With platforms like WordPress, launching an online business is more accessible than ever. The good news is that you can use ecommerce analytics to improve and refine many facets of your business. From web design and User Experience (UX), to marketing and growth strategies – there’s a simple ecommerce metric that can provide valuable insights into each one. In this post, we’ll introduce you to ecommerce analytics and the many benefits of using this data. After that, we’ll provide you with 12 essential ecommerce metrics to follow. Finally, we’ll show you how to get started.
Tag: ecommerce
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Beginner’s Guide to Ecommerce Analytics: From Data to Insights
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15 Most Popular Digital Products You Can Sell Online in 2023
Are you looking for popular digital product ideas to sell online?
In today’s creator economy, there are many opportunities to make money online. You can sell items like music files, videos, blog posts, eBooks, software, apps, podcasts, premium content, and more.
In this article, we will share the most popular digital products that you can sell online.
What are Digital Products?
A digital product is essentially anything that you can buy, download, and use on a device such as a computer or mobile phone. For example, ebooks, software, videos, music, online courses, and more can be digital products that you can purchase at an online store.
They are delivered to you electronically, usually through a direct download in your user dashboard or in an email with a download link inside. In general, you can easily access them anytime or anywhere.
Why Sell Digital Products Online?
Digital products have a lot of advantages compared to selling physical products.
First, you don’t have to worry about keeping inventory and meeting supply or demand requirements. Once you create a digital product, you can sell it again and again.
This also relieves you of any storage issues. Some physical products need to be kept at a warehouse and may require special storage conditions like refrigeration, which can be costly. On the other hand, you don’t have to worry about storing your digital products.
Besides that, you get to generate a passive income stream with digital goods and easily grow your sales. They also help reach a wider audience across the globe, as people from around the world can buy your digital products.
That said, let’s look at some of the most popular digital products you can sell online today.
1. eBooks
eBooks are a great digital product to have, and you can write about any topic you like. The best part, once you’ve created an ebook, you can simply market it and earn passive income.
Now, if you have a WordPress blog or write articles regularly on any other platform, then you can repurpose the content for your ebook.
For instance, your most popular guides would already have enough content to be converted into an ebook. Or you can combine several blog posts into an ebook about a particular topic.
Once you’re done with the writing part, you can then add the ebook to your WordPress site so people can download it.
You can follow our guide on how to create and sell ebooks in WordPress from start to finish.
2. Online Courses
The next most popular digital product you can sell is online courses. People are always looking to improve their skillset and learn new things.
You can use this opportunity to share your expertise and teach other people through a virtual classroom. For example, if you’re a fitness instructor, then you can create an online course and teach people different exercises.
The best part, you need very little investment and no technical knowledge to create online courses.
There are many tools in the market that can help you get started in no time. All you need is a domain name for your site, WordPress website hosting, and a learning management system (LMS) plugin.
LMS software like MemberPress or Thrive Apprentice makes it super easy to create interactive courses without editing code. Plus, you can manage students and course material, offer quizzes, and more.
You can learn more by following our guide on how to create and sell online courses in WordPress.
3. Premium Memberships
Just like ebooks and online courses, a membership website is another simple way of making money online. You can sell premium memberships with access to exclusive content and community features.
For example, you can lock specific guides, cheat sheets, interviews, videos, podcasts, newsletters, and other content behind premium memberships.
On the other hand, you can offer exclusive entry to different communities, like a forum, Slack channel, or Facebook group, through a membership site.
What’s great about memberships is that you don’t have to rely on advertising revenue. You can allow your website visitors to support your site and generate continuous income.
There are many membership plugins and tools you can use to get started. For instance, MemberPress lets you restrict access to content, integrate different payment services, create unlimited membership levels, allow drip content, and more.
To start selling memberships, you can see our step-by-step guide on creating a WordPress membership site.
4. Tutorials and Guides
You can also sell individual guides and tutorials as digital products. This is a great way to earn more money if you have long articles or multiple blog posts on a particular topic.
Simply turn your guides into a downloadable file like a PDF document. You can then charge a fee to visitors who are willing to purchase your content.
For example, let’s say you have a detailed guide on email marketing. You can turn that guide into a PDF file and sell it as a digital product.
There are many WordPress eCommerce platforms you can use to sell digital products. We recommend using Easy Digital Downloads because it is beginner friendly, offers a shopping cart, easily integrates with payment gateways, and more.
You can learn more by going through our guide on how to sell digital downloads on WordPress.
5. Spreadsheets
Spreadsheets are another type of digital product you can sell on your website and generate revenue. You can create all types of useful spreadsheets for your audience.
For example, let’s say you have expertise in search engine optimization (SEO). You can create a technical SEO checklist for beginners and offer that as a paid spreadsheet. Similarly, you can create checklists, templates, calculators, lists, and other types of spreadsheets.
The best part is that you don’t need any investment to create a spreadsheet. Plus, it helps offer evergreen content that can you use to generate leads and a passive income stream.
You can check out our guide on how to sell spreadsheets online for more details.
6. WordPress Plugins
You can also create WordPress plugins and sell them as digital products.
WordPress is open-source software, and it powers over 43% of the website on the internet. There are over 60,000 WordPress plugins that include free and paid options. This shows that there is a huge potential to create a plugin that generates revenue.
Usually, you need basic coding knowledge like PHP, CSS, HTML, and JavaScript to write a plugin. For more details, you can see our step-by-step guide on how to create a WordPress plugin.
You can also hire a developer to help you create a plugin. There are many WordPress developer job websites where you can post an opening and hire the right talent for a specific project.
If you’re willing to take on a DIY project, then you can also use a plugin called Pluginception. It lets you create a WordPress plugin from the WordPress dashboard. To learn more, please follow our guide on how to create a WordPress plugin using a plugin.
7. Software and Mobile Apps
Just like WordPress plugins, you can also create software and mobile apps. There are many SaaS (software as a service) products that you can create for any niche. It can be productivity software, workout apps, games, and more.
Usually, SaaS products have a recurring subscription. This means that you’ll need to generate income on a monthly or annual basis.
Since creating such software and apps requires specific skills, you might need to hire developers. This process can be expensive because you’ll need investment for creating software or purchasing an existing one ($15,000 and upwards).
As an alternative, you can convert your WordPress websites into mobile apps and monetize them. There are tools and plugins that can turn your site into an app. For example, let’s say you have a membership site. Converting it into an app will help you attract mobile users and sell it as a digital product.
On the other hand, you can also join affiliate programs and earn a commission on each sale. You can create a WordPress blog to review different software and apps and promote them as affiliates. Or you could create an online store using affiliates.
For more information, check out our ultimate guide to affiliate marketing for beginners.
8. Website Themes
Similarly, you can make WordPress themes and sell them online. Themes are necessary for every WordPress user, and often users look for themes that offer specific features and customization options.
There are many platforms where you can sell website themes. Some of these include Enavto, Themeforest, CodeCanyon, and Creative Market.
You can also list a free version of your theme on the WordPress.org theme directory. From here, you can encourage users to upgrade to a premium version to unlock more features.
We recommend selling the digital products on your own websites instead of a marketplace like Envato because they charge a large commission on every sale without much benefit.
You can use an eCommerce solution like Easy Digital Downloads to create your own digital store.
