Do you plan to set up an e-commerce website, or sell products globally? If so, then it’s a great idea to think about providing your web visitors with the convenience of currency conversion on your website.
Currency converting software lets your visitors convert foreign currency amounts into their home currency when purchasing or checking out products online. It also allows your visitors and customers to view the exact amount their card or PayPal account will be charged, expressed in their home currency.
The obvious benefit of adding currency conversion to your website is that it allows visitors to view and understand prices in foreign countries in their own local currency, and makes it easier for customers to work out their costs and expenses.
If your site is powered by WordPress, you can add currency conversion using a plugin to WordPress, allowing your prospective customers to quickly and easily calculate the cost of your products.
Currencyr
Currencyr is a simple, easy-to-use and complete currency converter plugin with a beautiful and unique converter tooltip. Best of all, it’s free!
The Currencyr useful plugin features:
- In-line converter
- Supports a number of exchange rates providers, such as Yahoo!, Google, Open Exchange Rates, European Central Bank and FoxRates
- Supports Shortcodes
- Widgetized currency table and converter
- Supports integration with a number of e-store plugins like WooCommerce, WP-eCommerce, Shopp, and Easy Digital Downloads.
- Automatic local currency detection
- Full translation support
Important: The Currencyr plugin needs your server to be running PHP 5.3.0 or later. Do not install this plugin if you currently have an older version of PHP installed. Alternatively, ask your web host to check and upgrade your PHP.
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You can install the plugin from your WordPress dashboard by searching for “currencyr” in the Plugins section and clicking the “Install Now” button …
Once the plugin has been installed and activated, you can access the plugin’s settings area by choosing Currencyr from your admin user area …
This takes you to the plugin settings page …
For example, you can choose a base currency from the ‘Base Currency’ drop-down menu. The default base currency is (‘USD’) …
You can also choose any supported data provider from a dropdown menu. The default selection is ‘Yahoo! Finance’, but you can also select another option, like FoxRate or Open Exchange Rates …
Note: If you select Open Exchange Rates, you will need an API (Application Programming Interface) ID …
You can specify how often you want the exchange rates to be updated by specifying an option from the ‘Update Rates’ drop-down menu …
The Currencyr plugin uses jQuery, which lets web developers add things like animation effects to web applications (like WP plugins).
If you have no reason to modify the jQuery settings, leave these as they are …
Edit the remainder of the plugin settings and remember to click ‘Save Changes’ when done …
After your plugin settings have been configured, you can start adding currency conversion to any WP page or post using shortcodes and widgets.
Refer to the ‘Additional Plugin Notes’ section below to learn how to use currency codes (e.g. USD, GBP, ZAR, etc …) with the Currencyr plugin.
Plugin Shortcodes
You can insert currency conversion into WordPress pages, posts and widgets with no programming skills or knowledge using shortcodes.
Let’s take a look at some examples of currency shortcodes that you can add to pages and posts:
Let’s say that you are selling an item on your site for a set amount (e.g. $175) in US Dollars (USD), and you would also like to display this conversion amount in British pounds (GBP) on your page.
All you need to do is add the shortcode below to your post or page …
Note: You can also add prices in dollars and cents (e.g. 165.49, 189.00, 295.75, etc …)
The example below shows how your shortcode will look when added to your product page …
When your page or post has been published, your currency conversion will then display like this …
Using the above example, let’s now convert the same amount into multiple currency formats.
To do this, use the shortcode below (you can add as many currency symbols as you like by using vertical pipes) …
The screenshot below shows how the above shortcode looks when you add it to a post …
Once the content has been published, the currency conversion will then appear as seen below …
See the ‘Additional Plugin Notes’ section at the end of this tutorial to learn how to change the currency separator symbol with the Currencyr plugin.
Now, suppose you want to specify a different base currency than the one selected as your default.
For example, say you have set your default base currency as EUR and you have a section on your website targeted to customers in countries like Australia or Canada, you can change the base currency using the following shortcode …
Here’s how the shortcode appears when added to your content …
After publishing your post or page, the converted currency amounts will then appear as seen below …
Using The Plugin Widget
You can also add a currency converter to your website or blog’s sidebar section using the plugin’s widget.
To add the currency converter to your sidebar, choose Appearance > Widgets in the WordPress dashboard menu …
In the Widgets > Available Widgets area find the ‘Currencyr’ widget and add it to the Active Widgets area …
Configure the widget settings as shown below (add any currency codes you want to display on your widget separated by a comma), and click ‘Save’ to update your settings …
Your currency converter tool will now appear on your site’s sidebar menu with the settings you have specified …
Additional Plugin Notes
Here are some additional notes and useful information about using the Currencyr plugin.
Currency Separator
The Currencyr plugin allows you to specify a symbol of your choice to display as the currency separator when using multiple currencies.
You can change the symbol in the Multiple Separator settings field.
So, for example, using the default symbol “/” (forward slash) …
Separates all your currency amounts with a forward slash as shown below …
If you specify another symbol and update your plugin settings …
Your website visitors will see the new symbol being used as the currency separator …
WP E-Commerce
As stated earlier, the plugin integrates with various WordPress-compatible e-commerce plugins such as WooCommerce, WP-eCommerce and Shopp …
(image source: plugin website)
And there you have it! Now you know how to easily add currency conversion to your e-commerce site.
To learn more about WordPress e-commerce plugins, see the tutorial below:
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