Admin interface
Connecting to theRouteStar Web Store administration
RouteStar Web Store's administration side of the store is where you can modify features, upload images, add products, keep track of customers, manage payments, and much more. Customization in the admin affects how the customer will interact with a store: by modifying the look, structure, and content of the store front.
Accessing the admin panel
To access the admin panel, type in location of the store into the web browser followed by "/admin". For example, if your store is located at "www.chocolatechip.com", your admin panel is located at "www.chocolatechip.com/admin". Even if the store is located in a sub-folder or on a sub-domain of their site, adding "/admin" to the end of the store's path will lead you to the administration side.
After filling in the correct username and password, pressing the "Login" button will direct you to the RouteStar Web Store dashboard. When you first login to your shop, the dashboard will be blank (as seen below), because there isn't any statistical data to be analyzed yet.
EnteringtheadministrationthroughtheDashboard
The dashboard is the first thing you will see when entering RouteStar Web Store's admin. The main function of the dashboard is to give the shop owner an overview of how the shop is performing. There are 3 sections of the dashboard that can help you understand the statistical data collected by your store:
Overview: RouteStar Web Store calculates the numerical values for "Total Sales", "Total Sales This Year", "Total Orders", "No. of Customers", "Customers Awaiting Approval", "Reviews Awaiting Approval", "No. of Affiliates", "Affiliates Awaiting Approval", to alert you to approvals and keeping track of sales.
Statistics: A graph is provided to track the chronological progress of the store relative to the amount of orders and customers over time. The x value is time; which can be hours, days, or months depending on the range selected. The y value displays the number of total orders(yellow) and total customers(blue).
Latest 10 Orders: A list that displays the last 10 orders and their details ("Order ID", "Customer", "Status","Date Added", "Total", and "Action")
Above the dashboard in the top menu is the administration navigation. You can navigate between the "Catalog", "Extensions", "Sales", "System", "Reports", and "Help". These sections will be explained in further detail in the following sections of the User Guide.
Catalog
A look inside the Catalog
For stores managing a variety of product, organizing product data may seem like a daunting task. Fortunately, the RouteStar Web Store Catalog sections in the administration panel make it relatively simple to manage a store's inventory.
The Catalog section is located at the top menu of the admin panel. If you haven't accessed the admin panel yet, you may visitAdmin interfacefor more information.
This guide will give an overview to the organizational features available in the Catalog section. We will walk you through how to add store product and product categories to the administration inProducts and Categories.
Categories
Table of Content
Categories
In the default theme of the store front, parent categories are listed in the top menu of the home page, and on the left side of product pages. This navigational feature is used to guide customers to similar products within the same category. Exposing customers to different products within a category lets the customer compare the similarities and differences between products to make the most informed purchase. When adding products to the store, you will be asked for a product category to sort them in. It is a good idea to establish these categories before adding products, to save yourself the trouble of adding the category name to the products later.
To access the Category page in the administration, hover over the Catalog button and click on Category in the
drop-down. You will be a directed to a page that displays the category names of the store products (as seen below).
The categories above were included with the default products provided by the install. You may delete them to make room for the store's product categories. To delete, check the box next to the row that the category is listed on. When the products selected for deletion are checked, "Delete" can be clicked on in the upper right corner. This should remove the product categories completely.
The Sort Order indicates the order that the categories are displayed in the top menu and category box on the product page. Desktop (sort order-1) will be sorted above Laptops & Notebooks (sort order-2) because it has a higher priority.
Clicking "Edit" under "Action" will direct the administrator to a form to change the category information. Clicking "Insert" will allow the shop owner to insert more products to the site.
Create a category
Before you learn how to add products, you will need to understand how to create product categories. Product category is an essential organizational feature in RouteStar Web Store. RouteStar Web Store organizes the structure of an online store around these product categories. Every product category gets their own space in the store to display all the available products for that category.
Organizing products into categories is useful for navigating a store's inventory in both the store front and administration side. In the administration, creating categories for products will help the shop owner keep track of specific products within a category. In the store front, customers will be able to browse their favorite products by category. Category pages can be accessed in the top menu and from the category box in the product page.
Go to Catalog > Category in the administration. If this is your first time in the category section you will see a list of categories created for the default products. You should feel free to delete them to make room for your store's products. To create a new category for products you can click "Insert" in the upper right corner. You will be directed to the category's information page. Category information can be filled out under three tabs: "General", "Data", "Design".
Categories::General
General tab
The General tab asks for basic information regarding the product category:
Category Name
Meta Tag Description: a summary of the category to describe the category page to search engines.
Meta Tag Keywords: similar to meta tag description, but asks for a single keyword to describe the product.Description: text that will describe this category on the category page, to be viewed by the customers in the store front of the shop.
