Carey Dayrit

Because of this pandemic, the number of people shopping online has multiplied, and it is still rising to this very moment. With nothing else to do, people tend to visit websites that are selling products that they usually want to buy, such as shoes, dresses, electronic devices, and many more. In this article, you will learn Steps on How to Use WordPress as an eCommerce Store.

Knowing that online shopping is a trend, especially in these times, a lot of people want to get involved with it and would want to know how to create an E-commerce store. Well, then let me teach you how to create your very own eCommerce store by using WordPress. Let’s get started then! 

1. Get a Domain Name and a Hosting Provider

Before you can create a website, it is important to have a hosting provider and a domain name first. Your domain name is what appears on the top bar of your browser, just like this:

Some companies only provide domain name registration, but the majority provide both domain name and web hosting services. Some of the commonly good registrars are Domain.com, GoDaddy, and NameCheap. I would not recommend NetworkSolutions though they are fairly good, they don’t support adding IPv6 on their user interface, you need to email them to have IPv6 value to be added to the domain, they called it ^{_{glue record}}. Think carefully about your domain name, because it is how people are going to reach your website.

There are hundreds of thousands of web servers available, the most majority of which match the WordPress basic criteria, but picking one out of the crowd can be difficult. WordPress thrives in a rich hosting environment, it would also depend on the requirement of the application, not all hosting is created equal.

For the hosting provider, I suggest that you use Bluehost.com because WordPress.org officially recommends them. All you have to do is go to their website, bluehost.com, fill up the form, and you are good to go. You can also create your domain name on the site.

After creating your account, there will be a button there that indicates “start building”. Click that button, and you will be taken to the back end of your WordPress account.

2. Install WordPress and choose a Theme

Right after you’ve chosen a Host Provider and a domain name for your eCommerce website, you will then have to secure your WordPress website. You can look it up on Youtube to know-how. Now that you are in your WordPress already, the first thing that you must do is to change the theme. The suggested theme that everyone seems to be using is the Astra theme. This theme is basically what other online store websites look like and I’m sure that it is the website that you want to follow.

Astra is a fast, highly customizable, and super clean theme that is designed to convert better and boost your store’s sales. This is the them

3. Install the Woocommerce plugin

WooCommerce is a flexible, open-source commerce solution built on WordPress.  Based on the plugin page on the WordPress.org website, WooCommerce has over 5 million active installations. It is the most customizable eCommerce platform for building your online business.

WooCommerce isn’t like Shopify or BigCommerce in that it’s not a standalone hosted eCommerce platform. It’s a plugin, or extension, for websites developed using WordPress, the free and open-source content management system that powers the vast majority of websites around the world. It’s simple to get started with WooCommerce once you’ve started creating your website because it’s a plugin. Here’s the URL to their guide https://woocommerce.com/documentation/

Do you want to start your own blog or create your company’s landing page but you don’t know how? Eyes here, I may have something that can help you. If you want to create a website then I suggest a content management system like WordPress as the software to be used. Let me tell you why.

What is WordPress?

Back when the internet was still emerging, you have to learn how to use codes in order for you to create a website. Codes to change the background of your website, font style, font size, buttons, and many more.

 Now, that we already have advanced technology, we will no longer do codings. We can readily access software such as WordPress, where we can easily create a website. With WordPress, you won’t have to go through coding anymore, you can customize your website and WordPress will automatically do the coding for you. 

WordPress powers over 30% of the entire internet and is one of the most popular website publishing programs in the world. WordPress earned its number 1 spot because it is highly recommended for starters. Many newbies use this software because of its advantages, other than that it is free. WordPress is available online so it is accessible anywhere you are as long as you have access to the internet.

Why is it recommended for beginners?

WordPress has a variety of 11,000 themes and template layouts that would determine the look and style of the website. You are free to choose the themes and layouts that you want. You can tweak the text, choose fonts and font sizes, upload your images or videos, create buttons, and many more so you should try to have fun and explore it a little bit more.