9. Digital Art and Graphics
If you’re a graphic designer or an artist, then you can create a variety of digital products and sell them online.
For example, you can create logos, design templates, original digital artwork, clip art, patterns, brushes, backgrounds, icons, fonts, shapes, and more.
Besides that, creating assets for different photo editing software like Adobe PhotoShop, Canva, Affinity Designer, and Affinity Photo can also help you make money online.
To get started, please follow our guide on how to sell digital art and graphics online.
10. Photographs
Another great digital product you can sell online is photography. Many people look for images that they can use for their WordPress websites and blogs.
There are different types of photos you can sell. Some of these include stock photos, event pictures, portraits, drone images, backgrounds, and more.
Now, you can sell your images to different stock photo sites, like Shutterstock, 500px, iStock Photo, Adobe Stock, and more. Each of these websites has a payment structure where they’ll share a percentage of direct sales or give you a royalty fee.
On the other hand, you can create your own photography website and sell your images there. This way, you don’t have to share the profits with another third party and have more control over your images.
To help you get started, check out some useful WordPress plugins for photographs.
11. Videos
Videos are the next digital products on our list that you can sell online.
For example, videos like drone footage, stock videos, online training, product reviews, video game reviews, and gameplay footage are some of the ideas you can use to create a video-based digital product.
One of the easiest ways of monetizing your videos is by creating a video membership site. This way, you don’t have to rely on ad revenue from other platforms and get recurring payments from users who pay to access your content.
12. Recipes
Are you a chef, a home cook, or a food blogger? If you do, then you can sell recipes as digital products.
The food industry is worth trillions of dollars and is very competitive. However, you can find a niche that your audience likes and share recipes to earn money.
For instance, you can start a food blog and offer premium recipes for subscribers. Or you could combine multiple recipes into an ebook and sell that as a digital product.
Plus, you can offer cooking courses and other premium content by creating a membership site. We recommend MemberPress for this sort of site, as it’s the best plugin for that on the market.
13. Podcasts
Podcasts are audio shows that users can subscribe to. They are generally made up of audio files that listeners can download or stream to listen to.
There are many topics you can create a podcast on. For example, if your topic is music, then you can narrow it down to a specific genre. Similarly, if you’re into sports, then you can create a podcast on football.
Another great way of selling podcasts is by inviting industry experts and serving it as a masterclass. You can charge a premium or only offer these podcasts to members to generate income.
Many podcasters rely on their communities supporting them, whether that’s through a service like Patreon or creating their own membership site.
For more details, you can follow our guide on how to start a podcast and make it successful.
14. Professional Services and Coaching
You can also sell your expertise as a digital product and help other businesses.
For example, if you’re a copywriter, graphic designer, social media expert, developer, fitness coach, legal professional, translator, SEO expert, offer technical support through live chat, or any type of consultant, then you can offer your services to others for a fee.
Now, you can sign up for different freelancing websites like Upwork, or create your own site. From here, simply market your expertise on social media platforms and build a following to get more projects and clients.
15. Research and Data
Do you conduct industry-wide surveys, polls, and research? If yes, then you can create digital products and sell the research data.
Many businesses are looking for insights into their industry. They want to better understand their audience and find out what they like or don’t like.
You can carry out research on popular topics, collaborate with companies, or simply run a survey to gather data. After that, you can create a report, add it to your website, and sell it to consumers.
If you have a membership website, then you can also offer research and data to subscribers.
For examples, see some of our research articles we offer for free here at WPBeginner:
- Research: The Truth Behind Make Money Online Videos on YouTube and TikTok (We Analyzed 344 Videos)
- 60+ Internet Usage Statistics and Latest Trends for 2023
- 2023’s CMS Market Share Report – Latest Trends and Usage Stats
- 2023 Blogging Statistics, Trends & Data – Ultimate List (UPDATED)
- Ultimate Web Hosting Statistics and Market Share Report (2023)
Bonus: Plugins and Tools to Market Your Digital Products
Now that you know some of the most popular digital products to sell online, you’ll also need to market them to your customers.
Here’s a list of WordPress plugins and tools that you can use to promote your product and boost conversions:
- OptinMonster – It is the best lead generation and popup plugin for WordPress. You can create different campaigns and use smart targeting rules to promote digital products and increase conversions.
- WPForms – This is the best WordPress form plugin. You can use it to create an order form, payment form, and more.
- All in One SEO (AIOSEO) – The plugin helps you optimize your website for search engines. This way, you get to improve search engine rankings, attract more organic visitors to your site, and boost sales of your digital products.
- MonsterInsights – It is the best Google Analytics plugin for WordPress. Using the plugin, you can track your digital products performance, which files get the most downloads, uncover the most popular products, and track eCommerce revenue without editing code.
- PushEngage – This is a push notification software for WordPress and allows you to send personalized web notifications to customers about new products, promotions, sales, etc.
- WP Simple Pay – You can collect online payments on your website using this plugin. The best part, you don’t have to set up a shopping cart to sell digital products while using WP Simple Pay.
We hope this article helped you find the most popular digital products to sell online. You may also want to see our guide on low-cost and easy online business ideas that make money and the best email marketing tools to promote your digital products.
If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.
The post 15 Most Popular Digital Products You Can Sell Online in 2023 first appeared on WPBeginner.
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Shopify vs Shopify Plus: Which Is Better for an Ecommerce Store?
The basic Shopify service is an all-inclusive selling platform from which you can promote, sell, and ship products. Still, the company also offers an enterprise version, Shopify Plus, which is better suited for larger companies. In this article, we will compare these two platforms in terms of their pricing, features, integrations, and support and show you the key differences between them. So, let’s get started! -
What is a Parked Domain? A Beginner’s Guide
If you’re looking for a unique domain name for your website, ask yourself the following question: what is a parked domain? You might not be familiar with this term yet, but it’s key to understanding why it often seems impossible to find an original domain name. In this article, we’ll introduce you to domain parking and guide you through the process of parking a domain step by step.
The post What is a Parked Domain? A Beginner’s Guide appeared first on Themeisle Blog.
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9 Best Age Verification Plugins for WordPress (Compared)
Are you looking for a plugin to set up age verification on your WordPress site?
Setting up age restrictions allows you to limit users from seeing content due to legal requirements or the nature of the content. You can set up age verification with the right WordPress plugin without editing any code.
In this article, our expert team have researched and picked the best age verification plugins for WordPress.
Why Do You Need an Age Verification Plugin?
If you’re selling products or promoting goods that are age sensitive, then it is important to verify the user’s age before allowing them access.
For example, many countries have laws and regulations that require websites to verify users’ age. This is common if you’re in the business of selling alcohol, tobacco, cannabis, vape, tattoos, and other similar goods.
Similarly, different videos and games are not appropriate for minors and require an age gate. You can also add age verification on your membership website if it contains sensitive content.
A simple way of adding age verification to a WordPress site is by using a plugin. You don’t have to edit any code or hire a developer.
Plus by using a plugin, you can show a confirmation form or a popup where users can enter their age before accessing the content or buying a product.
That being said, let’s look at the best age-verification WordPress plugins for different business needs.
1. WPForms
WPForms is the best WordPress contact form plugin that is beginner friendly and lets you create all types of forms. It offers a drag-and-drop form builder and comes with over 500+ pre-built form templates.