Categories::Data
Data tab
The Data tab asks for the following data:
Parent Category: Categories are arranged in a hierarchical structure; with the parent category always on top. You may choose to create a category under a parent category, turning it into a sub-category. In the category list the category will be displayed as "Parent Category > Sub-Category". If "None" is selected, the category created will be a parent category.
Filters: Map any pre-created filters to a category. SeeFilter for more information on how filters work.
Stores: If you are managing more than one store with RouteStar Web Store, you may check which stores you would like to add this category to. If only one store is available, "Default" may be checked. SeeCreating a multi-storefor more information about multi-stores.
SEO keyword: A keyword that will be included in the category url for search engine optimization.
Image: Select the main image for the product page and the thumbnail for product listings. SeeImagemanager for more information on how to upload an image using the image manager tool.
Top: Checking this section will display this category in the top menu of every page. If no selection is made, it will not be displayed.
Columns: This number controls how many sub-categories are displayed when selecting the parent category.
Sort Order: This sort order determines the position of the category in the menu. A sorting order of 1 would be displayed before a sorting order of 2, 3, and so on.
Status: Selecting "enabled" makes the category publicly available in the store front. Selecting "disabled" will hide the category from the store front, but will still be available for editing purposes in the administration.
Categories::Design
Design tab
The design tab consists of the "Layout Override" feature. In this feature, you can choose to override a layout, such as the 'Account' page, to include the category on that page. For more information on layouts, seeModules. You can just leave it blank for the meantime.
Pressing 'Save' in the upper right corner will save the information in the General, Data, and Design tabs, and add the product category to the category list. With the product categories created, you are now ready to add products to the shop.
Products
Table of Content
Managing and adding products in the catalogSaving the product
Productsintheadministration
Products are the bread and butter of the average RouteStar Web Store store. Therefore, it is essential that you learn how to manage your store's product inventory using the RouteStar Web Store administration side. Before adding products, you must make sure that you have all the necessary information about the product you are adding to the store. To get detailed information of your products to your customer, RouteStar Web Store requires this information to be gathered beforehand. The more information given to RouteStar Web Store about a specific product, the more informed the customer will be about that particular product when purchasing it from your store.
Products overview
The Product section, accessed under Catalog, will display all the products available in the store. Every row of product will contain the following information:
Image Product Name Model
Price Quantity
Status: Selecting "Enabled" lets the product be visible in the store's store front. Selecting "Disabled" will remove the product from view.
Checking an individual box in the first column will select the product information within the same row. Once selected, you can choose to "Copy" or "Delete" the product. "Copy" will duplicate the product and it's information categories. "Delete" will remove the product selection (including its information) completely.
If you would like to look up a product in the product list, you can use "Filter" as a shortcut to search for it. For more information on the Filter tool, visitFilter. Pressing "Insert" in the top right corner will direct the administrator to a form to add new products.
Managing and adding products in the catalog
The complete list of store products can be found under Catalog > Products. If this is your first time in the Product section, you will notice the default products left over from the installation. These products can be used to experiment with and explore the RouteStar Web Store features before launching your store. You will eventually need to delete these products to make room for your store's products.
To delete the default products:
- Check the box left of the "Image column" in the list. This should select all the products on the page.
- Click the "Delete" button on the top right side.
- Press "OK" when a window pops up asking "Delete/Install cannot be undone! Are you sure you want to do this?".
There should now be a blank list to add individual products to. The "Insert" button directs the administrator to a page requiring product information under the following tabs:
GeneralDataLinksAttributeOptionDiscountSpecialImage
Before products are added to the administration, product categories must already be established by the administrator. SeeCategories before continuing with this section. With the product categories created, products are now ready to be added to the catalog.
Saving the product
At this point in the guide, you will have completed all the steps and filled out all the appropriate information for the product. To complete the process of adding this product, click "Save". When you return to the Products page under Catalog, you will now see this product listed. You can choose to modify any of this information included above, at any time, by clicking "Edit" across from the product.
Products::General
General tab
The format of the General tab is identical to the General tab when creating a product category, with the addition of the Product Tags feature:
Product Name
Meta Tag Description: A summary to describe the product page to search engines.
Meta Tag Keywords: Similar to meta tag description, but asks for a single keyword to describe the product.Description: Text that will describe this product on the product page, to be viewed by the customers in the store front of the shop.
Product Tags: A tag to describe the product to the customers. If a customer types in this tag in the search box found in the header, the product will be displayed in the search results.
Products::Data
Data tab
The data tab includes all the product criteria that will be included on the product page in the store front for customers to view:
Fill in the spaces above with the following information:
Model: create a model number for the product using a combination of letters and numbers. (required)
SKU (stock keeping unit): a random code for the product.UPC (universal product code): the product's unique barcode.Location: where the product is located.
Price: set a price for the product.
