A Guide to WooCommerce and Why You Should Choose It for Your eCommerce Needs
If you’re looking to take your eCommerce store to the next level, you may be stuck at a crossroads when it comes to selecting an online retail platform. There are numerous platforms available, and each have their pros and cons – but today we will be solely looking at WooCommerce and why you should consider getting on-board one of the fastest growing eCommerce platforms on the market.
WooCommerce is an open-source plugin for WordPress that caters to retailers of all sizes. With over 50 million downloads (at the time of writing), WooCommerce powers over 40% of eCommerce stores. Compared to other eCommerce platforms, WooCommerce is used by more than double the amount of users of Shopify and Magento combined!
eCommerce usage as of first half of 2017.
Here’s why you should consider using WooCommerce for your eCommerce needs:
Easy WordPress Integration
As a plugin for WordPress, WooCommerce stands out when it comes to ease of use. WordPress has over over 149 million downloads, and is growing rapidly – as you can see in this download counter! It is also used as the platform for over 28% of the entire web, so its dominance and proficiency aren’t in doubt.
“WordPress has over over 149 million downloads, and is growing rapidly.”
Installing WordPress plugins is relatively easy for those that are tech savvy, but if you do need a helping hand, there are plenty of agencies proficient in WordPress development.
All of the benefits that make WordPress great for businesses, such as setting up an integrated blog, make WooCommerce a great option for eCommerce.
Customise for Your Needs
WooCommerce comes with a range of free themes, allowing you to run with one that works for you and your business.
Those who go to an agency for development will benefit from the unrestricted customisation options that a professional can implement – creating a retail site that matches your vision perfectly.
With WooCommerce you can customise your site to:
- Sell digital and physical products
- Include unlimited product variations
- Have inbuilt payment processing from major providers
- Customise shipping options and change options based on user location
- Auto detect user locations to calculate shipping and tax
- Include one click refunds
- Manage inventory
- Create email templates
- Allow users to great accounts or have guest check out options
WooCommerce Is Flexible
As with WordPress, WooCommerce is a flexible platform. Customising the website for your needs, tastes and audience is simple. Templates can be customised and layouts can be changed with ease. This might sound like something all platforms should offer, however you’d be surprised at how difficult this can be.
With WooCommerce you also have the flexibility to sell what you want, how you want it. All major payment methods are accepted, and a host of other key integrations make your life easier.
An example of some of the integrations you can make.
There are also a host of integrations you can make with WooCommerce to streamline your business operations and save you money. From marketing and operations through to accounting and shipping – there are hundreds of free and paid integration options for you to choose from.
Keep Things Secure
WooCommerce is regularly updated with new features and security updates, ensuring that your website can stay relevant whilst remaining secure.
Aside from security, the fact WooCommerce is always compatible with WordPress ensures fewer headaches when it comes time to rollout updates.
Track Progress and Success
Ensuring your eCommerce website has analytics set up is important when it comes to growth and consistency. A great feature of WooCommerce is that it comes with its own analytics plugin inbuilt – meaning you don’t necessarily have to mess around with other data tracking integrations whilst you’re getting started.
If you’re already established or looking to grow, analytics systems such as Google Analytics integrate seamlessly, and are well worth your time setting up.
Working with a WooCommerce Expert Gets Results
Getting to work on your eCommerce website might seem daunting, but the beauty with WordPress as a platform is that there are plenty of experts who have experience with the system’s inner-workings and can help you out.
“You can easily turn a basic eCommerce site into an amazing one that’s optimised to convert.”
The level of customisation available means you can easily turn a basic eCommerce site into an amazing one that’s optimised to convert.
At Emote Digital we’re Australia’s only Gold Tiered WooCommerce partner, and we work with the platform to help businesses smash their goals on a daily basis.
If you’re interested in building a WooCommerce site, contact Emote Digital today to discuss how we can help.