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Best AI Coding Tools for Developers in 2025: Boost Productivity with Smart Programming Assistants

In the fast-paced world of software development, artificial intelligence is no longer a luxury—it’s a game-changer. As we enter 2025, a new generation of AI coding tools is empowering developers to write better code faster. From smart autocompletion to AI-assisted debugging and testing, these tools are transforming workflows and supercharging productivity. In this post, we’ll explore the best AI coding tools for developers in 2025 and show you how to pick the right ones for your projects.

AI code editor

AI-first IDEs are streamlining the development process by embedding intelligence into every keystroke.

Cursor

A next-gen IDE with built-in GPT assistance, cursor highlights your intent and assists with code edits, bug fixes, and testing.

Windsurf

This experimental IDE handles full project scopes, making decisions and organizing files autonomously based on the goals you define.

Replit Ghostwriter

A full development suite in your browser. Ghostwriter assists with autocompletion, error fixing, and launching live previews instantly.

Codeium

Codeium offers fast autocomplete in over 70 languages and integrates with 40+ IDEs, making it one of the most accessible AI coding tools.

AI-Powered Development Assistants

These tools act like pair programmers with superpowers — suggesting syntax, writing functions, and helping you debug faster.

GitHub Copilot

One of the most recognized AI code assistants, GitHub Copilot, offers real-time code suggestions based on your comments and existing code. It integrates seamlessly with Visual Studio Code and JetBrains IDEs.

ChatGPT

OpenAI’s ChatGPT is a versatile tool for code generation, refactoring, and learning new technologies. With GPT-4 Turbo, developers can now handle complex code reviews, generate regex, and even write full-stack applications.

Claude

Claude from Anthropic is praised for its thoughtful reasoning and context awareness, making it ideal for solving tricky bugs or understanding large codebases.

Amazon CodeWhisperer

Optimized for AWS environments, CodeWhisperer delivers smart, secure code suggestions directly in IDEs like VS Code and IntelliJ.

StarCoder

An open-source code generation model from Hugging Face and ServiceNow that excels at generating Python and JavaScript code.

AlphaCode

Built by DeepMind, AlphaCode pushes the boundaries of competitive programming, solving complex challenges with creativity and accuracy.

Read more: AI uses in eCommerce business

Enhancing Team Productivity

These AI solutions are geared toward improving collaboration, project maintenance, and productivity across teams.

Cody by Sourcegraph

Trained on enterprise-level codebases, Cody accelerates onboarding, supports bug fixing, and helps developers explore repositories faster.

Pieces

A personal AI workspace for developers. Pieces organizes code snippets, suggests improvements, and integrates with tools like VS Code, Slack, and Chrome.

Visual Copilot by Builder.io

Instantly transforms Figma designs into clean front-end code using popular frameworks like React, Vue, and Angular.

Mutable.ai

Transforms natural language into production-ready code and refactors legacy systems into modern architectures.

Code Quality, Security, & Completion

The following tools make sure your code is secure, clean, and optimized.

Snyk

Real-time security scanning for open-source libraries, containers, and proprietary code. Now enhanced with AI-assisted remediation.

Tabnine

A long-standing AI autocomplete tool that learns from your team’s code to improve suggestions over time.

Codacy

Uses machine learning to automate code reviews and ensure your team maintains high coding standards.

DeepSource

Continuous quality analysis tool that flags anti-patterns, security risks, and performance bottlenecks using AI.

SonarQube + AI Plugins

While SonarQube is already popular for code quality, new AI plugins now help developers auto-resolve repetitive issues.

Final Thoughts

AI is no longer a futuristic add-on — it’s an essential part of the modern development workflow. Whether you’re building APIs, designing UIs, or auditing security, there’s an AI tool ready to help you work smarter.

Fatal error: Uncaught TypeError: flock): Argument #1 (Sstream) must be of type resource. Automatically delete cache files older than 15 days in cPanel cron job

Today, we faced one unique challenge: one of the client websites was down, and the error message showed it could not write the cache folder.

Fatal error: Uncaught TypeError: flock): Argument #1 (Sstream) must be of type resource

Fatal error: Uncaught TypeError: flock): Argument #1 (Sstream) must be of type resource, bool given in /.../system/library/cache/file.php:51 Stack trace: #0
/.../system/library/cache/file.php(51): flock(false, 2) #1 /.../system/library/cache.php(53): Cache\File-›set('store', Array) #2
/.../admin/model/setting/store.php(47): Cache->set('store',Array) #3 /.../storage/modification/system/engine/loader.php(248): ModelSettingStore->getStores) #4 .../system/engine/proxy.php(47): Loader->{closure} (Array, Array) #5 /.../admin/controller/common/header.php(79): Proxy->_ _call(getStores', Array) #6 /.../storage/modification/system/engine/action.php(79): ControllerCommonHeader->index(Array) #7 /.../storage/modification/system/engine/loader.php(48): Action-
>execute(Object(Registry), Array) #8 /.../admin/controller/common/dashboard.php(89): Loader->controller('common/header') #9 .../storage/modification/system/engine/action.php(79)ControllerCommonDashboard->index#10/.../admin/controller/startup/router.php(26):Action-
>execute(Object(Registry), Array) #11 /.../storage/modification/system/engine/action. php(79): ControllerStartupRouter->index() #12 /.../system/engine/router.php(67): Action-
›execute(Object(Registry)) #13 /.../system/engine/router.php(56): Router->execute(Object(Action)) #14 /.../system/framework.php(172): Router->dispatch(Object(Action), Object(Action)) #15 /.../system/startup.php(104): require_once(/.') #16 /.../admin/index.php(22): start('admin') #17 {main} thrown in /.../system/library/cache/file.php on line 51

Checking line 51 at file.php, we find the following code:

public function set($key, $value) {
	$this->delete($key);
	$file = DIR_CACHE . 'cache.' . preg_replace('/[^A-Z0-9\._-]/i', '', $key) . '.' . (time() + $this->expire);
	$handle = fopen($file, 'w');
	flock($handle, LOCK_EX);
	fwrite($handle, json_encode($value));
	fflush($handle);
	flock($handle, LOCK_UN);
	fclose($handle);
}

Instantly, we thought of removing the files and folders in the cache folder. First, we checked how many files were there in the cache folder and found out that there

find /home3/webocreation/23storage | wc -l

The directory /home3/webocreation/23storage/ was currently using approximately 5,353,389 inodes. It appears that the majority of those files were located within the cache/template folder. So, first, we delete the cache/template folder content through a command as we have terminal access, but you can do it through FTP.

rm -rf /home3/webocreation/23storage/cache/template/*

Warning: This command permanently deletes all files and sub-directories in the cache folder. Double-check the path before running it.

After deleting the files inside the cache/template folder, the website is back again. The disk usage was 250GB; after deletion, it showed 120 GB. This raised a concern that we need to clean up the cache folder periodically and automatically.

Automatically delete cache files older than 15 days in cPanel cron job

To automatically remove files older than 15 days from your OpenCart system/storage/cache folder using a cron job in cPanel, follow these steps:

✅ Step-by-Step Guide to Set Up the Cron Job

1. Log into cPanel

  • Access your hosting account and open the cPanel dashboard.

2. Open Cron Jobs

  • In the Advanced section, click on Cron Jobs.

3. Add New Cron Job

  • Choose a schedule.
Cron Job Cpanel Opencart

4. Command to Enter

Replace /home/username/public_html/system/storage/cache/ with the full path to your OpenCart cache folder. Then, enter this command:

find /home3/webocreation/23/storage/cache/ -mindepth 1 -mtime +15 -exec rm -rf {} \;

Explanation:

  • find: Linux command to search for files.
  • -type f: Search for files only.
  • -mtime +15: Files older than 15 days.
  • -delete: Deletes the matching files.

✅ Final Example

Cronjob lists

🔒 Important Notes:

  • This deletes only files, not folders.
  • If you want to delete empty folders, add -type d -empty -delete as a second command.
  • Always test the path and back up important data before using automated deletion.

Let me know if you want to also:

  • Clean logs
  • Remove image cache (image/cache)
  • Exclude specific files or folders

Happy caching! 🚀

Docker set up for Opencart for local development

Setting up a local PHP development environment with Docker for OpenCart involves creating a Docker Compose configuration file to define the services needed for running OpenCart, such as PHP, MySQL, Redis, Apache, etc. Below is a step-by-step guide to help you set up your development environment:

Install Docker and Docker Compose

Make sure you have Docker and Docker Compose installed on your system. You can download and install them from the official Docker website: https://www.docker.com/get-started

Clone the Opencart Github

Install Git: Before you can clone the OpenCart repository, you need to have Git installed on your system. Git is a version control system that allows you to track changes to files and collaborate with others on software development projects. You can download and install Git from the official website: https://git-scm.com/.

Clone the OpenCart Repository Once Git is installed, open a terminal or command prompt and navigate to the directory where you want to clone the OpenCart repository. Then, run the following command:

git clone https://github.com/opencart/opencart.git

This command will clone the entire OpenCart repository from GitHub to your local machine.

Set Up a Local Development Environment

To set up a local development environment for OpenCart, you’ll need a web server (e.g., Apache or Nginx), PHP, and MySQL. You can either install these components manually or use a pre-configured solution like Docker. If you’re using Docker, you can create a docker-compose.yml. This file defines the services needed for running OpenCart, including PHP, MySQL, and Apache.

When you clone from the Opencart Github, everything is already set up for you. You will see docker-compose.yml, Dockerfile, and tools folder

Opencart Docker

Now, run docker-compose up is the command used to start the Docker containers defined in your docker-compose.yml file. This command starts with the services specified in the file, which typically include web servers, databases, and any other necessary components for your application.

docker-compose up 

The first time will take some time to pull all the Docker images like Postgres, Redis, Memcached, MySQL, Opencart, admirer etc.

Docker compose up

Once all docker images are pulled, in the end, you will see the Store link and Admin link below:

Opencart URL Store

You can visit http://localhost, and you will see the Opencart Store. For admin login, go to http://localhost/admin and use admin as username and admin as password.

If you check the Docker Desktop, then you will see the following container:

Opencart Docker Container

You will see the following Docker Images pulled:

Opencart Docker Images

Now, you can work in the upload folder code and see changes as you develop in the localhost URL.

Access the Opencart database in Docker

To access the Opencart database, visit http://localhost:8080 and enter root as the username and password as the password.

Opencart docker database PHPmyadmin

Once you log in, you will see an interface similar to PHPmyadmin. Select the opencart database, and you can see all the database tables

Docker PHPmyadmin

Access Linux environment with Docker command

Sometimes, you may need to access the Linux environment created in Docker, and for that, find out what the image name is: Docker >> Images.

Docker Image Opencart

As per above and the Dockerfile, it is opencart-opencart, so to access the Linux instances, you can use a command like below:

docker exec -it opencart-opencart-1 /bin/bash

Now you can use any command that you use in Linux

Dockerfile for Opencart

FROM php:8.2.11-apache

ARG DOWNLOAD_URL
ARG FOLDER


ENV DIR_OPENCART='/var/www/html/'
ENV DIR_STORAGE='/storage/'
ENV DIR_CACHE=${DIR_STORAGE}'cache/'
ENV DIR_DOWNLOAD=${DIR_STORAGE}'download/'
ENV DIR_LOGS=${DIR_STORAGE}'logs/'
ENV DIR_SESSION=${DIR_STORAGE}'session/'
ENV DIR_UPLOAD=${DIR_STORAGE}'upload/'
ENV DIR_IMAGE=${DIR_OPENCART}'image/'


RUN apt-get clean && apt-get update && apt-get install unzip

RUN apt-get install -y \
  libfreetype6-dev \
  libjpeg62-turbo-dev \
  libpng-dev \
  libzip-dev \
  && docker-php-ext-configure gd --with-freetype --with-jpeg\
  && docker-php-ext-install -j$(nproc) gd \
  && docker-php-ext-install zip && && docker-php-ext-enable zip\
  && docker-php-ext-enable mysqli

RUN apt-get install -y vim

RUN mkdir /storage && mkdir /opencart

RUN if [ -z "$DOWNLOAD_URL" ]; then \
  curl -Lo /tmp/opencart.zip $(sh -c 'curl -s https://api.github.com/repos/opencart/opencart/releases/latest | grep "browser_download_url" | cut -d : -f 2,3 | tr -d \"'); \
  else \
  curl -Lo /tmp/opencart.zip ${DOWNLOAD_URL}; \
  fi

RUN unzip /tmp/opencart.zip -d  /tmp/opencart;

RUN mv /tmp/opencart/$(if [ -n "$FOLDER" ]; then echo $FOLDER; else  unzip -l /tmp/opencart.zip | awk '{print $4}' | grep -E 'opencart-[a-z0-9.]+/upload/$'; fi)* ${DIR_OPENCART};

RUN rm -rf /tmp/opencart.zip && rm -rf /tmp/opencart && rm -rf ${DIR_OPENCART}install;

RUN mv ${DIR_OPENCART}system/storage/* /storage
COPY configs ${DIR_OPENCART}
COPY php.ini ${PHP_INI_DIR}

RUN a2enmod rewrite

RUN chown -R www-data:www-data ${DIR_STORAGE}
RUN chmod -R 555 ${DIR_OPENCART}
RUN chmod -R 666 ${DIR_STORAGE}
RUN chmod 555 ${DIR_STORAGE}
RUN chmod -R 555 ${DIR_STORAGE}vendor
RUN chmod 755 ${DIR_LOGS}
RUN chmod -R 644 ${DIR_LOGS}*

RUN chown -R www-data:www-data ${DIR_IMAGE}
RUN chmod -R 744 ${DIR_IMAGE}
RUN chmod -R 755 ${DIR_CACHE}

RUN chmod -R 666 ${DIR_DOWNLOAD}
RUN chmod -R 666 ${DIR_SESSION}
RUN chmod -R 666 ${DIR_UPLOAD}

CMD ["apache2-foreground"]

Docker Compose Configuration File for Opencart

version: '3'
services:
  opencart:
    build: tools
    user: 1000:1000
    ports:
      - "80:80"
    volumes:
      - ./upload:/var/www/html
    depends_on:
      - mysql
    command: >
      bash -c "if [ ! -f /var/www/html/install.lock ]; then
                 wait-for-it mysql:3306 -t 60 &&
                 cp config-dist.php config.php
                 cp admin/config-dist.php admin/config.php
                 php /var/www/html/install/cli_install.php install --username admin --password admin --email email@example.com --http_server http://localhost/ --db_driver mysqli --db_hostname mysql --db_username root --db_password opencart --db_database opencart --db_port 3306 --db_prefix oc_;
                 touch /var/www/html/install.lock;
               fi &&
               apache2-foreground"

  mysql:
    image: mysql:5.7
    ports:
      - "3306:3306"
    environment:
      - MYSQL_ROOT_PASSWORD=opencart
      - MYSQL_DATABASE=opencart

  adminer:
    image: adminer:latest
    environment:
      ADMINER_DEFAULT_SERVER: mysql
    depends_on:
      - mysql
    ports:
      - "8080:8080"

  redis:
    image: redis:latest

  memcached:
    image: memcached:latest

  postgres:
    image: postgres:latest
    environment:
      - POSTGRES_USER=postgres
      - POSTGRES_PASSWORD=opencart
      - POSTGRES_DB=opencart

Error: Cannot connect to the Docker daemon at unix:///Users//.docker/run/docker.sock. Is the docker daemon running?

You just need to run the Docker as questioned.

That’s it! You now have a local PHP development environment with Docker for OpenCart. You can develop and test your OpenCart extensions or customizations locally before deploying them to a production environment.

Unlocking Network Management: A Comprehensive Guide to MIB Browsers

As networks grow in scale and complexity, network management becomes a critical task for IT professionals. Managing and monitoring network devices efficiently is vital for ensuring seamless communication and preventing downtime. MIB browsers play a significant role in simplifying this intricate process by providing a user-friendly interface for interacting with devices on the network. Through the decoding of Management Information Bases (MIBs), these browsers offer insights into the performance and configuration of network components. Below, we explore the inner workings of MIB browsers and their utility in contemporary network management realms.

Understanding the Role of MIB Browsers in Network Management

img

An MIB browser is a crucial tool for IT professionals, helping them access and interpret data from network devices using the SNMP framework. It organizes data into a structured format, allowing network managers to monitor performance metrics, detect issues early, and configure settings remotely. By querying specific MIB objects, administrators can track traffic flow, error rates, and overall device health, ensuring smooth network operations.

Beyond monitoring, an MIB browser is essential for setting performance thresholds and customizing alerts for abnormal device behavior. These alerts enable quick intervention, reducing downtime and improving network reliability. As networks grow, MIB browsers scale effortlessly, maintaining efficiency while managing more devices and handling larger data sets.

Navigating the Basics of SNMP and MIB Integration

The MIB browser is a visual interface that simplifies the integration of SNMP and MIB. SNMP is an internet-standard protocol used for collecting and organizing information about managed devices on IP networks, forming the backbone of network management. MIB, or Management Information Base, is a database used to manage entities in a communication network.

It includes accessible objects, their structure, and hierarchy, which SNMP-enabled devices can query or set. When integrated into an SNMP-based management system, MIBs create an organized framework for network information, facilitating easy querying and updating. MIBs can handle everything from basic device identification to detailed performance statistics.

Essential Features to Consider When Choosing a MIB Browser

When choosing an MIB browser for network management, consider several key features. The interface should be intuitive, with good search capabilities for locating specific MIBs. The browser should support a wide range of MIBs, making it useful in heterogeneous network environments. Real-time monitoring and graphing capabilities are essential for visualizing data trends.

Advanced functionality, such as trap receivers for handling SNMP traps, is crucial for proactive network management. The ability to write and modify values to MIB objects can turn passive monitoring into active management tasks. Free resources like a mib browser can help users assess software options without initial costs, determining if a particular MIB browser fits their network’s unique needs and management style.

Step-by-Step Guide to Utilizing a MIB Browser for Network Troubleshooting

img

Network troubleshooting involves familiarizing oneself with the user interface of an MIB browser. The first step is to input the device’s details, such as its IP address and SNMP credentials. Once connected, an MIB browser loads and browses relevant MIB files, allowing users to traverse the MIB tree for real-time data.

IT professionals can adjust device configurations without physical access, addressing anomalies or performance issues before they escalate into major disruptions. MIB browsers also offer automation features for recurring issues or continuous monitoring tasks, scheduling routine checks and actions based on specific conditions or threshold breaches. Implementing these features can streamline network management workflows and improve network operations reliability.

Comparing Popular MIB Browsers: Functionality and User Experiences

Evaluating and contrasting popular MIB browsers is crucial for making an informed decision. User-friendly design, versatility, performance, reliability, and community support are key factors. A robust MIB browser can handle high loads and complex network architectures without compromising response times or accuracy. User feedback and community support are also important, as they can assist with troubleshooting issues and learning sophisticated features.

Pricing and cost structure are also important, as businesses must balance the feature set against the investment required. Some MIB browsers offer attractive price-performance ratios or enterprise licensing agreements while considering the total cost of ownership, including purchase price, deployment, training, and maintenance.

Overall, MIB browsers stand as an indispensable tool in the network management arsenal, contributing to the efficiency, responsiveness, and long-term sustainability of network operations. The thoughtful selection and implementation of a MIB browser can delineate between an average and an exceptional network management experience.

Best Practices in E-Commerce: An Analysis of Popular Websites

Popular e-commerce websites stand as prominent leaders in the e-commerce landscape, serving a vast customer base with a wide array of products and services. This report undertakes a comprehensive analysis of popular e-commerce websites to identify the best practices employed across their platforms. The examination encompasses various critical aspects of the online shopping experience, including website design and layout, product page optimization, checkout process efficiency and security, search functionality, customer service resources, navigation structure, marketing and promotional strategies, and commitment to accessibility. Through a detailed evaluation of these elements, this report aims to provide valuable insights and actionable recommendations for businesses seeking to enhance their e-commerce platforms and improve user engagement and conversion. The findings highlight popular e-commerce websites’ strategic focus on user experience, operational efficiency, and inclusivity, offering a benchmark for industry best practices.

