Hey there and welcome to WordPress Wednesday!
So last week we talked about WooCommerce and walked through how to install it, how to set it up and how to create a product. So today we’ll be doing the same with Easy Digital Downloads, another WordPress ecommerce plugin.
Easy Digital Downloads is a great plugin that makes it super easy to start selling digital products on your website. In fact, it’s what I use on both my personal website and the Sports Bench website.
So today let’s take a look at what it is, what it does and help you figure out if it’s going to be the right plugin for you.
And before we get started, if you want to see more videos on Ecommerce, WordPress, Digital Marketing and other website related topics, be sure to hit the subscribe button and ring the bell for notifications.
Now let’s get started.
What is Easy Digital Downloads?
Easy Digital Downloads is essentially the digital goods version of WooCommerce. While WooCommerce has the ability for you to sell digital goods, I prefer Easy Digital Downloads simply because it’s designed just for this.
Started in 2012, it makes it as simple as adding a new post or page to add a new product to your online store. Plus, as you’ll see, you can take the download or check out button for a product basically anywhere.
And just like WooCommerce there’s a whole ecosystem of add ons and themes that can help you extend the functionality.
It’s a solid free plugin to help you get started selling your digital goods — like WordPress plugins and themes — in no time at all.
Installing Easy Digital Downloads
Installing Easy Digital Downloads is super easy. You can do it straight from your dashboard. Go to Plugins and Add New. Then search for Easy Digital Downloads. Hit install and then activate. And now you’ve got the power to turn your website into an online store.
Going through the settings
The good news is that because you’re selling digital products, there aren’t a whole lot of settings for you to worry about. There are the basic settings, such as where you are located, things for payment gateways, which Paypal comes included, and taxes. But on the whole you can get started a lot quicker with Easy Digital Downloads.
Creating a Product
Just like with WooCommerce, creating a new download in Easy Digital Downloads is just as simple as creating a new post or page.
Enter in the product name as the title, then describe what the product is and how it can help people where you would normally put in the text. Then you can give the product a category.
Next, you can set a price for the download or add in variable pricing if there’s more than one option. Finally, add in the file or files for the download, add any notes about the product and then publish. You’ve created a new digital download.
Displaying Products
If you’re using an Easy Digital Downloads-ready theme, there’s not a whole lot that you have to do now once your products are published. The store page template and single download templates will be ready for you. If you’re not using one of those themes, there might be a little bit more work involved.
But the one difference that I like with Easy Digital Download compared to WooCommerce is that I can take the “Download” button anywhere. When you create a product, there’s a download button shortcode that you can copy on the right side and place anywhere. In fact, that’s what I use for my WordPress plugins and themes pages. It’s a neat little feature.
Available Add Ons and Themes
Like WooCommerce, there is an extensive library of add ons you can install on your website. From payment gateways to making it easy for customers to sign up for a mailing list and even an option for making free downloads easier to get. Some are free, and others you will have to pay for. But we can add a lot more functionality to our website.
On my personal website, I’m using the MailChimp, Free Downloads and Stripe add ons.
Plus, like WooCommerce, there are a number of official themes which you can buy and start using for your online store right now, without the hassle of needing to create new templates or code.
Up Next
So today’s question is what questions do you have about Easy Digital Downloads? Have you used it before? What was your experience like? Be sure to leave your answers and questions down in the comments section below.
Next up on Friday we’ll be talking about how you can use Google Analytics to set up web funnels for your website. And next Wednesday we’ll go through some of the WooCommerce themes that you might want to use for your online store.
To see those videos and other videos on Ecommerce, WordPress, Digital Marketing and other website related topics, be sure to hit the subscribe button and ring the bell for notifications.
But until then, happy WordPressing.
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