Tips and Tricks WP eCommerce

eCommerce Solution for WordPress Blog

WP Shopping Cart and WP Super Cache Workaround

If you are using the WP Super Cache plugin on your WordPress blog together with a WordPress Shopping Cart plugin (example: Simple WordPress Shopping Cart) then there is a good chance that you are experiencing some funny behavior with your cart plugin (example: the shopping cart doesn’t show the products after item addition).

The Problem

The reason behind it is that the WP Super Cache is a static caching plugin. It generates HTML files that are served directly by Apache without processing PHP scripts. So when a visitor on your blog adds a product to the shopping cart and is wondering why it’s not being displayed in the basket is probably because he/she is still loading the static HTML (cached) file of that page.

The Workaround

Go to your WP Super Cache plugin’s Advanced Settings menu and check the following option then save it:

  • Cache Delivery Method -> Simple
  • Disable caching for visitors who have a cookie set in their browser

The following screenshot shows the settings:

Older Version of WP Super Cache

If you’re using an older version of the WP Super Cache plugin, the following screenshot shows the relevant configuration.

wp super cache workaround

Feel free to leave a comment if you are having any issues with this workaround.

Visit the WP Shopping Cart plugin page.

WordPress Shopping Cart – Additional Resources

WP Shopping Cart CSS

The following CSS classes have been included in the plugin. You will just have to update the CSS in the style sheet file (wp_shopping_cart_style.css) of the wordpress paypal shopping cart plugin if you want to customize the look and feel of the shopping cart.

  • shopping_cart
  • wp_cart_button.
  • wp_cart_checkout_button

Where is the Settings Menu for the Shopping Cart?

The settings menu for the Shopping cart is located under the Simple Cart Admin menu. Please see the following screenshot:

simple-shopping-cart-settings-menu-sc-1

How to Make the Shopping Cart Show the “Empty Cart” Message on a Post or Page

Use the following cart shortcode which will show the cart even if there are no items in it. When the cart is empty, it will show an empty cart message.

[always_show_wp_shopping_cart]

How to Resize the Add to Cart Buttons

Add the following to the CSS file of this pluign (wp_shopping_cart_style.css)

.wp_cart_button{
height: 20px;
width: 76px;
}

You will have to adjust the size to your needs.

How to Show the Add To Cart Buttons in the Sidebar (Method 1)

We have recently added new shortcodes that uses the WordPress shortcodes API. You can use these shortcodes to place a purchase button for a product on the sidebar widget of your WordPress site:

Here is how to do it:

Step 1) Go to the widgets menu of your WP Admin

Step 2) Add a standard text widget to the sidebar of your site

Step 3) Use one of the shortcodes to create a purchase button for your product that you want to sell:

[wp_cart_button name=”Test Product One” price=”29.95″]

[wp_cart_button name=”Test Product Two” price=”19.95″ shipping=”4.99″]

How to Show the Add To Cart Buttons in the Sidebar (Method 2)

Step 1) Download and activate the Executable PHP code plugin if you don’t have it already (any other PHP executable plugin will work too):

This plugin lets you call php functions from the widgets (it’s similar to the Text widget but it allows you execute PHP code too).

Step 2) Go to the widgets menu and add a ‘PHP Code’ widget to the sidebar (where you want to display the ‘Add to Cart’ buttons or shopping cart). Now you can enter HTML and PHP code here to display whatever you want to show. For example, entering the following line will display an add to cart button:

<?php
$product_name = "Product Name";
$product_price = "10.00";
echo print_wp_cart_button_for_product($product_name, $product_price);
?>

How to Collect Special Instructions from the Customer

If you need to collect special instructions from the customer for some customized work on the item you are selling then you can use the Collect Customer  Input Addon.

Setting up PayPal IPN Notification Feature

Read the PayPal IPN setup documentation.

Get the Total Number of Items in the Shopping Cart

If you are creating a mod/tweak for the simple shopping cart and you want to know the total number of items in the cart then check this post.

Return to the WP Shopping Cart plugin page.

