Table of Contents for
Building Your Online Store With WordPress and WooCommerce: Learn to Leverage the Critical Role E-commerce Plays in Today’s Competitive Marketplace

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Cover image for bash Cookbook, 2nd Edition Building Your Online Store With WordPress and WooCommerce: Learn to Leverage the Critical Role E-commerce Plays in Today’s Competitive Marketplace by Lisa Sims Published by Apress, 2018
  1. Navigation
  2. Cover
  3. Front Matter
  4. 1. Introduction to E-commerce
  5. 2. Planning Your E-commerce Strategy
  6. 3. Overview of WordPress
  7. 4. WooCommerce for E-commerce
  8. 5. E-commerce Themes
  9. 6. Creating Your Online Store
  10. 7. Securing Your Online Store
  11. 8. Testing Your Online Store
  12. 9. Marketing Your Online Store
  13. 10. Maintaining Your Online Store
  14. Back Matter
Lisa Sims
Building Your Online Store With WordPress and WooCommerceLearn to Leverage the Critical Role E-commerce Plays in Today’s Competitive Marketplace
Lisa Sims
Conyers, GA, USA
ISBN 978-1-4842-3845-5e-ISBN 978-1-4842-3846-2
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4842-3846-2
Library of Congress Control Number: 2018960389
© Lisa Sims 2018
This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed.
Trademarked names, logos, and images may appear in this book. Rather than use a trademark symbol with every occurrence of a trademarked name, logo, or image we use the names, logos, and images only in an editorial fashion and to the benefit of the trademark owner, with no intention of infringement of the trademark. The use in this publication of trade names, trademarks, service marks, and similar terms, even if they are not identified as such, is not to be taken as an expression of opinion as to whether or not they are subject to proprietary rights.
While the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication, neither the authors nor the editors nor the publisher can accept any legal responsibility for any errors or omissions that may be made. The publisher makes no warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein.
Distributed to the book trade worldwide by Springer Science+Business Media New York, 233 Spring Street, 6th Floor, New York, NY 10013. Phone 1-800-SPRINGER, fax (201) 348-4505, e-mail orders-ny@springer-sbm.com, or visit www.springeronline.com. Apress Media, LLC is a California LLC and the sole member (owner) is Springer Science + Business Media Finance Inc (SSBM Finance Inc). SSBM Finance Inc is a Delaware corporation.

This book is dedicated to my late mother who passed away in October 2017. Her passing inspired me to channel my grief in a positive and constructive manner instead of becoming consumed by it. Writing this book became therapeutic for me and helped me as I experienced the different grief stages. Rest in heaven, Ms. Lady. I love you!

Introduction

As an online professor, web developer, and entrepreneur, I understand the theory, methods, and implementation behind e-commerce. Throughout my 20-year career, I helped businesses of all sizes implement e-commerce strategies. Some only had a few product offerings while others had an extensive product inventory that was migrated from a brick and mortar location to an online marketspace only. Over the years, I have observed the technology advances that have made it easier and cost efficient for small businesses to create an e-commerce strategy without breaking the bank.

In today’s competitive marketplace, e-commerce for businesses is a necessity. No longer is it considered nice to have. E-commerce has become interwoven into our daily lives just like our need for other basic life necessities such as food and air. How important is e-commerce to consumers? Consumers are willing to pay for an annual Prime membership to shop online with Amazon.​com and wait two days for their products to be delivered. I love shopping with Amazon because of the Prime delivery. Who does not like opening their door to find an Amazon box outside waiting?

In years prior to e-commerce, this was unheard of, but today it is commonplace. Why is that? Over the years, consumers’ needs have changed. Due to hectic schedules, the prevalence of mobile devices and apps, and the convenience of online shopping, consumers look for businesses that understand this and can cater to their needs. As a business owner, you do not want to miss your opportunity to connect with a global market 24 hours, seven days a week.

WordPress, one of the popular content management systems, is primarily known for its easy blog creation. However, blogging is not its only function. It can also be used to create an online store using various plugins such as WooCommerce, which will be discussed throughout this book.