 Whether you like to create a marketing website or a portfolio, plug-ins and widgets are available to help optimize the functionality of your website. It is very beginner-friendly because it has instructions and captions to guide you when you explore and discover the website more. 

Advantage of WordPress

Let us now talk about the advantages of WordPress.

1. It is free, you can download the software at WordPress.org
2. WordPress allows you to really own your website and allows you to use your own unique domain name. Some software doesn’t allow you to have your own domain name. An example would be like this, companyname.com or brandname.com
3. You can use plug-ins and widgets which help in optimizing the functionality of your website.
4. The monetized ads, where you can earn money if you will be allowed to monetize advertisements on your website. Don’t expect that you will be monetizing your website right off the bat. It will take time and you have to learn more about affiliate links and marketing stuff. If you’re running an online store and you want to use WordPress, it is possible plus WordPress has plug-ins and widgets that enable you to do so.
5. You will have a variety of choices on what theme you are going to use, you can customize the theme according to your preference. What font styles, size the fonts, font size, colors, buttons you want to add, pretty much everything.

There you have it! If you want to create your own website, you should consider using WordPress. There is a lot of software available online.  Read this article again if you want to weigh the advantages and benefits of other software. Have a nice day!

Nowadays, almost everyone has a blog. Blogging has been going on for years, and some people might say that blogs are outdated since the majority of people navigate more towards social media platforms like Facebook, Youtube, and Instagram. But I think otherwise. Blog contents are full of helpful and reliable information since most bloggers are experts or have experience in their specific niches.

Here’s how to start a blog:

1. Choose your niche –
   Choose a niche that you are passionate about. Don’t be afraid to narrow down to specific niches. This way, you can quickly write and create blog posts relating to your topic. Not only that, but you will also reach specific audiences for your blog.  For example, your niche is about mental health specifically about anxiety, so you will be tackling about dealing, overcoming anxiety, etc.
   
2. Maintain a consistent schedule of your posts. –
   No one is going to follow your blog if it is inconsistent, like uploading at a different time and date. Having a consistent schedule, let’s say you will post your articles every Wednesday night, makes the people would want to check out your blog every Wednesday night. This way, you can build trust and rapport with your audience. 
   
   Consistent postings will boost your SEO (Search Engine Optimization). Google loves consistency. You can easily rank at the top when people search for specific keywords relating to your blog posts. SEO is a bit of a complicated topic. Still, there are tons of learning materials available online, and later on, you can improve in optimizing your SEO for better opportunities for your blog.
   
3. Make a website. –
   The best blogging platform is WordPress. There are also alternative blogging platforms you can try such as Squarespace, Blogspot, and many more. Personally, I would prefer using WordPress because WordPress has earned its SEO benefits from Google, giving you more opportunities for monetizing your blog. However, WordPress is a bit of a complicated platform to use, but there are many tutorials available online where you can learn from, or you can opt to hire a WordPress developer if it’s too hard for you. 
   
4. Monetizing your blog by using affiliate links. –
   One way to earn from your blog is by hooking up your blog with affiliates. Setting up with affiliates is like advertising someone’s product. For example, your recent article is about “Ways on How to Cope up with Insomnia,” in your blog post, you included a particular ointment that you got from Amazon and embedded the link to your blog post. If that article reaches a thousand views and followers, then you can rank up on Google and, at the same time, earn from affiliates that will reach out to you. To get more on affiliate marketing, you can learn this yourself or hire a marketing specialist.
   
5. Keep updated. –
   You have to keep yourself updated on what’s new and trendy on social media to avoid having an outdated blog. For example, the current trend is all about the global pandemic, and luckily, as a mental health blogger, your articles will have a better chance of ranking up on Google and have more traffic for your blog. In a global pandemic situation, everyone needs to be mentally healthy, so you are at an advantage. 
   
   Blogging is a product of passion, a passion that could lead you to income. However, blogging doesn’t mean it is exclusive only for earning. Instead, think of blogging as an expression of one’s character and a platform where people share their knowledge with others. You want to start a blog, right? Then take action now! You might become a successful blogger someday!