II. Enhancing User Experience through Website Design and Layout:

The design and layout of an e-commerce website are fundamental to creating a positive user experience. Popular e-commerce websites’ approach reflects a blend of established brand recognition and a forward-thinking digital strategy. The companies’ updated brand identities emphasize their evolution into “inspirational, digital retailers” while still honoring their long-standing heritage. These updates are driven by the aim to save customers time and facilitate healthier living and wealth-building. The visual elements of the brands have been refreshed to reflect this ambition, incorporating modern fonts, recognizable logos, and color palettes. The overall tone of the brand communication is intended to be relatable and approachable, resonating with the diverse customer bases that shop with them. This contemporary look and feel are designed to build both credibility and connection with customers, establishing popular e-commerce websites as go-to destinations for convenient digital-first services and more modern, culturally dynamic brands.

Internally, the brand guidelines for associates at popular e-commerce websites further illuminate the companies’ design philosophies. These guidelines emphasize principles such as being inspiring, energizing, humanizing, and uniting. The associate brand voices are characterized as professional yet relatable, offering helpful guidance transparently. The visual identities for internal communications employ sentence casing for headlines and calls, calls, alongside andgrammatical conventions. The overarching goals of the associate brands are to foster authentic and meaningful connections among employees, steering clear of impersonal or overly corporate language. Significant priorities within the associate brands are inclusivity, ensuring that every individual working at these companies feels valued and supported. The desired looks and tones are described as unexpected, fresh, expressive, and energetic, signaling a continuous effort to keep the brands relevant and engaging. This internal focus on creating positive and inclusive environments likely extends to the external customer experience, shaping the design and interactions on popular e-commerce websites. The emphasis on saving customers’ time, as highlighted in the updated brand identities, suggests a deliberate focus on creating efficient and user-friendly website designs. This is further supported by the internal brand values of being relatable, helpful, and transparent, which likely influence the way information is presented and navigation is structured on the customer-facing websites.

Regarding layout and user interface, adherence to fundamental e-commerce design principles is evident. A clean and uncluttered layout is a cornerstone of effective online shopping experiences. The strategic use of white space is crucial in separating different elements on a webpage, thereby enhancing readability and making it easier for users to scan content. This is particularly important for retailers that offer an extensive range of products. For mobile users, simplified navigation is paramount, given the smaller screen sizes and the need for efficient browsing on the go. The homepage typically serves as the entry point for most users, and best practices dictate that it should effectively highlight featured products or key categories to guide shoppers. To further enhance user navigation, elements such as breadcrumbs, which show the user’s path through the site, recently viewed items, a wishlist or favorites option for saving items of interest, a quick view feature for rapidly accessing product details, and a back-to-top button for easy scrolling on longer pages are all valuable components. On popular e-commerce websites’ homepages, the primary navigation categories are clearly defined as “Departments” and “Services”. This clear separation allows users to quickly discern whether they are looking for products to purchase or exploring the various services offered by these companies, such as pharmacy or auto services. The prioritization of a clean and scannable layout is a logical approach for these retailers, given the sheer volume of products available. This design choice helps to prevent users from feeling overwhelmed and facilitates a more intuitive browsing experience. The distinct categorization of “Departments” and “Services” in the main navigation underscores a commitment to user wayfinding, enabling shoppers to efficiently locate the specific types of offerings they seek.

III. Optimizing Product Pages for Engagement and Conversion:

The product page is a critical juncture in the online shopping journey, where potential customers gather detailed information before making a purchase decision. Popular e-commerce websites demonstrate several best practices in optimizing these pages for engagement and conversion.

The quality and quantity of product images play a pivotal role in allowing online shoppers to assess items virtually. Clear product images are a fundamental requirement, providing a visual representation of the product. To offer a comprehensive view, items should be showcased from multiple angles and ideally, in a context that demonstrates their use. Features like zoom functionality are essential, enabling customers to examine product details up close as they would in a physical store. For online product listings to stand out and capture attention, the use of high-resolution images is crucial. Guidelines for Marketplace sellers on these platforms often recommend a minimum of four images for each product listing. These guidelines further specify that main product images should feature the item against a seamless white background, with exceptions made for larger items where showcasing them in a relevant environment is more appropriate. Images should be tightly cropped around the product to avoid excessive background space, which can be distracting. To maintain a professional and uncluttered presentation, the main image should not include watermarks, seller names, logos, or any accessories that are not included in the product itself. Where applicable, the inclusion of swatch images is important for products that come in various colors or finishes. Beyond static images, the use of rich media, such as spin images and product videos, can significantly enhance the customer’s understanding and engagement with the product. Popular e-commerce websites’ emphasis on high-quality and abundant product imagery underscores their understanding of the critical role that visuals play in online purchasing. The detailed guidelines for main images, such as the requirement for a white background and the exclusion of extraneous elements, reflect a focus on ensuring clarity and professionalism in product presentation. This approach recognizes that online shoppers rely heavily on visual cues in the absence of physical interaction with the product.

The clarity and detail of product descriptions are equally important in providing the necessary information to potential buyers. Product pages on popular e-commerce websites are designed to be informative and easy to comprehend. Product descriptions should comprehensively detail the item’s features and benefits, including the product name, brand, and relevant keywords that customers might use in their searches. Incorporating related words that shoppers are likely to search for can also improve product discoverability. Guidelines often recommend that product descriptions should consist of at least 350 words, although this requirement may vary depending on the specific product category. To maintain objectivity and avoid misleading customers, promotional claims or claims of competitor exclusivity should not be included in the product descriptions. Authenticity claims are also restricted, requiring prior approval unless the item is a food product. Popular e-commerce websites’ focus on comprehensive and SEO-friendly product descriptions ensures that customers have access to sufficient information to make informed decisions and that products are easily found through both internal and external search engines. The minimum word count requirement suggests a commitment to providing substantial detail about each product.

Customer reviews have become an indispensable part of the online shopping experience, providing social proof and valuable insights from other buyers. Popular e-commerce websites integrate customer reviews on their product pages, recognizing their importance in building trust and influencing purchase decisions. To further enhance the utility of these reviews, these platforms are actively testing the use of artificial intelligence to condense large volumes of feedback into concise summaries, which can help potential customers quickly grasp the key aspects of a product from the experiences of others. The presence of user ratings and detailed reviews is a standard feature on the product page. The integration of customer reviews and the exploration of AI-powered summarization demonstrate an understanding of the need to efficiently present this valuable information to users.

Overall, the user experience on popular e-commerce websites’ product pages is designed to be user-centric, prioritizing clear, concise, and relevant information to facilitate informed purchasing decisions. Key features, typically comprising three to ten of the most important benefits and features of the item, are recommended to be listed first, using short, easily digestible phrases or keywords. To maintain focus and avoid clutter, promotional claims or irrelevant details should be excluded from the key features section. Accurate categorization and attribution of products are also integral to ensuring that items appear correctly in search and browse results. Furthermore, attributes such as color, material, and size are required for every item sold on these platforms, as these details are crucial for customers to find exactly what they are looking for. These best practices for product pages collectively emphasize a commitment to providing a seamless and informative experience for online shoppers.

IV. Creating a Seamless and Secure Checkout Process:

The checkout process is a critical stage in the e-commerce transaction, and a smooth and secure experience is essential to minimize cart abandonment and foster customer satisfaction. Popular e-commerce websites offer various options and features designed to optimize this process.

Customers on popular e-commerce websites have multiple ways to receive their orders, including in-store pickup, home delivery, or standard shipping. For those opting for pickup or delivery, the process typically involves signing into their accounts, selecting their preferred method, choosing a convenient nearby store and a specific time slot, adding the desired items to their cart, and then proceeding to the checkout. Fees may be applicable for both delivery and shipping services, although free options are often available for orders exceeding a certain value or for members of subscription programs. In physical stores, these retailers have been experimenting with innovative checkout experiences, such as “Hosted Checkouts,” where store associates in an open layout assist customers at available registers, aiming to expedite the process and enhance customer interaction. For subscription program members seeking an even more streamlined in-store experience, mobile Scan & Go features provide contact-free checkout options using their smartphones to scan items as they shop. The Scan & Go process is straightforward, requiring users to open the app, select the Scan & Go feature, scan the barcodes of the items they wish to purchase, review their virtual cart, and then tap the “Checkout” button at a designated self-checkout register. The availability of these diverse checkout methods reflects these companies’ commitment to catering to different customer preferences and prioritizing speed and convenience.

Popular e-commerce websites and their physical stores accommodate a wide range of payment options to ensure maximum customer convenience. Accepted methods include traditional credit and debit cards, gift cards (both physical and electronic), cash payments (in physical stores), the popular online payment platform PayPal, “buy now, pay later” services like Affirm, and Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) cards for eligible purchases. These retailers also offer mobile payment solutions, allowing touch-free transactions using their apps by securely storing users’ payment information. Additionally, reloadable debit cards that offer cash-back rewards on purchases are often available. The integration of Affirm allows customers to finance their purchases over time, providing greater flexibility in payment. For added convenience, the “pay by bank” option enables customers to directly link their bank accounts for payments. Beyond purchase payments, some also offer in-store financial services such as bill payment and check cashing, further demonstrating their role as comprehensive service providers. The extensive array of payment options available both online and in-store highlights these companies’ dedication to accommodating the diverse needs and preferences of their vast customer bases. The inclusion of modern payment solutions like “buy now, pay later” services and their proprietary digital wallets underscores their commitment to staying abreast of evolving payment trends.

To ensure a secure checkout environment, popular e-commerce websites incorporate several key features. Their mobile payment solutions utilize secure Quick Response (QR) code systems for transactions, and all sensitive payment information is protected through Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) encryption. For credit card transactions, the Card Verification Value (CVV) code is a mandatory security measure. These companies emphasize their ongoing commitment to maintaining multiple layers of security and continuously updating and rigorously testing their security protocols. Their apps provide secure platforms for users to store their payment details, facilitating faster and more convenient checkout processes for repeat purchases. In their physical stores, advanced technologies in self-checkout areas, including ATM-like systems with artificial intelligence (AI) and Radio-Frequency Identification (RFID), are being implemented to bolster security and mitigate shoplifting incidents8. AI-powered “Missed Scan Detection” technology is also employed at self-checkout stations to identify and alert staff to potentially unscanned items. Comprehensive privacy policies outline the companies’ practices regarding the collection and use of personal information, including payment details, while also providing users with options to manage their data and preferences. The significant investment in security measures, encompassing encryption, AI-driven surveillance, and RFID technology, underscores these companies’ commitment to safeguarding customer payment information and fostering a trustworthy and secure shopping experience. Furthermore, the availability of features like mobile payment and Scan & Go not only streamline the checkout process but also enhance security by reducing the need to handle physical cards and minimizing direct contact with payment terminals.

V. Implementing Effective Search Functionality and Navigation:

Efficient search and navigation are crucial for enabling users to easily find the products they need on large e-commerce platforms. Popular e-commerce websites are actively leveraging the power of Generative AI to significantly improve the accuracy and speed of their search functionality, aiming to help customers discover their desired products more quickly. These companies employ AI/ML and Natural Language Processing (NLP) models that are specifically trained to understand retail-related queries, particularly within the context of their extensive product catalogs. By developing and utilizing fine-tuned models, customers can receive search responses that are highly specific to the platforms’ offerings. The overarching goal of this advanced search capability is to eliminate the “guessing game” often associated with online searching by gaining a deeper understanding of customers’ underlying needs and intentions. GenAI search is designed to provide a holistic set of product recommendations, organized into distinct categories based on the principle of being ‘Mutually exclusive, collectively exhaustive (MECE), ‘ ensuring that all potential customer needs are covered without any overlap or gaps. This strategic investment in cutting-edge AI technologies reflects these companies’ commitment to providing a more intuitive and comprehensive search experience for their customers.

To further refine the search process, popular e-commerce websites offer comprehensive suites of filters and sorting options. On the search results pages, users can filter products based on how quickly they need them and their preferred delivery methods, such as “Need it fast” or “Pickup & shipping”. For sellers on the marketplaces of these platforms, the ability to filter assortment recommendations by various criteria, including price range, product category, and brand, is provided 21. Third-party tools also enable users to filter and sort search results based on specific parameters like product category, sorting order (ascending or descending price), and customer ratings 22. Standard sorting options available on the websites include sorting by best seller, best match, and price (from low to high or high to low). These sorting preferences are often reflected in the URL parameters of the search results pages, such as sort=price_low for sorting by price in ascending order. The wide array of filtering and sorting options available on popular e-commerce websites empowers users to effectively narrow down their search results based on their specific requirements and preferences, enhancing their ability to find the most relevant products within the vast inventory.

Beyond search, ease of website navigation is paramount for a positive user experience. Key principles of effective e-commerce navigation include the use of clear and intuitive product categories complemented by a prominent and easily accessible search bar. Popular e-commerce websites incorporate these fundamental elements. Additionally, user-friendly navigation is often enhanced by features such as breadcrumbs, which allow users to trace their navigation path; a section for recently viewed items, providing quick access to previously browsed products; a wishlist or favorites option for saving items for later consideration; a quick view functionality that allows users to preview product details without navigating to the full product page; and a back-to-top button, which simplifies navigation on lengthy pages. For sellers utilizing the seller centers of these platforms, the navigation is structured with expandable and collapsible panels, offering flexibility in viewing options. Icons located in the top corners often provide quick access to essential applications like brand centers and developer portals. For sellers operating in multiple global marketplaces, switching between different accounts is made seamless through flag icons in the top navigation. To further aid in website navigation, sitemaps are often provided, offering structured overviews of the websites’ content and links to various sections. For users of the mobile apps, valuable “Find an item” features, when used within physical stores, display the aisle locations of searched products on store maps. This comprehensive approach to website navigation, encompassing clear categorization, robust search capabilities, and user-friendly features across both desktop and mobile platforms, underscores these companies’ commitment to ensuring that users can easily and efficiently find the information and products they need.

VI. Providing Robust Customer Service Resources:

Comprehensive and easily accessible customer service resources are essential for building trust and ensuring a positive shopping experience. Popular e-commerce websites offer a range of support options for their customers.

These platforms feature comprehensive Help Centers that provide answers to a wide variety of common questions. The Help Centers are structured to allow users to either browse help topics or engage in chat sessions with customer service. The topics covered are extensive, including managing orders, handling returns and refunds, information about various services, details on delivery options, and relevant company policies. In addition to the main Help Centers, specialized help centers for specific services, such as financial services and auto services, are also often available, allowing users to find targeted information related to these areas. Furthermore, dedicated Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) sections address issues specifically related to certain services, catering to unique regulations and processes involved. The presence of well-organized and comprehensive Help Centers on popular e-commerce websites serves as valuable self-service resources, enabling customers to find answers to their queries quickly and efficiently without needing to contact customer support.

For customers who require direct assistance, popular e-commerce websites provide multiple channels for contact. Primary customer service phone numbers are readily available. Additionally, online chat functions are easily accessible through the Help Centers, offering convenient ways for users to communicate with support agents in real time. Specific contact information for different types of inquiries, including media relations, financial services, investor relations, and supplier communications, is also typically provided. Dedicated customer care numbers are available for specific services. In cases requiring escalation, specific contact numbers for customer escalations are provided. The provision of multiple contact methods ensures that customers can choose the channel that best suits their needs and the urgency of their issue.

Popular e-commerce websites also incorporate live chat and support bot features to enhance their customer service capabilities. The Help Centers prominently feature “Chat with us” options. When initiated, the live chats typically begin with chatbots, which present users with lists of common issues and attempt to provide solutions or guide them to relevant information. If the chatbots are unable to resolve the queries, they offer the option to connect with live customer service agents. This tiered approach, starting with chatbots and offering escalation to human agents, allows these companies to efficiently handle large volumes of customer inquiries, providing immediate responses to common issues while ensuring that more complex problems can be addressed by trained professionals.

VII. Leveraging Marketing and Promotional Strategies:

Marketing and promotional strategies play crucial roles in driving sales and customer engagement for e-commerce platforms. Popular e-commerce websites employ several tactics to attract and retain customers.

These platforms feature dedicated sections that prominently showcase various deals and promotions, including “Flash Deals,” “Today Only,” “Rollback,” and “Clearance”. “Flash Deals” are limited-time offers that often provide significant discounts on selected products. The websites also highlight deals that are available for single days in the “Today Only” section. Products marked with “Rollback” tags indicate temporary price reductions. Additionally, the “Clearance sections offer items at significantly reduced prices. Deals are also strategically organized by product categories, such as electronics and home goods, making it easier for customers to find offers on items they are interested in. Some products featured in the deals sections are also labeled as “Best Seller” or “Sponsored,” indicating their popularity or promotional placement. The active promotion of deals and discounts through these clearly defined sections on popular e-commerce websites is a key strategy for attracting customers and driving sales.

Popular e-commerce websites leverage data and artificial intelligence to offer personalized product recommendations to their users. The companies’ Generative AI search is designed to provide tailored responses and product suggestions based on individual customer search queries and their engagement history with the platforms. Furthermore, the assortment recommendation systems used by sellers on the marketplaces utilize internal and external search data, information on best-selling items, and current trending products to generate personalized item suggestions 21. Personalized recommendations are also recognized as key features of effective e-commerce websites in general. By offering relevant product suggestions based on past behavior and current trends, these platforms aim to enhance the shopping experience, improve product discovery, and ultimately increase sales and customer satisfaction.

While not explicitly detailed in the provided snippets, it is a common and highly effective e-commerce marketing practice to offer incentives for users to sign up for email newsletters or to create accounts. These offers can include exclusive discounts, early access to sales, or other benefits in exchange for providing their email addresses. This allows popular e-commerce websites to build their customer email lists and directly communicate promotions, new product announcements, and personalized offers to their subscribers, fostering customer loyalty and driving repeat purchases.

VIII. Demonstrating Commitment to Accessibility and Inclusivity:

Popular e-commerce websites demonstrate strong commitments to ensuring that their online platforms are accessible to all customers, including individuals with disabilities.

These companies have explicitly stated their commitments to making their websites accessible to all customers, including those with disabilities. Their accessibility efforts are guided by the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) version 2.1, Level AA, which are internationally recognized standards for web accessibility. They actively encourage feedback from users regarding the accessibility of their websites, demonstrating proactive approaches to continuous improvement. To further assist shoppers with disabilities, some are piloting programs that provide free access to visual interpreters (through partnerships with services like Aira) both in their physical stores and on their websites. These services connect customers with sighted interpreters who can provide real-time descriptions of their surroundings, assist with navigation, and read signage or product labels. In their physical locations, sensory-friendly shopping hours have also been introduced, and adaptive products are being expanded to better meet the needs of customers with disabilities. The “Adaptive at [Platform Name]” sections on their websites feature varieties of products catering to different needs, including hearing aids, adaptive clothing, sensory toys, mobility aids, and daily living aids. For customers utilizing healthcare services offered by some of these platforms, language assistance in over 220 languages is provided, along with large print resources, “talking labels,” Braille prescription labels upon request, and arrangements for American Sign Language (ASL) interpreters. Stores are also designed to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and store associates receive training to assist customers with disabilities upon request. These comprehensive efforts demonstrate these companies’ significant commitment to creating inclusive shopping experiences for all customers.

Popular e-commerce websites provide clear and readily available information about their commitments to accessibility through dedicated accessibility statements on various parts of their online presence. Accessibility statements are available in the investor relations sections of their corporate websites. Similarly, retail sites for specific products like contact lenses also feature accessibility statements outlining aims to comply with WCAG and Section 08 standards. Furthermore, links to main accessibility policies are included in the footer sections of the primary websites. The presence of these easily accessible statements underscores these companies’ transparency and accountability in their ongoing efforts to ensure inclusive online experiences for all users.

IX. Conclusion:

The analysis of popular e-commerce websites reveals sophisticated and customer-centric platforms that incorporate numerous best practices across various aspects of their operations. The companies demonstrate a clear understanding of the importance of seamless and enjoyable online shopping experiences, from initial browsing to post-purchase support. Key takeaways include their commitment to blending brand heritage with modern digital design, their meticulous approaches to product page optimization with high-quality imagery and detailed descriptions, the provision of wide arrays of convenient and secure checkout options, the strategic use of advanced AI to enhance search functionality, the availability of comprehensive customer service resources, the focus on clear and intuitive website navigation, the active implementation of marketing and promotional strategies, and strong commitments to accessibility and inclusivity for all users. These practices collectively contribute to popular e-commerce websites’ positions as leading e-commerce platforms and offer valuable insights for other businesses looking to improve their online presence.