WordPress Shopping Cart Change Log

version 4.3.6
– There is now a basic shortcode inserter for this plugin in the wp post/page editor.
– The cart orders search functionality can now search records using customer’s email and name.
– Added CSS classes to the variation drop-downs.
– CSS optimization in the settings interface of the plugin.

version 4.3.5
– The deprecated page styles field has been replaced with an image URL field in the settings.
– The Image URL field can be used to specify an image/logo URL that will be displayed in the paypal checkout page.

version 4.3.4
– All the paypal supported currency codes are shown as a dropdown option in the plugin settings.
– Currency code value in the settings is automatically converted to uppercase string if the user mistakenly enters a lowercase string.

version 4.2.7
– Added a new filter for the cart icon image (wspsc_cart_icon_image_src). It can be used to customize the cart icon image.
– Added escaping for the cart link parameter.

version 4.2.6
– Added a new email merge tag for phone number (when available). The new email tag is {phone}. Note that the phone number is an optional field on PayPal checkout page. So it may not be present if the customer doesn’t enter a phone number during the checkout.
– Added a new shortcode parameter (thumb_alt) for the product box shortcode. It can be used to specify an alt tag for the product thumbnail image.
– Added url_decode in the cart link parameter. So the link works even when the URL contains foreign characters.

version 4.2.5
– Minor update for backwards compatibility with an old shortcode using variation.

version 4.2.4
– Added a new filter for the checkout button image. It can be used to specify a custom button image for the checkout button.
Example code: https://www.tipsandtricks-hq.com/ecommerce/customize-the-paypal-checkout-button-image-4026
– Incomplete old cart orders will now be automatically cleaned by the plugin.
– Made some improvements to the PayPal IPN validation code. It is fully compatible with the upcoming PayPal IPN changes.

version 4.2.2
– Minor update for backwards compatibility with an old shortcode.
– WordPress 4.5 compatibility.

version 4.2.1
– Added backwards compatibility for the old shortcodes. So the old add to cart button shortcodes will continue to work as usual.

version 4.2.0
– Added an option in the settings to disable nonce check for the add to cart button.
This is useful for some sites that are using caching. Otherwise 48 hour old cached pages will have stale nonce and the nonce security check will fail.
If you are using a caching solution on your site and having issue with nonce security check failing, then enable this option from the settings.

version 4.1.2

  • Added a class to the cart header image element.
  • Removed an extra <br> tag from the cart output.
  • Plugin is now compatible with WordPress 4.3.
  • Added another extra check to the price validation code.

version 4.1.1

  • Updated constructor methods in classes with PHP 5 style constructors.

version 4.0.9

  • Changed the input slug of “product” name to be more specific.

version 4.0.8

  • Added Turkish Language translation to the plugin. The Turkish translation file was submitted by Vural Pamir.
  • WordPress 4.2 compatibility

version 4.0.7

  • The cart stylesheet file now uses the ‘wp_enqueue_scripts’ hook
  • Added a new shortcode parameter (thumb_target) which can be used to specify a target URL for the product thumbnail image
  • Coupon codes are now case-insensitive.
  • Updated the Italian language file.

version 4.0.6

  • Added an email tag to include the coupon code used in the notification email.
  • Added an extra check to prevent a debug notice message from showing when the cart is reset.
  • WordPress 4.1 compatibility.

version 4.0.5

  • Added two new filters to allow dynamic modification of the buyer and seller notification email body (just before the email is sent).
  • Added a new filter so the orders menu viewing permission can be overridden by an addon.
  • Added Danish Language translation to the plugin. The Danish translation file was submitted by Steve Jorgensen.
  • Added a function to strip special characters from price parameter in the shortcode.

version 4.0.4

  • Added some new email tags to show Transaction ID, Purchase Amount and Purchase Date (check your email settings field for details).
  • Made some improvements to the PayPal IPN validation code.

version 4.0.2

  • Added a new option so you can store your custom language file for this plugin in a folder outside the plugin’s directory.
  • Added the following two new filters to allow customization of the add to cart button. wspsc_add_cart_button_form_attr and wspsc_add_cart_submit_button_value
  • Added Text Domain and Domain Path values to the plugin header.
  • Added Norwegian language translation to the plugin. The Swedish translation file was submitted by Reidar F. Sivertsen.
  • Added some security checks a) to make sure that the payment is deposited to the email specified in the settings b) to block multiple payment notifications for the same transaction ID
  • Buyer’s contact phone number is now also saved with each order (given you have enabled it).
  • Added a new filter to allow customization of the product box shortcode.

