WordPress has been one of the most popular website-building platforms since its creation in 2003. WordPress has just about everything you need to create a functional site for blogging, displaying business information, and advertising. But what about WordPress eCommerce? Is WordPress beneficial for websites used to sell products?
Although WordPress isn’t designed specifically for eCommerce like Shopify and other selling-specific platforms, you shouldn’t count it out as an option for your site.
Is WordPress Good for eCommerce Sites?
WordPress is known best for its benefits for content-based sites. That means that if you have a business website that you use to promote for your business through landing pages and blogs, WordPress is an excellent platform to showcase it all. WordPress makes it incredibly easy to create and add pages, update blog posts, and keep track of all of your website subscribers, comments, and more.
It’s not as well-known for eCommerce, but that doesn’t mean it can’t handle the job. WordPress works with thousands of plugins developed by both WordPress and third-party developers to add functionality to your site. There are some plugins, like WooCommerce, that are designed to specifically cater to people who want a WordPress eCommerce website.
Using a plugin like WooCommerce is, by far, the best way to transform your WordPress site into an eCommerce site that also includes a blog and all the other features of WordPress. You can also use both Shopify and WordPress together if you love what both of them have to offer.
Here’s a closer look at both options to help you determine the best approach for your website.
Using WooCommerce for Your WordPress eCommerce Site
WooCommerce is technically a plugin, but it will surprise you with how much it adds to your WordPress site. Using WooCommerce, you turn your WordPress site into an online store while still having access to blogging capabilities, page builders, and everything else you love about WordPress.
WooCommerce also comes with its own set of plugins, known as extensions, to add your desired functionality to your eCommerce site. With extensions, you can integrate your site with your product listings on other selling sites like Etsy, payment processors like Stripe, and shipping processors like Shippo.
Through WooCommerce, you’ll also have marketing tools right at your fingertips. You can set up a list of email subscribers to promote products through Mailchimp and other email services, track your site and shopping analytics, and translate your product descriptions and website content into other languages.
Plugins to Add Functionality for WordPress eCommerce
Don’t forget that you can always add plugins to WordPress to give it the eCommerce elements you want and need. Because WordPress doesn’t, by default, include features for eCommerce sites, you may need to add a few plugins to provide an excellent shopping experience for your customers.
First, consider a security plugin that keeps your customers’ information safe and provides a layer of trust as they shop. Wordfence is a free plugin that adds firewall protection, encryption, and a security scanner that work together to protect files and data stored within your site.
You might also consider adding a plugin that allows customers to leave reviews, like WP Customer Reviews. WooCommerce also has its own Customer Reviews plugin. Because about 90% of customers read reviews before purchasing a product, your reviews can give them the information they need to decide to make a purchase.
A plugin that allows you to have easily shareable product pages can also come in handy. You can install our Share Buttons Plugin for WordPress to add social share buttons to your website’s content and product pages. Social media share buttons allow customers who love what you’re selling to share your products and other content with their social networks effortlessly, giving you a boost in those valuable recommendations from friends and family that consumers trust.
Alternative Option: Using WordPress with Shopify for eCommerce
There are plenty of reasons to love Shopify for eCommerce. After all, the platform’s number one goal is to make selling online as streamlined as possible. If you don’t want to part with WordPress either, though, there’s still a solution: You can set up Shopify on a subdomain of your main site and designate it as the shopping section of your website.
So, yourdomain.com will be where you host WordPress with your blog, pages, and landing pages. Then, shop.yourdomain.com can be where you host your Shopify store. Simply link to this URL from your main website’s Shop link, and you’ve successfully merged the two.
This strategy is especially helpful for business owners who use a blog or website content as their main SEO focus. Your blog will be on your primary domain (WordPress), which will draw in visitors from search engines. From there, you can point them over to your shop through shop and product page links.
WordPress may not be famous for its eCommerce capabilities, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t a beneficial platform for online store owners. WordPress is customizable in all areas, allowing you to create an eCommerce site that caters to your business as much as it does your customers.
When it comes to getting the word out about your business, word-of-mouth marketing is the most effective form of advertising there is. So, why not make it easy for your visitors and customers to share their favorite products from your eCommerce store with their friends and family on their favorite social media platforms? Install the Share Buttons Plugin for WordPress to easily add social media share buttons for more than 35 popular social media platforms to your website. Not only is it simple to install, but it’s completely free to use. Most importantly, it makes it easy for your visitors to share your content with a single click, helping you build brand awareness and boost sales effortlessly!