X. Actionable Recommendations:

Based on the identified best practices of popular e-commerce websites, the following actionable recommendations can be considered by other e-commerce platform owners and teams:

  1. Invest in High-Quality Visuals: Prioritize professional, high-resolution product photography that showcases items from multiple angles and in relevant contexts. Implement zoom features to allow customers to examine details closely.
  2. Craft Comprehensive Product Descriptions: Develop detailed and informative product descriptions that highlight key features and benefits, incorporating relevant keywords for search engine optimization. Aim for a substantial word count to provide ample information.
  3. Integrate and Leverage Customer Reviews: Prominently display customer reviews and ratings on product pages. Explore the use of AI-powered tools to summarize and analyze customer feedback for quick insights.
  4. Offer Diverse Checkout and Payment Options: Provide a wide range of checkout methods (e.g., guest checkout, account-based) and payment options, including credit/debit cards, digital wallets, “buy now, pay later” services, and other locally relevant payment methods.
  5. Ensure Robust Security Measures: Implement industry-standard security protocols, such as SSL encryption, and consider advanced technologies like AI-powered fraud detection to protect customer payment information and build trust.
  6. Enhance Search Functionality with Advanced Technologies: Explore the integration of AI and natural language processing to improve the accuracy and intuitiveness of the website’s search capabilities.
  7. Provide Comprehensive Filtering and Sorting: Offer a wide variety of filters (e.g., price, category, brand, size, color) and sorting options (e.g., price, popularity, ratings) on search results pages to help users quickly narrow down their choices.
  8. Optimize Website Navigation: Ensure clear and intuitive website navigation with well-defined product categories, a prominent search bar, breadcrumbs, and mobile-friendly design principles. Consider features like recently viewed items and wishlists5.
  9. Develop Comprehensive Customer Service Resources: Create a detailed Help Center with FAQs covering a wide range of topics. Offer multiple contact channels, including phone, email, and live chat, potentially incorporating chatbot technology for initial support and efficient handling of common queries.
  10. Implement Strategic Marketing and Promotions: Utilize various promotional tactics, such as flash sales, category-specific discounts, and clearance events, to attract customers. Leverage data to offer personalized product recommendations and consider email marketing campaigns for customer engagement.
  11. Prioritize Website Accessibility: Adhere to WCAG guidelines to ensure the website is accessible to users with disabilities. Provide assistive features and information about the company’s commitment to inclusivity through a clear and easily accessible accessibility statement. Consider offering assistive services like visual interpreters.

Table: Summary of Payment Options on Popular E-commerce Websites

Payment MethodOnline/In-StoreKey Features/Benefits
Credit CardsBothWidely accepted, various rewards programs.
Debit CardsBothDirect withdrawal from bank account.
PayPalOnlineA secure online payment platform may offer buyer protection.
Gift CardsBothCan be purchased online or in-store, easy to redeem.
Mobile PaymentIn-StoreTouch-free payment via the app, secure storage of payment information, and access to e-receipts.
AffirmBoth“Buy now, pay later” service allows for installment payments.
EBT CardsBothAccepted for eligible items, facilitates purchases for SNAP and other benefit recipients.
Pay by BankOnlineDirect payment from a linked bank account.
Reloadable Debit CardsBothOffers cash-back rewards on purchases.
CashIn-StoreTraditional payment method.
One Cash (via One Pay)BothEarn points for every $10 spent, redeemable as cashback with a One Cash account. Requires the One app.
HSA/FSA CardsOnlineAccepted for eligible healthcare items.
Benefit CardsOnlineAccepted for eligible items (e.g., Healthy Benefits, OTC Network).
Refund CreditOnlineCredit was issued for returned items.

Table 2: Popular E-commerce Websites Customer Service Resources

Resource TypeAccess MethodKey Features/Information
Help CenterLink on the website (usually in the footer or top navigation)Comprehensive FAQs covering order management, returns, services, policies, and more. Search functionality and categorize topics for easy navigation.
Phone SupportTypically, a 1-800 numberDirect voice communication with customer service representatives for inquiries and issue resolution.
Online Chat“Chat with us” button within the Help CenterReal-time text-based communication with customer service agents or chatbots for immediate assistance. Often available 24/7.
Email SupportTypically accessed through contact forms within the Help CenterAllows customers to submit detailed inquiries in writing and receive responses via email. Suitable for non-urgent issues.
Financial Services HelpDedicated phone numbersSupport for issues related to financial products, including balance inquiries and card management.
Auto Services HelpTypically found within the Auto Services section of the websiteProvides information and contact options for inquiries related to auto services.
Local Marketplace HelpPhone numbers often providedSpecific support for issues related to local marketplace orders, including cancellations and delivery issues.
Escalation LineSpecific phone numberDedicated line for escalating unresolved customer service issues.
Social Media SupportVia Twitter and FacebookCustomers can reach out for quick inquiries and support via direct messages or public posts. Response times may vary.
Ethics Helpline1-800 number or online formA confidential channel for reporting ethical concerns or violations.
Accessibility SupportDedicated phone lineDedicated phone line for customers experiencing difficulty accessing the website content.
Healthcare SupportEmail addresses often providedEmail address for healthcare accessibility questions, concerns, or suggestions.
Investor RelationsEmail via websiteContact for shareholder inquiries and financial information.
SuppliersContact via buyer/business contactSpecific process for suppliers to contact regarding business matters.
Associate SupportDedicated phone lines or portalsResources for associates regarding employment, benefits, and internal platforms.

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Opencart 4 book: User manual to create a full-fledged eCommerce store

We start with what is Opencart and end with setting up Opencart’s full-fledged eCommerce store. Are you ready to create your OpenCart store? Whether you’re a beginner just starting your eCommerce journey or a seasoned veteran looking to optimize your online presence, “OpenCart 4: User manual to create a full-fledged eCommerce store” is your comprehensive guide to mastering OpenCart.

What topics are covered?

  1. INTRODUCTION
    • Who can use OpenCart?
    • From the user’s perspective
    • Key Features of OpenCart
  2. DOMAIN REGISTRATION
    • Choosing a Domain Name
    • Checking Domain Availability
    • Registering the Domain
    • Managing Your Domain
    • Additional Tips
  3. OPENCART 4 INSTALLATION, CPANEL, SERVER SETUP, SSL, FTP, EMAIL
    • Choosing the Right Server Type
    • Server Requirements for OpenCart
    • Easy OpenCart Setup on cPanel Hosting via Softaculous
      • Step 1: Log into cPanel
      • Step 2: Enable SSL for the domain in cPanel
      • Step 3: Install OpenCart via Softaculous
    • Setting Up FTP Access
    • Configuring Email
    • Configuring PHP Settings:
    • SSL certificate setup for URL
    • Is the SSL certificate required on Opencart?
    • Which are the pages that you have to make SSL in the eCommerce site?
    • Server settings for the Encrypts SSL
  4. OPENCART 4 ADMIN SYSTEM SETTINGS
    • Settings
    • Users
    • Localisation
    • Multiple Store Locations on the Contact Us page of Opencart
    • Countries and Zones States Regions management
    • Length and Weight
    • Currencies management in the Opencart 4 version with auto-update
    • Language
    • Stock status management and product availability in Opencart
    • Order status management in Opencart
    • Maintenance
      • Maintenance Mode in Opencart
      • Backup/Restore in Opencart
      • Uploads in the Opencart maintenance section
      • Error Logs in Opencart
      • Upgrade
  5. OPENCART 4 CATALOG MANAGEMENT
    • Categories management
      • Accessing the Admin Panel
      • Navigate to Categories Management
      • Creating a New Category
      • Category Details:
      • Editing an Existing Category
      • Deleting a Category
      • SEO and Best Practices for Categories
      • Category frontend
    • Products management
      • Adding a Product
      • Copying a Product
      • Editing a Product
      • Deleting a Product
      • Master Product and Variant Product in Opencart
      • Where do you look if the product is not showing in the front end?
      • Example URL of product detail page
    • How Does the Wishlist Work in OpenCart?
      • How Customers Use the Wishlist in OpenCart
      • Benefits of the Wishlist Feature in OpenCart
      • Managing the Wishlist as an Admin
    • How Does the Compare Products Feature Work in OpenCart?
    • Subscription Plans
      • Key Features of Subscription Plans in OpenCart
      • Setting Up Subscription Plans in OpenCart
      • Assign Subscription Plans to the Product
      • Configure Subscription Plan Details
      • Frontend view of subscription plan
      • Managing Subscription Plans
      • Payment Gateway Considerations
      • Recommended Gateways
      • Use Cases for Subscription Plans
      • Benefits of Using Subscription Plans
        • Limitations of Subscription Plans
      • Best Practices for Subscription Plans
    • Filters management
      • Understanding Filters and Filter Groups
      • Setting Up Filters and Filter Groups
      • Using Filters in the Frontend (Store)
      • Examples of Filters and Filter Groups
      • Use Cases of Filters in Opencart 4
    • Attributes management
      • What are Attributes?
      • Key Differences Between Options and Attributes
      • Accessing Attribute Management
      • Creating an Attribute Group
      • Creating a New Attribute
      • Editing an Attribute
      • Deleting an Attribute
      • Assigning Attributes to Products
      • Best Practices for Attribute Management
    • Options management
      • Accessing Options Management
      • Adding a New Option
      • Editing an Existing Option
      • Deleting an Option
      • Assigning Options to Products
      • Real-World Examples
      • Best Practices for Options Management
      • Common Issues and Troubleshooting
    • Manufacturers management
      • Adding a New Manufacturer
      • Editing an Existing Manufacturer
      • Deleting a Manufacturer
      • Assigning Manufacturers to Products
    • Download management
      • Add/upload the download file.
      • Add the product and assign the download.
      • How do you make instant downloads available for digital products?
      • How will customers order the PDF or digital products?
      • Things to consider
    • Reviews management
      • Why Product Reviews Matter
      • Product Reviews section
      • Accessing Reviews Management in OpenCart
      • Adding a New Review
      • Editing a Review
      • Deleting a Review
      • Enabling and Disabling Reviews
      • Best Practices for Reviews Management
      • Troubleshooting Review Issues
    • Information pages management
      • Importance of Information Pages
      • Adding a New Information Page
      • Editing an Information Page
      • Deleting an Information Page
      • Assigning Information Pages to Layouts
      • Best Practices for Information Pages
      • Example Use Cases
      • Additional Considerations
  6. OPENCART 4 DESIGN
    • What Are Design Layout Overrides?
      • Why Use Design Layout Overrides?
      • How to Implement Design Layout Overrides in OpenCart 4
      • Examples of Layout Overrides
      • Best Practices for Using Design Layout Overrides
    • Layouts management
      • Default Layout in Opencart 4
      • How do you show different layouts for different pages in Opencart 4?
      • Common Layout Scenarios
    • How do you customize the Opencart homepage?
    • Where can you find modules in Opencart 4?
    • Theme Editor
      • Steps to make the theme editor
    • Banners management
      • Overview of the Banners Page
      • Adding a New Banner
      • Editing an Existing Banner
      • Deleting a Banner
      • Assigning Banners to Layouts
      • Best Practices for Banner Management
      • Example Use Case
    • Language Editor
      • Key Features of the Language Editor
      • How to Access the Language Editor
      • How to Use the Language Editor
      • Use Cases for the Language Editor
      • Benefits of the Language Editor
      • When to Use the Language Editor
      • Best Practices
    • Upload a new language pack in Opencart 4
    • Test Your Custom Language
    • Change the default language of Opencart 4
    • SEO URL management
      • What are SEO URLs?
      • Enabling SEO URLs in OpenCart
      • Managing SEO URLs
      • Tips for Optimizing SEO URLs
      • Common Use Cases for SEO URLs
  7. OPENCART 4 SALES MANAGEMENT
    • Orders
    • Order status global setting
    • Order statuses at Payment gateways
    • Customer Order Status in Order History
    • How do reward points work in Opencart?
    • Returns
      • Product Returns settings management:
      • Return Statuses:
      • Return Actions
      • Return Reasons
      • How does a customer submit product returns in Opencart 4?
      • Store administrator management of product returns
  8. OPENCART 4 CUSTOMER MANAGEMENT
    • Customer Account Management
    • Customer Groups
      • Benefits of Customer Groups
      • Creating Customer Groups
      • Editing Customer Groups
      • Assigning Customers to Groups
      • Practical Use Cases
      • Best Practices
    • Customer Approvals
      • Why Use Customer Approvals?
      • Enabling Customer Approvals
      • Approving or Denying Customers
    • GDPR
      • General Data Protection Regulation Request page and setting
      • Warning: You will lose access to your account!
      • How do you change the Cookie or GDPR text that you see in the popup?
    • Custom Fields
      • Example of the custom field in the registration form
      • How do you add the custom fields in Opencart?
  9. OPENCART 4 MARKETING MANAGEMENT
    • Affiliate
      • How is the affiliate registered in Opencart 4?
      • How do you activate the affiliate for the already registered customers?
      • How does the affiliate use the URL on their websites, blogs, or forums?
      • How is the commission added to the affiliate?
    • Marketing
      • Why Use Marketing Tracking?
      • Setting Up Marketing Tracking in OpenCart 4
      • Key Differences Between Marketing Tracking and Affiliate Tracking
      • Monitoring Campaign Performance
      • Practical Use Cases
      • Best Practices for Marketing Tracking
    • Coupons
      • Why Use Coupons in Your Store?
      • Accessing Coupon Management
      • Creating a New Coupon
      • Editing or Deleting Coupons
      • Tracking Coupon Performance
      • Best Practices for Coupon Management
      • Examples of Coupon Campaigns
    • Mail
      • Benefits of Marketing Mail
      • Accessing the Marketing Mail Feature
      • Creating a Marketing Mail Campaign
      • Example Use Cases
      • Troubleshooting Marketing Mail
  10. OPENCART 4 REPORTS MANAGEMENT
    • Popular Reports lists
    • Reports
      • Customer Transaction Report
      • Customer Activity Report
      • Customer Orders Report
      • Customer Reward Points Report
      • Customer Searches Report
      • Tax Report
      • Shipping Report
      • Returns Report
      • Sales Report
      • Coupon Report
      • Products Viewed Report
      • Products Purchased Report
      • Who’s Online
      • Statistics
    • How do you add reports in the admin dashboard of Opencart 4?
  11. OPENCART 4 EXTENSION MANAGEMENT
    • Marketplace
      • What is the Extension Marketplace?
      • Marketplace Categories
      • Accessing the OpenCart Extension Marketplace
      • Benefits of Using the OpenCart Marketplace
    • Installer
      • Accessing the Installer
      • Using the Installer
    • Extensions
      • Uploading an extension in OpenCart
      • Installing a module:
      • Uninstalling a module
      • Remove a module
      • Upload of extension with OCMOD
      • Installation of OCMOD extension
    • Types of Opencart Extensions
      • Order Total modules
      • Captchas
      • Module
      • Analytics:
      • Currency rates:
      • Other extensions:
    • Difference between single-instance module and Multi-instance module
    • Automatically post new Opencart products on social media like Facebook for free.
      • Some other Automation Tools
      • Benefits of Auto-Publishing via RSS
    • Add an Analytics extension in Opencart 4? Third-party JS free Opencart extension
    • Install the Opencart 4 Analytics extension.
    • Add conversion code on the success page of Opencart
    • OpenCart Payment Methods
      • Types of Payment Methods in OpenCart
      • Online Payment Gateways
      • Offline Payment Methods
      • How to Configure Payment Methods in OpenCart
      • Best Practices for Payment Methods in OpenCart
  12. OPENCART 4 THEME
    • Install the Opencart 4 theme.
    • Activate Opencart 4 theme
    • Uninstall the Opencart 4 theme.
    • OPENCART 4 LANGUAGE MANAGEMENT
    • Upload a new language pack in Opencart 4
    • Add a new language pack in Opencart 4
    • Test Your Custom Language
    • Change the default language of Opencart 4
    • Override the language texts from the Admin Interface.
  13. OPENCART 4 CMS OR BLOG SYSTEM
    • Why a Blog System Matters for eCommerce
    • CMS or Blog setting
    • Blog CMS Admin section
    • Topics or Category Management
    • Articles management (Add, edit, and delete)
    • Frontend Blog listing page
    • Article or Blog detail page
    • Blog module in Opencart
    • Topics module
    • Comment section
    • Managing User Group Permissions for CMS or Blog in OpenCart
    • Granting Permissions for CMS or Blog
    • Key Features of the OpenCart Blog System
    • Benefits of the OpenCart Blog System
  14. OPENCART 4 EVENT SYSTEM
    • Event Types
    • Using Opencart Events:
    • Registering Events:
    • Using Events for Customization:
    • List of Events
    • Language events
    • Activity events
    • Statistics events
    • Theme event
    • Admin Currency Events
    • Admin Statistics Events
    • Translation Event
    • Admin Language Events
    • Testing Opencart Events
    • Challenges
    • Best Practices while using Opencart Events:
  15. OPENCART 4 API DOCUMENTATION
    • Create an API username and key.
    • Opencart user, permissions, user group management, and API users
    • Authentication and Request Format of Opencart API:
    • Request
    • Request Parameters
    • Opencart 4 API Endpoints
    • Error Handling
  16. OPENCART 4 MULTI-WEBSITES OR STORE SETUP
    • Benefits of a Multisite Setup
    • Prerequisites
    • Example stores
    • Step-by-Step Guide to Setting Up Multisite in OpenCart 4
    • Step 1: Configure Your Domain/Subdomain
    • Step 2: Add New Stores in OpenCart Admin
    • Step 3: Configure Store Settings
    • Step 4: Customize Your Store
    • Step 5: Assign Products and Categories
    • Step 6: Test Your Store
  17. OPENCART 4 SEO BEST PRACTICES
    • Admin Setting section changes for the SEO
    • SEO-Friendly URLs
    • Optimize Product and Category Pages
    • Image Optimization
    • Internal Linking
    • Mobile Optimization
    • Enable the sitemap extension.
    • Add robots.txt
    • Canonical URL
    • Social proof
    • Schema Markup
    • Site Speed and Performance
    • GZIP Compression
    • Webfont loading
    • Fix broken links
    • Add your Business to Google
    • 301 Redirects
    • SSL certificates
    • Mobile-first approach
    • Regular Monitoring and Analysis
  18. OPENCART 4 SPEED OPTIMIZATION
    • Choose a better hosting provider and a better cache module.
    • Disable the Category Product Count
    • Use the image sizes properly.
    • Use the proper extension for the image:
    • GZIP compression level
    • Index the database table
    • Enable Caching
    • Minify and Combine CSS & JavaScript
    • Reduce HTTP Requests
    • Enable Lazy Loading for Images
    • Remove Unused Extensions and Modules
    • Monitor Performance with Tools
    • OPENCART 4 SECURITY MEASURES
    • Use good and secure hosting.
    • Check if the install/ folder is still there.
    • Proper Security settings in the admin
    • Use HTTPS/SSL Certificate
    • Use the latest PHP version.
    • Use Anti-fraud extension
    • Error handling setting
    • Monitor your admin error logs.
    • Block bad bots
    • Allowed File extensions and allowed file mime type permissions
    • Review All Users and User Groups and Grant the Minimum Permissions Necessary
    • Use a strong username and password.
    • API security in Opencart
    • Always use the latest Opencart version, theme, modules, and extensions
    • Remove unused modules or extensions.
    • Monitor your server logs.
    • Use HTTP security headers.
    • Cross-Site Scripting (XSS)
    • Database Security and SQL Injections
    • Denial of Service
    • Backup
    • Use Basic Captcha
  19. COMPLETE E-COMMERCE FLOW FROM BROWSING TO CHECKOUT SUCCESS
    • Homepage: The Entry Point
    • Category Page: Exploring Products
    • Product Page: Selecting a Product
    • Cart Page: Reviewing the Order
    • Account Login / Sign Up (If Required)
    • Checkout Page: Finalizing the Order
    • Success Page: Order Completion
    • Additional Features Post-Purchase:
  20. PRO TIPS AND TRICKS
    • Opencart eCommerce Site Launch Checklist for a Successful Start
    • Opencart 4 error Warning: You do not have permission to modify the default store theme!
    • Why is shipping not showing in Opencart?
    • How do you set up free shipping in the Opencart store?
    • How do you set up a flat shipping rate in the Opencart store?
    • How do you set up free shipping for orders over $100, and below, will it be $5 flat-rate shipping?
    • How do you set the shipping rate per item?
    • How can you set up pick up from the store shipping in the Opencart?
    • How do you set up a weight-based shipping rate?
    • What is ‘Zone Shipping’ and how do you set it up?
  21. COMMON ERRORS AND THEIR SOLUTIONS
    • Blank white pages or 500 internal server error
    • Headers already sent
    • Allowed Memory Size Exhausted
    • Email is not working in Opencart – ways to solve
    • OpenCart Developer attributes for your customization, and how do you validate the work?
  22. Useful Links

    Who is this book for?

