VirtueMart is used only as an installable extension for the Joomla content management system. And for this system, VirtueMart is perhaps the most popular component of an online store.
Instructions
Step 1
First of all, VirtueMart must be installed through your Joomla admin panel. This is done, as is the case with all other extensions, using the standard Joomla installer. At the end of the procedure, VirtueMart will be available for configuration in the "Components" menu of the control panel.
However, for the convenience of using the store on VirtueMart, you also need to install a number of modules (shopping cart, store search, etc.). Modules will then need to be enabled and inserted into the desired positions on the site through the "Module Manager".
It is worth noting that VirtueMart only works as a Joomla extension. The component cannot work separately from this CMS (or as part of any other).
Step 2
To make the online store accessible from the site, you need to add a link to the main page of the component using the Joomla Menu Manager. If the online store is to be the main section of the site, the link must be made the main one.
Step 3
The main content of an online store on VirtueMart is categories and products. Both are created by the user independently using the VirtueMart control panel. Categories are created first, then products. Products cannot exist outside of categories. At the same time, categories can contain not only products, but also other categories (the nesting level of subcategories is actually unlimited).
By default, categories with no products are not displayed on the site. However, this can be changed in the store settings.
Step 4
Additional settings for each product are made in the "Custom Fields" section in the individual product card.
Here you can set the name of the product, its description, price, picture with it, article and more.
You can choose a tax that is suitable for a given product, such as VAT (the store allows you to customize this indicator yourself), so that in the future it is calculated automatically.
VirtueMart also allows you to set variable properties of goods (for example, size or color). Thanks to this mechanism, the end user can then select the appropriate parameters for the product of interest.
Step 5
In the settings of VirtueMart for the full operation of the store, it remains only to enable the available payment methods (section "Payment Methods"). The default is Cash On Delivery. However, not all online stores, especially the newly opened ones, can afford this option. For such sites, electronic money payment modules executed by third-party developers (Qiwi, WebMoney, Yandex-money, etc.) will be more relevant. At the moment, all of them are paid, but their price usually ranges from 300-500 rubles. This is a perfectly acceptable price to pay for the convenience of a potential buyer.
Step 6
After the completion of the work, the potential buyer should already display the downloaded products on the site, which he can even select, put in the cart and pay.
If the buyer has performed these actions, according to the standard settings, the online store will send a notification about the order made to the user and the store owner. After that, the owner only has to confirm the sending of the order or reject it due to the lack of goods in the store. The user will receive a notification corresponding to the situation.