Tax Class: select a tax class category on this product that was made Settings > Localisation > Tax Classes.This will apply the tax in the checkout for the product. Select "None" if taxes will not be applied to this product.
Quantity: The total amount available in the store for this specific product.
Minimum Quantity: the minimum amount of product a customer must reach to add that product to theirShopping Cart.
Subtract Stock: "Yes" will subtract stock from the quantity of the product (Ex: If there are 100 computers,and a customer buys 2 computers, Subtract Stock will change the quantity to 98).
Out of Stock Status: select "Out of Stock", "In Stock", "2-3 days", or "Preorder" as the message shown onthe product page when the product's quantity reaches 0.
Requires Shipping: If the product requires shipping, select "Yes". If not, select "No".
SEO keyword: create a keyword for search engine optimization of this product. It will be seen in the URL of the product page. Therefore, the keyword created must be unique for every product.
Image: clicking "Browse Folders" will lead the administrator to theImage manager to upload a new image.
Data Available: the date when this product will become available for purchase.
Dimensions: enter the length by width by height of the product if there are dimensions to include.
Length Class: determines the metric units for the dimensions above.
Weight: Enter a number for the weight.
Weight Class: Specify the units of weight for the number entered into "Weight".
Status: Enabling makes the product publicly available in the store. Disabling allows the product to be edited in the administration , but hides it from the store front .
Sort Order: When the product is sorted in a list, a number assigns it a priority. A product with a sorting order or 2 will be placed higher than a product with a sorting order of 3, but lower than a product with a sorting order of 1.
Products::Links
Links tab
The Links tab specifies which pages RouteStar Web Store will show the product on:
Manufacturer: Selecting the product's manufacturer will place the product on the manufacturer's page. Select manufacturers can be viewed on the home page if added to themanufacturer banner.
Categories: Check the categories that the product will be placed into. The product will be listed on the category's page in the store.
Filters: Select the filters to be applied to this product if your Filter module is enabled. SeeFilters for more information.
Stores: Check which stores will sell this product. Clicking "Default" applies if there is only one store to be managed.
Downloads: If the product is a downloadable product, select the file that will be included with the purchase. Related Products:In this space, type any related products for this product. These products will be displayed on that product's page for the customer to view. When typing in the space, a drop down box will appear with related products.
Products::Attribute
Attribute tab
Attributes are the specifications that are compared between products in the Product Comparison. Attributes are originally created under Catalog >Attributes. In Catalog > Products, selecting an attribute will assign an attribute directly to a specific product. If RouteStar Web Store was just installed, it will be blank. Press "Add" and a form below should appear. Fill in the blanks with the attribute name and information, and click "Add Attribute".
For example, if a customer wanted to compare monitor size of a computer monitor with another product with a monitor, we could create an attribute for the product. Under "Attribute" we would call it "Monitor size"; in the Text box area we would type the dimensions of the monitor of that specific product, and click "Add Attribute". SeeAttributes fo r a more in depth explanation of attributes.
Products::Option
Option tab
Options are extra selections that a customer can make on the Product page before adding the product to the shopping cart. Options are first created under Catalog > Options, then assigned to a product that is created under Catalog > Products.
One example of an option is "size". Begin by typing "size" into the search box. Size should appear in a drop down box. Select it, and click on the green add button. On the right, click "Add Option Value".
The Option Values were previously created in theOptions section under Catalog. In this section any option can be added, such as "Large". To subtract from the quantity every time a product is purchased with this option, you can select "Yes" under "Subtract Stock". An increase of price can be added to the option value, points, and weight. Click "Add Option Value" to assign that information to that specific option value. You can click "Remove" to erase the option value. SeeOptions for a more in depth explanation of the options feature.
Products::Discount
Discount tab
The Discount Tab needs the following information to include a discount for a product:
Customer Group: A group of customers (made in Sales > Customers >Groups) that meet a criteria to usethis discount.
Quantity: The limit for the amount of products that can apply this discount.
Priority: Adding a priority number such as 1, 2, or 3, will determine when this discount will be used when other discounts are applied to a customer's order. 1 will apply this discount first, while 2 will apply it second, and so on.
Price: The discounted price.
Date Start: The first date the discount will be applied.
Date End: The last date available for use of the discount; the date the discount will end.
Press "Add Discount" once the information has been filled in. Click "Remove" to remove the discount from the product.
Products::Special
Special tab
The Special tab is identical to the Discount tab, except that this offer will be considered a special, not a discount. Fill in the customer group, quantity, piority, price, date start, date end.
Products::Image
Image tab
The images tags let the administrator add additional product images to the product page. The main image was already uploaded in theData tab of Products, so keep in mind these images will be included below that main image on the product page.