version 4.0.0

  • Added expiry date option in the discount coupon configuration interface.
  • Changed the permission on the orders menu so it is only available to admin users from the backend.
  • PHP session enhancements.
  • Added an extra check to prevent direct access to the cart file.

version 3.9.9

  • Added a new feature that allows you to show the product thumbnail image in the shopping cart. Use “show_thumbnail” parameter in the shopping cart shortcode for this.
  • Added Swedish language translation to the plugin. The Swedish translation file was submitted by Felicia.
  • Fixed a minor bug with the checkout page style feature.
  • Added a new filter for the item name field in the shopping cart.
  • Made some minor CSS improvements for the cart output.
  • The {product_details} email shortcode will now show the full amount of the item (instead of the individual item amount).

version 3.9.8

  • Added Hebrew Language translation to the plugin. The Hebrew translation file was submitted by Sagi Cooper.
  • Added extra condition to address the “Invalid argument supplied” error that a few users were getting.

version 3.9.7

  • Added a new feature to open the checkout page in a new tab/window when user clicks the checkout button.
  • Updated the Cart Orders menu icon to use a slightly better looking dashicon.
  • Added a new filter to allow modification of the custom field value. Filter name is wpspc_cart_custom_field_value
  • Added a new action hook after the PayPal IPN is processed. This will allow you to do extra post payment processing task for your orders. Hook name wpspc_paypal_ipn_processed
  • Made some improvements to some of the shopping cart icons (cart and delete item icons have been updated).
  • Cart output will work with a responsive theme.

version 3.9.6

  • Added Czech Language translation to the plugin. The Czech translation file was submitted by Tomas Sykora.
  • Added a new option/feature to specify a custom paypal checkout page style name. The plugin will use the custom checkout page style if you specify one.
  • Each order now also shows the shipping amount in the order management interface.

version 3.9.5

  • Added a new feature that lets you (the site admin) configure a sale notification email for the admin. When your customer purchase a product, you get a notification email. Activate this feature from the “Email Settings” interface of the plugin.
  • Added Polish language translation to the plugin. The Polish langage translation file was submitted by Gregor Konrad.
  • Fixed a minor issue with custom button images that uses HTTPS URL.
  • Added more CSS classes in the shopping cart so you can apply CSS tweaks easily.

version 3.9.3

  • Added a new feature to show a compact shopping cart.
  • Language translation strings updated.

version 3.9.2

  • Added an option to specify a custom button image for the add to cart buttons. You can use the “button_image” parameter in the shortcode to customize the add to cart button image.
  • Coupon code that is used in a transaciton will be saved with the order so you can see it in the back end.

version 3.9.0 and 3.9.1

  • WP Super Cache workaround
  • Added a new shortcode argument to specify a SKU number for your product.
  • Fixed a few debug warnings/notices
  • Added Italian language file

version 3.8.8

  • Added a discount coupon feature to the shopping cart. You can now configure discount coupon via the Simple cart settings -> Coupon/Discount menu
  • View link now shows the order details
  • fixed a bug where the shipping price wasn’t properly showing for more than $1000
  • WordPress 3.7 compatibility

version 3.8.7

  • Changed a few function names and made them unique to reduce the chance of a function name conflict with another plugin.
  • Added a new option in the plugin so the purchased items of a transaction will be shown under orders menu
  • Payment notification will only be processed when the status is completed.

version 3.8.6

  • Updated the broken settings menu link
  • Updated the NextGen gallery integration to return $arg1 rather than $arg2

version 3.8.5

  • Added an email settings menu where the site admin can customize the buyer email that gets sent after a transaction. Go to the email settings menu to configure the email details.
  • Also, added the following dynamic email tags for the email body field

{first_name} – First name of the buyer
{last_name} – Last name of the buyer
{product_details} – The item details of the purchased product (this will include the download link for digital items).

version 3.8.4

  • Fixing an issue that resulted from doing a commit when wordpress.org plugin repository was undergoing maintenance

version 3.8.3

  • Improved the settings menu interface with the new shortcode usage instruction (removed any reference to the old shortcodes to remove confusion).

