How to Create a Product Catalog on a Website and Design E-commerce Web

cm – Besides creating a product catalog, it’s also important to design the overall look of the e-commerce website to make it both appealing and functional.

In this tutorial, you will learn how to create a product catalog and integrate the e-commerce website design using WordPress and some HTML/CSS programming.

We will also cover how to add product features to the site using WooCommerce, complete with detailed steps and code.

First Step: Choosing an E-commerce Website Platform

To start building a product catalog on your website, you need to choose a platform first. In this tutorial, we will focus on using WordPress and the WooCommerce plugin, which is highly popular among small to large businesses due to its flexibility and ease of use.

Installing WordPress and WooCommerce

A. Install WordPress

1. Download WordPress from WordPress.org.
2. Then, install WordPress on your hosting server (usually provided by hosting services like Hostinger, Niagahoster, or SiteGround).
3. Follow the quick installation guide in cPanel or use the automatic WordPress installer typically available from these hosting providers.

B. Install WooCommerce

1. Log in to your WordPress dashboard.
2. Click Plugins > Add New, then search for WooCommerce.
3. Install and activate WooCommerce, then follow the setup wizard to configure your online store.

Creating a Product Catalog in WordPress with WooCommerce

Once WooCommerce is installed, you can immediately start adding products to the catalog. Follow these steps:

A. Add New Product

1. Log in to the WordPress dashboard, then click Products > Add New.
2. Fill in the Product Name, Product Description, Price, and Upload Product Image.
3. Use the category feature to group similar products (e.g., “Fashion”, “Electronics”, etc.).

B. Create a Product Catalog Page

1. Create a new page by clicking Pages > Add New.
2. Name the page, for example, “Product Catalog”.
3. In the content area, add the following shortcode to display products in a grid format:

[products limit="12" columns="4"]

This shortcode displays 12 products in 4 columns. You can adjust it as needed.

C. Adding a Product Filter Feature

To make it easier for users to search for products, you can add filters based on category, price, or popularity.

1. In the sidebar, click Appearance > Widgets.
2. Add the Filter Products by Attribute widget to the sidebar or any other widget area you prefer.
3. Customize the attributes you want to display, such as price filter or category filter.

E-commerce Website Design: Using HTML, CSS, and a Little PHP

To create an attractive e-commerce web design, we can customize the website’s appearance using HTML, CSS, and a bit of PHP within WordPress. Here’s an example of how to customize the product display on the homepage.

A. Creating a Custom CSS File

1. Create a custom.css file in your WordPress theme folder (wp-content/themes/your-theme-name).
2. Add the following code to enhance the product layout:

/* Customize product layout */
.product {
  background-color: #f9f9f9;
  border: 1px solid #ddd;
  padding: 15px;
  margin-bottom: 20px;
  transition: box-shadow 0.3s ease-in-out;
}

.product:hover {
  box-shadow: 0px 4px 10px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.1);
}

.product-title {
  font-size: 18px;
  font-weight: bold;
  margin-bottom: 10px;
  text-align: center;
}

.product-price {
  color: #2ecc71;
  font-size: 20px;
  text-align: center;
}

.add-to-cart-btn {
  display: block;
  width: 100%;
  background-color: #3498db;
  color: white;
  text-align: center;
  padding: 10px 0;
  border-radius: 5px;
  text-transform: uppercase;
  font-weight: bold;
}

.add-to-cart-btn:hover {
  background-color: #2980b9;
}

3. Ensure this file is connected to your theme’s functions.php file. Add the following code to the functions.php file:

function load_custom_css() {
    wp_enqueue_style('custom-css', get_template_directory_uri() . '/custom.css');
}
add_action('wp_enqueue_scripts', 'load_custom_css');

B. Adding PHP to Display Products in a Template Page

If you want to display products directly from a WordPress template, you can use PHP code within the page template (page.php or single-product.php).

<?php
// Get WooCommerce products
$args = array(
    'post_type' => 'product',
    'posts_per_page' => 10,
);

$loop = new WP_Query($args);

if ($loop->have_posts()) {
    while ($loop->have_posts()) : $loop->the_post();
        wc_get_template_part('content', 'product');
    endwhile;
} else {
    echo __('No products found');
}
wp_reset_postdata();
?>

The above code will display a list of WooCommerce products on the page using this template. Ensure you have added products through the WooCommerce dashboard beforehand.

Effective E-commerce Design Tips

1. Responsive Layout: Ensure your e-commerce website design is responsive so it looks good on desktop, tablet, and mobile devices.
2. Easy Navigation: Create simple navigation with clear product categories. This helps customers find products quickly.
3. Clear CTA: Use prominent Add to Cart or Buy Now buttons with contrasting colors to boost conversion rates.

Tutorial on Optimizing SEO for Product Catalog

Once the design and product catalog are ready, the next step is to ensure everything is optimized for search engines:

1. Use an SEO Plugin: Install a plugin like Yoast SEO or Rank Math to assist with on-page optimization. Ensure each product page has relevant meta titles, meta descriptions, and image alt text .
2. Optimize Website Speed: Ensure your website’s loading time is fast. You can use caching plugins like W3 Total Cache or WP Super Cache to improve site performance .
3. Backlinks and Internal Links: Create blog articles that link to product pages to increase the visibility of products on search engines. Internal links between products can also help with SEO.

Conclusion

Creating a product catalog and designing an e-commerce website requires not only an attractive layout but also proper optimization.

By following the steps above, you can build a structured product catalog that is easily accessible to customers.

Don’t forget to continuously optimize for SEO so your products can be found more easily by search engines. Good luck!