How can this book help you? Each chapter will walk you through creating your own online store from start to finish. The book’s assumption is that you are implementing an e-commerce strategy for the first time with little to no technical experience. Each chapter is written from an entrepreneur’s point of view with detailed instructions and illustrations to help set up your online store. It will also share with you some insightful tips that can help you save time and money along the way. You will learn the following:

  • The history and evolution of e-commerce

  • How to create an e-commerce strategy

  • What e-commerce themes are and how to use them

  • What WooCommerce is and how it can be used along with WordPress to create your online store

  • How to test your online store

  • How to secure your online store

  • How to market your online store once it is launched

  • How to maintain your online store

As you read this book, each chapter will help you customize your e-commerce strategy for your business to maximize your business’s success. I know that you will benefit greatly from this book and would love to hear from you. Please feel free to follow me on my social media networks and let me know how you enjoyed the book.

Let’s get started.

Acknowledgments

I must first give God all the credit for making this book possible. Without God, I would not have had the book idea along with the strength and perseverance to pursue and write it after my mother’s unexpected death. In my darkest hours of grief, God shined His light so that I could see and keep going.

Special thanks and appreciation to Apress for giving me the opportunity to become an Apress author. I appreciate all the dedication and hard work the Apress book team provided throughout the project. All the feedback was invaluable and contributed to bringing this book to fruition. Thank you, Louise Corrigan, James Markham and Nancy Chen, for making it a pleasant and memorable experience along with the technical reviewers who reviewed the content for accuracy.

Most importantly, I want to thank my husband, Timothy, and my two sons, Timothy Jr. and William, for bearing with me as I worked to complete this project. This book illustrates to Timothy Jr. and William that no matter how bad a situation might seem, something good and beautiful can still come out of it as long as you keep the faith and never give up.

Last but not least, thank you for making the investment in your business to reach global online markets by purchasing this book!

Table of Contents

Chapter 1:​ Introduction to E-commerce 1
What Is E-commerce?​ 1
The History of E-commerce 3
E-commerce Today 5
Consumer Behavior and E-commerce 8
E-commerce in Big and Small Businesses 9
Why E-commerce?​ 9
Open Source Software 11
Summary 12
Chapter 2:​ Planning Your E-commerce Strategy 13
Why Create an E-commerce Strategy?​ 13
Creating Your E-commerce Strategy 16
SWOT Analysis 16
Goal Setting 18
Budget 18
Inventory 19
Timeline/​Project Schedule 20
Things to Consider 21
Online Store Planning Checklist 21
Summary 22
Chapter 3:​ Overview of WordPress 23
What Is WordPress?​ 23
WordPress Popularity 25
Intuitive User Interface 25
Free and Low-Cost Training Resources 26
Cost Efficient 26
Easy Setup and Maintenance 27
Themes 27
Plugins 29
Where to Get WordPress 30
WordPress Requirements 32
Installing WordPress on a Web Host 33
Post-Installation Setup 36
Summary 38
Chapter 4:​ WooCommerce for E-commerce 39
PayPal Overview 39
What Is WooCommerce?​ 42
WooCommerce Features 44
Built on WordPress 44
No Upfront or Monthly Cost 44
30 -Day Money Back Guarantee 44
Safe and Secured Payments for Customers 44
Sell Physical or Digital Products 45
Multiple Payment Gateways 45
Unlimited Inventory 45
Global Support 46
Extend WooCommerce with Extensions 46
iOS Mobile Device Store Management 47
E-commerce on Any Page 47
Meetups 48
Other WooCommerce Products 48
Installing WooCommerce 49
Installing WooCommerce via FTP 50
Summary 55
Chapter 5:​ E-commerce Themes 57
Enhancing the Customer Experience 57
Lighting 58
Music 58
Product Displays 59
Signs 60
Décor 61
Color Selection 61
Product Selection 61
Storefront Entrance 61
Customer Service 63
Complimentary Gifts 63
WooCommerce Theme Overview 63
Choosing a Theme 70
Easy Installation 71
Responsive and Mobile Ready 71
Easily Customizable 71
AJAX Scripts 71
Load Time 72
Support 72
Clean and Multipage Layout 72
Theme Examples 72
8 Store 73
Sold from Dessign.​net 73
E-commerce Gem 74
Summary 75
Chapter 6:​ Creating Your Online Store 77
Product or Service Categories 77
Setup Wizard 78
Page Setup 79
Store Setup 79
Payment 80
Shipping 82
Recommended Extras 82
Activate 83
Ready 84
Creating Your Store 85
Site Identity 87
Product Page 89
Menus 91
Widgets 93
Homepage Settings 95
Store Notice 96
Product Catalog 97
WooCommerce 98
Additional CSS 99
More 100
WooCommerce Settings 101
General Tab 101
Products 102
Physical Products 102
Virtual Products 104
Downloadable Products 104
Inventory 106
Shipping 107
Linked Products 107
Categories 108
Product Tags 109
Attributes 110
Orders 111
Summary 111
Chapter 7:​ Securing Your Online Store 113
Security Strategies 114
SSL Certificates 114
PCI Compliance 121
WordPress Strategies 122
Keep WordPress Updated 122
Use Strong Passwords 122
Choose Reputable Web Hosts 123
Keep WordPress Plugins Updated 123
JetPack Protect 123
Change the Default “Admin” Username 123
Change WordPress Database Prefix 124
Firewalls, Antivirus, and Antispam 128
Firewalls 128
Antivirus Plugins 129
Antispam Plugins 130
Disable Directory Browsing on the Web Server 130
Limiting User Permissions 130
Privacy Policy 131
Summary 131
Chapter 8:​ Testing Your Online Store 133
Choosing a Testing Strategy 134
Testers 134
Product Images 134
Product Descriptions 135
Product Categories 135
SSL Implemented 136
Sample Data Deleted 137
Mobile Device Testing 137
Testing Payment Methods 138
PayPal 139
Stripe 143
Accounts &​ Privacy 146
Emails 146
Testing Virtual Products 147
Logging Debugging Information 147
Launching Your Online Store 148
Summary 148
Chapter 9:​ Marketing Your Online Store 149
Marketing Strategy 149
Free and Inexpensive Marketing Resources 150
Social Media 150
YouTube 151
Facebook 151
Twitter 152
Instagram 152
LinkedIn 152
Snapchat 153
E-newsletter 154
Interviews 154
Press Releases 154
Custom Images 155
Company Phone Message 156
Coupons and Discounts 156
Blogging 156
Pinterest 156
Paid Social Media Ads 157
Summary 157
Chapter 10:​ Maintaining Your Online Store 159
Updating WooCommerce 159
Updating WordPress 160
Updating Plugins 161
Updating WooCommerce Extensions 162
Backing Up WordPress and WooCommerce 164
Reviewing Reports 164
Coupons/​Discounts 165
Renewing Domain Name 166
Renewing Web Hosting 167
Providing New Products 167
Orders 167
Google Analytics 169
Summary 171
Index 173