version 3.8.2

  • Fixed a bug where the quantity change of a product in the cart wasn’t reflecting in the product sale notification.
  • Fixed a bug where the item details weren’t getting shown in the sale notification email for a single product purchase.
  • Fixed a minor bug that was causing a fatal error on some servers.
  • Some minor coding optimization.

version 3.8.1

  • Updated the plugin to work with the current version of nextgen gallery plugin (useful for selling photos). View the usage details.

version 3.8

  • Added a new orders menu that will show all the orders that you are receiving.
  • Added an automatic order confirmation notification email feature. Your buyer will receive an email from this plugin after the sale.
  • Implemented a better digital download selling option in the plugin. View the usage details.
  • Fixed a minor bug with the wp affiliate platform plugin’s sale tracking.
  • Added an option to enable or disable debug logging in the plugin.
  • WordPress 3.6 compatibity.

version 3.7

  • Added an additional variation option (so now there can be 3 variations for each product)
  • Added the variation control option in the new shortcodes (it will work with product boxes too).

version 3.6

  • Added a new product display shortcode to show a nice product box.
  • Added more security on the settings form submission.
  • WordPress 3.6 compatibility

version 3.5

  • Added new shortcodes implementation that uses the WordPress shortcods API
  • Added a wrapper class for the add to cart buttons so you can easily customize the look for the button using CSS.

version 3.4

  • Added an option to collect special instruction for a order on the PayPal checkout page (this message can be customized too)
  • Added input sanitization

version 3.3.2

  • Added Spanish translation files
  • Added a Spanish paypal checkout button graphic

version 3.3.1

  • Added html special char filter on product name
  • Added UTF-8 charset when submitting to PayPal.
  • Updated the WordPress logo with the proper one.

version 3.3.0

  • Added the ability to use PayPal sandbox testing
  • Removed some unnecessary code to make it even lighter

version 3.2.9

  • Added the ability to use the shopping cart shortcodes on the sidebar widget
  • Added the Spanish and French translation that was submitted by the users.

version 3.2.8

  • Updated the shopping cart widget functions to use the new WordPress widget class.

version 3.2.7

  • Added language support and minor code update for WordPress 3.3 compatibility.

version 2.8

  • Added the option to automatically redirect the customer to the checkout page when a product is added to the cart.

version 2.6

  • Added the “Free shipping” threshold option (When a customer orders more than this amount he/she will get free shipping).
  • Fixed some minor alignment issues.
  • Fixed a small bug with the link to the product page.

version 2.4

  • Apostrophe (‘) can now be used in the product name.

version 2.3

  • Added an option to specify a products page in the settings menu (when used, the shopping cart widget displays a link to this page when the cart is empty)
  • Fixed an issue whereby the settings page wasn’t getting saved on a WPMU installation.

version 2.2

  • Added Variation Control option.

version 2.1

  • Added affiliate tracking capability so it can be easily used with the WP Affiliate Platfrom Plugin.
  • Added a small tweak so the return from PayPal does not show the POST content in the URL.

version 2.0

  • Fixed a minor bug with the shipping calculation.

version 1.9

  • Fixed an issue whereby the base shipping cost wasn’t getting sent to PayPal.

version 1.8

  • Added shipping cost functionality. See ‘how the shipping cost calculation works’ section for more info.

version 1.7

  • Added a function so that the ‘Add to cart’ buttons can be added from template (.php) files by calling a function.
  • Added custom style sheet file for this plugin.

version 1.6

  • The WordPress Paypal Shopping Cart plugin can be integrated with the NextGen Gallery Plugin to show ‘Add to Cart’ button below the thumbnail images in a Gallery.

version 1.5

  • The shopping cart image can optionally be hidden through the settings menu

version 1.4

  • Now a customized image can be used as the ‘Add to Cart’ button.
  • Changed the images to ‘PNG’ image as it blends in nicely for any background colour (e.g black) as different wordpress theme uses different background colours.

version 1.3

  • Added feature so that the shopping cart gets reset when the buyer comes back to the site after paying on the PayPal site.
  • Added some minor enhancements.

version 1.2.2

  • Added an option which enables the admin to specify a text to show on the widget when the shopping cart is empty.

version 1.2

  • Added built in shopping cart widget that can be used to show the shopping cart on the sidebar.

Return to WordPress Shopping Cart plugin page.