You may click "Add Image", then "Browse" to select an image from theImage manager. Assign a number for sorting order. "1" will make it the first additional image, while every descending sorting number will follow it. The image above is an example from a product page in the store front. The large main image was added in theData tab. The images above were added in the "Image" tab, with the farthest top left assigned as 1, and the following images assigned a lower priority.
Products::RewardPoints
Reward Points tab
Reward points is a feature of RouteStar Web Store that assigns customers "loyalty points" for purchasing products from
the store. Customers can use these acquired points as a currency to purchase products from the store. You can assign this product a certain number of reward points required for a customer to purchase it with. If you don't want to allow this product to be bought with reward points, you can simply leave this area blank.
Products::Design
Design tab
If you want a product available on other layouts besides the product page, you can choose to override certain layouts in order to include that product on that page.
Productimport
Table of Content
CSV and XML Import PRO toolsTotal Import PRO
Several useful tools exist for more easily managing your products in bulk in RouteStar Web Store.
The Import / Export tool
The Import/Export toolis a free module that allows you to manage your products and related data from an Excel spreadsheet, and upload this directly to your RouteStar Web Store store. It is suitable for smaller product lists only, as it has high memory requirements.
CSV and XML Import PRO tools
The CSV Import PRO and XML Import PRO allow the import of larger product lists in either CSV or XML formats, as provided by many wholesalers and dropshippers. With these tools you can import large inventories into RouteStar Web Store in seconds.
Total Import PRO
The Total Import PROis a premium import tool, allowing a range of configuration options for the import of your products. It supports categories, manufacturers, options and attributes, and both CSV and XML formats. This module can also be run from a cron task so that you can automate your product import and update from a regularly updating product file.
Product import tools
Step 1: Global SettingsStep 2: Field MappingStep 3: Adjust DataStep 4: Import
Step 1: Fetch FeedStep 2: Global Settings
Step 3: Adjust Import DataStep 4: Field MappingStep 5: Import
Product import
Inventory management can be a challenging task when massive amounts of products need to be added to your store's catalog. Product import tools are recommended in times of uploading or updating a large amount of product information. These tools can be used to upload product feeds provided by manufacturers, wholesalers, and dropshippers. Rather than inserting each product one by one, you can use an import tool to mass upload the products.HostJars created a variety of powerfulimport modulesfor importing categories, customers, and products to your store. HostJars' import modules can handle imports of thousands of products.
Among the most popular product import tools are:
CSV Import PRO : tool that will upload CSV product feeds, lets you map your column headings to RouteStar Web Store product fields, add/update/reset products to store.
Total Import PRO : a feature rich import tool that will upload products from both CSV or XML files, allow for extensive adjustment to product data, and more.
CSV Import PRO
CSV Import PRO makes it easy to upload products in bulk from an Excel file. Try out theCSV Import PRO module in the HostJars demo store.
Step 1: Global Settings
Step 1 lets the user select the settings that will be applied every product imported from your CSV feed. Default settings, such asstock status, product status, weight class, length class, tax class, and default store will be storedfor each product uploaded during the import. This information is normally added manually to theProducts Datatab for each product individually. CSV Import PRO simplifies this process by applying the settings universally.
Additional features in Step 1 include setting the CSV field delimiter, allowing you to upload feeds using a different delimiter other than the',' standard. You can enable or disable categories from being added to the top bar in the store front. Also, you can download remote images from instead of linking to images already inside the image/ folder.
Step 2: Field Mapping
Step 2 is where the column headings of your CSV feed will be mapped to specific fields from RouteStar Web Store. For example, if we wanted to map our field "Retail Price" to the RouteStar Web Store field "Price", we would enter "Retail Price" in the CSV Column Heading blank corresponding to the "Price" field.
These fields encompass all the necessary fields found in each tab ofProduct. If a product has more than one category, attribute, or additional image, clicking the "More" button will add another field to map a column heading to.
Step 3: Adjust Data
Step 3 allows for the editing of specific data for feeds. If mapped correctly to the corresponding field, the following adjustments can be made:
category delimiter price multiplier image remove text
image prepend text image append text
Step 4: Import
Step 4 lets you select whether you are adding, updating, or resetting products to your store. In addition, you can either import product feed via upload or link to the url and skip columns with a specific value. The Unzip Feed checkbox will unzip a zip file.
Total Import PRO
Total Import PROtakes the features of CSV Import PRO and expands them to both CSV and XML feeds. As a premium import tool, there are a range of configuration options for the import of your products. It supports
categories, manufacturers, options and attributes, and both CSV and XML formats. This module can also be run from a cron task so that you can automate your product import and update from a regularly updating product file.
Added customization to feed fields are improved with Total Import PRO, and options for importing from multiple data
sources are included. This powerful import tool will simplify the inventory management process and shave off hours of time. Try out Total Import PRo is the Hostjarsdemo store.