    This book is tailored for a wide range of individuals looking to harness the power of OpenCart:

    • Aspiring eCommerce Entrepreneurs: If you’re new to online selling and want a clear, step-by-step guide to setting up your store, this book is perfect for you.
    • Existing OpenCart Store Owners: If you’re already running an OpenCart store and want to optimize its performance, expand its capabilities, or streamline your workflow, this book provides valuable insights and advanced techniques.
    • Web Developers and Designers: If you’re a developer or designer looking to build robust and scalable eCommerce solutions for clients, this book will equip you with the knowledge and skills to master OpenCart.
    • Small Business Owners: If you’re a small business owner looking for a cost-effective and flexible eCommerce platform, this book will help you navigate OpenCart’s features and functionalities.
    • Anyone Interested in eCommerce: Whether you’re a student, a hobbyist, or simply curious about eCommerce, this book provides a comprehensive overview of OpenCart and its potential.

    This book isn’t just a manual; it’s a roadmap to building a thriving online business. It covers everything from the initial installation and configuration to advanced administration techniques and localization strategies.

    Here’s what you’ll discover:

    • Effortless Installation & Setup: Get your store up and running quickly with clear, step-by-step instructions.
    • Mastering Administration: Learn to manage products, categories, customers, orders, and more with ease.
    • Unlocking Localization: Expand your reach by setting up multi-language and multi-currency support.
    • Optimizing Your Store: Discover tips and tricks to improve performance, security, and SEO.
    • And much more!

    Why choose this book?

    • Comprehensive Coverage: It leaves no stone unturned, providing a complete understanding of OpenCart’s functionalities.
    • Practical Approach: It focuses on real-world scenarios and provides actionable advice you can implement immediately.
    • Easy-to-Follow Style: It’s written in a clear and concise manner, making it accessible to readers of all technical backgrounds.
    • Up-to-Date Information: It covers the latest features and best practices for OpenCart.

    Ready to transform your OpenCart store into a powerful selling machine?

    Don’t miss out on this invaluable resource. Click here to grab your copy of “OpenCart 4: User manual to create a full-fledged eCommerce store” today and unlock the full potential of your OpenCart store!

    After completing this book, you can read to become Opencart developer: OpenCart 4: Dev Guide for Themes & Extensions: Unlock the Potential of OpenCart 4: Master Theme, Extension Development, and Docs for Developers

    Tips for Overcoming Tax Debt and Regaining Financial Freedom

    Struggling with tax debt can be like facing a stormy sea without a compass, but regaining control of your financial ship doesn’t have to be a solo journey. Understanding the depth and nature of your obligations is a crucial anchor point. By identifying the size, source, and terms of your tax debt, you prepare yourself to chart a course toward solvency. Below, you’ll find actionable strategies to navigate through your tax woes and sail toward calmer financial waters. Keep reading to unlock the secrets of managing and overcoming tax debt burdens.

    Understanding Your Tax Debt: The First Step to Financial Recovery

    img

    Addressing tax debt starts with understanding what you owe and how it is accumulated. Review your statements carefully, as unpaid taxes, penalties, or interest could be adding to the problem. Responding to IRS notices promptly and verifying the accuracy of your debt can help prevent further complications.

    If the debt feels overwhelming, tax relief services can provide expert guidance tailored to your situation. Some people even explore creative solutions like selling assets and turning trash cars for cash, which could be one way to generate funds and ease financial strain.

    Navigating IRS Payment Plans: A Viable Option for Managing Tax Burdens

    The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) offers installment agreements to help individuals settle their tax debt in smaller, manageable amounts. These plans range from short-term extensions to long-term installment agreements, tailored to different debt levels and ability to pay.

    Setting up a payment plan with the IRS can be complex and require negotiation. The expertise of a tax professional can help secure a more favorable plan for your financial situation. It’s crucial to stay compliant with all current and future tax responsibilities while on a payment plan, as new tax liabilities can jeopardize your agreement, leading to possible default and further enforcement actions.

    Settling Tax Debt for Less: Exploring Offers in Compromise

    An Offer in Compromise (OIC) is a tax debt settlement option that allows individuals to settle their liabilities for less than the full amount owed, provided they meet certain conditions set by the IRS. The IRS assesses eligibility by examining income, expenses, asset equity, and ability to pay, ensuring the offer is in the best interest of both taxpayers and the government.

    The process of obtaining and submitting documentation for an OIC is meticulous and not a quick fix. However, if accepted, it can alleviate the burden of heavy tax burden, potentially saving thousands of dollars and providing a fresh financial start.

    Professional Guidance: When to Consider a Tax Relief Attorney or CPA

    img

    Tax laws and regulations can be complex, making hiring a tax attorney or certified public accountant (CPA) essential. These professionals have a deep understanding of tax code intricacies and can help navigate legal challenges, such as IRS audits or liens.

    They can also correct past tax returns and prepare future filings to prevent further debt accumulation. The decision to hire a tax professional depends on the complexity of your situation, but the long-term benefits, such as reduced debt, avoided penalties, and peace of mind, can outweigh the initial investment in professional services.

    Staying Tax Debt-Free: Strategies for Future Financial Stability

    Maintaining financial stability after overcoming tax debt is crucial. Proactive tax planning and budget management can prevent a resurgence of burdens. Maintaining thorough records and reporting deadlines can protect against future issues. Consulting with a financial planner or tax advisor can help understand tax implications and devise strategies like increasing withholdings or quarterly estimated tax payments.

    Understanding how life changes impact tax liabilities is essential. Staying informed about potential tax benefits and obligations during transitions is also crucial. Learning from past experiences and applying that knowledge to future financial behavior is key to long-term stability.

    Overall, while facing tax debt can be a challenging episode in anyone’s financial journey, there are clear steps that can lead to resolution and recovery. Whether through payment plans, offers in compromise, or seeking the advice of seasoned professionals, the paths to regaining financial freedom are accessible and achievable. Understanding and acting upon these strategies can transform a tax burden into a lesson in financial resilience and savvy.

    OpenAI ChatGPT uses in eCommerce business

    You may be thinking about how we can use the OpenAI ChatGPT in your eCommerce business, here we are showing you how you can use or benefit from the OpenAI ChatGPT in your eCommerce business like copywriting, writing product descriptions, titles, emails, social media content, responses, personalized product recommendations, getting products information like popular ones, and many more. ChatGPT is simply a new tool, so it needs to be carefully used and trained on a relevant dataset of questions and responses. You can use it to get ideas and suggestions but creating content as naturally as possible is always good. Let’s start with copywriting.

    Copy-writing with OpenAI ChatGPT

    You can use OpenAI ChatGPT for copywriting. Based on a given prompt or conversation environment, OpenAI’s ChatGPT language model can be used to produce text responses that resemble those of a human. ChatGPT can be used to come up with concepts or content for marketing pieces like product descriptions, blog entries, or email campaigns. A copywriter might give ChatGPT a list of keywords or a broad theme, for instance, and the model might then provide a list of concepts or a draft of the copy based on that input.

    Read more: 12+ Artificial Intelligence ideas that you can use for your eCommerce website

    Here is one example of how OpenAI ChatGPT gives a response when we ask: “Can you please provide copywriting content for the Buddha statue?”

    Copywriting OpenAI ChatGPT

    We were looking for small copywriting content, but ChatGPT gives us multiple paragraphs, so we again ask “Can you please provide short copywriting content for the Buddha statue?”, here is the response:

    small copywritin OpenAI ChatGPT

    The more detailed information you give the more exact answer you will get, but take in mind it is still in preview mode.

    Read more: Final year college projects ideas for student

    OpenAI ChatGPT can help you write product descriptions

    ChatGPT can be used to generate ideas or rough drafts of product descriptions based on input provided which you can review the output and refine to create a final product description that is clear, compelling, and accurate. Here is one example of how we asked the ChatGPT to provide the product description: “Write a product description of bronze Nepali Buddha statue from Nepal, price $400, 10cm height 10 cm width and 10 cm breadth, materials used bronze” and the response is like below:

    Product description OpenAI ChatGPT

    Again, ChatGPT is simply a tool for generating text, and it is up to the writer to use their skills and expertise to craft a product description that meets the desired tone and style of your brand.

    Read about: How to build a free eCommerce website using Opencart 4 user manual in 2023.

    Email writing with ChatGPT

    Every eCommerce uses multiple email touch points for promotions, signup, forgot password emails, vouchers, order confirmation, etc. You can use the ChatGPT by providing information about the purpose of the email, the intended audience, and any relevant context, and the model could generate a list of ideas or a draft email based on that input. Here is one example of how we ask ChatGPT to provide the signup email. We asked ChatGPT “Write a signup success email for webocreation.com an eCommerce website?” and the response is like below:

    Signup email written by OpenAI ChatGPT

    As you see, it provides you with overall ideas and drafts to start with the content, which you can use as per your requirements.

    How to fix an email that is not working in Opencart?

    Getting product information like popular ones

    We cannot be 100% sure but we can get some overall ideas, we asked OpenAI ChatGPT to provide popular kitchen products by asking like “popular products in kitchen appliances” and the result is like below:

    popular products in kitchen appliances category

    Use OpenAI ChatGPT for social media content

    We can use OpenAI ChatGPT for social media content. We asked ChatGPT to provide the social media promotion content for our ebook “OpenCart Theme and Module Development” and it provided us the following content:

    Social media content generated from OpenAI ChatGPT

    But, we cannot promote this content on Twitter because of the word limits so we asked ChatGPT to provide us the Twitter promotion text by asking “Write a Twitter social media promotion content for the ebook “OpenCart Theme and Module Development” and here is the response:

    Twitter promotion content generated from ChatGPT

    13 proven tips and tricks to boost eCommerce conversions

    Translate the content to multiple languages

    For the above Twitter promotion, we need to share in Nepalese and Spanish languages so we asked the ChatGPT to translate it just by typing “Translate it into Nepalese”, here is the result which is not totally good but it provides the starting points:

    Translation by ChatGPT

    Personalized products recommendations

    You can set up related products as per the personalized product recommendations. We asked ChatGPT to provide us the product recommendations for those ebook “product recommendations who bought the ebook “OpenCart Theme and Module Development”, here is the response:

    Product recommendations by ChatGPT

    Show related products on the cart page on the Opencart site

    Conclusion

    In conclusion, OpenAI’s ChatGPT is a potent language model with the potential to be applied in a number of eCommerce-related applications and processes. ChatGPT can be used for copywriting, writing product descriptions, titles, emails, social media content, responses, personalized product recommendations, getting product information like popular ones, and many more. However, it is crucial to remember that ChatGPT is merely a tool for producing text responses; it is up to the user to use it carefully which helps your eCommerce business. The ChatGPT gets trained on a relevant dataset of queries and responses in order to reach a high level of accuracy and efficacy but for now, we all need to use it carefully. Are you using ChatGPT, if yes let us know how you are using it and if not check it, it amazes you most of the time.

    Let us know if you have any other ways or ideas of AI that you have used in eCommerce websites or have any questions or suggestions, please subscribe to our YouTube Channel and read more about eCommerce, Web 3.0, blockchain, NFT, and the metaverse. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.

    Creators vs. Influencers: Who Should Your Brand Be Partnering With?

    All businesses are racing against others to try to gain as much visibility in their markets as possible. The more eyes and ears on the brand, the higher the likelihood of generating new leads and creating new revenue streams.

    But while added visibility is important when developing marketing campaigns, this added exposure won’t mean much without credibility. Unfortunately, these two elements don’t always go hand in hand, and businesses need to find ways to build trust and authority alongside their growing web traffic.

    For most organizations, this can present a bit of a dilemma – is it better to work with creators or with influencers? There are several factors to consider.

    What Makes a Creator?

    A creator is a marketing professional who focuses on creating high-quality original work. This could be written content, graphic design, video production, or any other leverageable marketing asset.

    Creators aren’t necessarily interested in promoting their work outside of the roles they’re hired to do. They typically go into the profession out of passion for the specific areas they focus on. Creators are commonly made up of artists, writers, musicians, teachers, and even DIY enthusiasts.

    Primary Areas of Focus for Creators

    • High-Quality, Original Work – Creators thrive on being original and challenging the status quo. This means they put a lot of effort into creating pieces that can’t be found everywhere else. This includes developing thought-leadership blog posts, original video or music compositions, or works of art.
    • Driven by Passion – Creators are typically very passionate individuals, especially when it comes to their craft. They’re deeply invested in performing their best and are motivated to share their work with others. This passion means they rarely compromise on the quality of the finished product and are willing to put in the work necessary to exceed expectations with those they work with.
    • Long-Term Vision – Most creators also have a long-term vision for seeing their ideas straight through to a finished product. They focus on completing work that can highlight their full capabilities and are consistent in their efforts.

    What Makes an Influencer?

    An influencer is an individual who has built a larger following of subscribers or viewers interested in what they have to say or do. This is especially the case when it comes to product influencers who take the time to review various products and provide honest impressions to their audiences.

    Most influencers focus on niche products or industries like fashion, beauty products, gaming, or lifestyle options. What makes influencers so impactful for businesses is their ability to leverage their brand to create a lot of buzz and significant amounts of highly relevant referral traffic.

    Primary Areas of Focus for Influencers

    • Building a Strong Personal Brand – Influencers often maintain a very distinct image and persona when generating their content. This uniqueness and consistency is what brings them a lot of respect from their following. Essentially, influencers create and maintain their own personal brand. The more true they are to themselves, the more trust and credibility they have.
    • Growing Their Following – One of the highest priorities for influencers is to continuously grow their follower list. The more followers influencers have, the more opportunities they have to leverage their connections to build on their brand. Typically influencers will be concerned about growing their following on a specific platform like Tik Tok or Instagram and usually its the one they have the most success with. 
    • Monetizing Their Influence – Another area of focus for influencers is monetization. This is typically achieved by using their popularity to help bring added exposure to brands. This exposure, of course, comes at a cost to brands, typically in the form of revenue sharing or other forms of compensation. 

    How to Choose the Right Partner for Your Brand

    As a brand looking to invest in the right individuals to help the business grow sustainability, there are many things to consider. However, when deciding between partnering with creators or influences, there are a few steps you can take to help you make the right decision:

    1. Define Your Campaign Goals

    Before you make decisions on a partnership, it’s important to first establish your short- and long-term goals. Think about what you’re trying to achieve. Maybe you’re just looking for some additional traffic to your website, or you’re looking for a long-term lead generation strategy. Knowing this ahead of time will help you to prioritize your partnerships accordingly.

    2. Know Your Target Audience

    After you know what you’re trying to achieve, start thinking about who your audience actually is. Think about what drives their purchasing decisions and what they’re more likely to engage with. Use research analytics platforms to help understand the demographics you’re working with and any type of relevant behaviors that can help you make better choices in your partnerships. An extremely important detail we look to discover with our client is when to post on X/Twitter as opposed to Instagram or Facebook. The audience can be similar on each platform, but the platform itself can heavily dictate the time of day content should be posted. 

    3. Focus on Quality Over Quantity

    While improving your reach is important, you also want to make sure you’re prioritizing quality brand engagement over just increasing your viewer or subscriber count. Many times, a smaller but much more targeted audience will bring more business benefits than just casting a wide net with individuals who may or may not need your products or services. 

    4. Set Measurable Goals

    When choosing any type of partnership, it’s important to have measurable goals in place that will help you decide whether or not you’re getting the value from the relationship you’re hoping for. This is especially helpful when deciding to test the waters with an influencer partnership. By tracking the effectiveness of joint marketing campaigns, you’ll be able to see if you made a reasonable ROI and if the partnership is worth continuing.

    5. Plan an Appropriate Budget

    Your budget should always be a key consideration for your partnerships. Take the time to research industry rates for both creators and influencers to see if one or both options are financially feasible for your business. I do recommend to those first entering into work with influencers and creators, to try and get a hand on the rates that the top social media agencies are using so that they have an actual anchor point to how they should structure their own sponsorships. Obviously you will not be able to hit the same numbers, but it helps in building your own offers. Having a clear budget in place will help you avoid wasting time and effort moving in a direction that might not be viable long-term.

    Find the Right Partnerships to Help Your Business Grow

    Deciding between partnerships with creators and influencers can be challenging for some businesses with limited budgets. However, by considering the pros and cons of each and focusing on your organization’s needs, you’ll create great working relationships with professionals who can help your business grow.

    40 cool final year college projects for students in 2025

    The final year project plays a vital role in deciding your career as a Computer Science student. The era of technology is constantly evolving and so is the need for great projects in the field. There are multi-billion dollar industries that demand great projects in the respective field – in order to be considered for recruitment. This raised the billion dollars question: What final-year project should I choose as a Computer Science Student in 2025? 

    Well, we have got some answers and ideas that you can choose from. In this blog, we have gathered some of the most reliable final-year projects for the students of Computer Science for 2025. By the end of this blog, you will be able to:

    • Analyze different cool final-year projects for Computer Science. 
    • Get a hands-on idea of final project ideas. 
    • Decide the cool final-year project that will help you flourish in your career. 

    Read More: Internship SWOT analysis final year report

    Cool Final Year College Projects That You Can Do As A Computer Science Student in 2025

    The field of Computer Science is one of the vast domains to study. It has an unwavering demand in the marketplace. Enterprises and high-paying companies yearn for efficient talents in the Computer Science field. Likewise, the final year college project is also equally important. This project opens the arenas of opportunities to be considered in these marketplaces. Here are some cool final year projects for Computer Science in 2025 that you can work on, we have made collections of around 40 projects, and we keep on writing for each project in our upcoming posts, so don’t forget to subscribe to our email list:

    Artificial Intelligence-related projects:

    • Location Detection
      Face detection is normal nowadays, how about location detection, let’s say big construction sites where each location work is detected and updated the Apps, so they can know what timing and things are needed to move forward? 
    • Spam & Fake Detector AI Apps
      Everyone wants to get rid of spam and remove them, so Spam and Fake Detector App can be a good project like you can create Fake Spam Detector by analyzing the patterns for the Products, etc.

    Other Artificial Intelligence related projects include:

    • Artificial Intelligence-Based Staffing Solution. 
    • Android Assistant like Apple’s Siri. 
    • Workflow Automator Software. 
    • Auto-monitoring Software for Workspace. 
    • Communication Tracker & Scheduler App and Extension. 
    • Chatbot – App, Software, and Extension
    • Virtual Assistant (VA) for Windows and Desktops. 
    • Online Task Assignment and Management Tools like Hubspot and Trello. 
    • Shipment Tracker for Logistics. 
    • Artificial Data Validation Software like Plagiarism Checker

    With the rise of AI in recent years, here are some ideas for AI agents projects suitable for a final-year project. These ideas span across different domains like natural language processing, computer vision, reinforcement learning, and robotics. You can select one based on your interest and the tools you’re comfortable working with:

    1. AI Personal Assistant for Productivity

    • Objective: Create an AI-powered personal assistant that manages schedules, sets reminders, and prioritizes tasks intelligently.
    • Key Features:
      • Natural Language Understanding (NLU) for conversational interactions.
      • Integration with calendars (Google Calendar, Outlook).
      • Proactive suggestions for task prioritization.
    • Tools: Python, Dialogflow, GPT-based APIs, Calendar APIs.

    2. AI Agent for Autonomous Drone Navigation

    • Objective: Develop an AI agent that enables drones to navigate autonomously in complex environments.
    • Key Features:
      • Real-time object detection to avoid obstacles.
      • GPS integration for waypoint navigation.
      • Reinforcement learning for optimizing routes.
    • Tools: Python, OpenCV, ROS (Robot Operating System), TensorFlow, DJI SDK.

    3. AI Customer Support Agent for E-commerce

    • Objective: Build an AI agent that answers customer queries, tracks orders, and suggests products.
    • Key Features:
      • NLP to understand customer questions.
      • Integration with an e-commerce database to fetch product details.
      • Sentiment analysis to detect unhappy customers.
    • Tools: Python, Hugging Face Transformers, Flask/Django, Twilio.