WP Simple Shopping Cart Installation and Usage Instructions

This page provides basic installation and setup instructions for the WP Simple Shopping Cart plugin. Please read this page thoroughly to gain a basic understanding of how to use the plugin.

Table of Contents

Video Summary

WP Shopping Cart Plugin Installation

Install the WP Simple Shopping Cart plugin by searching for it in the ‘Add New Plugins‘ interface within your WordPress admin dashboard. You can search using the keyword “Simple Shopping Cart” to find it.

Click ‘Install Now‘, followed by ‘Activate‘ to enable the plugin on your site.

If you can’t use the above method, download the plugin’s zip file, unzip it, and upload the folder to your site’s “/wp-content/plugins/” directory. Next, activate the plugin via the “Plugins” menu in WordPress.

Basic Settings Configuration

Once the plugin is activated, visit the Settings menu to configure basic options, like your PayPal account details, currency code etc. The default settings are typically sufficient to begin with. You can always customize these settings later. Save the settings and proceed to the next step.

Afterwards, you’re ready to use the shortcode(s) to add products to a post, page, or sidebar as desired.

Simple Shopping Cart Basic Usage

Step 1) Inserting an Add to Cart Button

To insert an ‘Add to Cart’ button, simply place the following shortcode into a post or page alongside the product description. This will enable customers to click and add the item(s) to their shopping cart.

[wp_cart_button name="PRODUCT-NAME" price="PRODUCT-PRICE"]

Replace PRODUCT-NAME and PRODUCT-PRICE with the actual name and price.

Here is an example usage of the shortcode:

[wp_cart_button name="Test Product" price="19.95"]

Step 2) Inserting a Shopping Cart

To insert the shopping cart into a post/page/sidebar, simply add the following shortcode into a shortcode block.

[show_wp_shopping_cart]

Using Blocks to Insert Add to Cart Buttons and Shopping Cart

You can also use blocks instead of shortcodes to insert the add to cart buttons and the shopping cart. Follow these guidelines if you wish to utilize the blocks provided by the simple shopping cart plugin.

Display a Product Box

Read the How to display a product box documentation that explains how you can use a shortcode to display a nice product box for your product(s).

Using the Buttons and Cart From a Theme’s Template File

If you want to add a purchase button in your theme’s template file then do the following:

1. To add the Add to Cart button from template (.php) files use the following function:

<?php echo print_wp_cart_button_for_product('PRODUCT-NAME', PRODUCT-PRICE); ?>

Replace PRODUCT-NAME and PRODUCT-PRICE with the actual name and price. Example:

<?php echo print_wp_cart_button_for_product('wordpress', 7.50); ?>

2. To add the shopping cart to the sidebar, simply use the widget from the widgets menu or add the following line to your sidebar template file where you want the shopping cart to appear.

<?php echo print_wp_shopping_cart() ?>

Example Post/Page Editor Content with Shortcode

The following is a screenshot of the WordPress post/page editor showing how the add to cart button and the shopping cart is inserted into a post or page.

Block/Gutenberg Editor Example

Classic Editor Example

simple cart wp editor content example

Using an User Interface to Insert the Products

The plugin has a block inserter that you can use to add the blocks (instead of shortcodes) to your WordPress posts/pages. Read the Simple Cart Blocks documentation for details.

Using a Compact Shopping Cart

Use the following shortcode where you want to show the compact shopping cart:

[wp_compact_cart]

You can add this shortcode in a standard text widget to add the compact cart to the sidebar.

Always Show the Shopping Cart

The standard “show_wp_shopping_cart” shortcode only shows the cart when there are items in the cart. So it shows the cart when the visitor has clicked on an add to cart button and added item(s) to the cart. When the cart is empty, it simply hides the cart (nothing is shown).

If you want to show the cart all the time then use the following shortcode instead. It will show an empty cart message when there is nothing in the cart.

[always_show_wp_shopping_cart]

Using Shipping Option

1. To use shipping cost use the “shipping” argument in the shortcode. Here is an example usage:

[wp_cart_button name="Test Product" price="19.95" shipping="4.99"]

or use the following php function from your wordpress template files

<?php echo print_wp_cart_button_for_product('product name',price,shipping cost); ?>

Please see the How shipping Calculation Works post for more info.

