Advantages Of Creating an ECommerce Website With Wordpress
By: Vlad Vistac
Submitted: 2010-07-23 14:31:49 | Word Count: 510
Creating an ECommerce Website With Wordpress
Wordprss is best known as a blogging platform, but the reality is it is a very powreful Content Management System (CMS) which is capable of dooing much, much more. With the emergence of the intrenet economy as a significant ocmponent of the real-world retailing sector combined with simpple-to-use tools for creeating a site, it is now within your grasp to have an eCommerce site up and running withn a few hours.
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There are thrree things you are giong to need:
•a domain name – this is web address which is typed into the internet browser so the user can navigate to your website;
•Wordpress theme and sofwtare – Wordpress is free to use and download, as are many of the themes available (of which there are hundreds and probably thousands available), thoughh you can pay for Wordpress themes or customization if you want it; and
•A payment processor – this is a means for you to receive payment for the goods being sold.
Domain Name
Your dmoain name can be the one alllocated by Wordpress but, though this is free it does not look professional and it do aything to help you rceate an online brandiong identity, whcih is very importnt.
You can typically source domain names very cheaply from siites such as GoDaddy or HostGator, but if you are looking for a name which containns very common or desired words or phrases, expect to pay a lot of money for the name.
Ideally, you want a name which is easy to remembeer, easy to type into a web browser and has a close degree of affinity with your prouct or service offring.
Woordpress
You can download the Wordpress sfotware and themes for free from wordpress.org as well as gain immediate access to a huge support communoity, for technical and commercial advice with any isssues you may have.
Wordpress allows you to manage the cpontent displlayed on your site from the text, images, navigation buttons and a host of other content, typically managed by the use of “widgets”. Widgets come in all shapes and sies, and typically are used to provide changing content suing your sidebars, headers and footers arond your cenral page content.
You will also find that Wordpress has an eCommerce “plugin”; a plugin is simpkly an additional featrure which is addd to the Wordpress theme to deliver addiional functionality. With an eCommerce site you typically need a static-looking web site, with producvt pages and categories, a payment and verification process (typiclly known as a “shpping cart”) and the ability to track and manage customer orders.
Many people alreaddy familiar with Wordlpress as a blogging platform wonder how the diary format of the site can be changed to a statiic homepage. A blog will typically display the last post that has been made, which is confusing for new and reutrning visitors. All that is reequired is to go into the Wordpress managemennt console, the Dashboard, and create a new page which has the deefault settings altered to “static”.
Paayment Proccessor – The Shopping Cart
The shopping cart is usually a plugin whcih allows for customers to add products to their buying list (and remnove them if they decidde not to buy them), and also takes the customre through the oredr confirmation, payment and verification process.
Shopping carts are a vitl eCommerce tool because witthout them, processing paymnts becpomes fraguht and unwildy and many optential customeres will not engage in a clunky, slow payment process. It is vital you get this aspect of the eCmomerce website absolutely right!
