WooCommerce is undoubtedly one of the most popular eCommerce plugins for WordPress. Powering more than 2,60,000 active websites, it is the fastest growing eCommerce tool in the WordPress ecosystem.

It promises a lot to the end users and is being touted as one of the eCommerce tools for the future. WooCommerce 2.1 is a powerful platform that can handle the needs of small and large online stores alike.

This new avatar has undergone a lot of changes from its previous version and in this article we shall try and look at some of these new features and functionalities.

Also Read: 25+ Best WordPress WooCommerce Themes for Your Online Store

What Is New in WooCommerce 2.1?

Bold Design

WooCommerce 2.1 runs on WordPress 3.8 and above. WordPress 3.8 has brought in considerable changes to the Content Management System including brand new admin and bold design options. This allows users to get more aggressive with their store design and gain edge over competition.

Robust Reporting

Reporting features had always been the strength of WooCommerce and now it has gone further ahead and come up with many improvements. The feature has become faster and more responsive.

There is a new tab for customer reports and you can get information on guest vs. customer sales, new signups and inventory status with a few mouse clicks.

Better Order Administration

Managing orders is one of the most important tasks for any store owner and it has undergone considerable improvement in WooCommerce 2.1. Orders List has been overhauled and now displays the billing address as a tooltip. Also, the feature of manually adding and editing individual orders has been simplified.

New Account Creation Process

The new account creation process has been simplified. Usernames and passwords can now be auto-created for customers at checkout. This is beneficial for customers who don’t want to go through the lengthy signup process. The users need to check a box and username and a temporary password are generated immediately.

Lesser Settings

Ecommerce tools tend to add new settings and with every subsequent development often ignoring the logic behind having some outdated settings.

WooCommerce 2.1 has aggressively removed settings that are no longer required or best suited as developer-friendly filters. Existing settings have been reorganized into more logical groupings.

Responsive Templates

Most of the modern WordPress templates are responsive and WooCommerce 2.1 takes it further by easily blending with any theme. By default WooCommerce 2.1 templates are responsive and allow businesses to target users on smartphones and tablets aggressively.

Independent REST API

WooCommerce 2.1 has earned the distinction of being the first e-commerce plugin to have an independent REST (representational state transfer) API.

It allows third parties to extend WooCommerce and build services on top of it. On the business side it will allow store owners to use the customer data in another application.

Must Dos before Updating from older version to WooCommerce 2.1

• Back up all your online store data using a backup tool. This will prevent data loss if issues arise during the updating process.
• WooCommerce 2.1 runs on WordPress 3.8 and you will need to update to the latest stable version of WordPress.
• Run WooCommerce 2.1 in a test environment before updating it for the live website. You can make use of test environments such as sandbox to simulate the update.
• Update all the premium WooCommerce extensions and other extensions on the site to the latest available version to avoid issues with compatibility.

A New Era In Ecommerce Development

Magento has been the most preferred open-source ecommerce tool for a few years now but WooCommerce seems to be giving it stiff competition in the recent times.

A recent survey showed that WooCommerce with 9.7% market share stands next to Magento which leads with a whopping 26.1% share in a highly fragmented market.

However, WooCommerce has grown 452% on a year-to-year basis and is being touted to take over Magento in the future. This fast paced growth is also being attributed to the overwhelming popularity of WordPress.

With the recent upgrades WordPress has done away with all the apprehensions that ecommerce developers had over security and functionality.

Another thing that is working in favor of WooCommerce is the fact that it is better at supporting content marketing and easily to optimize for mobile devices.

PixelCrayons – PixelCrayons is one of the market leaders in WooCommerce plugin customization, configuration and troubleshooting. They have created the perfect synergy between technology and creativity. The team designs custom templates that provides your business the edge over your rivals.

ValueCoders – A WordPress development firm in the top of the league that helps you achieve the highest conversion rates in on the web and on mobile devices through WooCommerce development. The team can develop stunning ecommerce sites from scratch for maximum brand exposure.

WPCanvas – For a perfect online store using WooCommerce they are the people for the job. With expertise in WooCommerce store development and theme customization they make use of the right development technique to create strong ecommerce presence.

Webapptech – The team has expertise in WooCommerce customization and creates successful marketplace for your business. They can develop an online store from scratch that is scalable, attractive and one that adds to your brand value in a competitive market.

Technorigins – Technorigins uses WooCommerce to offer comprehensive solutions for the contemporary online marketplace. The stores encompass latest layouts and features that are built from scratch to meet the needs of your business and give you the head start.

Raison – The team here has a firm belief that ecommerce stores should be designed for different devices and platforms. This is what they focus on to develop an online store of mass appeal. They develop stores from scratch to meet the modern day needs of your business.

Innovator – Developing a number of future oriented eCommerce stores they have created a name for themselves. The team has expertise in WooCommerce and creates stores that would separate you from the crowd.

Webiixx – This firm has created a name for itself with emphasis on visual presentation. They develop online stores for businesses that sell a wide range of merchandise.

Flogix – They maximize your benefits using WooCommerce. The team has expertise in this platform and eye for each and every detail regarding sales and the growth of the business. They provide additional features such as electronic discount vouchers, mailing list, and sales analytics.

Apeiront – They use the perfect balance of technical skills and creative design to create robust online stores. The team is up-to-date with the cutting ecommerce web design tactics and strategies that yield great return for online stores.