About the Author and About the Technical Reviewer

About the Author

Lisa Sims
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is an Assistant Professor of Web and Mobile Technology for Ashford University’s Forbes School of Business and Technology where she teaches technology courses in e-commerce and mobile application development.

Lisa is also the author of six books and the creator and host of The Stretching A Dollar for Entrepreneurs Show on Blogtalkradio.com where she provides money-saving tips for entrepreneurs. She is also the creator and host of The Living To Save Podcast where she helps consumers save time and money while providing a little wisdom for their souls. The following media outlets have interviewed Lisa:

  • Redbook magazine

  • U.S. News & World Report

  • Huffingtonpost.com

  • TheStreet

  • Duaihz

Lisa Sims’s Social Media Links:
 

About the Technical Reviewer

Sufyan Bin Uzayr

is a writer, teacher, and web developer with over 10 years' experience in the industry. He specializes in a wide variety of technologies, including WordPress, Drupal, PHP, JavaScript frameworks, Python, and UNIX/Linux shell and server management. He is the author of four published books, including Learning WordPress REST API (Packt, 2016) and concrete5 for Developers (Packt, 2014). He holds four masters' degrees, including one in Information Technology.

Sufyan is associated with various publications, journals, and magazines both in writing and editorial capacity. He is an avid writer and frequently writes about topics related to not just programming and development but also politics and sports. He is also a regular contributor to various academic verticals as an analyst and columnist for topics pertaining to international affairs.

Sufyan is the CEO of Parakozm, a multinational design and development company that offers customized solutions to a global clientele. Parakozm works in the field of embedded software, digital content strategy and consumption, IoT and mobile code solutions, accessible web development, and more. He is also the CTO at Samurai Servers, a web/cloud server management and security company catering mainly to enterprise-scale audiences.

Sufyan takes a keen interest in technology, politics, literature, history and sports. In his spare time, he likes to teach coding and English to young students. He also conducts regular seminars, workshops and classes around the world, especially in India and Central Asia for providing pro bono training and education to needful youth.

Learn more about his works at www.sufyanism.com