Step 1: Fetch Feed
Step 1 is where you will upload your feed. This step allows for the feed to be uploaded in a variety of ways. The feed source lets you determine how you want to upload your feed, from URL, File Upload, FTP, and File System.
The advanced settings gives you added control over how your feed is uploaded: you can specify if the first row is headings, if the feed is a zip, and what the file-encoding of the feed is.
Step 2: Global Settings
Step 2 of functions like Step 1 of CSV Import PRO: the settings here will be applied to every product.
Step 3: Adjust Import Data
Step 3 will display a feed sample of the feed uploaded in Step 1. This will contain the column heading, and the contents of the first row of the feed.
One of the highlights of this product can be seen through the adjustment step. Instead of needing to update the fields in the CSV or XML feed manual, you can use a multitude of operations to add data to a field. Here you can import product data from the feed given from your manufacturer or wholesaler without manually editing the feed.
Operations can adjust product data in powerful ways. The following operations are available for field data modification:
Adjust Price (Multiply) Adjust Price (Add)
Split Category on Delimiter Append Text to Image Prepend Text to Image Filter Products (equals) Filter Products (not equals) Append Text to Any Field Prepend Text to Any Field Multiply Any Field
Add to Any Field Split Any Field Replace Any Field
Replace Newlines with the HTML break tag Remove Text
Filter Products (containing) Filter Products (not containing) Clone Field
Append Field to Field Merge Multi-Row Products
Step 4: Field Mapping
Step 4 of Total Import PRO is where you will map your feed's fields to RouteStar Web Store's pre-existing feeds. Also, you will be able to see the result of any operation changes in the new sample feed generated in Step 4.
The tabs above correspond to the fields mapped in the Product data tab when you insert a new product:General,Data,Links,Attribute,Option,Discount,Special,Image,Rewards.
Step 5: Import
The last step of Total Import PRO takes all the fields mapped and settings applied from the product feed, and uploads them to the store. You have the option to empty the store, add/skip new products, update/skip existing items, ignore items in the store but not in the file, identify existing products by a matching field, and make partial or full feed imports.
You can save all the selected settings from the previous steps as a new settings profile.
Cron task (optional)
Total Import PRO simplifies product import even further with the option of running the module withcron tasks. Setting a cron task will save you the process of manually uploading the feed to the admin interface every time you want to upload a feed. Just set up a cron task, and let Total Import PRO run the import for you at a specified time, worry-free. For a more detailed explanation importing with crontasks, visit the HostJarsknowledgebase.
For additional documentation and articles on Total Import PRO, see theHostJars knowledge base.
Filters
Filters are a new, optional feature introduced in RouteStar Web Store v. 1.5.5 to the Catalog tab. They are used to group together designated products, which then can be mapped to specific layout pages in the store front. This feature gives the store owner more control over what products are viewed by their customers in the front office, compared to the traditional RouteStar Web Store search options.
To create a new filter, click Insert. You will be directed to a form asking for the following information about your new Filter Group.
Each filter group can contain multiple filter names, which can then be sorted according to your preference. The sorting of the filter name affects the order of the filters as seen in the store front.
The filter groups and subsequent filter names can be anything that relates a group of products together. This gives you the added customization of determining which products can be viewed in different layouts and pages for your store front. The filter group above is designated to cookies, and the filter names include cookie types. Later we will link these filters to the dessert products in our store.
In order to make use of the Filter feature, the Filter module must be enabled under Modules, and mapped to a layout. For this example, filters will now be mapped to the Category Layout in the right column of the page.
In order to make filters active to a specific category, the filter must be mapped to the category'sData tab. In addition, any products you want to be linked through the filter must be added in theLinks tabwhen editing a product.
Products are linked through selecting a Filter Group > Filter Name.
The image below shows the result of the Cookies > Chocolate Chip filter name being linked to the Cookie Mix and Heart Cookies products. Since this particular filter group was mapped to the Desserts category, as well as all filters being mapped to Categories in general, we can see the Refine Search box in the right column of the image below. When the customer checks one of the filter names and clicks "Refine Search", they will be redirected to the Desserts category page with all the products linked to that filter.
Attributes
Table of Content
Attributes in the administrationAttribute Groups
Creating an attribute and attribute group for Product ComparisonAssigning the attributes to a product
Viewing the attributes in Product Comparison
Attributes in the administration
The attributes section lets you edit the attributes compared between products in "Product Comparison". When viewing products in the store front, customers have the option to add products to "Add to Compare" to analyze the similarities and differences between products in the store. Attributes can be used to describe the size, weight, color, and any other specifications of the product that have potential for comparison. You can create these attributes in the Catalog > Attributes area. To add attributes directly to products, visit theAttribute tab under Products.
Attribute Groups
An attributes group contains related attributes that can be compared under Product Comparison. Attributes such as 'Clockspeed' and 'No. of Cores' can be organized under the larger attribute group of 'Processor'.
