WooCommerce: How to Add a Custom Heading Above Your Short Description (SEO-Friendly Guide)
Introduction:
The short description in WooCommerce is a crucial element for enticing customers. It’s often the first piece of information potential buyers see on a product page, influencing their decision to learn more or add the product to their cart. While the default short description is helpful, you might want to add a custom heading right above it to further highlight key features, benefits, or even brand messaging. This article will guide you through the process of adding a custom heading to your WooCommerce product page, improving its clarity and potentially boosting your conversions. We will focus on a code-based solution that offers greater flexibility and control.
Main Part: Implementing a Custom Heading Above the Short Description
Adding a heading above the short description involves using WooCommerce hooks and filters, allowing you to modify the default display behavior. We’ll use a function that hooks into the `woocommerce_short_description` filter to prepend our custom heading.
Step 1: Accessing Your Theme’s `functions.php` File
The first step is to access your theme’s `functions.php` file. This file contains custom functions and modifications for your WordPress theme. You can access it in two ways:
- Via WordPress Dashboard: Go to Appearance > Theme Editor. Locate the `functions.php` file in the list of theme files on the right-hand side. Be extremely careful when editing this file, as mistakes can break your website.
- Via FTP/SFTP: Use an FTP client like FileZilla to connect to your web server. Navigate to `wp-content/themes/[your-theme-name]/` and locate the `functions.php` file. Download the file to your computer for editing, and then upload the modified file back to the server.
Important Note: Before editing your `functions.php` file, create a backup! This will allow you to easily revert any changes if something goes wrong. It’s also highly recommended to use a child theme. A child theme protects your customizations from being overwritten when your main theme is updated.
Step 2: Adding the Custom Code to `functions.php`
Now, add the following PHP code snippet to your `functions.php` file:
/**
' . $heading_text . '
';return $heading . $content;
}
add_filter( ‘woocommerce_short_description’, ‘custom_woocommerce_short_description_heading’, 10 );
Explanation:
- `custom_woocommerce_short_description_heading( $content )`: This function takes the existing short description content as input (`$content`).
- `$heading_text = __( ‘Key Features’, ‘your-theme-textdomain’ )`: This line defines the text for your heading. Replace ‘Key Features’ with your desired heading text. The `__()` function is used for internationalization (making your theme translatable). Replace `’your-theme-textdomain’` with your theme’s text domain. If you don’t know your theme’s text domain, you can typically find it in your theme’s `style.css` file in the header. Look for a line that says `Text Domain: your-theme-textdomain`.
- `$heading = ‘
‘ . $heading_text . ‘
‘;`
: This line creates the HTML for the heading. We’re using an `` tag, but you can use `
` or `
` as well. We also add a CSS class (`custom-short-description-heading`) to the heading, which allows you to style it using CSS.
- `return $heading . $content;`: This line combines the heading with the original short description content and returns the result.
- `add_filter( ‘woocommerce_short_description’, ‘custom_woocommerce_short_description_heading’, 10 );`: This line hooks the `custom_woocommerce_short_description_heading` function into the `woocommerce_short_description` filter. The `10` is the priority. A lower number means the function will run earlier.
Step 3: Styling Your Custom Heading with CSS
To style your custom heading, add CSS to your theme’s `style.css` file or through the WordPress Customizer (Appearance > Customize > Additional CSS).
For example, you could add the following CSS to change the heading’s color and font size:
.custom-short-description-heading {
color: #007bff; /* Example: blue */
font-size: 1.2em;
margin-bottom: 10px; /* Add some space between Explore this article on Woocommerce How To Edit Cart Page the heading and the description */
}
Adjust the CSS properties to match your website’s design.
Step 4: Testing and Troubleshooting
After adding the code and CSS, visit a product page on your WooCommerce store. You should see your custom heading displayed above the short description.
If you don’t see the heading:
- Double-check your code: Make sure there are no typos or syntax errors in your `functions.php` file. Even a small error can prevent the code from working.
- Clear your cache: Sometimes, cached versions of your website can prevent changes from appearing. Clear your browser cache and any caching plugins you may be using.
- Check for conflicts: Deactivate other plugins temporarily to see if any of them are conflicting with the code. If deactivating a specific plugin resolves the issue, you’ll need to find an alternative plugin or contact the plugin developer for assistance.
- Enable WP_DEBUG: In your `wp-config.php` file (located in the root directory of your WordPress installation), set `WP_DEBUG` to `true` to display any PHP errors. This can help you identify problems in your code. Remember to set it back to `false` when you’re done debugging.
Conclusion:
Adding a custom heading above your WooCommerce short description is a simple yet effective way to enhance your product pages. By using the method outlined in this article, you gain greater control over the presentation of your products, ultimately leading to a better user experience and potentially higher conversion rates. Remember to back up your `functions.php` file and use a child theme before making any changes, and don’t hesitate to experiment with different headings and styling options to find what works best for your store. Finally, regularly monitor your product pages to ensure the custom heading is displayed correctly and contributes positively to your overall marketing strategy.
