How To Show Variable Product Navigation From Woocommerce

How to Show Variable Product Navigation in WooCommerce: A Comprehensive Guide

Introduction:

WooCommerce, the leading e-commerce platform for WordPress, allows you to sell a wide range of products, including variable products. Variable products are those that come in different sizes, colors, or other variations. Navigating through these variations seamlessly is crucial for a positive user experience and increased sales. While WooCommerce offers a basic dropdown for variation selection, it doesn’t always provide the most intuitive or visually appealing navigation. This article will guide you through different methods to enhance your variable product navigation, making it easier for your customers to find exactly what they’re looking for. We’ll cover both code-based and plugin-based approaches, allowing you to choose the method that best suits your skills and requirements.

Why Enhance Variable Product Navigation?

• Improved User Experience: Clear and intuitive navigation makes it easier for customers to find the exact product variation they want.
• Increased Conversions: A better user experience leads to higher engagement and ultimately, more sales.
• Reduced Bounce Rate: If customers can’t easily find what they need, they’re more likely to leave your site.
• Enhanced Visual Appeal: Upgraded navigation can make your product pages look more professional and modern.

Implementing Variable Product Navigation in WooCommerce

There are several ways to implement enhanced variable product navigation in WooCommerce. Here are a few common methods:

1. Using WooCommerce Hooks and Custom Code

This method offers the most flexibility but requires some coding knowledge. You can use WooCommerce hooks to modify the default variation display.

#### a. Modifying the Variation Dropdown:

You can replace the default dropdown with a series of buttons or swatches, making it easier for customers to visualize the available options.

/**
Remove the default WooCommerce variation dropdowns
*/
add_filter( 'woocommerce_dropdown_variation_attribute_options_html', '__return_empty_string' );

/

* Display variation attributes as buttons

*/

add_action( ‘woocommerce_before_variations_form’, ‘display_variation_attributes_as_buttons’ );

function display_variation_attributes_as_buttons() {

global $product;

$attributes = $product->get_attributes();

foreach ( $attributes as $attribute ) {

$name = $attribute->get_name();

$options = $attribute->get_options();

if ( empty( $options ) && ! empty( $attribute->get_variation() ) ) {

continue;

}

echo ‘

‘;

echo ‘

‘ . wc_attribute_label( $name ) . ‘

‘;

echo ‘

‘;

if ( $attribute->has_terms() ) {

foreach ( $options as $option ) {

$term = get_term( $option, $name );

if ( $term ) {

echo ‘slug ) . ‘”>’ . esc_html( $term->name ) . ‘‘;

}

}

} else {

foreach ( $options as $option ) {

echo ‘‘ . esc_html( $option ) . ‘‘;

}

}

echo ‘

‘;

echo ‘

‘;

}

}

/

* Enqueue javascript to handle button selection

*/

add_action( ‘wp_enqueue_scripts’, ‘enqueue_variation_button_script’ );

function enqueue_variation_button_script() {

wp_enqueue_script( ‘variation-button-script’, get_stylesheet_directory_uri() . ‘/js/variation-buttons.js’, array( ‘jquery’ ), ‘1.0’, true );

}

Important: This code needs to be added to your theme’s `functions.php` file or a custom plugin. Remember to create the `variation-buttons.js` file and include the necessary JavaScript logic to handle button selection and update the variation form. The script would handle clicking the buttons, setting the selected variation, and triggering WooCommerce to update the product information.

#### b. Displaying Color Swatches:

For products with color variations, displaying color swatches is a visually appealing and intuitive option. This requires a bit more customization, as you’ll need to link the colors to the corresponding variations.

1. Create a Custom Field: Use a plugin like Advanced Custom Fields (ACF) to add a color picker field to each product attribute term (e.g., for the attribute “Color”, add a color picker to each term like “Red”, “Blue”, “Green”).

2. Modify the Variation Display: Similar to the button example, use the `woocommerce_before_variations_form` action to override the default dropdown.

3. Retrieve Color Values: In your custom code, retrieve the color value associated with each term using ACF’s `get_field()` function.

4. Display Swatches: Instead of buttons, display color swatches (e.g., `

` elements with a background color set to the retrieved color value).
// Example (Conceptual - Requires more code and ACF):
echo '
';
Important: This requires significantly more coding, including handling JavaScript events for selecting swatches and updating the product variation.
2. Using WooCommerce Plugins
Several WooCommerce plugins are available that simplify the process of enhancing variable product navigation. These plugins often provide a user-friendly interface for customizing the display of variations without requiring extensive coding.
Here are a few popular options:
• Variation Swatches for WooCommerce: This is a popular plugin that allows you to replace the default dropdown with color swatches, images, or custom labels.
• WooCommerce Variation Master: This plugin offers a wide range of customization options for variable product navigation, including different swatch types, attribute images, and more.
• Product Variations Swatches for WooCommerce: This plugin allows you to create beautiful swatches for color, size, and other attributes.
Advantages of using plugins:
• Ease of Use: Plugins provide a user-friendly interface, making it easier to customize the display of variations.
• Reduced Coding: You don’t need to write custom code to implement advanced navigation features.
• Regular Updates: Plugins are typically updated regularly to ensure compatibility with the latest version of WooCommerce.
Disadvantages of using plugins:
• Potential for Conflicts: Plugins can sometimes conflict with each other or with your theme.
• Performance Impact: Some plugins can add overhead to your site, potentially slowing down page load times.
• Cost: Many premium plugins require a paid license.
Considerations when choosing a method:
• Coding skills: If you are comfortable with PHP, CSS and JavaScript, customizing your theme’s `functions.php` will provide the most control.
• Complexity: Simple changes like button display are easier to implement via code. More advanced customization (like complex image swatches) might be easier via plugins.
• Budget: Free plugins might offer basic functionality, but premium plugins often provide more advanced features and better support.
• Performance: Test the impact of any plugin or code changes on your website’s performance.