To create an attribute group, go to Catalog> Attributes> Attributes Group and click "Insert". This form only requires an attribute group name in "Attribute Group Name". Adding the "Sort Order" is optional. Adding a sort order will affect the arrangement order of attributes under Product Comparison. The attribute groups created here can have individual attributes added to them later.
Creating attributes
In Catalog > Attributes, attributes can be created, edited, and deleted.
To create a new attribute, click "Insert". This button will direct you to a page asking for the "Attribute Name", "Attribute Group", and "Sort Order".
The "Sort Order" determines the position of the attribute if the product has multiple attributes assigned to it. The "Attribute Group" is the larger group of attributes that this particular attribute will belong to when assigned.
Attributesinthestorefront
At this point in the guide, you should be familiar with creating attributes on the administration side; so let's see how creating an attribute in the back-end can affect the store front of the shop. For the purposes of this example, we want to add a 'Display' attribute group to help our customers compare the differences between "aspect ratio" and "monitor size" attributes for our default laptop products in our store.
Creating an attribute and attribute group for Product Comparison
The first step is to create a broader attribute group to store our individual attributes, aspect ratio and monitor size. We will create 'Display' as our attribute group, under Catalog > Attributes > Attributes Groups.
The next step is to create the specific attributes, Aspect Ratio and Monitor Dimensions, with descriptions under Catalog > Attributes > Attributes.
We type the name, Aspect Ratio, then assign it to the broader attribute group "Display". We assign 1 to sort order because we want this attribute to be above all the other attributes in the Display attribute group. When we click
"Save", "Aspect Ratio" will be added to the attributes list. We create another aspect ratio named "Monitor Dimensions", but we will change the sort order to 2, so that it appears below "Aspect Ratio" under Product Comparison.
Assigning the attributes to a product
Now that we have the attributes created, we need to edit the individual products to contain these attributes. To be consistent, we will add "Aspect Ratio" and "Monitor Dimensions" to all of our laptop products. We don't want a scenario where our customers need to compare different laptop products, but only one or two of our laptops has the "Aspect Ratio" listed to compare.
To add attributes directly to a product we go to Catalog > Products, and click edit for our HP laptop product. In theAttributes tab, we add the Aspect Ratio and Monitor Size attributes individually. The text description must be manuallyadded, so we add 16:10 to "Aspect Ratio" and 19.3" x 27.2"to our monitor size. As seen below, when we start typing "Monitor", both the attribute groupand attribute name is displayed in the drop down box.
We will continue on by adding these two attributes individually to all of our laptop products.
Viewing the attributes in Product Comparison
In the store front we added the Sony VAIO and HP LP3065 laptops to our product comparison from their respective product pages. Under the Product Details we can see our Display attributes group (highlighted by the red box).
Since we gave the group a sort order of 1 when we inserted it into the attribute group list, it was the first attribute group displayed. Within the "Display" group, our "Aspect Ratio" and "Monitor Size" attributes are listed according to their sorting order. The specific text we included in the attribute section under Products is shown under each respective product column.
Our customers can now make a more informed decision with their purchase by comparing the Display attributes in Product Comaprions. Understanding how to use attribute groups and attributes with products can help raise the level of customer satisfaction.
Options
Table of Content
Options in the administrationAdding options to productsChoose type
Options displayed in the shopping cart
Options in the administration
The Options section, under Catalog, lets you customize what details the customer sees when checking out a product. On the product page, the "Available Options" section is displayed under the price. The option for that product must be selected before the customer can add the product to the shopping cart.
The image below displays the default options, but you can choose to edit or delete any of them. Essentially, the options can be created to fit whatever added specifications are needed for the customer to purchase the product. The "Insert" button will direct you towards creating a new option.
For example, if you wanted the customer to choose a size for a particular product before checking out, you can create a "Size" option.
The "Type" dropbox will show a variety of ways to display this option:
Choose: "Select", "Radio", "Checkbox", "Image"
Input: "Text", "Textarea"
File: "File"
Date: "Date", "Time", "Date & Time"
For the "size" option, three option value's were created : "Small", "Medium", and "Large". Images could be added for the option, but since it is referring to size the option value name will suffice. If the option was "Color", having images of the color would be appropriate.
Adding options to products
To apply the options to a specific product, you will need to edit theOption tabunder Catalog > Products. Options could to be created prior to adding a product, then added during product creation in the Options tab.
Optionsinthestorefront
With the general concept behind "Options" explained above, we can now go into a detailed example of using the Option section to alter the checkout experience in the store front. For this example, we will be adding Options to the iPod Classic product example provided from installation.
The image below was taken from our iPod Classic product page. We can see that product details such as manufacturer, product code, availability, and price are given product details next to the product image. The only interactive option seen below is the "Qty", or quantity. In the space provided next to quantity, the customer can alter the amount of iPod classics to be added to the shopping cart.