    4. AI Cybersecurity Agent

    • Objective: Create an AI system that monitors network traffic and detects potential threats in real-time.
    • Key Features:
      • Anomaly detection in network activity.
      • Automated incident response.
      • Threat intelligence integration for proactive measures.
    • Tools: Python, Scikit-learn, Wireshark, ELK Stack (Elasticsearch, Logstash, Kibana).

    5. AI Fitness Coach

    • Objective: Develop an AI agent that tracks user fitness activities and provides recommendations to improve health.
    • Key Features:
      • Motion tracking using computer vision for exercise validation.
      • Diet planning based on user goals.
      • Integration with wearables like Fitbit or Apple Watch.
    • Tools: Python, OpenCV, TensorFlow, Flask.

    6. AI Agent for Stock Market Prediction

    • Objective: Build an AI-powered agent that analyzes stock market data and provides investment advice.
    • Key Features:
      • Predict stock prices using historical data.
      • Portfolio management recommendations.
      • Sentiment analysis of financial news to predict trends.
    • Tools: Python, Scikit-learn, Flask/Django, Alpha Vantage API.

    7. AI Agent for Smart Home Automation

    • Objective: Design an AI system that automates home devices based on user behavior and preferences.
    • Key Features:
      • Voice-based control of IoT devices.
      • Energy optimization based on usage patterns.
      • Security monitoring using facial recognition.
    • Tools: Python, Raspberry Pi, OpenCV, Google Assistant API.

    8. AI Legal Research Assistant

    • Objective: Develop an AI agent that helps lawyers research case laws and legal documents.
    • Key Features:
      • Search through large legal databases using keywords.
      • Summarize legal documents for quick review.
      • NLP for question-answering on legal topics.
    • Tools: Python, ElasticSearch, Hugging Face, LexisNexis API.

    9. AI Agent for Personalized Learning

    • Objective: Create an AI system that customizes learning paths for students based on their performance.
    • Key Features:
      • Adaptive quizzes and assessments.
      • Recommendations for learning resources.
      • Gamification to keep students motivated.
    • Tools: Python, TensorFlow, Flask, OpenAI APIs.

    10. AI Writing Assistant

    • Objective: Build an AI-powered writing assistant for content creators.
    • Key Features:
      • Grammar and spell-checking.
      • Sentence rephrasing and tone adjustment.
      • Plagiarism detection and suggestions for improvement.
    • Tools: Python, GPT-3/4 API, Grammarly API.

    11. AI Recruitment Agent

    • Objective: Design an AI agent that helps HR teams shortlist candidates based on resumes and job descriptions.
    • Tools: Python, SpaCy, Scikit-learn, Flask.

    12. AI Agent for Mental Health Support

    • Objective: Develop an AI system that provides mental health support and tracks emotional well-being.
    • Tools: Python, Dialogflow, Hugging Face, Flask.

    13. AI Agent for Traffic Management

    • Objective: Create an AI system to optimize traffic flow in urban areas.
    • Tools: Python, OpenCV, TensorFlow, SUMO (Simulation of Urban Mobility).

    14. AI Agent for Personalized Shopping

    • Objective: Build an AI shopping assistant for e-commerce platforms.
    • Key Features:
      • Product recommendations based on browsing history.
      • Virtual try-on for fashion and accessories.
      • Predictive analytics for customer behavior.
    • Tools: Python, TensorFlow, Flask/Django, Shopify API.

    15. AI Agent for Healthcare Diagnosis

    Objective: Design an AI system that assists doctors in diagnosing diseases.
    Tools: Python, OpenCV, TensorFlow, Hugging Face.

    16. AI Agent for Real-Time Translation

    • Objective: Build an AI-powered translator for real-time speech or text translation.
    • Tools: Python, Google Cloud Translation API, PyTorch.

    17. AI Travel Planner

    Objective: Create an AI agent that designs personalized travel itineraries.
    Tools: Python, Flask, Travel APIs (e.g., Skyscanner, Amadeus).

    18. AI Fraud Detection Agent

    Objective: Develop an AI-powered system for detecting fraudulent transactions in real-time.
    Tools: Python, Scikit-learn, Flask/Django.

    Decentralization projects ideas like:

    Web 3.0 Stacks
    • eCommerce with Web 3.0 implementation
      The technology you can use are below and can make eCommerce implementation with Web 3.0 and decentralization environment:
      Frontend development with HTML, CSS, JS, React.
      Node Provider: Infura, Quicknode, Alchemy etc
      Smart Contracts: Solidity, Vyper, Rust etc
      Blockchain: Ethereum, Polygon, Solana etc
    • Decentralisation Finance (DeFi)

    If it was Web 2.0 then the Currency Converter project would have been one good idea but with decentralization, it is better to work with Defi projects.

    • Non-fungible token (NFT)

    Non-fungible token (NFT) generally alludes to a cryptographic resource on the blockchain that addresses a theoretical and interesting advanced thing like a piece of craftsmanship, a photograph, an in-game collectible, or a tweet that different resources can’t supplant on the grounds that it has a bunch of outstanding properties.

    • Decentralized Identification

    Create a decentralized identification system so users don’t need to keep on sharing their information again and again on different platforms. Simplify access to DApps with single sign-on (SSO).

    • Marketplace for Cryptocurrencies
    • Decentralisation Applications (DApps)
    • Create new Cryptocurrencies
    • Peer to Peer (P2P) sharing

    The popularity of Uber, Lyft, Didi, etc, nowadays ridesharing, delivery sharing, etc are becoming popular so these project ideas can also be one.

    Read More: Final year E-commerce project eShopping Process model and functional diagram

    API related projects

    Opencart API
    • Integrated API endpoints
      Build a single and integrated platform for all APIs and your one Endpoint will call all the APIs needed.
    • NASA free APIs
    • RapidAPI free APIs
    • Google free APIs like Google Maps projects

    Read More: API call in eCommerce

    Marketing/Media

    • Copyright system and implementation with NFT and cryptocurrencies
    • Manage multiple ads in one system and implement Prebid, so marketers can use Google ads, media ads, and other ads from one place
    • Search Engine Marketing (SEM) Monitoring Tool
    • Search Engine Optimization (SE0) Monitoring Software
    • Product Auto-analyzer to See How the Product is Performing in the Market
    • Google Double Click Evaluation Tool
    • Micro & Macro Content Performance Evaluator 
    • Auto Lead Generation App

    Read More: 13 proven tips and tricks to boost conversions for eCommerce

    Future Predictor Applications

    • Stock Price Predictor application
      Fluctuation in Stock price is one of the growing concerns of modern marketplaces. The stock price sees numberless ebbs and flows every day. Once you reckon this as a problem, you can come up with a solution to it. The best solution would be to come up with software that detects the real-time stock price. 
      Essentially, you will assemble a stock valuation indicator that can foresee the future costs of stock. The best thing about working with financial exchange information is that it by and large has short input cycles. 
      This makes it simple for information examiners to utilize new market information to approve stock value forecasts. This financial exchange information will in general be exceptionally granular, different, and unpredictable.
      You can demonstrate it to find and gather comparative stocks dependent on their value developments and distinguish periods when there are critical changes in their costs.
    • Product stock prediction and data prediction as per the shipping timing, seasonal requirement, and emotional adjustment. Order the product as per the Stock needed.
    • We see lots of Weather predictors, how about Agriculture Product Predictor as per the weather so we can control what is needed? 
    • Music Recommendation App
    • Predictive Analyzer of Products before launching them
    • Luck Predictor App Based on Age and Interest

    Health-related projects ideas:

    • Blood Gift and Blood Donation Center Locator
      This online blood gift device is intended to help individuals in finding blood benefactors in case of a crisis. Clients can join to give blood to a blood donation center or present a solicitation for blood. Clients can check out the benefactors’ profiles and request help from them.
      Crises ought to forever be tended to first. Therefore, this final year project makes Computer Science understudies foster this 2022. This framework will address the requirement for blood gifts when required by a patient. Patients can check their blood classification match and ask for help from the prospects.
    • Coronavirus-infected person locator
    • Disease Detector Apps, like Cancer, Allergy, etc
    • Tools for the Management of Medications:
      Automated Software to Monitor Medicines and Healthcare Products and Record Tracker App of Medicines and Drugs

    Read More: Project Objectives for health Nutrition Program and Targets of Nutrition

    Programming and Developer support systems

    • Continuous integration and continuous delivery which supports the developers
    • 24/7 Website Monitoring Software
    • Designing Multi-page Functional Website where you will auto-generate HTML & CSS, as you drag and drop modules

    Read more: Best extensions of Visual Studio Code for PHP developer

    Robotics Projects

    • Functional Robot for Multitasking
    • Goods Transporters Robot to Handle Logistics 
    • Bluetooth-controlled Robot for Cell Phones 
    • Remote Controlled Robot as a Virtual Assistant 
    • Intermediate and Higher Level Arino Robot

    Fitness Project Ideas 

    • Exercise Tracker App
    • Recess Movement Analyzer
    • Auto Yoga Trainer Software 
    • Exercise Training Virtual Assistant Tool 
    • Goal Setter for Daily & Weekly Outing

    Economics

    • Currency Convertor – With Real Time Conversion Rate
      Designing a Currency Converter – both app and extension – is one of the exciting projects for the final year project. As a Computer Science student, it is a noteworthy idea to come up with a solution to modern era’s challenges. 
      This undertaking includes incorporating a money converter that can change over one cash’s worth into another money unit. For example, you can change the Indian rupee into dollars or pounds – as well as the other way around. 
      The test that lies here is that the worth of monetary standards changes day by day. Nonetheless, you can address this issue by bringing in a dominant accounting page containing the refreshed cash esteems. To assemble this task, you should have the fundamental information on python programming and the Pygame library.
    • Banking System Reformation
    • Real-time Price Determinator
    • Export and Import Management on National and International Level
    • Micro and Macro Economics & Their Impacts on Currency Values 
    • Real Time Cost Opportunity Detector 
    • Fundamental Economics & Current State Budget

    We hope these titles and some details help you to select your final year project easily and wish you the best of luck for your final year project. Let us know which project you are working on, maybe we work on providing you details to complete the project successfully. Please let us know if you have any questions or suggestions, please click to see other internships projects. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.

    Healing and Rebirth: The Process of Remaking Yourself After Addiction

    The journey towards recovery from addiction is not merely about abstaining from substances; it’s a transformative process of remaking oneself. Healing from addiction involves physical, emotional, and psychological rejuvenation. It calls for a complete reorientation of one’s life and identity, which can be both challenging and profoundly rewarding. This path to rebuilding requires support, self-reflection, and a dedication to change. In this article, we will explore the layered experience of moving beyond addiction towards a rebirth of self.

    The Role of Healing in Overcoming Substance Abuse

    Healing is the cornerstone of overcoming substance abuse. It’s a multifaceted journey addressing the wounds inflicted by addiction on the body, mind, and spirit. An integral part of this healing is finding a supportive community, whether through therapy, support groups, or programs that aid in the recovery process.

    One such nurturing system is a sober living program, which provides a stable environment conducive to recovery. These programs offer structure, support, and a safe space for individuals to work through their issues without the immediate pressures and temptations of their former environment. They play a pivotal role in helping individuals ease back into society with a more robust set of coping skills and a solidified commitment to sobriety.

    Part of the healing is also accepting and learning from the past. It involves making amends where possible and forgiving oneself as well as others. This powerful aspect of healing can liberate one from the shackles of guilt and shame, which often serve as barriers to recovery.

    Strategies for Building a New Identity After Addiction

    img

    Building a new identity post-addiction involves delving deeply into self-exploration. Recovering individuals often engage with a variety of interests and activities to discover what resonates with their true selves. This approach helps to lay down the foundation for a new, substance-free lifestyle.

    One may embrace education or vocational training as a way to pave a new career path. Pursuing a new career or furthering one’s education can imbue one’s life with direction and a sense of achievement. For instance, understanding what is a degree in organizational leadership can provide insights into pursuing education in a field that fosters change, responsibility, and initiative, traits that are empowering during recovery.

    Educational pursuits coupled with newfound hobbies and physical activities can enrich personal development. Such endeavors not only fill the void left by addiction but also foster a sense of progress and fulfillment. Integrating into new communities and forming healthy relationships also plays an indispensable role in reshaping identity.

    Nurturing Your Physical and Emotional Well-Being During Recovery

    img

    A strong recovery is built upon the bedrock of good physical and emotional health. Nutrition, exercise, and sleep are fundamental aspects that need careful attention as one rebuilds their life. Proper nutrition replenishes the body, exercise rebuilds physical strength and mental resilience, and adequate rest is crucial for recovery.

    Emotional well-being, on the other hand, hinges on addressing psychological issues that may have contributed to the addiction. Therapy and counseling are invaluable in processing emotions and developing healthier psychological patterns. Techniques such as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) can aid in challenging detrimental thought patterns and establishing more constructive ones.

    Mindfulness and stress reduction techniques also play a substantial role in emotional healing. Practices such as yoga, meditation, and even simple breathing exercises can significantly mitigate stress levels and aid in emotional regulation. Tapping into these resources can provide calm and balance in the often-turbulent seas of recovery.

    Embracing a Future of Possibility and Hope After Addiction

    img

    Ultimately, the process of recovery is about embracing a future brimming with possibility and hope. It means welcoming new opportunities for growth, relationships, and joy that were once obscured by addiction. In the aftermath of such a transformation, goals and dreams take on a new significance as they become achievable and rewarding.

    The resilience developed through overcoming addiction serves as a testament to one’s strength and adaptability. It can be harnessed not only to maintain sobriety but to face life’s adversities with a newfound fortitude. Furthermore, this resilience can inspire others who are still grappling with addiction, serving as a beacon of hope.

    Moreover, living a life after addiction often means advocating for change and participating in the community in meaningful ways. It’s about giving back and perhaps helping others on their path to recovery. There is profound fulfillment found in contributing to the world in a positive, impactful manner.

    Altogether, the journey from addiction to rebirth is a testament to human resilience and the capacity for change. Overall, it offers an inspiring narrative that out of the struggles of addiction can emerge a life filled with purpose, happiness, and hope.

    What to Look for in an OpenCart Developer for Your Customization and How to Validate Their Work

    When you hire an experienced OpenCart developer, you ensure that your eCommerce store will work appropriately and meet your demands. OpenCart is powerful software; however, customization of the software requires a special set of skills. Here are the aspects you will require to look into while hiring an OpenCart developer and how you can check his/her work.

    Key Skills An OpenCart Developer Should Have

    Following are the Opencart developer traits:

    Experience In OpenCart Development

    • A qualified developer will have hands-on experience in OpenCart, specifically:
    • In-depth understanding of the core structure of OpenCart.
    • Knowledge about OpenCart modules and extensions.
    • Familiarity with the admin panel and customization options of OpenCart.

    Strong Knowledge Of PHP

    • Since OpenCart is basically designed in PHP, the developer will be required to have good knowledge of:
    • Writing extremely efficient and clean PHP code.
    • Application of the MVC (Model-View-Controller) architecture in OpenCart.
    • Debugging PHP errors and optimizing performance.

    Expertise In HTML, CSS, And Bootstrap Framework

    • To be in front-end customization, the developer will have:
    • Strong knowledge of HTML and CSS to manipulate layouts and styles.
    • Experience with the bootstrap framework for developing responsive designs.
    • Ability to create mobile-friendly and user-friendly interfaces.

    OCMOD And VqMod Customization

    • A good OpenCart developer would have a good grasp in:
    • Using OCMOD (OpenCart Modification System) for smooth, efficient code modifications.
    • The knowledge of VqMod (Virtual Quick Mod): to override core files without making direct changes.

    Understanding Of Server-Side Issues

    • Most OpenCart stores are hosted on servers using cPanel with an added advantage of Apache. The developer should know about:
    • How to configure the .htaccess for SEO friendly URL and security upgrades.
    • Responsible for managing Apache configuration and troubleshooting server-related issues.
    • How to handle MySQL database operations to optimize speed.

    How to Validate OpenCart Developer’s Work

    Once you hire a developer, you should assure quality in their work. Some ways of validating this work include:

    1. Code Quality and Best Practices
    • You want to assure that the code is in compliance with the OpenCart development guidelines.
    • See that OCMOD/VqMod are being leveraged rather than modifying core files directly.
    • Check that the code is well-commented and structured.
    1. Performance and Security Checks
    • Test page load speed to ensure no unnecessary slows.
    • Check the security measures, like protection against SQL injection and CSRF.
    • Verify .htaccess security and SEO configuration.
    1. Functionality Testing
    • General testing should confirm custom features function properly.
    • Check compatibility with existing extensions and themes.
    • Cross-browser testing for responsiveness using a wide range of devices.
    1. SEO and URL Structure
    • Make sure that SEO-friendly URLs have been established properly.
    • Check for meta-data, alt tags, and structured data setting up.
    • Test OpenCart built-in SEO features for completeness.
    1. Backup and Documentation
    • Check for post-change backup from the developer.
    • Request for documentation of customizations worthy of future reference.
    • Assure rollback plans for the issue at hand.

    Conclusion

    Finding the right OpenCart developer for your customizations will require assessment in technical capability, knowledge of OpenCart architecture, and addressing server-side tasks. Testing, checking performance, and documentation around the work done becomes essential in ensuring a smooth and efficient eCommerce experience. Keep focus on these factors and maintain a secure, scalable, and high-performing OpenCart store to suit your business needs.

    Getting Started With Laravel Web Development

    Laravel Get Started

    Laravel, a robust PHP framework for web artisans, has become essential for efficient and modern web development. Known for its elegant syntax, Laravel eases common tasks such as routing, sessions, caching, and authentication. It has garnered a significant following in the developer community by providing a structured and pragmatic way to build web applications. Entering the world of Laravel web development demands a foundational understanding of its features and an efficient setup of your development environment. Keep reading to explore the essentials of crafting exceptional web applications with Laravel.

    Setting Up Your Laravel Development Environment

    Laravel Development

    Getting started with Laravel requires setting up a development environment that can handle PHP applications. The Laravel developers recommend using Homestead, an official, pre-packaged Vagrant box that provides a standardized, feature-rich development environment without manual server software installation.

    However, if you prefer a different setup, you may opt for local development environments such as MAMP, WAMP, or XAMPP, which simplify the installation process. Regardless of your choice, ensuring that PHP, Composer (a dependency manager for PHP), and a robust text editor or PHP Integrated Development Environment (IDE) are installed is imperative.

    Laravel’s documentation provides detailed instructions on environment setup, which involves installing Composer globally and then using it to create a new Laravel project. Understanding version control systems like Git will also contribute to a smoother development process, allowing you to manage your codebase effectively and collaborate with others.

    Lastly, environment-specific configurations may be managed using the .env files in Laravel. This is where you can set up database connections, mail drivers, and other services without hard-coding these details into your application, thereby maintaining security and flexibility across different development stages.

    Building Your First Web Application with Laravel

    Web application with Laravel

    The euphoria of creating your very first web application with Laravel is unparalleled. Beginning with route definitions, you will learn how to respond to HTTP requests and delegate tasks to controllers. Laravel’s routing component is powerful yet user-friendly, allowing for expressive route definitions in your application.

    Next, controllers will become the logical center of your application, where you will process incoming requests, handle user inputs, and interact with the database. Following the routing, you delve into views, where Blade templating comes into play. Blade templating offers a simple yet powerful templating engine to construct your user interfaces.

    Crud operations represent the bread and butter of web applications, and Laravel’s Eloquent ORM simplifies the create, read, update, and delete functionality with expressive PHP syntax. The beauty of Eloquent lies in how it represents. database tables as classes, making interacting with your data as objects easy.

    Authentication is vital to most web applications, and Laravel provides Auth scaffolding that is out of the box. You can generate the routes, views, and controllers necessary to implement a full-fledged user authentication system with a few commands. Laravel’s focus on convention over configuration translates to a series of sensible defaults that accommodate most application requirements without requiring extensive setup.

    Exploring Laravel’s Ecosystem: Packages and Extensions

    Laravel’s ecosystem is rich with packages and extensions extending its capabilities; Laravel Spark provides scaffolding for subscription billing, while Laravel Nova serves as an elegant administration panel for your Laravel applications. Understanding, integrating, and utilizing these tools can provide massive value and save development time.

