What’s the Best Website Builder for Selling Furniture Online?
WordPress stands out as the best website builder for selling furniture online. Powering over 43% of websites across the internet, it offers user-friendly features, scalability, and robust capabilities.
WordPress serves as the foundation for numerous eCommerce stores and boasts various free WordPress eCommerce plugins that facilitate easy store setup while allowing you to retain more of your profits.
Before opting for WordPress as your website builder, it’s essential to understand the distinction between two types of WordPress platforms. WordPress.com functions as a blog hosting platform, while WordPress.org represents an open-source, self-hosted software. For an in-depth comparison, refer to our analysis contrasting WordPress.com and WordPress.org.
For establishing an eCommerce store, WordPress.org is the ideal selection, offering a free solution that provides complete website ownership and seamless integration with third-party eCommerce plugins such as WooCommerce.
To delve further into why we endorse using WordPress.org, please refer to our comprehensive WordPress review.
Step 1: Select a Domain Name and Hosting for Your Website
When creating a WordPress site, the initial step involves obtaining a domain name and web hosting.
In a similar vein, web hosting serves as the online dwelling for your website. To identify the most suitable web hosting for your online store, you can refer to our comprehensive compilation of the best WordPress hosting services.
While WordPress itself is free, the expenses primarily arise from purchasing web hosting and a domain name.
A domain name typically costs approximately $14.99 per year, while hosting expenses start at $7.99 per month, which might be relatively costly for those operating on a small budget or commencing their online venture.
Fortunately, Bluehost extends a substantial discount to WPBeginner readers, complemented by a free domain name and an SSL certificate. Recognized as one of the world’s largest hosting companies and an endorsed hosting partner of WordPress, Bluehost provides exceptional services.
Step 2: Initiate a New WordPress Website
Upon signing up with Bluehost through our provided link, the platform will automatically install WordPress on your designated domain name.
For those desiring to create an alternate WordPress site, the process can be initiated by accessing the ‘My Sites’ tab within the Bluehost dashboard. Subsequently, clicking on the ‘Add Site’ button and opting for ‘Create New Site’ will pave the way to begin.
This action prompts the Bluehost wizard to open, guiding you through the entire setup process.
Commence by providing a suitable site title along with an optional tagline for your website. After inputting this information, proceed by clicking the ‘Next’ button.
Next, you’ll be prompted to choose a domain name and path for your furniture website. If you already possess a domain name, select it from the dropdown menu under the ‘Domain’ section.
In case you haven’t procured a domain name yet, you can do so by visiting the ‘Domains’ page on the Bluehost dashboard.
Upon choosing a domain name, leave the directory path empty, allowing Bluehost to automatically fill it in for you.
Step 3: Selecting a Customized Theme
WordPress themes serve as professionally crafted templates dictating the appearance of your website to visitors on the front end.
To maximize sales and leave a strong impression on your customers, consider replacing the default theme with one tailored to match your specific niche.
There exists an array of popular WordPress themes that offer customization options for your website. Utilizing multipurpose themes enables the creation of templates designed for your particular niche.
Moreover, you can explore our collection of top-rated WooCommerce themes, ideally suited for enhancing the aesthetics of your furniture store.
However, if you seek a theme dedicated to selling furniture online, requiring minimal customization, SeedProd is a prime choice. This exceptional page builder plugin empowers you to craft landing pages and even an entire theme without delving into any coding. It boasts a ready-to-use furniture store template and additional WooCommerce blocks, facilitating the swift establishment of your furniture store within minutes.
Step 4: Developing a Tailored Home Page and Navigation Menu
By default, WordPress utilizes two primary content types: posts and pages. Pages are instrumental in crafting essential sections like the home page, Contact Us, or About Us, while posts are primarily dedicated to generating articles and blog posts for your website. These blogs are typically showcased in reverse chronological order on your website’s home page.
Should you choose to do so, commencing a blog on your website can significantly contribute to promoting your furniture business. It can also augment your site’s search engine optimization (SEO) and foster greater customer engagement.