For the purpose of this example, we want to add more options to customize the type of iPod Classic that will be purchased by the customer. Under Catalog > Options we will insert new options with varying option values.
RouteStar Web Store allows for four different types of options for customers to select under Options:Choose, File, Date, and I nput.
Choose type
The "Choose" Type lets the customer select specific option values. Among these choose types are the following sub-types:
Select: Provides a drop down box where the customer must select an option value.
Radio: Select-able icons with the option values. Only one radio selection can be made; clicking another selection will deselect the previously clicked option and move it to the current selection.
Checkbox: Multiple option values can be checked at once.
Image: Gives a radio selection next to small uploaded images.
In our stock we have different colors of classic iPods: black, silver, and white. The Option Name to describe these colors will be "Color". We decided that we want to use a radio type option to display the color options. We want this option to be the first option in the list, so we gave it a sort order of 1. We added 3 option value names for our colors: Black, White, Silver. If we wanted to, we could have uploaded an image of the iPods in their different colors next to their respective value names using theImage manager.
Next we will move to theOptions tab to add our option to a product under Catalog > Products. This section is different than the Options section under Catalog because it will directly assign a previously created option to a product. We clicked the green '+' icon and typed in Color to bring up our "Color" option that we made under Catalog
> Options. In the Option Value column, we added 3 values to enable the Black, Silver, and White option values to be displayed. In addition, we added the quantity of each color available, selected "yes" to subtract stock, and added 10 points to the Reward Points. We could add an increase or decrease in price for select colors, or indicate the weight, but we chose not to.
Saving this Color option under the Options tab will automatically change how this product is viewed on it's product page. The product page can be seen in the screenshot below. Already, we discover that a new section has been added under price named "Available Options". We see our Color Option with the three colors in a radio selection format. The red asterick means that this option must be selected before adding it to the cart. If a selection isn't made, the customer cannot add the product to the Shopping Cart.
File type
The file type requires the customers to upload a file of their own before adding the product to their cart. In our example, we want the customer to upload an image file before checking out so that we can add the image to a custom iPod case. There is only one option under File Type called File.
When we move to the Option tab under the Catalog > Product to add the option to the product, there is only an selection to require the file or not. There isn't any option values since it is up to the user to upload their own file from their computer.
The result of saving this option can be seen on the iPod Classic product page. The sort order of 2 set the file type option below the Color option. When the customer clicks on the "Upload File" button, they can select a file from their computer that will be included in the checkout.
Date type
The Date type allows for three different types of selection: Date, Time, or Date & Time.
For our product, we want the customer to include a specified date for delivery, so we title the Option Name as "Delivery Date". We select the Date type because we don't want the exact time to be included. We added a sort order of 4 because we want this to be the last option viewed before the customer adds the product to their cart.
In the Option tab we can determine if it is a required option and what date we want included in the space. The customer can change the date using the calendar on the product page, so the date of the option value doesn't matter too much.
The result of the date type can be seen in the product page image below. The Delivery Date was sort number was 4, so it falls below the Color and Ipod Case Custom Image options.
Input type
The Input type allows for a text or text area option. The difference between text and text area is that text is one line of blank text to be filled in, while text area gives more space for longer comments. For our iPod Classic we decided that we need an Engraved Name option to engrave the name of the customer on the iPod. We need the customer to type in their first and last name, so we chose the text type. We gave a sort order of 3 because we want the Engraved Name option to be above the Delivery Date.
In the Options Tab under Products we decided that this option doesn't need to be required to check out. In the Option Value we filled in "First and Last Name" so the customer knows to enter their first and last name in the box.
When the option is saved to the product, we can see the Engrave Name section under Ipod Case Custom Image and above Delivery Date. The red asterick is missing because we chose "No" under "Required". The option value shows "First and Last Name" in the box, but the customer can type their own name in that area.
Options displayed in the shopping cart
When the customer makes their selection and adds the product to their cart, the shopping cart will display the iPod Classic product options under the Product Name column. Every option selected will be included under the iPod Classic. When the customer checks out, this product information will be included.
The Option section adds another layer of flexibility in customizing product information on product pages. By becoming familiar with the Options tab, you will improve the RouteStar Web Store transaction process for your customers.
Manufacturers
Table of Content
Manufacturers in the administration interfaceManufacturers in the store front
Manufacturers in the administration interface
The Manufacturer section is used to categorize products by manufacturer. This section can be accessed under Catalog > Manufacturers.
The Manufacturer names below came with the install. They can be deleted, and new manufacturer information can be added in its place. The manufacturer information should be created before products are added, so the manufacturer category can be selected when adding the product. Saving a product without including the manufacturer isn't advised, because customers can search for products in the store front through their manufacturer page. With the manufacturer missing from the product information, the product will not be available on those pages.