WPForms offers a Form Locker addon that allows you to set up age restrictions on your online forms. You can pick age as the verification type for your form and define the age limit. Users will then have to enter their date of birth before they can submit a form on your site.
Using WPForms, you can create forms for all kinds of situations. For instance, the plugin lets you create a login form or a registration form and only allows logged-in users to view the content.
If you’re looking for feedback about your company from a specific age group, then you can create a survey form and add an age restriction. Similarly, you can add an order form on your website with age verification to sell concert tickets or alcohol.
Besides that, WPForms also offers other features and addons. You can integrate payment services like Stripe and PayPal to accept online payments, allow file uploads, connect email marketing services, and more.
Pricing: You will need the WPForms Pro version to access the Form Locker addon and set up age verification in WordPress. This will cost you $199.50 per year. There is also a WPForms Lite version you can use for free.
2. OptinMonster
OptinMonster is the best lead generation and popup plugin for WordPress. It helps you get more leads, grow your email list, and boost conversions.
You can create stunning campaigns for your site, including age verification popups. The plugin offers a drag-and-drop campaign builder, pre-built templates, and lots of customization options. You can add different elements like images, buttons, videos, and more to your popup.
For instance, you can create a simple age verification lightbox popup with Yes/No options or show a popup where visitors need to enter their date of birth.
OptinMonsters also offers fullscreen campaigns, which are great for restricting access to your website or a page until users confirm their age.
The plugin provides powerful display rules that let you choose when and where to show your campaigns. For instance, you can show your age verification campaigns on selected pages or hide the popup for users that have already verified their age on your website.
Besides that, OptinMonster easily integrates with different email marketing services and works with eCommerce platforms like WooCommerce and Shopify.
Pricing: OptinMonster prices start from $9 per month (billed annually). There is also a free version of OptinMonster that you can use to get started.
3. Age Gate
Age Gate is a free age verification WordPress plugin that is very easy to use. Using the plugin, you can easily restrict content based on the user’s age.
It offers 3 input options to add age verification in WordPress. You can show a dropdown menu and let visitors select an age, allow users to enter their date of birth, or simply offer a Yes/No option to verify age.
Other than that, you can choose whether to restrict the entire website or select pages based on age. Plus, there is also an option to set different age restrictions for individual content using the plugin.
With Age Gate, you get multiple customization options to edit the appearance of your age restriction message. For instance, you can add a logo, change the background color, add blur, add a background image, and more.
Pricing: Age Gate is a free WordPress plugin.
4. MemberPress
MemberPress is the best membership plugin for WordPress. It lets you create a membership site and sell subscription-based products and services.
With MemberPress, you can add age restrictions to your WordPress site. Let’s say you don’t want members under 18 signing up for a particular membership or course. By setting up an age limit, you can prevent access to content.
Besides that, MemberPress offers other powerful features. It gives you full control over who can access content, release paid content over time, add payment gateways, and more. You can also create and sell online courses using MemberPress’s course builder.
If you want to learn more about setting up a subscription-based website, then please see our ultimate guide to creating a WordPress membership site.
Pricing: MemberPress is a premium plugin with prices starting from $179.50 per year.
5. WooCommerce Age Verification Popup
WooCommerce Age Verification Popup is the next plugin on our list. It is a paid extension for WooCommerce stores. If you have a WooCommerce store and you’re selling products like tobacco, vaping, medicines, fireworks, or items that require age verification, then this plugin is for you.
The plugin offers 4 verification methods where users can simply enter their age, select their date of birth, click a checkbox, or simply select from a Yes/No option.
Besides that, you can choose which pages the popup should appear on. For instance, you can enable it on your entire website or specific pages like cart, checkout, my account, and shopping page.
There are also different customization options you can use to edit your popup. These include adding a background image, selecting a color, adjusting the border height, and text size, and more.
However, if you want more options like prebuilt templates and the ability to add different elements to the popup, then you can use OptinMonster. It also works seamlessly with WooCommerce and offers more powerful display rules.
Pricing: WooCommerce Age Verification Popup is available for $29 per year.
6. Age Verification for WordPress
Age Verification for WordPress is a free WordPress plugin that you can use to add an age limit to your WordPress site. The plugin is beginner friendly and offers basic features.
It adds an age verification popup to your site and restricts access to content for visitors that don’t meet the age requirements. Once a user verifies their age, a cookie is saved for 30 days, so they don’t have to verify their age again.
The plugin offers limited options to edit your age verification box. For instance, you can only add a background image, logo, title text, message text, and edit the yes/no button text using the Age Verification plugin.
However, there are other plugins on our list, like WPForms and OptinMonster, that offer more customization options. Plus, you get to choose from pre-built templates and drag-and-drop builders.
Pricing: The Age Verification plugin is free to use.
7. AgeChecker.Net
AgeChecker.Net is a third-party age verification platform for eCommerce websites. It uses identity networks and a proprietary database to verify customer’s age at checkout.
The plugin is compatible with different eCommerce platforms, including WooCommerce, Shopify, Magento, BigCommerce, and more.
It adds age verification on checkout pages and instantly verifies 90% of the user’s age in the United States.
If the data isn’t available in the data sources, then it will ask for the customer’s ID verification. Once a customer submits the required documents, AgeChecker.Net’s 24/7 live team manually verifies it for you. If the customer is underage, they will disable their access to the product or service.
Other than that, you can customize the minimum age, digital signature requirements, and order blocking based on the customer’s location. Plus, the plugin is compliant with Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and other federal and state regulations in the US.
Pricing: AgeChecker.Net has a free WordPress plugin that connects with WooCommerce. However, you will need to signup for their premium plan, which will cost you $25 per month + 50¢ per accepted verification.
8. AgeVerify
AgeVerify is another WordPress age verification plugin that is free to use. The plugin is super simple to use and lets you create an age-verification message for your website.
It comes with prebuilt templates that you can use for different types of businesses. Plus, you can edit the age verification text, change the text and color of the button, and more.
What makes this plugin different from others on our list is that it lets you edit the cookie duration (in hours) for the age verification message. This way, your visitors won’t have to verify their age each time they visit your website.
Pricing: AgeVerify is a free WordPress plugin.
9. Easy Age Verify
Easy Age Verify is an age verification plugin for WordPress that comes with pre-built verification settings and messages for alcohol, vape, and adult businesses.
The plugin is super easy to use and doesn’t require complex configuration. All you need to do is enable age verification, select your industry, and the plugin will take care of the rest. It also gives you the option to exclude age verification for logged-in users.
On the downside, you cannot customize the appearance of your age verification message in the free version. However, you can use WPForms as an alternative. It helps display a custom age verification form anywhere on your website.
Pricing: Easy Age Verify is free to use. There is also a premium version that unlocks customization features, and it costs $8.25 per month (billed annually).
Which is the Best Age Verification WordPress Plugin?
Our top picks for the best age verification plugin for WordPress are WPForms and OptinMonster.
WPForms offers a Form Locker addon that allows you to add an age gate on any type of form and display it anywhere on your site. It offers a drag-and-drop form builder, prebuilt templates, and lots of customization options.