    Packages play a pivotal role in the Laravel community, with Packalyst hosting thousands of community-driven packages. Developers leverage these packages to implement complex functionality such as social authentication, API integrations, or sophisticated search capabilities without reinventing the wheel.

    Laravel’s package development process is standardized to ensure package quality and compatibility. Learning how to create and distribute your own packages could bolster your applications’ functionality and contribute to the thriving Laravel community.

    The scalability of the Laravel ecosystem lies in its flexibility to add only what you need, thereby keeping the application lean and performant. Regular updates and an active developer community ensure that Laravel and its associated packages remain robust, secure, and at the cutting edge of web development technologies.

    Overall, Laravel web development offers a streamlined and powerful approach to building modern web applications with its elegant syntax and robust ecosystem. By mastering Laravel’s core features and leveraging its vast packages, developers can create efficient, scalable, and secure applications that meet diverse needs.

    New Blog System in OpenCart 4.1 called as CMS

    The introduction of the Blog System in OpenCart marks a significant milestone for this popular eCommerce platform. With this new feature, merchants can engage their customers better, improve SEO, and create an integrated content strategy directly within their OpenCart store. Let’s explore the key highlights and benefits of this newly added functionality.

    Why a Blog System Matters for eCommerce

    In today’s competitive market, having a blog is essential for building an online presence, driving organic traffic, and engaging with your audience. Blogging allows merchants to:

    • Share news, updates, and promotions about their store.
    • Publish educational content, such as guides and tutorials.
    • Enhance SEO by targeting keywords and generating high-quality content.
    • Build trust and establish authority in their niche.

    With the Blog System in OpenCart, store owners no longer need third-party integrations to achieve these goals.

    CMS or Blog setting

    Go to admin >> Settings >> Edit the store where you want the blog >> Option tab >> and there is CMS section where you can enter different settings for blogs. Like:

    • List Description limit
    • Allow Comments
    • Auto Approve Comments
    • Comments Interval
    CMS setting Opencart

    Blog CMS Admin section

    You can see the CMS link in the Opencart Admin left menu, under which you will see Topics, Articles, Comments and Anti-spam. The admin section naming convention is little different than normal blogs system that we used to see Categories as Topics and Posts as Articles.

    Blog CMS opencart admin

    Topics or Category Management

    Click on the Topics and enter the topics, in the above image, gift ideas, tips and tricks, educational and lifestyles are topics.

    Topic or Category management in Opencart

    Articles management (Add, edit and delete)

    Go to CMS >> Articles and click add and enter the details in the General tab

    Article general data form

    Click on the data tab. Enter the author name, just type the name. Select the Topic for the article and select the stores that you want to show.

    Article data management

    Click the SEO tab and enter the seo url

    Article SEO url

    In this way you can manage the topics and articles in Opencart backend.

    Frontend Blog listing page

    Blog Path is something like YOURURL/en-gb?route=cms/blog. In the listing page there are multiple functionalities like search, sort, etc

    https://demo.webocreation.com/en-gb?route=cms/blog

    Blog listing sorting search

    Article or Blog detail page

    For the article detail page, the route is added at the end like ?route=cms/blog.info

    https://demo.webocreation.com/en-gb/creative-thoughtful-gift-ideas?route=cms/blog.info

    Blog or Article detail page

    Blog module in Opencart

    There is Blog module in Opencart 4.1 as well. So you can go to admin >> Extensions >> Extensions >> Filter with modules >> Install or Edit the Blog.

    Blog module in Opencart

    Enter module setting something like below or as per your preferences.

    Blog module setting of opencart

    Then add it to the layout.

    Latest News module in Opencart

    We add the Latest News blog module at the Content Top position of Information layout and it looks like below:

    Blog module listing in Opencart

    Topics module

    Go to Admin >> Extensions >> Extensions >> Filter with Modules and install the Topic module >> Enable the status.

    Topic Module

    Now, navigate to Admin >> Design >> Layout >> Add new layout >> enter layout name as Blog >> Click plus sign at Route and enter the cms/blog and then in the Column left position select the Topic module.

    Blog layout

    With above setting the front end will show up like below:

    Blog categories list

    Comment section

    You can post comments for an Article. You must be logged in as customer to post the comment for the article.

    Post comments for an Article

    The administrator can manage the article comments and approve, mark as spam or delete them.

    Article comments management

    Managing User Group Permissions for CMS or Blog in OpenCart

    OpenCart provides an effective permission system to control what different user groups can access and manage within the admin panel. If you’re using the built-in CMS (Information pages) or the new Blog system, you can grant or restrict access to these sections for specific user groups. Here’s a guide to managing permissions for CMS or Blog in OpenCart.

    Read about Opencart customer group management and user group permission management

    Granting Permissions for CMS or Blog

    To allow or restrict access to the CMS or Blog sections, follow these steps:

    Step 1: Log in to the Admin Panel

    Go to your OpenCart admin dashboard.

    Step 2: Navigate to User Group Permissions

    Go to System > Users > User Groups.

    Step 3: Select or Create a User Group

    • Click on the user group you want to modify (e.g., Administrator or another custom group).
    • Alternatively, click Add New to create a new user group.

    Step 4: Update Access and Modify Permissions

    • In the Access Permission and Modify Permission fields, you’ll see a list of all available modules and actions.
    • To grant permissions for CMS or Blog:
      • Find entries like for:
        cms/antispam
        cms/article
        cms/comment
        cms/topic
      • Check both boxes for Access Permission and Modify Permission to allow users in this group to view and edit these sections.
      • Then click Save button.
    User group CMS or blog permission in Opencart

    After these permissions are given then you will see the menu for CMS.

    Key Features of the OpenCart Blog System

    1. User-Friendly Interface
      The blog system is seamlessly integrated into the OpenCart admin panel, making it easy for merchants to create, edit, and manage blog posts without needing technical expertise.
    2. SEO Optimization
      Each blog post comes with fields for meta titles, meta descriptions, and keywords, enabling merchants to optimize their content for search engines. The URLs for blog posts are also SEO-friendly, contributing to better rankings.
    3. Categories and Tags
      • Categories: Organize your blog posts into categories for better navigation and structure. For example, categories like “Guides,” “News,” or “Promotions” help users find relevant content easily.
      • Tags: Add tags to your posts to enhance discoverability and improve internal linking.
    4. Rich Content Editor
      OpenCart’s blog system includes a built-in content editor that supports text formatting, images, videos, and other media. This makes it easy to create visually appealing and informative blog posts.
    5. Comments System
      Engage with your audience by enabling comments on your blog posts. Moderation tools allow you to approve or delete comments, ensuring a positive discussion environment.
    6. Featured Posts and Highlights
      Merchants can pin featured posts to highlight important updates or promotions on the store’s homepage or blog section.
    7. Customizable Blog Layouts
      The blog system integrates seamlessly with OpenCart’s layout management, allowing merchants to customize how the blog section appears on their website.
    8. Social Sharing Buttons
      Built-in social sharing options let readers share your blog posts on platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, increasing your content’s reach.
    9. Archive and Search Functionality
      Customers can easily browse through older posts using the archive feature or find specific posts with the search functionality.

    Benefits of the OpenCart Blog System

    1. Improved Organic Traffic
      By creating high-quality, keyword-optimized content, merchants can attract more visitors through search engines.
    2. Enhanced Customer Engagement
      Blogs allow merchants to connect with their audience by addressing their interests, answering questions, and providing valuable information.
    3. Increased Conversions
      Content that educates customers about products or services can guide them through the purchasing journey, ultimately boosting sales.
    4. Time and Cost Savings
      With the blog system built directly into OpenCart, merchants no longer need to invest in third-party blogging platforms or integrations.

    Improvements Needed in the OpenCart Blog System

    While the OpenCart Blog System is a powerful and convenient feature for merchants, there are areas where it can be further enhanced to provide a more comprehensive and engaging blogging experience. Here are some suggested improvements:

    1. Display Blog Categories in the Blog Section

    • Current Issue: Blog categories are not prominently displayed, making it harder for users to navigate through posts by topic.
    • Improvement: Add a blog category menu or filter in the blog section to help customers easily find articles relevant to their interests.

    2. Dedicated Category Listing Pages

    • Current Issue: There is no dedicated page to display all posts within a single category.
    • Improvement: Introduce dedicated pages for each blog category with SEO-friendly URLs. For example:
      • /blog/category/guides
      • /blog/category/news
        This would enhance user navigation and improve SEO performance.

    3. Enhanced Comment Spam Management

    • Current Issue: The current comment moderation system is basic and lacks advanced anti-spam measures.
    • Improvement: Integrate advanced spam filtering systems like reCAPTCHA or Akismet to prevent spammy comments. Additionally, allow merchants to block IPs or flag specific keywords in comments.

    4. Product Promotion in Blog Posts

    • Current Issue: The blog system does not natively support direct promotion of products within blog posts.
    • Improvement: Add a feature that allows merchants to link products within a blog post dynamically. For example:
      • Include a “Featured Products” widget that automatically displays related products mentioned in the post.
      • Add a button for “Add to Cart” or “Learn More” within the blog content.

    5. Blog Post Analytics

    • Current Issue: Merchants have no way to track how well their blog posts are performing.
    • Improvement: Add built-in analytics for blog posts to track page views, social shares, and engagement rates. This would help merchants identify which content resonates most with their audience.

    6. Internal Linking Suggestions

    • Current Issue: The system does not provide suggestions for internal linking within blog posts.
    • Improvement: Add a feature that automatically suggests internal links to other blog posts or products, improving SEO and user engagement.

    Conclusion

    The new Blog System in OpenCart is a powerful tool that bridges the gap between content marketing and eCommerce. By allowing merchants to create and manage blog posts within the same platform, it simplifies workflows and enhances the overall customer experience. Whether you’re looking to boost your SEO, share valuable content, or increase customer engagement, OpenCart’s Blog System is a must-use feature for modern online stores.

    Now is the perfect time to leverage this exciting addition and take your OpenCart store to new heights. Start blogging and watch your eCommerce business grow!

    OpenCart 4.1.0.0 Launch: New Features, Updates, and Fixes

    In the eCommerce world, OpenCart is one of the most frequently utilized platforms by business owners. Recently, there have been several updates made to it and version 4.1.0.0 has been launched. As a result of these changes, store managers and developers received several new features which included exciting updates and bug fixes. The purpose of this release is to streamline the processes even further and address the common issues faced by a majority of the users. OpenCart 4.1.0.0 is an upgrade that is a must in the eyes of many users.

    OpenCart 4.1.0.0 Key Changes

    1. Return of OCMOD

    After long wait, OCMOD is back in Opencart. OCMOD or OpenCart Modification is an application that allows store owners and developers to modify the core files of a store without overwriting them, ensuring that upgrades are easier and compatibility issues are less. Out of all the features being released OCMOD is the most anticipated one as well. Its reintroduction would take the OpenCart experience to the next level by making OCMOD customizations and extensions easier.

    Read more about OCMOD module installation and development

    1. Support for French language in Default code
    French language Opencart

    The language capabilities of OpenCart were low as French was missing from its supported language list. OpenCart 4.1.0.0 was able to add French support which should vastly increase the number of users across the globe as various French speaking users can now access the platform. This additional feature would be of great use to store owners targeting French speaking customers as they would easily be able to provide them with a French shopping experience

    Add a new language and set a default language opencart 4

    1. Blog System introduced as CMS section
      Now store owners can create and edit their blog directly from the admin panel thanks to a Blog system integrated into OpenCart version 4.1.0.0. It is smooth effort for the company in providing utility features to increase customer marketing and the business’s capability as means for advertising its products More or less the business’s engagements appear less artificial.
      Most blog system has categories, in Opencart it is topics. Posts as Articles.

      Blog in Opencart
    2. Anti-Fraud
      Previously, Anti-fraud used to be extensions, now to improve security, OpenCart started to provide built-in Anti-fraud section. It helps identify and mitigate fraudulent activities on your store.
    Anti Fraud IP

    Read in detail about Anti-fraud in Opencart and how to block IP in Opencart

    Major Updates in OpenCart 4.1.0.0

    1. Order Editor Improvements

    The order editor once again has been normalized to facilitate and make the work fast and better for the store owners. Orders can now be edited by the owners in a lot less steps and more accurately adding efficiency in post purchase processes like item addition or removal customer and shipping changes.

    Language editor in Opencart

    1. CKEditor Enhancements
      Another strategic tool of OpenCart, the CKEditor, is now integrated with several functional enhancements including the previously missing ShowBlocks alternate config feature For block elements, this feature provides better formatting resulting in greater control over how store owners customize product or service descriptions blogs and so on.
    2. Gift vouchers system removed
      Removed the gift vouchers system saying it over complicates the checkout process.
      https://github.com/opencart/opencart/commit/22e9247dcbb399db971d12f2da41efba46aa3136

    OpenCart 4.1.0.0 fixes:

    In this version, 701+ fixes, listed at opencart github.

    1. Subscription System

    Subscription system error is fixed. People who use subscription-based products or services can now handle recurring payments and customer subscriptions better. This fix eliminates issues that used to disrupt or spoil the integrity of subscription services in the past.

    Read about Subscription setup and processing

    If you want to look how to setup subscription in Opencart 4.1.0.0, then you can see our demo opencart. You can login at https://demo.webocreation.com/wpadmin using username as demo and password as demo. View this product for subscription demo.

    Why Upgrade to OpenCart 4.1.0.0?

    Let us take a step back and look at how the new features and fixes can be beneficial for your eCommerce store: 

    • Improved Tooling regarding customization: With the return of OCMOD, it allows developers to alter core functionality with ease and without affecting their ability to update in the future. 
    • Targeted Language Support: The addition of French language support enables the penetration to French speaking markets abroad, which opens up new opportunities for growth. 
    • Advanced Content Marketing Tools: Through the integrated blog system you can communicate with your audience, get users to visit your page, or simply improve your optimization efforts. 
    • Simplified Processes: The editing and ordering of orders and the fixing of subscription systems increases the efficiency of running the store. 
    • Upgraded Features and Tools

    Conclusion

    The release of OpenCart 4.1.0.0 fulfills a lot of user requests as well as brings in new features. The latest version aims to improve your eCommerce store through various means from the revival of OCMOD, to introducing a blogging feature, support for the French language, and important improvements to subscription management. These new feature is perfect for developer seeking more control or if you are a store owner in search for better ways for customer engagement. OpenCart 4.1.0.0 certainly has many improvements to justify the upgrade.

    Keep an eye out for new updates, and tips on how to make most of new features offered by OpenCart! Hope you liked this article, please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for Opencart video tutorials. You can also find us on Webocreation Twitter and Webocreation Facebook. Please let us know if you have any questions or concerns.

    How to redesign a corporate website: 8 key aspects

    Redesigning a corporate website is one of those can of worms that no one wants to open. Usually, no one gives it much thought until one day the CEO comes to the marketing department furious because he found a man at dinner who asked him why they are still selling services or products from the last century. Then, the CEO enters the website and sees that everything is wrong or that the website does not reflect the current reality of the company. Does this story sound familiar to you, right?

    After a couple of meetings in which various departments are made to blush, it is time to start redoing the corporate website. The time has come to modify or update partially or completely its key elements.

    And that’s where the mess begins… The content needs to be modified to show clients and stakeholders what the company does in a coherent way, because what we have now on the website is nothing more than a reflection of an incomprehensible internal organisational chart for anyone who doesn’t work in the organisation. To this we have to add the egos, the departments that compete with others, the Legal people who see compliance problems everywhere, the HR people who want to show a super young image of the company, which clashes with the concept of a serious and consolidated company that management wants to convey… in short, it ’s very complicated to get everyone to agree .

    In addition to defining the tone and structure of the corporate website, it is necessary to think about the graphic design, structure, information architecture and format. This type of intervention is not limited to giving it a more modern look, but covers everything from usability to technical optimization to improve the user experience and search engine positioning.

    The most important thing of all is that the redesign of the website stops being a project that one asks the IT nephew of one of the executives to do, and becomes a consultancy process in which the entire reality of the company must be analysed in order to translate it into a digital environment that, to top it off, can become an interesting source of business acquisition.

    A corporate website with clear business objectives aligned with the digital strategy 

    Redesigning a corporate website is not an isolated task. It is usually a job that responds to a more in-depth digital marketing strategy. In addition,   it is delimited by business objectives that must be clear and precise before being executed, since, to a large extent, the actions you will carry out depend on such objectives.

    So before you start planning, it’s important to evaluate your performance metrics and define which aspects you want to improve and to what extent. This way, for example, you can optimize organic positioning and conversion rates to help increase sales and brand recognition and engagement.

    User Experience (UX) Centered Design

    User experience-centered web design is based on:

    • Ease of use: makes the user’s journey through the website   totally easy, fast and intuitive.
    • Accessibility: apply a responsive design that facilitates access from any mobile device or PC.
    • Functionality: Ensure that technical performance is optimal so that each of the functionalities runs smoothly. For example, loading speed, secure payment methods or precise forms are essential.
    • Aesthetics: A clean and harmonious design, free of distracting or out-of-place elements, decreases the bounce rate.

    The goal is to make users feel comfortable and confident when interacting with your website.

    Content migration

    Content migration is the process of transferring existing content to the new website, this can include text, images, headers, metadata, ALT attributes, customer reviews and links.

    However, not all content is part of the migration. After a performance analysis, we take into account content that can influence the maintenance or improvement of SEO positioning. This same analysis will also help us determine which content should be moved reliably and which should be updated and optimized.

    In this process it is recommended to make a backup to avoid the loss of valuable information.

    Technical and content SEO

    Technical SEO and content SEO are essential for your corporate website. They guarantee its online visibility and organic traffic. In both cases, you must take care of numerous details.

    Some of the aspects that are optimized with technical SEO are loading speed, management of duplicate content and broken links, responsive design, web architecture and site map hierarchy. On the other hand, content SEO involves the use of relevant keywords, an optimal hierarchy of headlines, among others.

    Also, remember that many of the SEO tweaks you implement will have a significant impact on user experience.

    When planning the content of your website, you should consider what your audience is searching for. Tools like Answerthepublic can help you create content that will reach your audience.

    Visual design aligned with brand identity

    We reiterate the idea of ​​keeping your corporate website design project as part of a global marketing strategy. In this case, the visual design of the page must remain   aligned with the brand identity and, precisely, contribute to transmitting the corporate values , its aesthetics, professionalism and other elements that differentiate it.

    Ideally, you should use colors, fonts, and visual elements associated with your corporate image. 

    Effective Calls to Action (CTA)

    Calls to action (CTA) are words or phrases that are used to persuade users to take a specific action : fill out a form, download a manual, buy a product, a free trial of software, among many others.

    That is, they are opportunities to generate leads and convert your visitors into potential customers . So their design should always be well thought out:

    • Be precise and clear. Sentences that are too long or complex lose impact.
    • Decide what you will offer taking into account the phase of the funnel in which the user is.
    • Be transparent, don’t offer something you can’t give.

    The idea is to make it attractive and meet your users’ needs so they don’t stop clicking.

    Security and data protection

    Adopt security and data protection protocols that inspire confidence in your users, so that they can navigate and interact with your corporate website with complete peace of mind.

    For example, SSL certificates ensure that visitors’ sensitive information is properly protected. It is also important that privacy and data management policies are accessible to users and that they have options to save their preferences.

    Integration with digital marketing tools

    Integrating your website with digital marketing tools is a step you cannot skip if you want to ensure that all the work you have done is effective and that your objectives are being met.

    Tools like Google Analytics allow you to monitor various metrics that reflect the performance of the page, such as bounce rate, most visited pages, session time, traffic sources, among others. This way, you can obtain accurate data and know if you need to make adjustments to improve or make any informed decisions.

    How much does it cost to redesign a corporate website?

    The cost of redesigning a corporate website varies according to the needs of the company and the objectives it has set, since each case may require updates or renewals to a different extent.

    Do you need a quote? Don’t hesitate to ask us, at Digital Concepts we offer the most complete custom web design service to help you stand out in search engines, create the best user experiences and help you achieve your business goals. Contact us.

