WooCommerce: Enabling Backorders for Wholesalers – A Beginner’s Guide
Do you run a WooCommerce wholesale store? Allowing backorders can be a powerful way to retain customers and keep sales flowing, even when you’re temporarily out of stock. Imagine a scenario: a small bakery regularly buys flour from you. Suddenly, there’s a nationwide flour shortage, and your stock dwindles. If they can’t backorder, Discover insights on How To Add An Ebook Downloadable File To Woocommerce they might find another supplier. Allowing backorders prevents this! This guide will walk you through the process of enabling backorders specifically for your wholesale customers in WooCommerce.
Why Allow Backorders for Wholesalers?
Before diving into the how-to, let’s understand the “why.” Backorders are particularly beneficial for wholesale businesses:
- Customer Retention: Wholesalers often have established relationships with their customers. Allowing backorders demonstrates commitment to fulfilling their needs, even during shortages.
- Predictable Demand: Backorders provide valuable insights into future demand. You can see what products are highly sought after, even when out of stock, enabling you to better plan your inventory. Think of it as market research done by your customers, telling you, “We NEED this!”
- Continuous Revenue Stream: Even if you can’t ship immediately, you’re still securing the sale. This maintains a steady cash flow and avoids losing potential revenue to competitors.
- Competitive Advantage: If your competitors don’t offer backorders, you gain a significant edge by providing this convenient option.
- Do not allow: The product cannot be ordered if it’s out of stock.
- Allow, but notify customer: Customers can order the product, Explore this article on How To Import Aliexpress Products To Woocommerce and they will be notified that it’s on backorder during the checkout process. This transparency is crucial for managing expectations.
- Allow: Customers can order the product without any notification. Generally, this is NOT recommended as it can lead to frustrated customers who are unaware of the delay.
Understanding WooCommerce Backorder Options
WooCommerce offers three primary backorder settings at the product level:
Enabling Backorders in WooCommerce (The Simple Way)
This is the most straightforward method, applicable if you want to allow backorders for all customers, not just wholesalers.
1. Navigate to Products: In your WordPress dashboard, go to Products > All Products.
2. Edit the Product: Find the product you want to enable backorders for and click Edit.
3. Inventory Tab: Scroll down to the Product data section and click on the Inventory tab.
4. Manage Stock: Make sure the “Manage stock?” checkbox is checked.
5. Stock Status: Change the “Stock status” from “Out of stock” to “In stock” if it’s currently set to “Out of Stock.”
6. Allow Backorders?: Use the “Allow backorders?” dropdown to select either “Allow, but notify customer” or “Allow.” We strongly recommend “Allow, but notify customer” for a better customer experience.
7. Update: Click the Update button to save your changes.
Enabling Backorders for *Only* Wholesalers: The Advanced Approach
Now, let’s tackle the trickier but more targeted approach: enabling backorders only for your wholesale customers. This requires a little coding or a plugin that allows for role-based product settings. We’ll cover a plugin solution first as it’s the most newbie-friendly.
Option 1: Using a Wholesale Plugin (Recommended)
Many WooCommerce wholesale plugins (e.g., Wholesale Suite, B2BKing, Wholesale for WooCommerce) offer the functionality to set different backorder rules based on user roles (e.g., “Wholesaler,” “Retailer”). These plugins provide a user-friendly interface to manage this without needing to write code.
1. Install and Activate a Wholesale Plugin: Choose a reputable wholesale plugin and install and activate it.
2. Configure User Roles: Most plugins will allow you to define a “Wholesaler” user role (or similar).
3. Product Settings: The plugin should provide a way to set backorder options *specifically* for the “Wholesaler” role at the product level. This usually involves an extra tab or section in the product edit screen. Follow the plugin’s documentation for exact steps.
Option 2: Custom Code (For the More Adventurous)
If you’re comfortable with PHP, you can achieve this with custom code. Use caution when editing theme files; always back up your website first!
The general idea is to:
1. Check the User Role: Determine if the current user has the “Wholesaler” role.
2. Modify Product Settings: If the user is a wholesaler, override the default backorder settings for that product.
Here’s a simplified example (you’ll need to adapt this to your specific theme and setup):
<?php /**
return $purchasable;
}
add_filter( ‘woocommerce_is_purchasable’, ‘allow_backorders_for_wholesalers’, 10, 2 );
function add_backorder_text_wholesalers_only( $text, $product_id ) {
// only show backorder message for “wholesaler” role
if ( is_user_logged_in() && current_user_can( ‘wholesaler’ ) ) {
$product = wc_get_product($product_id);
if (!$product->is_in_stock()) Discover insights on Woocommerce How To Edit My Account Page {
$text = __(‘Available on backorder.’, ‘woocommerce’);
}
}
return $text;
}
add_filter( ‘woocommerce_get_availability_text’, ‘add_backorder_text_wholesalers_only’, 10, 2 );
?>
Important Notes About the Code:
- `current_user_can( ‘wholesaler’ )`: This assumes you have a user role called “wholesaler.” Adjust this to match your actual role name.
- `$product->set_backorders( ‘yes’ )`: This sets the backorder status to “Allow.” Use `’notify’` for “Allow, but notify customer.”
- Where to Put the Code: Place this code in your theme’s `functions.php` file (again, back up your website first!) or, better yet, in a custom plugin to avoid losing the changes when you update your theme.
- Thorough Testing: Test the code thoroughly to ensure it works as expected and doesn’t break your website. Check it logged in as a wholesaler *and* as a regular customer to verify the settings are applied correctly.
- Displaying a Backorder Notice: The second section adds custom availability text to show only if the product is out of stock and if the user is a wholesaler.
Communicating Backorders Clearly
Regardless of the method you choose, clear communication is key. Make sure your customers are aware of your backorder policy. Consider these points:
- Backorder Notification: If you use the “Allow, but notify customer” option, the standard WooCommerce notification will appear during checkout.
- Order Confirmation Emails: Include information about backordered items in order confirmation emails. Provide estimated shipping dates if possible. Say something like, “The following items are on backorder and are expected to ship within [number] business days: [item names]”.
- Account Dashboard: Allow customers to view the status of their backorders in their account dashboard.
- Dedicated Backorder Page: Consider creating a dedicated page on your website that explains your backorder policy in detail.
Final Thoughts
Enabling backorders for your wholesale customers can be a game-changer for your business. By understanding the options available and communicating effectively, you can retain customers, predict demand, and maintain a steady revenue stream, even during periods of low stock. Remember to choose the method that best suits your technical skills and always prioritize a positive customer experience.
