WooCommerce: Adding a Link to Your Order Received Page – A Beginner’s Guide
So, you’ve successfully set up your WooCommerce store, congratulations! But are you optimizing the customer journey *after* they’ve placed an order? The “Order Received” page is a fantastic, often overlooked, opportunity to guide customers further and increase engagement. One simple way to do this is by adding a link. This article will walk you through how to add a link to your WooCommerce Order Received page in a way that’s easy to understand, even if you’re not a coding whiz.
Why bother adding a link, you ask? Think of it like this: Your customer has just made a purchase. They’re engaged and interested in your brand. Instead of simply showing them a confirmation page, you can:
- Direct them to related products: “Customers who bought this also bought…” This can encourage further purchases and increase your average order value. Imagine a customer buying a camera. On the order received page, you could link to compatible SD cards, camera bags, or lenses.
- Offer a coupon code for their next purchase: A simple “Thanks for your order! Use code WELCOME10 for 10% off your next purchase!” can boost future sales.
- Guide them to your blog or helpful resources: If you sell complex products, linking to a helpful tutorial or FAQ can improve customer satisfaction. Think of selling a complicated software. You can link to a “Getting Started” guide.
- Encourage social sharing: Link to your social media profiles with a message like “Share your new purchase on social media!” This can increase brand awareness.
Understanding the Order Received Page
The “Order Received” page (also known as the “Thank You” page) is the page your customer sees immediately after successfully placing an order on your WooCommerce store. It typically displays order details like the order number, order date, payment method, and total amount. It’s a crucial touchpoint in the customer journey, and customizing it is key to improving the post-purchase experience.
Method 1: Using WooCommerce Hooks (The Recommended Approach)
Using WooCommerce hooks is the recommended way to add content to the Order Received page. Hooks allow you to add custom functionality without directly modifying the core WooCommerce files. This is important because directly modifying core files can cause issues when WooCommerce updates.
Here’s a step-by-step guide:
1. Access your theme’s `functions.php` file: This file is located in your WordPress theme folder (e.g., `wp-content/themes/your-theme-name/functions.php`). Important: It’s highly recommended to use a child theme to avoid losing your changes when your main theme updates.
2. Add the following code snippet to your `functions.php` file:
add_action( 'woocommerce_thankyou', 'add_custom_link_to_thankyou_page' );
function add_custom_link_to_thankyou_page( $order_id ) {
$order = wc_get_order( $order_id );
// Check if the order is valid
if ( ! $order ) {
return;
}
echo ‘
Check out our other amazing products: Visit Our Shop
‘;
}
3. Customize the Code:
- `woocommerce_thankyou`: This is the WooCommerce hook that runs on the Order Received page.
- `add_custom_link_to_thankyou_page`: This is the name of your custom function. You can change this, but make sure it’s descriptive.
- `$order_id`: This variable holds the order ID. It’s automatically passed to your function by WooCommerce.
- `$order = wc_get_order( $order_id );`: Retrieves the order object using the order ID.
- `if ( ! $order ) { return; }`: A crucial check! This prevents errors if, for some reason, the order object couldn’t be retrieved.
- `echo ‘
Check out our other amazing products: Visit Our Shop
‘;`:
This is the HTML code that will be added to the Order Received page. Replace `https://www.example.com/shop` with the actual URL you want to link to. You can customize the text and add other HTML elements as needed.
Explanation:
- The `add_action()` function tells WordPress to run your custom function `add_custom_link_to_thankyou_page()` when the `woocommerce_thankyou` hook is triggered.
- The function then echoes out the HTML code containing your link. This code will be displayed on the Order Received page, usually below the order details.
Example:
Let’s say you’re selling handmade jewelry. You could change the code to:
add_action( 'woocommerce_thankyou', 'add_jewelry_link_to_thankyou_page' );
function add_jewelry_link_to_thankyou_page( $order_id ) {
$order = wc_get_order( $order_id );
if ( ! $order ) {
return;
}
echo ‘
We hope you love your new jewelry! Browse our latest collection: New Arrivals
‘;
}
Method 2: Using a Plugin
If you’re not comfortable editing code, you can use a WooCommerce plugin to add a link to the Order Received page. There are many plugins available that allow you to customize this page without writing any code.
Examples of Plugins:
- WooCommerce Thank You Page Customizer: Allows you to visually customize the Thank You page with drag-and-drop functionality.
- YayMail – WooCommerce Email Customizer: While primarily for email customization, some similar plugins can also modify the Thank You page.
Important Considerations When Choosing a Plugin:
- Reviews and Ratings: Check the plugin’s reviews and ratings to ensure it’s reliable and well-supported.
- Compatibility: Make sure the plugin is compatible with the latest version of WooCommerce and your WordPress theme.
- Features: Does the plugin offer the features you need to customize the Order Received page?
- Support: Does the plugin developer provide good support in case you encounter any issues?
Method 3: Modifying the Theme Template (Not Recommended for Beginners)
While technically possible, directly modifying the WooCommerce theme template for the Order Received page is not recommended unless you’re an experienced developer. Doing so can make it difficult to update your theme and may break your site. If you *must* do this, always use a child theme. The template file you would need to modify is usually located in `wp-content/plugins/woocommerce/templates/checkout/thankyou.php`. Copy this file to your child theme directory before making any changes.
Testing Your Changes
After adding your link (using any method), it’s crucial to test it to ensure it works correctly.
1. Place a test order on your WooCommerce store.
2. Navigate to the Order Received page.
3. Click on the link you added.
4. Verify that the link takes you to the correct destination.
Best Practices for Adding Links
- Relevance: Make sure the link is relevant to the customer’s purchase. Don’t just link to your homepage.
- Clear and Concise Text: Use clear and concise text for the link. Tell the customer *why* they should click on the link.
- Mobile-Friendly: Ensure the link is easily clickable on mobile devices.
- Track Your Results: Use Google Analytics or another tracking tool to monitor the performance of your links. Are people clicking on them? Are they leading to conversions?
By strategically adding links to your WooCommerce Order Received page, you can significantly improve the customer experience, increase engagement, and drive more sales. Good luck!