    Host LAMP stack in AWS Lightsail, Opencart hosting in AWS

    In this hosting tutorial, we are looking into the AWS Lightsail LAMP stack, where we will host Opencart in AWS, and found out that there is no easy way to install it like WordPress or Magento even in AWS Lightsail, hope the Opencart package will be added soon, but for now, we need to use LAMP stack to host the Opencart in the AWS Lightsail. AWS Lightsail LAMP stack includes the latest versions of PHP 7+, Apache, and MySQL with phpMyAdmin and pre-configured components and PHP modules include FastCGI, ModSecurity, SQLite, Varnish, ImageMagick, xDebug, Xcache, OpenLDAP, Memcache, OAuth, PEAR, PECL, APC, GD, and cURL. All of the PHP modules and components needed for Opencart hosting are available in the LAMP stack of AWS Lightsail. 

    Let’s get started with AWS LightSail

    Go to https://aws.amazon.com/lightsail, and create an account or log in to your AWS account. The main AWS Lightsail dashboard page is separate from the main AWS dashboard. Or you can navigate from All services >> Compute >> Lightsail. It may look similar to the below screenshot.

    AWS lightsail Dashboard

    Create a LAMP Instance for Opencart hosting

    In the Lightsail dashboard click the “Create Instance” button. You will see a page where you can select instance details:

    Instance Location and Availability Zone: The location is auto-selected as per your geo-location but you can change it as per your hosting need. Mostly we used Virginia, Zone A (us-east-1) as our website visitors are mostly from the USA, it is upon your requirement and decides which location and Availability zone to choose.

    Opencart cloud hosting

    Platform instance image and Stack blueprint: We need linux/unix for the Opencart hosting so in “Select a platform” select the Linux/Unix. Then, in “Select a blueprint” select the LAMP (PHP 7)

    Opencart Instance Image for AWS

    SSH key pair and Automatic snapshots: Now go more below and you will see “Add launch script”, for now, we are not adding any script there. We will run scripts one by one in a command shell. If your account is new then create an SSH key pair else by default the key is selected. If you want to create something new then you can change it by clicking “Change SSH key pair”. Then check the checkbox for “Enable Automatic Snapshots” as this acts as a backup for you. If you don’t need backup then no need to check it. After you enable it, select the time you want to create the snapshot. We select 23:00 Coordinated Universal Time.

    Backup setup and SSH key pair in AWS lightsail for Opencart

    Choose your instance plan: For a start, for Linux/Unix-based instances, we can try the $3.50 USD Lightsail plan free for one month (up to 750 hours). Later, if we need to scale then we will scale by creating a new instance from the snapshots.

    Choose your instance plan for Opencart

    Identify your instance for Opencart: Now in the identify your instance, we entered the name as “Opencart_LAMP_PHP_7-2”, Key-only tags as Version1, and Key-value tags with Key as Framework and Value as Opencart. You can enter as per your need to identify your instance.

    Opencart instance AWS

    Now finally click the Create Instance button. It will take around 1 min to spin up your virtual machine with a LAMP stack. Then, you will see an instance in your dashboard like below:

    Opencart Lamp stack

    Now, click on it and you will get the details of that instance. You can see the buttons to stop and reboot. You can see the “Connect using SSH” button, Public IP and Username.

    Opencart lamp instance detail

    Click on the “Connect using SSH”, and you will see the command interface where you can enter your commands.

    Console Command Interface Aws

    Update system and PHP version in AWS lightsail

    To ensure your system is up-to-date, you can run the following command:

    sudo apt update -y

    Check your PHP version by the following command as Opencart needs PHP version 7.3. If your PHP version is less the 7.3 than you need to upgrade to PHP 7.3+

    php -v

    If you are using the latest LAMP stack in AWS Lightsail then it is greater than PHP 7.4.

    Opencart installation steps in the AWS Lightsail LAMP stack

    Change the directory to /opt/bitnami/apache2/htdocs

    cd /opt/bitnami/apache2/htdocs

    When you do the ls command then you will see index.html which shows the Bitnami page. So, let’s remove it by the following command:

    sudo rm index.html

    Now, let’s retrieve the Opencart zip code by using wget. You can get the zip URL from the Github Opencart releases. We are using the zip link of Opencart 3.0.3.6 as this is the latest version of Opencart now.

    wget https://github.com/opencart/opencart/releases/download/3.0.3.6/opencart-3.0.3.6.zip

    Let’s unzip the opencart-3.0.3.6.zip to backup/ folder

     unzip opencart-3.0.3.6.zip -d ./backup

    Now, move all the files and folder at backup/upload as these are the Opencart files

     mv ./backup/upload/* .

    Now, if you visit your Public IP, which is 3.235.163.67, then you will get a similar error to error no 1. So, let’s change the ownership of the files and folders to the daemon: daemon by running the following command:

    sudo chown -R bitnami:daemon /opt/bitnami/apache2/htdocs/
    

    If you want to be sure of files and folders permissions then you can run the following two commands as well:

    sudo find . -type d -exec chmod 0755 {} \;
    sudo find . -type f -exec chmod 0644 {} \; 
    

    Now, see files and folders permission in AWS Lightsail for Opencart by running the command ls-lh

    ls -lh

    You will see the output below:

    Files and Folder permission Opencart AWS

    Now, if you go to public IP, then you will be able to see the first page of the Opencart installation.

    Opencart Installation AWS

    Create Static IP

    You can start the installation but it is better to set up static IP. For that, go to the instance detail page, and in the “Networking” tab in the IP addresses section, click the button “Create static IP“.

    Static IP for Opencart Instance AWS

    A static IP is a fixed, public IP address that you can assign and reassign to your instances. In the Static IP location, you left it default. In the Attach to an instance, select your instance, we select “Opencart_LAMP_PHP_7-2”. In the Identify your static IP, just give a unique name.

    Static IP Opencart

    Now, your public IP as shown on the page, is 54.237.190.20. Now open the IP in the browser then you will see step 1 of the Opencart installation page.

    Create DNS Zone

    As we are using an external domain registrar than Route 53 of AWS, so we need to create the DNS zone so we can add the NS1 and NS2 in the domain. Go to the Lightsail dashboard and go to the “Networking” tab. As we already set up Static IP, you will see a button to create a DNS zone, click the button “Create DNS zone”. Enter the domain you have registered, which is dpsignadvertising.com, enter the key-only tags and key-value tags as per your requirements else leave it blank.

    DNS Zone setup AWS Opencart

    Once you submit the “Create DNS zone” then you will get the Name Servers like the below:

    Add record and name servers details for Opencart

    Click “Add record”, then select A record, and enter @ in the subdomain in “Resolves to” select Static IP, our is “StaticIp-Opencart”, then click the green tick box. Similarly, again, click “Add record”, then select CNAME record, and enter www in the subdomain and in “Maps to” enter the domain name. URL, then click the green tick box.

    Add Name servers to your domain registrar

    Now open your domain registrar, our is onlydomains.com, in your domain change the Name Servers details like below and delegate to your AWS nameservers.

    Domain name server change for Opencart URL

    After some time go to your domain, for us, it took around 5min for DNS propagation, as we use dpsignadvertising.com for the domain so when we visit the dpsignadvertising.com, visit your URL and you will see the first page of the Opencart installation of the License agreement, click the “Continue” button.

    In step 2, pre-installation steps, we see all green except the config files:

    Opencart Pre Installation steps

    So, we need to create the config.php files. You can use the following commands to change the config-dist.php to config.php

    sudo mv config-dist.php config.php
    sudo mv admin/config-dist.php admin/config.php 

    Or, you can simply create the config.php files with the touch command:

    sudo touch config.php admin/config.php

    Now, change the ownership of config.php and admin/config.php

    sudo chown daemon:daemon config.php admin/config.php

    After the changes above, you can refresh the 2nd step of installation and click “Continue”. We reached the third step, where we need to enter the database and administration details.

    Create a database, database user, and grant access

    Let’s close your opened console command terminal and reconnect by clicking the “Connect using SSH” button so that you can open the new console command terminal. Then, run the command to get the root password.

    cat bitnami_application_password
    Get root password of Lightsail

    The root password for us is bhV7CNgnVqBQ

    Now, let’s run the following command to create the new database

    mysql -u root -p

    Then enter the above password. Then you entered it into the MySQL console.

    Mysql Console

    Let’s create a database, we are naming it “webocreationdb_2021”

    CREATE DATABASE webocreationdb_2021;

    Let’s create user “webocreationu12” with password ‘webocreation#123#dppass’ by running the command below:

    CREATE USER 'webocreationu12'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'webocreation#123#dppass';

    Let’s grant access to all for the user “webocreationu12” by running the command below:

    GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON * . * TO 'webocreationu12'@'localhost';

    Now, you can exit the database by typing the command exit;.

    exit;

    With all these, we are set for our database configuration.

    • DB Driver: Select MySQLi
    • Hostname: localhost
    • Username: webocreationu12
    • Password: webocreation#123#dppass
    • Database: webocreationdb_2021
    • Port: 3306
    • Prefix: oc_ or any as you need.
    Database and Administration Configuration

    You can enter the username and password for the administration

    • Username: admin (any)
    • Password: admin@2021 (any)
    • E-mail: info@webocreation.com (any)

    Once, you entered all the details then click “Continue”.

    In this 3rd step, you may see the blank page. So let’s debug the error. For that, let’s run the following command:

    cd /opt/bitnami/apache2/htdocs/
    sudo nano install/index.php

    Then, in install/index.php, add the following lines of code.

    ini_set('display_errors', 1);
    ini_set('display_startup_errors', 1);
    error_reporting(E_ALL);
    Error Reporting PHP

    After adding the code, exit the nano by clicking Ctrl + O and then Ctrl + X. After this let’s refresh step 3 http://dpsignadvertising.com/install/index.php?route=install/step_3, then you will see error 2. Let’s fix error 2.

     sudo nano install/cli_install.php

    Then find the code $db->query(“SET @@session.sql_mode = ‘MYSQL40′”); and change to following:

    $db->query("SET @@session.sql_mode = ''");

    After the change, click Ctrl+O and Ctrl+X to exit the nano.

    Similarly, do the same for install/model/install/install.php

    sudo nano  install/model/install/install.php

    Then find the code $db->query(“SET @@session.sql_mode = ‘MYSQL40′”); and change to following:

    $db->query("SET @@session.sql_mode = ''");

    After the change, click Ctrl+O and Ctrl+X to exit the nano.

    Now, go and refresh the URL http://dpsignadvertising.com/install/index.php?route=install/step_3 and your Opencart installation is completed.

    Installation CompleteOpencart

    Now, let’s delete the install folder and other files and folders which are not needed.

    sudo rm -rf install
    sudo rm -rf backup
    sudo rm opencart-3.0.3.6.zip 

    With this Opencart installed, now let’s install the SSL certificate and implement the SEO URL for Opencart.

    Install the free Let’s Encrypt Certificate

    Install Certbot on your Lightsail instance by running the following commands:

    sudo apt-get install software-properties-common -y
    sudo apt-add-repository ppa:certbot/certbot -y
    sudo apt-get update -y
    sudo apt-get install certbot -y

    Request a Let’s Encrypt SSL wildcard certificate by running the following commands, don’t forget to replace your domain where we use dpsignadvertising.com

    DOMAIN=dpsignadvertising.com
    WILDCARD=*.$DOMAIN
    sudo certbot -d $DOMAIN -d $WILDCARD --manual --preferred-challenges dns certonly
    SSL Certificate Opencart

    Before entering the Continue, you need to add the TXT record in the “Add record”. So, go to Lightsail dashboard >> Networking tab >> Click the DNS Zones for dpsignadvertising.com >> Click to Add record >> Select the TXT record >> in the Subdomain adds _acme-challenge >> in the “Responds with” add the value shown in console, ours is “XL1S8jJ9gNTUU1M7QxDBWv6_m5lC1Lf2YTE_I7iTnH4” and save it by clicking the green checkmark.

    TXT record for acme challenge for SSL

    Please wait for some time so that it propagates, after around 10 mins we click Continue in the Console.

    Sometimes, it asks to add multiple TXT records. This must be set up in addition to the previous challenges; do not remove, replace, or undo the previous challenge tasks yet. Note that you might be asked to create multiple distinct TXT records with the same name. This is permitted by DNS standards.

    Create links to the Let’s Encrypt certificate files in the Apache server directory by running the following commands:

    sudo /opt/bitnami/ctlscript.sh stop
    sudo mv /opt/bitnami/apache/conf/bitnami/certs/server.crt /opt/bitnami/apache/conf/bitnami/certs/server.crt.old
    sudo mv /opt/bitnami/apache/conf/bitnami/certs/server.key /opt/bitnami/apache/conf/bitnami/certs/server.key.old
    sudo ln -s /etc/letsencrypt/live/$DOMAIN/privkey.pem /opt/bitnami/apache/conf/bitnami/certs/server.key
    sudo ln -s /etc/letsencrypt/live/$DOMAIN/fullchain.pem /opt/bitnami/apache/conf/bitnami/certs/server.crt
    sudo /opt/bitnami/ctlscript.sh start

    Configure HTTP to HTTPS redirection for your web application by running the following commands:

    sudo vim /opt/bitnami/apache2/conf/bitnami/bitnami.conf

    Add the following lines of code:

    https redirect
    RewriteEngine On
    RewriteCond %{HTTPS} !=on
    RewriteRule ^/(.*) https://%{SERVER_NAME}/$1 [R,L]

    After adding the code click the ESC key, and then enter:wq to save your changes, and quit Vim. Then restart the LAMP stack

    sudo /opt/bitnami/ctlscript.sh restart

    With these changes your SSL certificate is ready. Now you need to change a setting in Opencart admin and change the URL in the config.php and admin/config.php

    cd /opt/bitnami/apache2/htdocs
    sudo nano config.php

    Change the define(‘HTTPS_SERVER’, ‘http://dpsignadvertising.com/’); to add https://

    define('HTTPS_SERVER', 'https://dpsignadvertising.com/');

    Exit it by pressing Ctrl + O to save and then enter, after that Ctrl + X to exit

    Similarly, open admin/config.php and change the following to HTTPS://

    // HTTPS
    define('HTTPS_SERVER', 'https://dpsignadvertising.com/admin/');
    define('HTTPS_CATALOG', 'https://dpsignadvertising.com/');

    Exit it by pressing Ctrl + O to save and then enter, after that Ctrl + X to exit.

    Now go to https://dpsignadvertising.com/admin and System >> Settings >> Edit the store >> go to the Server tab >> in the security section select Yes for “Use SSL”. Then click Save.

    SSL setting Opencart

    With these steps, your SSL is activated for your domain.

    Rename .htaccess.txt to .htaccess

    Pull the .htaccess.txt of the Opencart and rename it to .htaccess

    sudo wget https://raw.githubusercontent.com/opencart/opencart/master/upload/.htaccess.txt
    sudo mv .htaccess.txt .htaccess

    Read more about SEO friendly URL of Opencart

    Activate the SEO URL

    Once the .htaccess.txt is renamed to .htaccess, then we can activate the SEO URL at the admin. Go to admin >> System >> Settings >> Edit the Store >> Server tab >> Select Yes for “Use SEO URL”.

    SEO URL Opencart

    Read more for some best practices of Opencart SEO.

    How to set up FileZilla SFTP in AWS Lightsail to transfer files?

    In the Protocol field, you need to select SFTP – SSH File Transfer Protocol. The Host is your public IP. In Logon Type, you need to select the Key file. In the User field, you need to type bitnami. Finally in the Key file field, add the public key (where can you find the public key).

    SFTP SSH setting for AWS

    Then, click Connect button. You will get a list of folders, your code will be at htdocs.

    SFTP AWS setup

    PHPMyadmin access

    Download the Lightsail SSH public key and change its permission to 0644 and make a tunnel to connect to PHPmyadmin. First, run the following command. Change the path of the key as per yours.

    sudo chmod 0644 '/Applications/MAMP/htdocs/webocreation-bk/LightsailDefaultKey-us-east-1.pem'
    sudo ssh -N -L 8888:127.0.0.1:80 -i /Applications/MAMP/htdocs/webocreation-bk/LightsailDefaultKey-us-east-1.pem bitnami@3.238.31.110

    Then, go to http://127.0.0.1:8888/phpmyadmin/ and you will be able to log in to the PHPMyadmin. The username is the root and you can get the password by running the following command the first time you logged in:

    Where can you find the SSH public key in AWS Lightsail?

    To get your SSH public key in AWS Lightsail, go to the top menu “Account“, then click on the SSH Keys tab, where you can see the lists of keys as per your region. Download the key as per your region. (How to find the region key pair of your EC2 instance?)

    Find SSH key in AWS

    How to find the region key pair of your EC2 instance?

    Click on the instance and go to Connect tab, then at the bottom, it shows which key pair is used for this instance.

    You configured this instance to use default (us-east-1) key pair.
    Find AWS instance key pair

    How to upgrade to a higher Lightsail package?

    To upgrade your Lightsail plan to a larger instance, take a snapshot and then create a larger instance from the snapshot.

    New Instances from Snapshots

    Setup CDN Content Distribution in AWS

    Go to Lightsail dashboard >> Networking tab >> Click the “Create distribution” button >> Then, in Choose your origin, select your Instance

    CDN setup AWS

    You can “Best for Dynamic Content” or Custom settings. Change the default cache behavior to cache nothing, then change the “Directory and file overrides” and give a path to the image cache.

    Cache Default Behavior

    In the Custom domains, first, create the SSL certificates and then enable the custom domains.

    Custom Domain for CDN Opencart

    You can leave the remaining setting as it is or change it as per your requirement and click the “Create Distribution” button and your CDN is set up.

    Then, change A record with the AWS Cloudfront URL by removing the Static IP.

    DNS Record changes Opencart. CDN

    To check if the Cloudfront is working or not, just inspect the page and in the Network tab of the console, click the image and see the details. In the response, if it is serving via CloudFront URL and see the x-cache: “Hit from Cloudfront”, then CloudFront is serving the images.

    Debug CDN Cloudfront Check. Opencart lightsail

    Errors:

    Error 1: Installation error because of ownership issues

    Warning: fopen(/opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/system/storage/session//sess_bb5cfd84f55cef397e6edd17cb): failed to open stream: Permission denied in /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/system/library/session/file.php on line 29Warning: flock() expects parameter 1 to be resource, bool given in /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/system/library/session/file.php on line 31Warning: fwrite() expects parameter 1 to be resource, bool given in /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/system/library/session/file.php on line 33Warning: fflush() expects parameter 1 to be resource, bool given in /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/system/library/session/file.php on line 35Warning: flock() expects parameter 1 to be resource, bool given in /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/system/library/session/file.php on line 37Warning: fclose() expects parameter 1 to be resource, bool given in /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/system/library/session/file.php on line 39

    Solution Error 1: run command ‘sudo chown daemon:daemon -R .’

    Error 2: Fatal error: Uncaught Exception: Error: Variable ‘sql_mode’

    Fatal error: Uncaught Exception: Error: Variable 'sql_mode' can't be set to the value of 'MYSQL40'<br />Error No: 1231<br />SET @@session.sql_mode = 'MYSQL40' in /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/system/library/db/mysqli.php:40 Stack trace: #0 /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/system/library/db.php(45): DB\MySQLi->query() #1 /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/install/model/install/install.php(35): DB->query() #2 /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/system/engine/loader.php(248): ModelInstallInstall->database() #3 /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/system/engine/proxy.php(47): Loader->{closure}() #4 /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/install/controller/install/step_3.php(11): Proxy->__call() #5 /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/system/engine/action.php(79): ControllerInstallStep3->index() #6 /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/system/engine/router.php(67): Action->execute() #7 /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/system/engine/router.php(56): Router->execute() #8 /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/system/framework.php(165): Router->dispatch() #9 /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/system/startup.php(104): requir in /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/system/library/db/mysqli.php on line 40

    Solution Error 2: Remove the MYSQL40. Find the code $db->query(“SET @@session.sql_mode = ‘MYSQL40′”); and remove the MYSQL40 so that the code looks like $db->query(“SET @@session.sql_mode = ””);

    Error 3: AWS LightSail 500 Internal Server Error

    Internal Server Error
    The server encountered an internal error or misconfiguration and was unable to complete your request.
    Please contact the server administrator at you@example.com to inform them of the time this error occurred, and the actions you performed just before this error.
    More information about this error may be available in the server error log.

    Solution Error 3: check if the .htaccess is there and rename it to a different till you fix the .htaccess file

    Error 4: WARNING: UNPROTECTED PRIVATE KEY FILE!

