The basics:
Basically, WooCommerce is a free plug in. That means it’s like an app that you can install on your WordPress website. When you add this ‘app,’ it creates a whole store on your website. WooCommerce adds functionality like displaying your products (digital or physical), taking payments and orders, and handling shipping. Basically, if you’re trying to build an online store, you can get everything you need.
So I need WordPress to use WooCommerce?
Yes and no. Technically, you don’t need WordPress to use WooCommerce. But Woo is built to work with WordPress, so it’s so much easier and simpler if you use the two together. There’s no benefit to doing things the hard way here! I’d highly recommend using WordPress & WooCommerce together if you want to build an online store.
Do I need a theme with WooCommerce?
You can use any theme with WooCommerce. All of the stores I’ve built have also used the Divi theme, in combination with Woo. The two softwares work really well together, and using Divi makes it super easy to edit the WooCommerce modules (like reviews and product listings). You can really use any theme, but Divi makes it just a little easier to style and edit the WooCommerce pieces.
What does the plugin do?
Pretty much everything you could need an online store to do!
>Handles secure payments through so many different providers, like Stripe, PayPal, Apple Pay, and Square. You can even do subscriptions. This makes everything so much easier, honestly. You never have to hande the payments part on your own.
>Calculates taxes and/ or shipping. (Yes, please! No one wants to do this, except maybe my mom, the accountant.)
>Allows you to create listings for physical or digital products. This is one of my favorite things about WooCommerce. You can even have a store that mixes both digital & physical items, and Woo can handle it easily.
>Supports multiple languages and currencies so you can sell globally. As a digital nomad for the past 10 years, I highly approve of this feature!
>Offers tons of upgrades and enhancements. There’s so much you can do with WooCommerce. You can go really far with just all the free basics. But, there are also tons of paid upgrades and add ons that can do pretty much anything you can imagine.
Who is WooCommerce for?
I hate when people say this, but in this case, it’s the truth: WooCommerce is for everyone. If you want to have a small boutique handcrafted jewelery business, or if you want to have a huge digital products warehouse, WooCommerce can handle both of those. It’s rare to find something that works for everyone, but if you’re in online business, this is the real deal.
How do I set it up?
Well, first you need hosting & a domain and a WordPress installation. It also helps if you have a premium theme, like Divi, but you can use a free theme to test it out and see how things work. For more information, check out this post on how to set up your online store.
