OpenCart: Definition, Features, and Optimization Guide

Business activities can be carried out using today's digital platforms. One platform that you can use in this case is OpenCart. Unlike the marketplace system, this shopping place operates by providing a CMS to market businesses.

OpenCart is an option that makes it easier for business managers to get customers without having to build a website from scratch. This digital platform provides a variety of easy-to-use features along with some advantages for managing products.

Similar to website management in general, OpenCart's performance can be improved by implementing the right SEO strategy. To get to know this digital marketing platform further, see the following guide!

What is OpenCart?

OpenCart is a digital platform for online stores that provides a content management system (CMS). This digital platform is open source, which means anyone can use it.

As a platform that can be used by beginners, the operation itself does not require an understanding of coding or programming languages. Business managers can use it for free.

The operation itself is carried out under the GNU GPL license. The shopping cart system implemented by this platform was built using PHP in 2009. Currently, there are several features that can be used, such as catalog management, an easy payment system, and a practical shipping process.

Its visual appearance is also capable of helping business managers choose what kind of image they want to display through the online store. There are 13,000 modules and themes that can be used to make your business look more attractive and professional in the eyes of visitors.

Is OpenCart SEO-friendly?

Like other shopping cart platforms, OpenCart has advantages and disadvantages in terms of its capabilities in the SEO sector. Similar to WooCommerce and Shopify, managing your online store on these platforms needs support from the right optimization practices.

Some of the shortcomings that OpenCart has in terms of SEO are as follows:

• Lots of duplicate content caused by pagination
• The use of breadcrumbs is inefficient
• Confusing canonical links
• Unavailability of tools to manage SEO
• Writing meta tags is done manually
• There is no robots.txt editor

Although the shortcomings on the SEO side can be found in various sections, it doesn't mean that a shopping platform has a small chance to appear in the SERP. There are several things you can do to optimize your website effectively. But before that, let's get to know the features and advantages offered by this digital platform.

Opencart Features

The features provided on this platform serve to encourage your online business activities. Some of the features that are important to know are:

Unlimited Product Pages

The first feature that can be used by business managers is a product page system with unlimited quantity. If you have hundreds or even thousands of products, all of them can be made or uploaded according to their respective categories.

In addition, the shopping platform also provides a column containing reviews and ratings for each product that has been purchased. There, you can see buyers' responses to products from your brand. Other visitors can also judge the quality of the product based on the reviews displayed.

High Website Speed

To get high organic traffic, website speed needs to be optimized. In this case, you need to improve the loading of your online store so that visitors feel comfortable browsing product pages and completing transactions without having to wait long.

Increasing website loading can make the user experience better. Thus, visitors will feel more at home and are more likely to return to browse the store in the future.

Online Store Variants

OpenCart is a platform that provides one admin panel to manage more than one online store. In other words, users can create several types of stores according to their sales needs.

Store management can be done separately and organized without having to be controlled from a different account. Users can also make custom settings and extensions according to the theme chosen for each store.

Many Extensions to Choose

There are many extensions to choose from to make your shop look more attractive. More than 13,000 extensions are available for use, both free and paid. Add it at will to complete your shop's facilities.

Available in Multiple Languages ​​and Currencies

To be able to develop your business, you can use the language selection feature. The global market can also be reached with the option of converting to foreign currencies, which can facilitate purchase transactions by overseas customers. 

The Advantages of Opencart

Based on the features mentioned above, surely you can guess some of the advantages that OpenCart has. The following are the points that show the advantages of this shopping cart platform:

• Unlimited addition of products and categories
• Foreign language and currency conversion features that can help grow business markets
• Reviews and ratings make it easier for customers to see the quality of the product
• Choose free or paid themes as you like
• The delivery cost calculation feature is available
• Image settings are easy and can be adjusted according to SEO rules

Applicable SEO Strategies for Opencart

Online shop optimization can be done by implementing SEO strategies properly. To implement it, here are some things you need to do:

Conducting Keyword Research

As with optimization activities in general, the first step that needs to be taken is to do keyword research. In order to get keywords that match your niche and business needs, you need to do in-depth research. Make sure to use keywords that have a high search volume to bring in traffic.

Identify Search Intents

Not all quests have the same goal. Therefore, as a seller, you need to know the search intent of potential consumers. To direct visitors to product pages, you need to use transactional keywords. That way, users will be able to see your online shop page in the SERP based on the query entered in the search field.

Using Alt Text in Images

To increase the chances of the entry page at the top of the SERP, you can use alt text in the product images offered. Make sure the text describes the image in a descriptive manner and is clearly readable by screen-reading software. That way, search engines can understand the intent and content of your page.

Perform Tag Optimization

In addition to alt text, make sure the pages in your online store are equipped with title tags and meta descriptions. Even though it is not a ranking factor in the SERP, optimizing this tag can contribute to increasing the click-through rate (CTR), which has the potential to improve page performance.

Use SEO-friendly URLs

Make SEO-friendly URLs to help users and search engines understand the content you present. For that, use a simple, short, and descriptive URL that uses keywords. That way, the user will know the context of the page based on the URL.

Creating an Effective Structure

To make content easy to find, make sure your online store is neatly organized. Therefore, you can use an effective structure and internal linking. A logical structure is needed so that users can browse stores comfortably. For example, use the structure homepage > page > subcategory page > product page, and so on.

Marketing Products Through Social Media

Promotion through social media can generate traffic and reach target audiences that cannot be reached through the SERPs. For that, you need to share your online store link on social media platforms such as Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook to bring traffic to your website.

Make a Mobile-friendly Site

The important thing for online business managers to do is open a mobile-friendly site. Most of today's users use smartphones more often to carry out daily activities, including online shopping. For that, check whether your online store is mobile-friendly or not by using the Mobile Friendly Test from cmlabs.

At last, we have come to the end of the guide about OpenCart and how to optimize it according to SEO rules. In order for an online business to run optimally, you can use SEO services from reliable professionals.