On the other hand, if you’re looking to add an age verification popup on your WordPress site, then OptinMonster is the best option. It lets you create age verification popups, offers powerful targeting rules to show and track that campaign, and easily integrates with eCommerce platforms.
We hope this article helped you find the best age verification plugin for WordPress. You may also want to see our post on the best live chat software for small businesses and proven ways to make money online blogging with WordPress.
If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.
The post 9 Best Age Verification Plugins for WordPress (Compared) first appeared on WPBeginner.
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How to Enable Customer Tracking in WooCommerce with Google Analytics
Do you want to enable customer tracking in WooCommerce?
Customer tracking allows you to offer a personalized shopping experience based on customer behavior in your eCommerce store.
In this article, we will show you how to easily enable customer tracking in WooCommerce with Google Analytics.
Why Enable Customer Tracking in WooCommerce with Google Analytics?
Google Analytics allows you to see where your visitors are coming from and what they do on your website. In other words, it helps you track your traffic sources as well as user engagement on your website.
For eCommerce platforms, Google Analytics offers an enhanced eCommerce tracking feature. This allows you to better understand users’ shopping and checkout behavior. Plus, you can see which products perform the best and track your WooCommerce store’s sales performance.
By default, a WooCommerce store allows your customers to create an account or checkout as guest users. Creating an account helps the user save their shipping and billing information for faster checkout next time. It also helps you offer customers a personalized shopping experience based on their browsing and shopping history.
Wouldn’t it be great if you could track logged-in users with their user IDs in Google Analytics and also see the path customers took before making a purchase?
This will give you access to a treasure trove of information and insights on customer behavior. You can use it to offer a better on-site experience and boost your sales.
Let’s take a look at how to easily enable customer tracking in WooCommerce. Here are quick links that you can use to jump ahead to any section:
Set up Ecommerce Tracking in WordPress with Google Analytics
The best way to set up WooCommerce customer tracking in Google Analytics is using MonsterInsights. It is the best analytics solution for WordPress and helps you set up tracking without editing code.
If you use the native method for tracking WooCommerce conversions, then you’ll need to edit the tracking code, use Google Tag Manager, or both. This can be tricky for beginners, and the slightest mistake can mess up your analytics data.
The MonsterInsights plugin offers an eCommerce addon, which automatically detects WooCommerce and starts tracking customer behavior in Google Analytics. It also comes with a Customer Journey addon that allows you to see users’ behavior before they make a purchase.
First, you will need to install and activate the MonsterInsights plugin. For more details, see our step-by-step guide on how to install a WordPress plugin.
You will need to be on the ‘Pro’ plan to access the eCommerce and User Journey addons, which we will use for this tutorial. However, there is also a MonsterInsights Lite version you can use for free.
Upon activation, you will see the welcome screen and the setup wizard. Simply click the ‘Launch the Wizard’ button and follow the on-screen instructions.
For detailed instructions, see our article on how to install Google Analytics in WordPress.
Install the MonsterInsights eCommerce Addon
Once you’ve configured Google Analytics on your website, the next step is to install the eCommerce addon.
The addon automatically sets up eCommerce tracking on your website and detects your WooCommerce store.
First, you need to visit the Insights » Addons page from your WordPress dashboard and navigate to the ‘eCommerce’ addon. Simply click the ‘Install’ button, and the addon will automatically activate.
That’s it! MonsterInsights will take care of the rest once the addon is active.
For more details, please see our guide on how to set up WooCommerce conversion tracking.
Enabling User Journey Addon in MonsterInsights
Now that you’ve set up WooCommerce tracking in Google Analytics, the next step is to enable the MonsterInsights Customer Journey addon.
The addon will allow you to see the steps a customer takes before making a purchase in WooCommerce. Plus, it also shows the time it took at each step, the pages a user visited, and more.
First, you’ll need to go to Insights » Addons from your WordPress admin panel. Next, navigate to the User Journey addon and click the ‘Install’ button.
The addon will automatically activate and start tracking your WooCommerce customer’s journey.
Next, you can go to WooCommerce » Orders from your WordPress dashboard to view the path your customers took when purchasing a product.
After that, click on the order for which you’d like to see the user journey.
On the next screen, you’ll see the path a customer took before buying the product. You get to view the pages they visited, where they clicked, and how much time they spent on a page.
This is really useful information to better understand your customers. You can see which product categories are performing the best and where customers are exiting your store during the purchase process. Using the data, you can then fix these issues and optimize your site for more conversions.
Enabling User ID Tracking in Google Analytics
While MonsterInsights makes it very easy to track customers on your WooCommerce store, it also tracks WordPress ID tracking in Google Analytics.
WordPress ID is a unique ID to identify every user on your website. The user ID is called the ‘Client ID’ in Universal Analytics and the ‘App Instance ID’ in Google Analytics.
Do remember that enhanced eCommerce tracking will enable eCommerce reporting features for your WooCommerce store. However, it does not enable user tracking by default.
Let’s take a look at how you can enable user ID tracking in Google Analytics 4.
Enabling Customer Tracking in Google Analytics 4
To start, you’ll need to go to the Admin settings from your GA4 dashboard and click the ‘Reporting Identity’ option.
On the next screen, you will need to select a way to identify users on your online store.
GA4 uses multiple ways to identify customers. These include user ID, Google signals, device ID, and modeled data. For the sake of this tutorial, we’ll select the ‘Observed’ option and click the ‘Save’ button.
Viewing Customer Tracking Reports in Google Analytics
Now that everything is set up, Google Analytics will now track all your website customers. It will also be able to track logged-in users with their unique WordPress user ID.
View User ID Data in Google Analytics 4
You can view GA4 eCommerce tracking WooCommerce data by going to the ‘Explore’ tab from the menu on your left.
Under Explorations, you’ll see different report templates. Simply click the existing ‘User explorer’ report.
Next, you’ll see the User explorer report in Google Analytics 4.
One thing you can notice is the Client ID will be replaced with the App instance ID.
You can click on any of the app instance IDs to view more details.
For example, the report shows the total events that were triggered, the location of the user, the time stamp for each event, and more.
View User ID Data in Universal Analytics
Note: Universal Analytics has now sunset and is no longer processing data from your website. However, you can still view past data and use it for comparison.
To view all your individual customer activity, you can go to your Universal Analytics account and click on the Audience » User Explorer menu.
You will see individual customer reports with a unique ID assigned to all non-logged-in users.
To view customer tracking reports for logged-in users in WooCommerce, you need to click on the Google Analytics logo on the top left corner of the screen.
This will show all your Google Analytics profiles. You will see your website profile and under ‘All website data’ you will see the UserID reporting view you created earlier.
Go ahead and click on the UserID reporting view to load it.
Once it’s loaded, you need to click on the Audience » User Explorer menu. This way, you will see a logged-in customer tracking report where each user is represented by their WordPress user ID on your website.
You can click on the user ID to view a customer’s individual tracking data.
For instance, the device category they use, acquisition date, the channel they used to arrive on the online store, and more.
Matching Customer Tracking with Their WordPress Accounts
Now that you’ve identified users in Google Analytics, you can match them with WordPress accounts. This will help you know who this customer is, and how you can create personalized offers, emails, or shopping experiences for them.
First, you need to note down the customer ID you see in your Google Analytics User-ID reporting view.
