Since 2005 when Joomla! was firstly released more and more e-merchants decide to build their online stores using this content management system. Joomla! has several plugins for e-Commerce, and one of the most popular and experienced is VirtueMart. Indeed, it provide great opportunities to create eye-catching store with friendly navigation and possibility to sell any type and number of products for absolutely free. Let’s go into details and look through core advantages of the platform in order to find an answer to the question “Why VirtueMart?”
1. Joomla! Plug-in
A content management system is a software that can keep different types of content like photos, text, music, documents, video etc. One of the main advantages of using a CMS is that it requires almost no programming skills. VirtueMart is Joomla! CMS based shopping cart. It means you can benefit from fully-functional shopping cart and get additional advantages from one of the best content management systems worldwide. Moreover, you will be able to set up a forum, blog or even online magazine in order to increase a traffic. Since it is an open-source platform, you will get a possibility to add new features or modify core functionality. However, remember that such kind of activity require high technical skills.
2. Setup Process
As you already know, VirtueMart is a CMS plugin, so first of all you have to install Joomla! on your server. After that, you need to setup shopping cart package on your existing Joomla! site. The process of installation is pretty easy and can be done by a person without technical skills.
3. Flexible
VirtueMart’s flexibility is represented by adaptable features, which will make store management process easier and provide your customers with extra opportunities.
- VirtueMart shopping cart supports multiple languages and a wide range of currencies. It means you will get a great possibility to sell the products all over the world.
- With the help of shop statistics option, you can easily analyze sales information by products, by month, by day in order to facilitate further effective marketing.
- VirtueMart provides flexible payment modules to make the purchasing process more convenient. Your customers will be able to pay with a credit card or use pre-determined payment gateways.
- Possibility to create an unlimited number of products, categories, customers and orders will extend your opportunities.
4. Extensions
VirtueMart cart aims to improve the experience of their users with the help of numerous add-ons. You will be able to extend the functionality of Joomla! and VirtueMart store with the help of numerous templates, modules and components in order to satisfy your special needs. Shopping cart has a wide range of its own extension,s and it can work with Joomla’s modules. Most of them are for free, but there are paid, as well. All the extensions are available in the Joomla Extensions Directory.
5. Price
VirtueMart, as well as Joomla!, are released under the General Public License, what means that they are absolutely free to use and download. However, bare in mind open source carts tend to have some hidden costs. Usually you will have to put some efforts or budget to make store’s functionality meet business demands. Default set of features can really seldom fulfill all the specific needs of online store. To handle this you will have to spend time on performing all the necessary customizations on your own (or hiring a developer). In most cases it will also include buying some extension. That is why you have to take these expenses into consideration before starting an Internet shop.
VirtueMart definitely worth your attention. Now you know strong points of one of the most popular Joomla! plugin. If you still hesitate, just download VirtueMart at your local computer and take some time on testing it for your needs. After that you will see all the platform’s pros on your own and will be ready to start a profitable business with powerful cart.
November 22, 2024 
