method
Practice adding a new shipping method for local pickup.
- Go to WooCommerce > Settings > Shipping zones and click Edit
- Add shipping method for Local pickup
- Add another shipping method, if desired
Which of the following is NOT a part of WooCommerce core functionality?
- SEO
- Reports on sales volume
- Coupons management
- Orders management
Answer: 1. SEO
Which of the following describes a WooCommerce variable product?
- A set of variations on a product, with a random option chosen
- A product listed and described at a website but sold from a third-party website
- A product that doesn’t require shipping
- A set of variations on a product, with control over prices, stock, image, etc.
Answer: 4. A set of variations on a product, with control over prices, stock, image, etc
Why would you choose to use attributes instead of product categories to categorize items? (select as many options as apply)
- To allow users to search for several parameters simultaneously
- To ensure better SEO
- To define some extra pieces of technical information about the product like color, size, weight, etc
- To simplify adding new products
- To be able to create coupons to provide discounts to the customers based on their geographical location
Answer: 1. To allow users to search for several parameters simultaneously. & 3. To define some extra pieces of technical information about the product like color, size, weight, etc
- WooCommerce blog is a nice resource to follow for advice
- WooCommerce also offers extensive documentation - among the many topics you may want to pay attention to - the Getting started section is best if you're new
Think about what your eCommerce retailer needs. For instance, are they selling physical, digital or subscription based products or services? Do they need shipping and inventory management? What is their budget? Knowing what their requirements are will help you determine the right eCommerce plugin for their WordPress store.
Armed with what they need, you can then search for the plugin that best suits their requirements using the WordPress plugin directory. Some of the popular options are:
- WooCommerce
- Easy Digital Downloads
- MemberPress
- Shopify
- EcWid
- BigCommerce
- Give
WooCommerce is an e-commerce plugin for small to large-sized online merchants using WordPress. Some of its important benefits are:
- The plugin itself is free.
- It is very flexible, offering a wide range of product options for selling.
- It has over 300 free and paid extensions to choose from.
- The customer data is independent of any third party software platform.
- WooCommerce is 100% open source. (This allows you to benefit from an active and growing community of contributors.)
During the flow of the lesson, we will be working for an imaginary company called YayWP! which sells large sized photo prints that you might want to use to decorate your home. You will install the WooCommerce plugin, set up the new e-shop, add products to the store, and review the menu options and reports. You will also learn about resources you can study to continue refining your e-shop to suit your needs.
First, you need to have WordPress (version 4.7 and above) installed. The second step will be to select a theme for the shop look & feel. Generally, it’s best if the theme is built and optimized for WooCommerce (here is a guide you can use).
In this lesson, you'll use the Storefront theme. This is from WooThemes, the creators of WooCommerce. It is designed to build e-commerce websites. Install and activate the theme before you proceed.
Storefront is the theme WooThemes recommends for use with WooCommerce (it's their theme, after all!). There are plenty of other free and commercial themes optimized WooCommerce. If you don't use a theme designed for WooCommerce, you'll probably have to add code and other modifications to make your store work.
1. You will now perform an automatic install of WooCommerce plugin. Log into your WordPress Dashboard and go to Plugins > Add New. In the search field, type “WooCommerce” and click Search Plugins.
Install the newly found plugin by clicking Install Now and activate a plugin when prompted by clicking Activate.
2. Once the plugin is activated you'll see the WooCommerce setup screen.
An on-boarding wizard will guide you through the installation steps to configure WooCommerce.
1. Store Setup: Enter your store's location, currency accepted and the types of products you plan to sell.
2. Payment: Setup the payment methods used by your shop.
There are two online payment options available, Stripe and PayPal. You must register with your chosen payment method before you can accept payments using their services. To simplify the configuration here, you won't configure the online payment options. Deselect Stripe and PayPal options.
Expand the Offline Payments section. Select the Cash on Delivery option. Click Continue.
3. Shipping: Set your shipping options. You can include weight and dimension units used to ship your products.
For this demo, we're going to use Flat Rate as our shipping method at $5. Turn off the option of Location not covered by your other zones. Leave the Weight unit and Dimension unit configuration as default. Click Continue to proceed.
4. Recommended: Shows you the recommended features to be installed for your WooCommerce store. For this demo, we'll select only the Storefront Theme option. Click Continue to proceed.
5. Your store is now setup and ready to add your first product! Click Create a product button to add a product to your store.
