Joomla Africa

Virtuemart is a free, easy to use and up-to-date e-commerce solution. Completely integrated into the Joomla Content Management System. This solution allows you to create an online e-commerce store.

Virtuemart was also voted as the best component for Joomla in 2009.

VirtueMart is the best and comprehensive eCommerce solution for Joomla. Joomla is released under the GNU General Public License. This means by the end, they are free for download and use. Joomla! and VirtueMart are both written in PHP. Both systems are easy to use in the PHP and MySQL environment.

To get started you will need a live Jooma web site and the VirtueMart package. Joomla provides the Core System and the Framework. Install VirtueMart on your CMS via the install section on your administration interface.

It is important to work on each screen of the settings page. This is to setup the online ecommerce shop. Once done, start adding products. Add images, descriptions, prices, and all relevant detail to your online shop.

Integrate your gateway provider. This is to cater for online credit card transactions. In South Africa we have netcash. 

South African Payment Gatewayfor Virtuemart

Netcash gateway: Netcash acts as the intermediary between online merchants and financial institutions. All you need in terms of infrastructure is access to the Internet. The services are designed for ease of use and cardholder security. Netcash Gateway enables you to seamlessly direct credit card transactions from your VirtueMart store to the Netcash payment web page. Your are the presented on that page so that customers do not feel as if they leaving your website.

Once integrated, run your account in test mode. Do not make the system live until you have tested a couple of transactions. When you have tested the transactions are happy with the results, make the system live to accept online transactions.

It is also a good idea to add the visa and master card logos on your web site. This shows you accept credit card payments.

Some Features of VirtueMart

• Flexible tax modules set-up is possible in the back-end
• Shoppers manage their own accounts in the front end
• Users manage their own shipping address
• Users have access to their order history
• Users get a confirmation email of their order
• Make use of multiple currencies
• Add unlimited number of products and product categories
• Quick product searches
• Allow users to make product ratings and post reviews
• Add product attributes
• Shop statistics in the back end with various reports
• Stock level controls
• Flexible shipping and carrier rates are possible to configure

This is a great system to allow you to make money from your web site selling products.

Many businesses have become aware that offering products directly online to customers makes business sense. Customers are looking for instant gratification. Having an online solution to handle orders for clients is a great way to extend a business beyond its boundaries. The internet is a global market place. Many business owners still only operate in their local area. Having a web site with order capabilities extends the reach of the business far beyond their local area. It is like exploding onto a bigger market.

To handle online transactions was difficult in the past. A lot of red tape. A lot of systems that are difficult to manage. Today this is not true anymore. Now you are able to get a great system working 24/7 at a fraction of the investment required 5 years ago. 

The Internet is evolving. Almost 5 million people in South Africa are online already. That is a big market. Bigger than what most businesses have access to. This market is set to double in the next 8 years. This means in 8 years time 10 million people will be online in South Africa. That is a big market to any business. The quicker you are to market, the more you can benefit. 

Get online with Joomla and VirtueMart- get your business ready for a flood of new customers via online transactions.