After that, go to your WordPress website’s admin area and click on the ‘Users’ menu. It will show you a list of all users on your WordPress site.
Next, you can click the ‘Edit’ link below any username in the list.
WordPress will now open the user profile for you.
If you look in your browser’s address bar you will ‘user_id’ parameter in the URL.
Next, you need to replace the value next to user_id with the one you copied from your Google Analytics report and press enter key on your keyboard.
WordPress will now load the user profile associated with that particular User ID. You now have the customer’s name, username, email address, and social media information. You can also track their orders, product views, cart activity, and more.
We hope this article helped you learn how to enable customer tracking in WooCommerce with Google Analytics. You may also want to see our expert pick of the best free WooCommerce plugins for your online store and how to get a free email domain.
If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.
The post How to Enable Customer Tracking in WooCommerce with Google Analytics first appeared on WPBeginner.
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7 Tips for Using a Cache Plugin on Your WooCommerce Site
Do you need to implement caching on your WooCommerce site? Read our tips before diving into it, we will show you how you can enable caching easily and give an extra speed boost to your e-shop.
Why Caching is Essential for WooCommerce
Caching improves the speed and performance of your WordPress site built with WooCommerce. It helps your e-shop to load more quickly by reducing the amount of data transfer between the browser and the server. Caching saves a static version of your site so it can be displayed faster on each subsequent visit.
According to Google, site speed is a top priority for online shoppers: every second delay in mobile page load can make conversions fall by up to 20%.
Mobile shoppers and performance -Source: ThinkwithGoogle Another research conducted by Portent a few years ago says that the highest e-commerce conversion rates occur on pages with load times between 0-2 seconds.
Page load speed and conversion rates – Source: Portent E-commerce sites are often the slowest on the web because they contain many images, videos, products, payment gateway, API connections, etc. Implementing caching ensures that the pages load faster, resulting in a better user experience.
The last reason you should improve your page speed with caching is to boost your SEO rankings. The quicker your page loads, the higher it’ll rank in Google search results, meaning more visitors (and sales) will come your way!
Now that we’ve discussed the importance of caching let’s see how to implement it on your WooCommerce site.
How to Enable Cache on WooCommerce
WooCommerce does not cache content out of the box, but you can install a WordPress cache plugin that will do the job for you! For example, you have WP Rocket, one of WordPress’s best caching plugins, enabling caching automatically upon its activation. Of course, more options are available in our guide listing the best caching plugins for WordPress.
Step 1: Exclude the dynamic pages
When you implement caching on your WooCommerce site, the content is saved and served in the same way to visitors every time. As a result, there are pages you should not cache, such as:
- The Cart page – or the users may end up with products they never added.
- The Checkout page – this is the crucial page where users add their credit card information, so you don’t want any problems in that part of the purchasing process.
- My account – this involves a login and a password with probably private data that should be cached.
Example of dynamic pages – Source: WooCommerce - Other pages to consider excluding – the custom “thank you†and confirmation pages.
- Any other widgets, custom post types, or custom pages that handle adding to cart, account, or checkout options.
Step 2: Exclude WooCommerce Cookies and Sessions From Caching
WooCommerce cookies such as “items recently viewed†are useful for the user experience, and some others help the whole purchasing process to be seamless. That is why the following cookies should be excluded from your caching strategy:
- The “woocommerce_cart_hash†and the “woocommerce_items_in_cart†– ensure that the cart reflects the correct items. Otherwise, you may still see some products in the cart after removing them.
- The “wp_woocommerce_session†— helps WooCommerce to find the shopping cart data in the database for each visitor/customer.
- The woocommerce_recently_viewed — pops up to help the customer find a previously seen product.
WooCommerce explains the different types of cookies, their purpose, and their ideal duration very well. You can read more about WooCommerce cookies directly on their website.
Cookies that should not be cached – Source: WooCommerce Most caching plugins have a tab to exclude any scripts of your choice. Simply scroll to the exclusion fields and add the cookies mentioned above.
How to Clear Cache on WooCommerce
No matter which cache plugin you choose for your site, you will always be able to clear the cache on WooCommerce directly from your WordPress dashboard. They all have the feature from their options panel.
For example, with WP Rocket, you can navigate to WP Rocket Dashboard > Quick Actions > Clear and Preload cache.
Clearing cache on WooCommerce from the Quick Actions of WP Rocket – Source: WP Rocket Another way to clear the cache of your WooCommerce site is to use the top bar in your WordPress admin directly. For instance: WP Rocket > Clear and preload cache.
Clearing cache on WooCommerce from the top bar with WP Rocket – Source: WP Rocket 
It’s a good idea to clear the cache on your WooCommerce site because it prevents you from showing outdated content and products to users.7 Tips to Make the Most Out of Caching
Caching may seem daunting at first, but it can be much easier with the right tools and guidance. Here are 7 tips to make the most out of caching on your WooCommerce.
1. Enable Page and Browser Caching
As seen in the first section, page caching stores a page’s HTML on the initial page load to serve the same static content for the next visits. As a result, every visitor will notice a significant increase in the site’s speed.
WP Rocket is one of the best WordPress caching plugins that will automatically enable page caching to WooCommerce. WP Rocket does the heavy lifting for you, and no actions are required from you to activate the cache.
2. Enable Object Caching
To unload the server and the database, you can implement object caching on WooCommerce using Redis or Memcached. Those tools are very popular and store the loaded query results. Therefore, the next time they’re needed, they can be loaded from the cache instead of the server. That reduces the round-trip time between the server and the data meaning better performance for your WooCommerce site.
3. Include Opcode Caching
According to php.net, OPcache improves performance by storing PHP in shared memory, removing the need for PHP to load and parse scripts on every request. If you optimize your PHP, you also optimize your page speed overall, as WordPress and WooCommerce are built on this code.
4. Setup Varnish Cache
Varnish cache is an HTTP reverse proxy that makes page load time 300–1000 times faster. It’s a piece of software you put in front of your server to reduce the loading times of your website by caching the server’s output. The only inconvenience is that to install it, you need to be familiar with the configuration files and command lines of your terminal.
5. Reduce or Cache API calls
Your WooCommerce site may need to call third-party apps like Facebook, YouTube, or Paypal, which could impact its loading speed. To reduce those API calls, you can use the WP Rocket helper API plugin or the WordPress Transients API.
6. Optimize CSS and JS files
Another performance optimization along with caching it to minify, defer and reduce unused CSS and JS files. While you can conduct these code improvements manually, you can also use the File Optimization tab from a caching plugin like WP Rocket.
From your WordPress dashboard, go to Settings > WP Rocket > File Optimization You’ll find all the options needed to optimize your code:
Example of CSS optimization – Source: WP Rocket 
Important: WooCommerce does not recommend minifying JS, so we suggest you exclude WooCommerce scripts from the minification process.Thankfully, most caching plugins allow you to easily exclude WooCommerce scripts when you select the minify JS option. For instance, here’s the option that WP Rocket offers:
Example of JS optimization (and exclusion option) with WP Rocket – Source: WP Rocket 7. Use a CDN
CDNs also use caching to distribute content faster to users located around the world. They use edge servers to cache the data, store it temporarily and display it to the closest international visitors. That results in a faster site because the content does not need to come from the origin server. There are many CDNs available in the market, but if you want one fully integrated with WordPress that does the configuration for you, try RocketCDN.