Yet, even if you decide to initiate a blog, it’s advisable to create a distinct page for your articles and refrain from displaying them on your home page. Instead, consider devising a unique, visually appealing home page exclusively introducing new visitors to your furniture store.
For comprehensive guidance, our tutorial on creating a custom home page in WordPress offers detailed instructions.
Step 5: Implementing an eCommerce Plugin
By default, WordPress doesn’t include built-in eCommerce features. To facilitate furniture sales online, you’ll need to integrate a plugin such as WooCommerce. It stands as the most widely used eCommerce plugin, offering a straightforward approach to selling physical products through your website.
Begin by installing and activating the free WooCommerce plugin. For detailed guidance, refer to our comprehensive step-by-step guide on WordPress plugin installation.
Upon activation, the WooCommerce setup wizard will appear on your screen. Start by entering your physical store’s name. Proceed to select an industry. As you’re selling furniture, opt for the ‘Home, furniture, and garden’ category from the dropdown menu.
Subsequently, indicate your store’s location and proceed by clicking the ‘Continue’ button. WooCommerce will then present a list of free features designed to enhance sales on your website. Review the offered features, select the preferred options, and click the ‘Continue’ button to proceed.
Step 6: Configuring Shipping for Your Furniture
With your online store established, it’s time to integrate a shipping method for your furniture products. Access the WooCommerce » Settings page from the WordPress dashboard and navigate to the ‘Shipping’ tab.
You’ll find a shipping zone already included in the list. Click the ‘Edit’ link beneath the zone name to begin configuring the settings. This action redirects you to a new page where you can modify the zone name according to your preference.
Proceed by adding various zone regions using the dropdown menu, specifying areas, cities, or countries where you intend to deliver your furniture items. Next, you’ll need to incorporate shipping methods. Click the ‘Add shipping method’ button to initiate this process.
A prompt will open, allowing you to select your preferred method—whether it’s flat rate, free shipping, or local pickup. You can opt for all three if necessary. Once you’ve made your choices, click the ‘Add shipping method’ button to save the changes.
Step 7: Configuring Payments for Your Furniture Store
Proceed by setting up a secure payment method to facilitate online transactions in your furniture store. Navigate to the WooCommerce » Settings page from the WordPress dashboard and access the ‘Payments’ tab.
This section presents various payment methods and gateways compatible with WooCommerce. Choose the preferred payment method by clicking the ‘Finish setup’ button.
Step 8: Incorporating Your Furniture Products
Now it’s time to begin adding furniture products to your online store. WooCommerce offers the option to import products from a template, CSV file, or another service. However, in this guide, we’ll demonstrate how to manually add furniture products to your store.
To commence, navigate to the Products » Add New page located in the WordPress admin sidebar. Begin by assigning a title to your furniture product.
Step 9: Integration of a Contact Us Form
Following the establishment of your online furniture store, it’s essential to include a contact form within your site. This element facilitates easy communication between customers and your business, enhancing overall customer experience. Additionally, it serves as an effective method for building an email list, capturing vital customer information, and interacting with visitors.
While alternative methods such as displaying contact information or a business phone number are possible, a contact form remains the optimal choice for collecting data, addressing customer inquiries, and generating potential leads. For this purpose, we recommend utilizing WPForms, the foremost contact form plugin in the market, offering over 1000 premade form templates for seamless integration into your WordPress site.
Step 10: Implementing a WooCommerce Product Search
Incorporating a search feature within your online store is pivotal for customers to easily locate your products. However, the default WordPress search block lacks depth, as it doesn’t encompass product attributes, reviews, custom fields, or product descriptions.
To address this issue, SearchWP presents an effective solution. As the premier WordPress search plugin available, it facilitates the creation of an intelligent WooCommerce search system without necessitating coding knowledge.
Step 11: Integrating Customer Reviews into Your Online Store
Enhancing conversions in your furniture store can be effectively achieved by displaying customer reviews on your website. Showcasing these reviews helps establish trust among potential customers, influencing their decision to purchase furniture from your store.