    @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@
    @         WARNING: UNPROTECTED PRIVATE KEY FILE!          @
    @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@
    Permissions 0644 for '/Applications/MAMP/htdocs/webocreation-bk/LightsailDefaultKey-us-east-1.pem' are too open.
    It is required that your private key files are NOT accessible by others.
    This private key will be ignored.
    Load key "/Applications/MAMP/htdocs/webocreation-bk/LightsailDefaultKey-us-east-1.pem": bad permissions
    bitnami@3.238.31.110: Permission denied (publickey).

    Solution Error 4: Give permission to the key file of 0644 by running “chmod 0644 pathofkeyfile

    Error 5: Error while generating the SSL certificate

    Failed authorization procedure. dpsignadvertising.com (dns-01): urn:ietf:params:acme:error:unauthorized :: The client lacks sufficient authorization :: Incorrect TXT record "oujxGkfDXUloV5IUO3__gNQA47b1wePnF4rvUcQWclM" found at _acme-challenge.dpsignadvertising.com

    Solution Error 5: Check the TXT record and wait till it propagates.

    Error 6: Class ‘Scssc’ not found

    Fatal error: Uncaught Error: Class 'Scssc' not found in /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/admin/controller/startup/sass.php:9 Stack trace: #0 /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/system/engine/action.php(79): ControllerStartupSass->index() #1 /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/system/engine/router.php(67): Action->execute() #2 /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/system/engine/router.php(46): Router->execute() #3 /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/system/framework.php(165): Router->dispatch() #4 /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/system/startup.php(104): require_once('/opt/bitnami/ap...') #5 /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/admin/index.php(26): start() #6 {main} thrown in /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/admin/controller/startup/sass.php on line 9

    Solution Error 6: Check the vendor folder and upload the right Opencart version vendor folder.

    Error 7: This site can’t be reached

    This site can’t be reached 
    dpsignadvertising.com’s server IP address could not be found.
    Try:
    Checking the connection
    Checking the proxy, firewall, and DNS configuration
    ERR_NAME_NOT_RESOLVED

    Solution Error 7: Either you just make DNS changes, so better to wait up to 1-2 hours. Or the IP address given is not correct.

    Error 8: mysqli::__construct(): (HY000/2002): Connection refused

    Warning: mysqli::__construct(): (HY000/2002): Connection refused in /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/system/library/db/mysqli.php on line 7Warning: DB\MySQLi::__construct(): Couldn't fetch mysqli in /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/system/library/db/mysqli.php on line 10Warning: DB\MySQLi::__construct(): Couldn't fetch mysqli in /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/system/library/db/mysqli.php on line 10
    Fatal error: Uncaught Exception: Error: <br />Error No: in /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/system/library/db/mysqli.php:10 Stack trace: #0 /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/storage12/modification/system/library/db.php(35): DB\MySQLi->__construct() #1 /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/system/framework.php(80): DB->__construct() #2 /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/system/startup.php(104): require_once('/opt/bitnami/ap...') #3 /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/index.php(31): start() #4 {main} thrown in /opt/bitnami/apache/htdocs/system/library/db/mysqli.php on line 10

    Solution Error 8: Make sure your database server is not down.

    In this way, you can set up the Opencart in AWS Lightsail. You can see how to set up Opencart in google cloud. Hope you liked this opencart tutorial, please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for Opencart video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.

    https://lightsail.aws.amazon.com/ls/docs/en_us/articles/lightsail-how-to-create-instance-from-snapshot

    https://lightsail.aws.amazon.com/ls/docs/en_us/articles/amazon-lightsail-using-lets-encrypt-certificates-with-lamp

    25 SEO best practices for Opencart 4 & 3 with free SEO Opencart module

    In this Opencart tutorial, we list more than 25 best practices for SEO for Opencart 4 & 3 and find out 3 free SEO Opencart 3 modules. In the near future, we will try to come up with some free modules for Opencart that address most of them but for now, have a look at the following and let us know if you have comments and suggestions.

    Read more: SEO URLs in Opencart

    We list out 25 free best practices for SEO for Opencart 4 and 3

    1. Rename the .htaccess.txt to .htaccess

      Go to your hosting root folder where Opencart is installed find .htaccess.txt and rename it to .htaccess

    2. Admin Setting section changes for the SEO

      – Go to Admin >> System >> Settings >> Edit your store
      – In the General tab, enter the Meta Title, Meta Tag Description, and Meta Tag Keywords, they are for the Home page of your store website.
      – Go to the Server tab, and Choose Yes for “Use SEO URLs”

    3. Enable the sitemap extension

      Go to Admin >> Extensions >> Extensions >> Choose the extension type >> Feeds then install the Google Sitemap extension and then edit it change the status to “Enabled” and save it. Now your sitemap URL will be given there which looks like this:
      https://yourwebsiteurl.com/index.php?route=extension/feed/google_sitemap

    4. Submit the sitemap to Google webmasters and Bing webmasters

      Create a Google Webmasters account and a Bing Webmaster account and submit the above sitemap URL in them.

    5. Create robots.txt in the root folder where Opencart is installed, and in that robots.txt place the following text, here change the sitemap URL to your website URL


      User-agent: *
      Disallow: /admin
      Sitemap: https://yourwebsiteurl.com/index.php?route=extension/feed/google_sitemap

    6. Opencart supports canonical URLs automatically, be sure to check it, and it removes the duplicate content penalties.

      https://yourwebsiteurl.com/cateogryname/productname and https://yourwebsiteurl.com/productname, these both URLs point to the same product page, so Google may take it as duplicate content so canonical URLs need to be set up. One example when you view the source the code you will see the canonical URL something like the below:

      Opencart canonical URL

    7. Product name and Description – Content is the key for Search Engines

      – Product description, as best practices for SEO, you should aim to write at least 300 words but be clear and write as much as possible.
      – Name the images as the product name, in Opencart most of the images’ alt tags are either product name in the product page, category name in category image, and so on.

    8. Enter SEO information for Products, Categories, Information pages, and Manufacturers.

      To enter the Products’ SEO information, go to Admin >> Catalog >> Products >> Add/Edit >>, then in the General tab, enter the meta tag title, meta tag description, and meta tag keywords. Likewise, go to the SEO tab and enter the keyword for each store.
      While entering the Meta Tag title, consider the following best practices:
      – Google only shows around 50–60 characters of a title tag so make the title tag around 50-60 characters
      – Put important keywords in the title and meta description
      While entering the Meta Tag Description, consider the following best practices:
      – 160 characters long
      – We have seen search engines always do not pick the meta descriptions but enter them.
      – Better not to include double quotation marks
      While entering the SEO keyword:
      – Include the main keyword or product name and better to use lowercase and not the prepositions words
      – Better not to use underscore (_), instead use dashes (-)
      – Better not to include double quotation marks or single quotation and special characters

      Follow same for Admin >> Catalog >> Categories and Admin >> Catalog >> Information and Admin >> Catalog >> Manufacturers

    9. Use social proof to gain user trust and keep your visitors engaged in your website

      Link to your website on all social media profiles. Social proof is for customers’ confidence. The footer has options to keep the user engaged (social media, phone number, etc)

    10. Internal linking is also important

      In product pages, we can do it by adding the related products

    11. Page Speed: Choose your hosting server properly

      Use the right cache module to get more benefits we missed Litespeed plugins in our WordPress website by which site was slow, so better to ask your hosting server which caches are supported.
      Check with the google page speed and follow their suggestions to improve the page speed. Improving the Google PageSpeed insights score will help a lot to show in the search results.

    12. For improved performance: Minify HTML, Minify CSS, and Minify JS

      – To minify the HTML you can use this free module
      HTML Minify | Compress code | SourceCode Compressor
      For CSS and JS minification use the developer’s help.

    13. Use srcset for images which helps properly size the images as per the screen

      Load images properly as per the screen like with srcset you can load different images for different screens. one example image code:
      Opencart Srcset Image optimization
      See the code srcset=”https://i1.wp.com/webocreation.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/out-of-stock-admin-setting.jpg?w=800&ssl=1 800w, https://i1.wp.com/webocreation.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/out-of-stock-admin-setting.jpg?resize=300%2C229&ssl=1 300w, https://i1.wp.com/webocreation.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/out-of-stock-admin-setting.jpg?resize=768%2C586&ssl=1 768w, https://i1.wp.com/webocreation.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/out-of-stock-admin-setting.jpg?resize=80%2C60&ssl=1 80w, https://i1.wp.com/webocreation.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/out-of-stock-admin-setting.jpg?resize=696%2C531&ssl=1 696w, https://i1.wp.com/webocreation.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/out-of-stock-admin-setting.jpg?resize=551%2C420&ssl=1 551w” this loads the images as per the width of the screen.
      We didn’t find any module for this, we will try to provide it soon, so for now, developer help is needed.

      https://developers.google.com/web/tools/lighthouse/audits/oversized-images

    14. Speed up the repeat visit by serving static assets with an efficient cache policy 

      You can serve static assets with an efficient cache policy by adding the following code in the .htaccess file, these are just our ideas, you can make changes as per your requirement:

      # Set up 1 week of caching on javascript and CSS
      <FilesMatch “\.(js|css)$”>
      ExpiresDefault A604800
      Header append Cache-Control “proxy-revalidate”
      SetOutputFilter DEFLATE
      </FilesMatch>

      # LBROWSERCSTART Browser Caching
      <IfModule mod_expires.c>
      ExpiresActive On
      ExpiresByType image/gif “access 1 year”
      ExpiresByType image/jpg “access 1 year”
      ExpiresByType image/jpeg “access 1 year”
      ExpiresByType image/png “access 1 year”
      ExpiresByType image/x-icon “access 1 year”
      ExpiresByType text/css “access 1 month”
      ExpiresByType text/javascript “access 1 month”
      ExpiresByType text/html “access 1 month”
      ExpiresByType application/javascript “access 1 month”
      ExpiresByType application/x-javascript “access 1 month”
      ExpiresByType application/xhtml-xml “access 1 month”
      ExpiresByType application/pdf “access 1 month”
      ExpiresByType application/x-shockwave-flash “access 1 month”
      ExpiresDefault “access 1 month”
      </IfModule>
      # END Caching LBROWSERCEND

    15. GZIP for more efficient transfer to requesting clients. The compression level must be between 0 – 9.

      To enable the text compression in Opencart, go to Admin >> System >> Settings >> Server tab >> Add the “Output Compression Level”. The value should be 0-9, what we find out is most of the time it works above 5 but hit and trial is the only option that we see. With these, it minimizes the byte size of network responses and fewer bytes means the page loads fast.

    16. Developer or Designer tasks: Ensure text remains visible during Webfont load

      Follow the idea provided at https://developers.google.com/web/updates/2016/02/font-display. Just for your information, we tried that and in our case, we used font-display: swap, and only works. Something like below:
      @font-face {
      font-family: ‘Arvo’;
      font-display: swap;
      src: local(‘Arvo’), url(https://fonts.gstatic.com/s/arvo/v9/rC7kKhY-eUDY-ucISTIf5PesZW2xOQ-xsNqO47m55DA.woff2) format(‘woff2’);
      }

    17. Look for Critical CSS: Defer unused CSS, remove all unused CSS on a page, and try to target CSS for each page.

      https://developers.google.com/web/tools/lighthouse/audits/unused-css

    18. Fix broken links

      Broken links on the website are harmful to SEO. So one freeway to check the broken link is https://www.brokenlinkcheck.com/
      Once it finds the broken links then fix them.

    19. 301 Redirect For Opencart 3 free module

      Install this free module 301 Redirect For Opencart 3.0.x – Beta and you can redirect old URLs to new URLs, so if you have to change the SEO URL keyword then don’t forget to add the 301 redirects.

    20. Add your Business to Google

      Open https://business.google.com and add your business details.

      Opencart Google Business
      Best practices for SEO as they relate to local searches include creating a Google My Business page. This practice is especially important for brick-and-mortar businesses as it shows a rich result on local Google SERPs.

    21. Add an SSL certificate to your site and redirect to the same host

      For safety, security, and customer confidence.
      All domains are to be redirected to the same host as https://yourwebsiteurl.com, choose www or non-www redirect to one, and use one.

    22. Mobile-first approach and Use a responsive, mobile-friendly design

      Mobile-friendly is for mobile fitness, as Google search started to index the mobile-first, so be sure you don’t hide things on a mobile phone and show them on a desktop, if it is hidden on the mobile then Google search will no see it, what we found is it checks for the content, links count to see if it is similar with a desktop view and mobile view.

    23. Make AMP page for Opencart

      Consider creating and using AMP versions of your product pages for the fastest experience. Check this free module:
      AMP for Product Pages

    24. Schema structured data markup for the Opencart product page

      Schema structured data markup https://developers.google.com/search/docs/guides/intro-structured-data
      Testing tool: https://search.google.com/structured-data/testing-tool/u/0/
      But we did not find Opencart version 3, we are working on it to provide you with version 3, here is for 1.5
      https://www.opencart.com/index.php?route=marketplace/extension/info&extension_id=6485&filter_license=0

    25. Monitor website activities, get notified of downtime, set up an SEMrush account, and set up Google Analytics

      Check this blog post “Free Automated Testing and Monitoring of Opencart Functionalities and Sites” which will monitor the downtime send the notifications and monitor for any errors by automated testing.
      To add Google Analytics, Go to admin >> Extensions >> Extensions >> Choose Analytics >> Install the Google Analytics extension and edit and add the analytics tracking code.
      Setup the free Semrush account and you will get 100 pages scanned every month, we found it valuable for a free account also so added it here

    26. Remove index.php?route= in OpenCart for contact, home, and other

      Go to this blog post and download the module to remove index.php?route= in Opencart 3
      https://webocreation.com/remove-route-in-opencart-for-contact-home-and-other/

    27. Setup Cloudflare for Opencart

      Visit https://webocreation.com/how-to-setup-cloudflare-easily-for-ecommerce-websites-like-opencart/ to set up Cloudflare for your website. It helps with security, performance, and reliability.

    Thanks a lot. We hope you liked this article, please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for Opencart video tutorials. You can also find us on Webocreation Twitter and Webocreation Facebook. Please let us know if you have any questions or concerns.

    How to find admin URL in Opencart 4

    Finding the admin URL in OpenCart 4 is straightforward but can differ depending on your configuration. In Opencart 4 for security it provide important security notification to rename or move the admin folder to something else folder, because of that the admin url can be anything that is set up.

    Rename admin folder opencart

    Sometime you may forget or new accessor may need to find the admin URL without someone telling them. Here’s a step-by-step guide to locate the admin URL:

    1. Default Admin URL

    If you haven’t changed the admin folder name, your admin URL will be:

    https://yourdomain.com/admin

    2. Custom Admin Folder

    For security reasons, many users rename the admin folder. If this is the case, you need to identify the custom admin folder name. Follow these steps:

    Check the config.php File

    1. Log in to your web hosting control panel or access your website files via FTP.
    2. Navigate to the root directory of your OpenCart installation.
    3. Check files and folders and need to figure out which can be admin folder.
      Opencart 4 folder structure
    4. Looking at them wpadmin looks like admin folder. Open it and see if it contains all of these folders
      Admin folder Opencart 4
    5. Open the config.php file located in that admin directory.
    6. Look for this line:define('HTTP_SERVER', 'https://yourdomain.com/wpadmin/');
    7. The folder name (wpadmin in this example) is your admin URL.
    Opencart admin URL path

    Pro Tip: Secure Your Admin URL

    To protect your admin URL:

    We hope you found this article helpful! For more OpenCart video tutorials, be sure to subscribe to our YouTube Channel. You can also stay connected with us on Twitter and Facebook at Webocreation. If you have any questions or need further assistance, please don’t hesitate to reach out.

    How to Customize the 404 Not Found Page in OpenCart

    A well-designed 404 Not Found page is crucial for improving user experience and retaining customers who land on unavailable pages. OpenCart allows you to customize this page to align with your branding and provide useful navigation options.

    Mostly the 404 page looks like below in Opencart:

    404 page not found

    Steps to Customize the 404 Page in OpenCart

    We used to need the custom module or extensions for these kinds of functionalities, but with the introduction of Language Editor in Opencart, it is more easier. If you are looking to just edit the “The page you requested cannot be found!”, then you can easily do it by language editor of Opencart. Go to admin section >> Design >> Language Editor and click Add button

    Enter the following details:

    Language editor to change 404 page

    Now the 404 will look like below:

    404 page content changed

    Read more: Language Editor in OpenCart

    Example 404 page:

    Here is one design and code example to show the different title for Category not found, product not found and other not found.

    Design as per category, product and other page:

    Category not found
    Page not found
    Products not found

    Add the following code at language editor:

    
    <div class="error-container">  
      <!-- Dynamic Error Title -->
      <h1 class="error-title" id="error-title">Oops! 404 Page Not Found</h1>
    
      <!-- Dynamic Error Message -->
      <p class="error-message" id="error-message">
        The page you are looking for doesn’t exist or has been moved. Try searching for what you need.
      </p>
    
      <!-- Search Bar -->
      <div class="p-5">
        <form id="searchbottom" method="get" action="index.php" class="input-group mb-3">
          <input type="hidden" name="language" value="en-gb"> 
          <input type="hidden" name="route" value="product/search">
          <input type="text" name="search" value="" placeholder="Search for products" class="form-control form-control-lg">  
          <button type="submit" class="btn btn-light btn-lg"><i class="fa-solid fa-magnifying-glass"></i></button>
        </form>
      </div>
      <!-- Call to Action -->
      <a href="/" class="btn btn-primary-home btn-lg">Go to Homepage</a>
    </div>
    
    <style>
      .error-container {
          border-radius: 10px;
          padding: 3rem;
          margin: auto;
          text-align: center;
          background: linear-gradient(135deg, #ff6f61, #d6a4a4);
          color: #fff;
          margin: 0;
      }
      .error-title {
          font-size: 3rem;
          font-weight: bold;
          margin-bottom: 1rem;
          color: #fff;
      }
      .error-message {
          font-size: 1.5rem;
          margin-bottom: 2rem;
          line-height: 2rem;
      }
      .btn-primary-home {
          background-color: #d9534f;
          border-color: #d9534f;
          color: #fff;
      }
    </style>
    <script>
      // Function to get the value of a specific query parameter from the URL
      function getQueryParam(param) {
        const urlParams = new URLSearchParams(window.location.search);
        return urlParams.get(param);
      }
      // Get the 'route' parameter from the URL
      const routeParam = getQueryParam("route");
      const errorTitle = document.getElementById("error-title");
      const errorMessage = document.getElementById("error-message");
      // Determine the error type based on the route parameter
      if (routeParam === "product/product") {
        errorTitle.textContent = "Product Not Found";
        errorMessage.textContent =
          "We couldn’t find the product you’re looking for. Try searching below.";
      } else if (routeParam === "product/category") {
        errorTitle.textContent = "Category Not Found";
        errorMessage.textContent =
          "The category you’re looking for doesn’t exist or is no longer available. Try searching for what you need.";
      } else {
        // Default to Page Not Found
        errorTitle.textContent = "Oops! Page Not Found";
        errorMessage.textContent =
          "The page you are looking for might have been moved or deleted. Try searching below.";
      }
    </script>

    Here is one language editor:

    Language Editor

    The JavaScript in the code find the route and show error message as per product, category other other page. If you need similar to design then you need to select different language in the Language editor and enter different value as per lanugage.

    Add Google Analytics Tracking

    To monitor the 404 errors on your site:

    • Use Google Analytics to track 404 errors.
      Set up a custom report for pages with the “404 Not Found” response.
    • Add a tracking script to the 404 page to log user behavior.Example:htmlCopy code
    <script>
        // Google Analytics event tracking
        gtag('event', '404_error', {
            'page_path': window.location.pathname
        });
    </script>

    Best Practices for a 404 Page

    1. Provide Helpful Suggestions: Include links to your homepage, categories, or popular products.
    2. Apologize for the Inconvenience: Acknowledge the error with friendly, empathetic text.
    3. Use Humor or Branding: Lighten the mood with creative messaging that reflects your brand’s personality.
    4. Include a Call-to-Action: Guide users back to the shopping experience with CTAs like “Continue Shopping” or “Search Our Store.”

    Conclusion

    Customizing the 404 Not Found page in OpenCart is an effective way to improve user experience and reduce bounce rates. By adding helpful navigation tools, engaging content, and personalized branding, you can turn an error page into an opportunity to retain potential customers and guide them back into your store.

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