A content delivery network (CDN) using caching – Source: RocketCDN How to Enable Cache on WooCommerce with WP Rocket
After its installation, WP Rocket automatically enables cache, excludes the dynamic pages from the process, and allows you to do your own page/cookie exclusions.
Let’s go over each feature:
- Enabling caching with WP Rocket
WP Rocket does the heavy lifting for you and applies caching on your WooCommerce site as soon as it’s installed. More than 80% of web performance good practices automatically upon its activation!
WP Rocket applying caching automatically – Source: WP Rocket - Excluding scripts and pages of your choice with WP Rocket
To exclude cookies from the cache with WP Rocket, go to Settings → WP Rocket → Advanced Rules and enter the values of the cookies in the “Never Cache Cookies†field:
- woocommerce_cart_hash
- woocommerce_items_in_cart
- wp_woocommerce_session
- woocommerce_recently_viewed
- (…)
Excluding WooCommerce Cookies easily with WP Rocket – Source: WP Rocket 
Good to know: WP Rocket automatically excludes the “Cartâ€, “Checkoutâ€, and “My Account†pages from the cache.Performance test with and without WP Rocket
Additionally, the plugin helps improve your Lighthouse performance score and boost your Core Web Vitals, partly thanks to its advanced JS and CSS optimization features.
PageSpeed Insights recommends implementing caching to boost the speed of your WordPress site. As you can read in the screenshot below, a long cache lifetime can speed up repeat visits to your page:
Lighthouse recommending caching – Source: PageSpeed Insights I ran a performance test using PageSpeed Insights, sharing my results with and without caching (using WP Rocket).
Performance without caching (No WP Rocket)
My performance score on mobile is 74/100. One of my Core Web Vital, the Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS), is in red, while the Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) is in orange.
Performance results without WP Rocket – Source: PageSpeed Insights Lighthouse also recommends implementing caching:
Lighthouse recommendation to use caching – Source: PageSpeed Insights And also to optimize CSS and JS files:
Lighthouse recommendation to optimize my files – Source: PageSpeed Insights I followed the PSI’s suggestion and activated WP Rocket. Then I opened the file optimization tab, applied a few options on my JS and CSS files, and here’s what happened.
Performance with caching (WP Rocket):
My performance score went to 99/100, and my Core Web Vitals are in the green:
Performance results with WP Rocket – Source: PageSpeed Insights All the previous performance issues related to caching and files optimization are now in the “passed audits†section:
Passed audits with WP Rocket – Source: PageSpeed Insights Wrapping Up
Our tips will certainly help you in your caching journey and give an extra speed boost to your WooCommerce site! WP Rocket helped us pass the PageSpeed Insight audit on caching and code optimization. So if you need to quickly implement caching on your WooCommerce site, then why not give WP Rocket a shot? Run your own before/after an audit on PageSpeed Insights to compare your performance results!
The post 7 Tips for Using a Cache Plugin on Your WooCommerce Site appeared first on WP Rocket.
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6 Best Shopify Live Chat Apps Available in 2023
A Shopify store has to stand out among the competition for any reasonable chance of success. One area where you can “mop up” is with customer service. As such, this roundup of the best Shopify live chat apps will help take your customer service from zero to hero.
The post 6 Best Shopify Live Chat Apps Available in 2023 appeared first on Themeisle Blog.
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How to Start WooCommerce Multi-Vendor Store Using Dokan
Multi-vendor online stores also known as multi-vendor marketplaces are becoming popular nowadays. The idea behind a multi-vendor store is to allow individuals, resellers and/or companies to create their profiles and sell products.
The post “How to Start WooCommerce Multi-Vendor Store Using Dokan” first appeared on WP Mayor.
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5 Best WordPress Search Plugins for Better & Faster Site Search
Search functionality is essential for most websites as it helps visitors locate the information, content, or products they need. WordPress comes with a native search system, but this can only perform basic lookups, and it can be slower than users expect, especially if your website contains a lot of content.
Luckily, there’s a wide range of advanced search plugins for WordPress that enable you to offer a speedy experience. These plugins often come with useful features such as instant search results, ecommerce product support, and spelling correction that help ensure your visitors can quickly find the information they’re looking for.
There are a lot of WordPress search plugins out there, so to help you find the perfect one for your site, we’ve put together this handy guide. Read on to explore the features you should be looking for in a WordPress search plugin, and then see our reviews of five of the best options.
Features to look for in a WordPress search plugin
Some of the top features to look out for in site search plugins include:
Accurate search results
Of course, the top thing to look for when choosing a WordPress search plugin is the accuracy of its search results. The accuracy of a WordPress search plugin largely depends on a combination of:
- The plugin’s index – While the default WordPress search function works by querying your database each time a user searches, most search plugins build their own index of your site, which it then searches against. Therefore, the accuracy of this index is essential. You should also ensure your WordPress search plugin automatically updates its index every time you add or change content and that it can index all the types of content you want your visitors to be able to discover.
- The plugin’s algorithm – The algorithm used by your search plugin influences how it determines which results to return for your visitors’ search queries. You should look for a WordPress search plugin that allows you to customize its algorithm to meet the needs of your site — for example, you may decide that the plugin should give a higher priority to products in your online store than to images in your site’s media library.
Over 80% of search queries are made up of more than one word, so you should also make sure your WordPress search plugin can deliver accurate results if a phrase or question is entered. For example, Jetpack Search can instantly respond to complex, multi-faceted searches, which helps your visitors find the information they’re looking for without rephrasing their query.
Speed
It’s vital that a WordPress search plugin quickly responds to queries.
Some WordPress plugins offer instant search, so your visitors start seeing results as soon as they enter their query, rather than waiting for a search results page to load.
It’s also important to consider what resources the search plugin uses to index your site and process your visitors’ queries. Most WordPress search plugins use your website’s server, which can work well for small sites, but as your site grows, this can put a strain on your web server, and you may notice it takes longer to process search requests and index new content. But other plugins, such as Jetpack Search, take the strain away from your host by using powerful cloud servers to deliver lightning-fast results regardless of the size of your site.
Powerful filtering
Filters can help your visitors narrow their search results to find exactly what they are looking for. You should look for a WordPress search plugin that allows your visitors to filter their search results based on tags, categories, or product attributes. It’s also important to consider how quickly the search plugin can apply those filters. Some can instantly filter results without reloading the page, while others need to refresh the page to apply filters.
Jetpack’s WordPress search plugin, for example, supports more than 1,000 custom taxonomies.
Ecommerce support
Customers are two times more likely to make a purchase online after searching on a retailer’s website, so a great search function is essential for any ecommerce store. If you run an online store, your WordPress search plugin should offer full support for your ecommerce platform and allow your visitors to search and filter by product attributes so that they can find the product they are looking for.
Jetpack’s WordPress search plugin, for example, has a special mode for ecommerce sites that can display results in a grid style.
A review of the best site search plugins for WordPress
But how do you find the best search plugin for your WordPress site? To help, we’ve examined some of the top WordPress search plugins and compared them based on their features, pros and cons, ease of use, and pricing.
