WooCommerce & Plugin Installs

About WooCommerce

WooCommerce is a flexible, open-source e-commerce platform built directly into WordPress that turns a standard website into a fully functional online storefront. It lets product-based businesses sell physical or digital goods with integrated inventory management, dynamic checkout, taxes, shipping, and secure payment processing. For service-based businesses, WooCommerce lets you sell bookable appointments, service packages, subscriptions, and downloadable visual assets or resources (templates, digital paintbrushes, artwork)—giving business owners full control over the customer experience, brand presentation, and transaction data without high platform transaction fees.

Learning WooCommerce with WordPress lets you transfer your knowledge and experience to other popular WordPress e-commerce themes like Astra, Hestia, and Flatsome, as well as other web-based retail platforms like Shopify, Squarespace, and Wix.

Install WooCommerce

1. Install & Activate the WooCommerce Plugin:

  1. Log in to your WordPress Admin Dashboard.
  2. In the left sidebar, go to Plugins > Add New Plugin
  3. Type WooCommerce into the top-right search box.
  4. Locate the official WooCommerce plugin (by Automattic) and click Install Now.
  5. Once installed, click Activate.
  6. (Optional – I skipped this part) Follow the on-screen setup wizard to configure your basic store details.

Install Google Site Kit

Google Site Kit acts as the control center and bridge that pulls both Google Search Console and Google Analytics (along with other tools like PageSpeed Insights and AdSense) directly into your website’s content management system, such as WordPress. It consolidates your search, traffic, and speed metrics into a single dashboard where you manage your daily web workflow, so you can track the entire user journey without jumping between multiple external platforms.

1. Install & Activate the Google Site Kit Plugin:

  1. Log in to your WordPress Admin Dashboard.
  2. In the left sidebar, go to Plugins > Add New Plugin
  3. Type Google Site Kit into the top-right search box.
  4. Locate the official Google Site Kit plugin (by Google) and click Install Now.
  5. Once installed, click Activate.
  6. Follow the on-screen setup wizard to configure your basic details. This should also help you set up a Google Search Console account and link it to your WordPress website.

Install UpdraftPlus

I use the free version of UpdraftPlus to back up my WordPress website to my own Dropbox.com account. This brings me peace of mind knowing my site is backed up and I can restore a previous version if something happens to my website.

1. Install & Activate the UpdraftPlus Plugin:

  1. Log in to your WordPress Admin Dashboard.
  2. In the left sidebar, go to Plugins > Add New Plugin
  3. Type UpdraftPlus into the top-right search box.
  4. Locate the official UpdraftPlus plugin (by David Anderson / Team UpdraftPlus) and click Install Now.
  5. Once installed, click Activate.
  6. In the left sidebar, click UpdraftPlus and follow the on-screen setup wizard to configure your basic settings. Here is what I chose for my settings:
    1. Backup schedule: Daily
    2. Number of backups to keep: 2
    3. Backup destination: (choose your preferred online storage site) I chose my Dropbox.com account.
    4. Connect your storage account by signing in.
    5. You choose to accept or deny the options on the next few setup screens.

Verification: Check your sidebar navigation; you should now see UpdraftPlus listed as a main menu item. Check back in a week and make sure your website is being backed up to your online storage site.

Install Wordfence

Wordfence acts like a digital security guard and antivirus program for your WordPress website. It runs a continuous firewall that automatically blocks hackers and malicious traffic before they can reach your site. It also scans your website’s files in the background to find and remove hidden malware and security vulnerabilities, keeping your web projects safe from cyberattacks.

1. Install & Activate the Wordfence Plugin:

  1. Log in to your WordPress Admin Dashboard.
  2. In the left sidebar, go to Plugins > Add New Plugin
  3. Type Wordfence into the top-right search box.
  4. Locate the official Wordfence plugin (by Mark Maunder) and click Install Now.
  5. Once installed, click Activate.
  6. Follow the on-screen setup wizard to set up your Wordfence license key for the free version. The free version won’t work without it.

Your store isn’t fully set up yet; be patient. But this is a great start!

Install Yoast SEO

Yoast SEO is a WordPress plugin that optimizes your product and service pages so search engines and AI tools can easily discover, understand, and feature your business in search results. Beyond handling backend technical details—like sitemaps and structured data—it provides real-time feedback on your keywords and readability, helping you write clear, rank-ready copy before you ever hit publish.

1. Install & Activate the Yoast SEO Plugin:

  1. Log in to your WordPress Admin Dashboard.
  2. In the left sidebar, go to Plugins > Add New Plugin
  3. Type Yoast SEO into the top-right search box.
  4. Locate the official Yoast SEO plugin (by Yoast) and click Install Now.
  5. Once installed, click Activate.
  6. Follow the on-screen setup wizard to set up your free version of Yoast SEO.

Your store isn’t fully set up yet; be patient. But this is a great start!