To insert a new manufacturer, the following information is required:
Manufacturer name
Stores: Default will be selected if there is only one store. If you have more than one store using RouteStar Web Store, you can add a manufacturer to multiple stores by checking on them.
SEO Keyword: the keyword used for search engine optimization (optional)
Image: an image of the manufacturer (optional). See theImage manager to learn how to upload images.
Sort Order: the position the manufacturer will be sorted among multiple manufacturers (optional)
To edit existing manufacturers you can locate "Edit" under "Action". Clicking edit will direct you to the form above with the previously filled-in manufacturer information.
Manufacturers in the store front
Manufacturers will always need to be assigned to products in the store inventory to affect the store front. See theProducts section for more information on how to assign manufacturers to products in the administration. In the store front, the manufacturer "categories" serve to organize products under manufacturers. To illustrate how products are organized under manufacturers in the store front, we will create a new manufacturer and assign it to a product.
In the Catalog > Manufacturer section we created an 'Acer' manufacturer; added it to our only store ('Default'), while including an SEO keyword, manufacturer image, and sort order. Under Products we assigned the "Acer" manufacturer to the "Acer Aspire" product.
The Manufacturers page
To access the Acer manufacturer page, the customer can go to the footer of any page; and under Extras they can click on Manufacturers.
The customer will then be directed to the manufacturers page, where all the manufacturer names are displayed alphabetically. We can see that our "Acer" manufacturer was automatically added to this page upon creation.
When the customer clicks on the "Acer" link, they will be directed to a page listing all the products within this "Acer" manufacturer. On this page, we can see that the "Acer Aspire" product is displayed because it was assigned the manufacturer,"Acer", in the Products section.
Clicking on the "Acer Aspire" will take the customer to its product page.
The "Acer" manufacturer page can also be accessed from the product page, under "Manufacturer". This link is helpful for exposing customers to different products of the same manufacturer in the shop. The customer can click on "Acer" to be directed to the manufacturer page, where they can browse other Acer products in the store.
The carousel module
Adding a new manufacturer will not add the manufacturer icon to the carousel banner on the home page. The newly created manufacturer must be added to the manufacturer banner under System > Design > Banners for the icon to be displayed in the carousel. See theDesign section for more information on how to add the manufacturer icon to the banner.
Downloads
Adding new downloads
This section is only applicable to you if you sell digital products, or products that have a downloadable component such as a PDF User Guide or similar. To insert a new download, you must give the downloadable product a name, upload the file, and set an allowance for the number of downloads per customer. The mask option allows the administrator to give the file a different visible filename. Press "Save" to submit the download information and save it.
With the download created, it must be manually added to the each individual product that the download will be included with. SeeLinks to learn how to add a download to the product.
The downloadable file will not be shown on the product page. Therefore, it is a good idea to describe how the customer will receive their download in the product description on the product page. The download will be provided for the customer once their purchase is complete. They should be advised to visit "My Account" > "My Orders" > "Downloads" (as seen below) to view their downloadable products. They will have the opportunity to download the file as many times as it was specified under "Total Downloads Allowed".
Reviews
Reviews
Product reviews can be both submitted and viewed by customers on the product page. A customer can fill out a review form and submit it to be approved for publication on the site.
In the Dashboard the administrator can view how many customer reviews are awaiting approval in the Overview section. To approve these reviews, the administrator may visit Catalog > Reviews, select the review, and click "edit". RouteStar Web Store will display the author, product, and text review in separate text boxes. Selecting "enabled" under status will make the review publicly available on the product page.
The result of a customer review approval can be seen in the screenshot below. Every review is made publicly available on the product's main page after administrative approval. The average rating per product is tabulated by RouteStar Web Store and shown out of 5 stars under 'Available Options'.
Information
Table of Content
Information pages in the store front
Information
The Information section displays specific company information in the footer of every page (as seen in the screenshot below). SeeInformation for more information on the footer page.
The Information page can be found under Catalog > Information. On this page the administrator will have the option to edit, delete, or insert a new Information page.
When editing or inserting these pages a description may be added, pages enabled or disabled, and SEO keywords created. There is an option to remove the page from the bottom of the footer.
Information pages in the store front
In the screenshot below, the "Delivery Information" page is being edited in the administration under Catalog > Information. The Information Title will display the text entered as the title of that information page, while the description will be placed below.
The Data tab requires you to check the store that the Information page will be located in, if you have multiple stores. It also asks for a SEO keyword, a status option enabled (or disabled) to make the page public or not, and a sorting order.
The screenshot below is the result of saving the edited Delivery Information. A customer can access this page from the footer of any page in the store front by clicking "Delivery Information". There is an option in the Data tab above to remove a link to this page from the footer.