1. Jetpack Search
Jetpack Search is one of the best WordPress search plugins that offers a wide range of advanced tools to help your visitors instantly find the right content or product.
The plugin offers instant search and will start displaying results as soon as a visitor begins to type in your search box. This means that they don’t have to wait for search results to load. In addition, Jetpack Search is highly customizable and offers a wide range of features and options, enabling you to create an outstanding search experience that blends seamlessly with your site design. Plus, Jetpack Search offers instant spelling correction, so a typo won’t get in the way of your visitors finding what they’re looking for.
Jetpack Search fully integrates with WooCommerce to help your customers find the perfect product for them. The plugin supports complex faceted search requests — for example, “A red and white men’s polo shirt in large for under $25.” In addition, Jetpack Search displays product pictures in search results and allows customers to instantly filter their results by product attributes, so they can quickly find the item they’re looking for.
The plugin can deliver its lightning-fast speed without putting extra strain on your server as it uses Automattic’s powerful cloud servers to index your site and conduct searches. Jetpack Search was made by the experts at Automattic — the same people behind WordPress.com and WooCommerce. This means that Jetpack Search should integrate seamlessly with your WordPress website.
Features of Jetpack Search
- Instant search and filtering without reloading the page
- Advanced customization options, which allows you to create a bespoke search experience
- Advanced ranking algorithms that help you deliver highly-relevant results
- Integration with Jetpack Stats to help you see what visitors are searching for
- Prioritized results based on your site’s most popular pages
- Faceted searches and instant filtering (by tags, categories, dates, custom taxonomies, and post types)
- Real-time indexing, meaning your search index will update within minutes of changes to your site
- Support for multiple languages
- Highlighted search terms in comments and post content
- Spelling corrections
Pros of Jetpack Search
- Jetpack Search helps your visitors quickly find what they want by instantly providing search results as soon as they start typing.
- The plugin supports complex search queries and allows visitors to instantly filter their search results, including by product attributes.
- Unlike most of the other plugins in this list, Jetpack Search is a cloud-based service. This means it can deliver highly accurate search results without using your server resources.
Cons of Jetpack Search
- Jetpack Search doesn’t index the content of PDFs or documents that you’ve uploaded to your WordPress site.
Who is Jetpack Search most suitable for?
Jetpack Search is a great search solution for any WordPress site. As it uses cloud servers to index and search your website, it can effortlessly deliver results regardless of the size of your site. Its deep integration with WooCommerce also makes it ideal for store owners.
Ease of Use
Jetpack Search is easy to install and will automatically start indexing your site. While the plugin offers powerful customization options, these are easy to understand, and detailed documentation is available. Jetpack’s team of WordPress Happiness Engineers also provides email support to all users.
Pricing
The free version of Jetpack Search allows you to index up to 5,000 records and process 500 search requests per month. The paid plan costs $8.25 per 10,000 records or search requests a month.
2. ElasticPress.io
ElasticPress.io is a powerful WordPress search service. To enable ElasticPress.io on your site, you must install and configure the ElasticPress WordPress search plugin. Then ElasticPress.io will use its servers to index your site and deliver results. This means your visitors get instant search results that are not limited by the speed or capacity of your website server.
ElasticPress.io integrates with WooCommerce to allow your visitors to search for products using product attributes and filter their results so they can find the perfect item. Using ElasticPress.io, you can customize your search algorithms and control the results visitors receive for your most popular search terms. ElasticPress.io also offers auto suggestions based on common search terms, and automatically corrects spellings, so your visitors can easily find the content they’re looking for.
Features of ElasticPress.io
- Hosted search, which takes the load off your servers
- Instant search, which shows results as soon as users start typing
- WooCommerce integration
- Auto-suggest search terms
- Spelling correction
- Search capabilities within documents and PDFs
- Search filters that allow users to narrow down results
- A custom results editor to help ensure popular search terms return pre-determined content or products
- Custom search weighting
Pros of ElasticPress.io
- Like Jetpack Search, ElasticPress is a hosted service that offers a very fast WordPress search experience for your visitors, which doesn’t use your server storage or resources.
- ElasticPress.io offers a wide range of advanced features that enable you to fully customize your visitors’ search experience.
Cons of ElasticPress.io
- Although there’s a 14-day free trial, there is no free version of ElasticPress.
- ElasticPress is more expensive than the other hosted, highly-customizable solution on this list: Jetpack Search.
Who is ElasticPress.io most suitable for?
ElasticPress.io is best suited to large WooCommerce sites because it offers fast and accurate product searching, but has a significantly higher cost than the other plugins on this list.
Ease of use
Enabling ElasticPress.io on your WordPress website requires some configuration, and the number of options available may be confusing for some users. However, documentation is provided, along with email support for all subscribers.
Pricing
ElasticPress.io Essential costs $79 per month for up to 20,000 records and 100,000 requests. Additional requests and records are available with the ‘Extended’ plan, which costs $299 per month.
3. Relevanssi
Relevanssi is a popular WordPress search plugin that orders results by relevance. A single WordPress developer, Mikko Saari, is responsible for developing Relevanssi. The plugin replaces WordPress’s built-in search functionality and indexes every part of your site to allow users to search pretty much anything. You can also configure Relevanssi Premium to work with WooCommerce and enable customers to easily search for products on your online store.
Relevanssi uses a partial-relevance algorithm to deliver search results to your visitors, which means that if their complete search term doesn’t turn up an exact result, it will display the results that are the closest match. The plugin also offers ‘Did you mean?’ suggestions to your visitors to help them find the content they’re looking for.
Features of Relevanssi
- The ability to index any content on your WordPress site, including posts, pages, titles, and products
- The ability for visitors to search PDFs, documents, and taxonomy terms (premium plan only)
- Search results ordered in terms of relevance
- Highlighted search terms in your posts and pages
- Customizable weighting for different types of content (premium plan only)
- Search logs to show the most popular queues and searches that returned no results
- Google-style “Did you mean?†suggestions based on user searches
- Spelling corrections (premium plan only)
- Keyword stemming (premium plan only)
Pros of Relevanssi
- A free version of Relevanssi is available, including many core features, like relevance-based results.
- Relvanssi’s premium version supports indexing a wide range of content types, including PDF documents, taxonomy terms, and shortcode-generated content.
Cons of Relevanssi
- Relevanssi uses your own site’s storage and servers, meaning it could impact the speed of your site and take up space on your server. The plugin requires around three times the amount of space as the size of your wp_posts database table.
- Taxonomy searching is only possible in the premium version, so if you run an ecommerce store, the free version won’t allow visitors to search by product category or attribute.
- Live Ajax searching is only possible with the use of an additional plugin.
- Relevanssi has compatibility issues with popular WordPress plugins, including BuddyPress and NextGen Gallery.
Who is Relevanssi most suitable for?
Relevanssi uses your server space and bandwidth to store its index and perform searches, making it best suited for relatively small websites. The premium version is also suitable for ecommerce site owners.
Ease of use
Relevanssi is easy to use and requires minimal setup. The plugin offers a comprehensive knowledge base, and the developer is active on the plugin’s support forum. In addition, email support is provided to premium subscribers.
Pricing
The plugin is available for free. A premium version that includes additional features, like full WooCommerce support, costs $109 per year.