Using Variation Control Option

Variation Control can be used to create products similar to the following screenshot. Read the product variation setup documentation to learn more.

simple-cart-product-with-variation-control-screenshot

Flagging an Item as Digital Only

To mark an item as digital-only, add the digital="1" parameter to the shortcode. Digital-only items do not require a shipping address during checkout. Here’s an example of how to use the digital parameter in the shortcode:

[wp_cart_button name="Test Product" price="19.95" digital="1"]

Selling Digital Media Files

Read the media file selling usage documentation.

Specifying an Item Number or SKU

You can use the “item_number” parameter in the “add to cart” button shortcode to specify an “Item Number” or “SKU” for a product. This “item number” value will get sent to PayPal (when a customer does the checkout).

Below is an example shortcode:

[wp_cart_button name="Test Product" price="19.95" item_number="SKU12345"]

Visit the WordPress Simple Shopping Cart Documentation Index Page.

Simple WP Shopping Cart – How the Shipping Cost Calculation Works

The following video explains how the shipping cost calculation works in the WordPress Shopping Cart plugin.

Table of Contents

Shipping Settings Menu

The shipping-related settings can be found under the plugin’s Shipping Settings tab.

Option 1) Flat Shipping Charge Per Item

If you just want to use flat shipping cost for each item then just put 0 in the “Base Shipping Cost” option and specify the individual shipping cost in the trigger text (shortcode) for each product and you are done. For example, the following shortcode will place a button for a product that charges $2.00 for shipping.

[wp_cart_button name="Test Product" price="10.00" shipping="2.00"]

Option 2) Flat/Fixed Shipping Charge Per Checkout (no matter how many items in the cart)

If you just want to use a fixed shipping cost for the cart no matter how many items are in the cart then you can achieve this by specifying this fixed amount in the base shipping cost. Remember, the base shipping cost is only added to the cart if a product in the cart has individual shipping value specified (this way if a customer buys digital product he doesn’t get charged any shipping). Use an individual shipping value of 0.001 for your physical items which won’t increase the shipping cost but will trigger the base shipping cost to be added as a fixed shipping rate. For example, use the following shortcode:

[wp_cart_button name="Test Product" price="10.00" shipping="0.001"]

Option 3) Giving Shipping Discounts on Flat Shipping Charge Per Checkout

Would you like a more nuanced approach to your shipping cost calculations? By combining a “Base Shipping Cost” with individual product shipping costs, you can offer your customers a more attractive shipping rate.

Here’s how it works: The base shipping cost gets added to the total individual product shipping costs. Let’s say you have two products, each priced at $50, and you wish to charge $10 shipping for each. If someone purchases both products, they’d pay $100 for the products and $20 for shipping, totaling $120. However, this might not be the most cost-effective shipping option since both products are going to the same address in a single package, likely costing around $15 for shipping rather than $20.

So, how can you better manage this?

Implement a base shipping cost of $5 and an individual product shipping cost of $5.

For a customer purchasing both products:

  • Individual shipping: $5 (product1) + $5 (product2) = $10
  • Total shipping: $10 (from individual products) + $5 (base cost) = $15

For a single product purchase:

  • Individual shipping: $5 (product1) = $5
  • Total shipping: $5 (from individual product) + $5 (base cost) = $10 (the desired shipping rate for a single product)

By strategically using both the base shipping cost and individual product shipping costs, you can dynamically calculate the optimal shipping price for each transaction.

Option 4) Region Based Shipping Additions

Beyond the basic shipping setup, you also have the option to implement region-based shipping charges. This feature allows you to specify regions you ship to and assign additional shipping costs for each. The specified amount will be added to the total shipping cost. Customers can then select their region from a list, and the corresponding extra charge will be added to the total shipping amount.

When this option is enabled, the customers will be required to select a region in the cart for total shipping amount calculation.

Option 5) Use PayPal’s Profile Based Shipping

Note: This option is offered by PayPal for the standard PayPal checkout option only.

You can also configure the shipping in your PayPal merchant account profile then tell the shopping cart to use your profile based shipping.

Step 1: Check the “Use PayPal Profile Based Shipping” field in the settings menu of this plugin.

Step 2: Configure your PayPal profile based shipping in your PayPal account.

Visit the WordPress Shopping Cart Plugin’s documentation page.