Recall that your imaginary client YayWP! is selling large posters. Presumably, YayWP! customers are interested in the thematics and the size of the picture. You will use Product Categories to indicate the thematic. You will also have to manage the sizes available for sale.
Product categories and tags are similar to regular post categories and tags. Use product categories for grouping and product tags for details. There are two reasons why you should organize your products by category:
- The larger the print, the more expensive. So you'll want to be able to set different prices for different sizes. You should use a category for you product and tags to list the different sizes and pricing. This means your picture and all its sizes will be listed as one item. This will make it easier for your customers to find and order the product.
- A user might want to include both size and thematics as their search parameters simultaneously.
Variable products are a product type in WooCommerce. They let you offer a set of variations on a product. You can control prices, stock, image, and more for each variation.
Attributes are pieces of data. Use them to add more technical information to a product. This helps users to refine your catalog while browsing/searching. Additionally, attributes are a key component of authoring variable products.
Go to WooCommerce > Products > Attributes section. Add an attribute before you create different variations of the picture. Type in “size” for the attribute name, and click Add Attribute.
1. Go to: Products > Add New. Adding a product feels like writing a regular post in WordPress, so the view of the form should be familiar.
Fill in the basic data first: name of the product, description, and product categories as shown in the image above.
2. Add a product image using the Product Image form (under product tags). You may use a sample picture provided to “sell” it or use some other picture of your liking. This is how an added image appears once you add it:
3. Now, make the product variable. Select Variable product option in the Product Data dropdown list.
- A Simple product type describes the physical off-line product which requires shipping. A book or a laptop, which do not require variation, are simple products.
- A Virtual product is a product that doesn’t require shipping. For example, online tarot reading.
- A Downloadable product is similar to a virtual product. In this instance, the customer is given a file to download. This could be an indie video game.
At the moment, virtual and downloadable products are not present in our list. These aren't included because we have no digital payment method configured.
4. Click through the first tabs of Product data meta box: Inventory, Shipping, and Linked products. This is where you can add some important data for your products. At the moment, you will skip through them and go straight to setting the product attributes and variations. Open the Attributes section.
5. Select "size" from the select box, and click Add.
6. Once you have chosen an attribute and added it, apply the terms attached to that attribute to the product. You can hide the attribute on the frontend of your site by leaving the Visible on the product page checkbox unchecked.
Check both of the checkboxes and click Add new to add the values to the poster's available sizes.
7. Type in 27x39" and click OK. Repeat adding with 18x11" size.
8. Save the entered attributes data by clicking Save attributes.
9. Switch to the Variations tab. Make sure Create variations from all attributes option is selected and click Go. Then click OK on the confirmation message pop-up.
10. You now have two variations for your product. Next, you'll set up how they should be distinguished on your product page.
Click each of the variation panels. For each combination enter price - $15 for the larger poster and $10 for the smaller one.
11. Click Save changes when you are finished.
12. Try to save the product now. Click Publish to publish the product.
You now have an operational shop. Take a look by going to the Shop page of your site.
The look is not polished, but the foundation for a great WordPress-based shop is there for you to refine. For example, you can improve your shop by creating custom menus. Once created, you can place them in your theme’s menu areas or in a widgetized area (use the menus widget).
The WordPress customizable dashboard is the first thing you should see when you log in to the site. After activation, WooCommerce adds two dashboard widgets to help you monitor your store:
- The WooCommerce recent reviews widget displays your store’s most recent reviews.
- The WooCommerce Status widget gives you a quick overview of your store. It alerts you if you have an order processing, an order on-hold, or a product is running low on stock. It also displays sales statistics.
Take a look at the other menu sections.
1. Use the Orders section to view and manage orders. This will display all orders placed by customers at your shop.
2. The Coupons section allows you to create discount coupons. Customers can apply them on the checkout page.
3. In the Reports section, you can view data on the store activity and export it as a .csv file.
4. The Settings section contains all the settings you need when setting up your shop. You have already explored general store settings, products settings, shipping, payments and more.
5. Status provides a snapshot of your setup. It will highlight potential conflicts. Use this for troubleshooting on your own or when contacting support.
6. The Extensions section is where you can find more plugins and extensions. These will help you to extend the functionality and features of your store.
This top-level menu has sections relating to managing products. This lesson used the Products and Attributes sections earlier. There are additional sections to modify, add, and delete product Categories and Tags.
Follow with the Exercises and Assessment outlined above.