4. Better Search
Better Search is a free WordPress search plugin that aims to provide your website visitors with more relevant search results. The plugin allows visitors to search most content on your WordPress site, including posts, pages, and custom post types. It also provides a wide range of options to allow you to customize its search outputs, including adjusting the weighting placed on different content types. Better Search logs the queries made by your visitors to generate a heat map to help you visualize the popular searches on your site.
Features of Better Search
- An index of the titles and content of posts, pages, and custom post types
- Relevance-based results
- Customizable search outputs
- Search term logs
Pros of Better Search
- The plugin offers relevance-based searching for WordPress at no cost.
Cons of Better Search
- Better Search cannot index taxonomies, meaning your visitors cannot search based on category or product attributes.
- Visitors can’t instantly see search results, as live searching isn’t supported.
- Spelling correction and suggested searches are not offered.
Who is Better Search most suitable for?
Better Search is a good choice for site owners on a budget who want to provide more relevant search results but who don’t need the advanced features offered by premium plugins. However, as Better Search does not support taxonomy searching, it provides limited benefit to ecommerce store owners.
Ease of use
The plugin is easy to install, and will automatically replace the default WordPress search functionality. However, the advanced options offered by Better Search could be confusing for some users. Limited documentation is provided, but the developers are active on the plugin’s WordPress support forum.
Pricing
Better Search is available for free from the WordPress plugin repository.
5. Ivory Search
Ivory Search is a WordPress search plugin that offers free and premium versions. The plugin replaces the default WordPress search functionality and allows visitors to scour most of your WordPress site, including posts, pages, titles, and taxonomies. Ivory Search also offers live search, so visitors can see search results as soon as they start typing their query.
Ivory Search also supports WooCommerce, so your customers can search and see results from your product names, descriptions, and attributes. The plugin’s Pro Plus plan includes deeper support for WooCommerce, allowing you to exclude out-of-stock products from search results and for customers to search by product SKU.
Features of Ivory Search
- Indexing for posts, pages, titles, taxonomies, and WooCommerce products
- Ajax-powered live searching
- The ability to create multiple search forms and place them anywhere on your site via shortcodes
- Keyword stemming (premium only)
- Control over the order of search results (premium only)
- The ability to remove password-protected posts from search results (premium only)
- The ability to search by WooCommerce SKU (premium only)
- Search analytics via Google Analytics integration
Pros of Ivory Search
- The ‘starter’ version of Ivory Search is free and includes many advanced features, including support for WooCommerce product attributes.
Cons of Ivory Search
- While Ivory Search Pro Plus will allow you to index uploaded file names, it cannot index the content of PDFs or documents.
- Some features that help your visitors receive the most accurate search results, such as keyword stemming, are only available in the premium versions of the plugin.
- Ivory Search uses your server’s storage and resources to index your site and process requests, so its performance can be limited by the resources available within your hosting package.
Who is Ivory Search most suitable for?
Ivory Search’s free ‘starter’ plan would be a good choice for small to medium size WooCommerce store owners who want a free search plugin that improves their customers’ search experience. The plugin’s premium plans are most suited to site owners who want increased control over their visitors’ search experience but don’t want advanced features, such as native search analytics, instant filtering, spelling correction, and indexing of document content.
Ease of use
Ivory Search’s many options could confuse some users, and the search form and results pages have to be styled via CSS. However, the developer provides detailed documentation alongside support on the plugin’s support forum. Email support is also offered to users of Ivory Search’s paid plans.
Pricing
The ‘starter’ version of Ivory Search is available for free in the WordPress plugin directory. Ivory Search also offers two paid plans. Its Pro plan offers additional features, including advanced ordering and post exclusion settings, for $19.99 a year. Its Pro Plus plan includes indexing of documents, PDFs, and WooCommerce SKUs for $49.99 a year.
Comparison of the top WordPress search plugins
Jetpack Search ElasticPress Relevanssi Better Search Ivory Search Live search Yes Yes No No Yes Spelling correction Yes No Yes No No Instant filtering Yes Yes No No No Support for faceted search queries Yes Yes Limited No No Customizable algorithm Yes Yes Premium only Limited Limited Hosted service to remove strain from your servers Yes Yes No No No Full WooCommerce support Yes Yes Premium Only No Pro Plus Only Cost Free for up to 500 records. $8.25 a month per 10,000 records $79 a month per 20,000 records. Limited free version. $109 a year for the premium version. Free Starter – FreePro – $19.99/yearPro Plus- $49.99/year Factors to consider when choosing the best WordPress search plugin
Does it offer the features you need?
WordPress site search plugins offer a wide variety of features, and we’ve outlined some of the key features to consider at the start of this article. When choosing a search plugin, it’s important to ensure it has all the features you need to give your visitors a great experience.
Is it easy to use?
You should consider how easy the WordPress site search plugin is to use and how easy it is to customize the plugin’s settings to meet your site’s needs. Some plugins, such as Jetpack Search, are simple to use with minimal setup but still offer high levels of customization so that you can create a bespoke search experience for your site.
Could it slow down your site?
Most WordPress search plugins use your web server to index your site and carry out visitor search requests. Depending on the size of your site and your web hosting package, this could slow down your site. But, some plugins, such as Jetpack Search, use powerful cloud servers to index and search your site, meaning that you can consistently offer a lightning-fast experience to your visitors.
Does it work with WooCommerce?
If you run an online store using WooCommerce, you must ensure your WordPress search plugin allows your customers to find the products through search. Some search plugins only allow customers to search by product title. But other advanced search plugins, including Jetpack Search, allow your customers to perform faceted searches and filter by product attribute so they can quickly find the product they’re looking for.
Conclusion: What is the best search plugin on WordPress?
The best WordPress search plugin will depend on several factors, including the size of your site, your experience with WordPress, and if you need the plugin to offer advanced features such as instant search.
But it’s clear from the comparison table above that Jetpack Search is the best search plugin for WordPress. Jetpack Search is an affordable hosted search solution that offers a wide range of features, including instant search, powerful filtering, and full support for WooCommerce. It’s simple to set up, and works automatically to keep your site’s search index up to date. Plus, it delivers lightning-fast results to your visitors without using valuable server resources. As it’s made by the people behind WordPress.com and WooCommerce, it integrates seamlessly with your site to help your visitors instantly find content or products.
Frequently asked questions about WordPress search plugins
How much does an advanced site search plugin cost on WordPress?
WordPress search plugins vary in price. Some plugins are free, but offer fewer features than their premium counterparts. The top plugin in this article, Jetpack Search, provides a powerful free version perfect for smaller sites, and its paid version offers advanced features at a much lower cost than other hosted search solutions in this review.
Is it easy to configure a site search plugin on WordPress?
This varies by plugin and the amount of customizations made by the site owner. However, most can be set up and working in a few clicks and advanced customizations can be made over time.
What makes a good WordPress site search plugin?
WordPress site search plugins should be quick to set up, easy to use, and offer lightning-fast results while minimizing strain on server resources. And that’s why cloud-based solutions like Jetpack Search are often the go-to option for site owners.
Search plugins should also offer customization options that guide visitors along paths that help you meet your site goals. Finally, solutions are only helpful if they offer accurate results. Ideal plugins will provide automatic spelling corrections and work to constantly keep the results index up-to-date and relevant.