Any suggestions on the best way to create a digital music shopping website? 
Author: German L.Hello,
I am looking for suggestions from anyone that may have used WSX5 to make a website that is selling digital music downloads. I make my own instrumentals, and for awhile now, I have been trying to get WSX5 to work best for me.
I love the program and how easy it seems to be to use overall, and I like the potential for the final product of websites that it can create, as some of the templates themselves look stunning.
However, when it comes to creating a website that showcases music for individuals to share and sell, it falls short in my opinion due to the way the shop structure is limited. While it is great that you can set up a digital download that a person will be able to download after they buy it, there is absolutely no way I can figure where I can set up a shop that showcases different tracks a person can buy.
This is even apparent with templates such as 3Sounds, where it is an Indie Music website template, yet, when you scroll down further on the main page, where it shows "Track 1" and "Track 2" and "Track 3" with shopping carts, even the template doesn't showcase how you could make each product showcase its own sound to play.
About the only way I can see to do this so far, which is very difficult and tedious for adding lots of tracks, is doing some HTML coding into the Description box. And while there is the Audio Player object you can add to a page, it doesn't seem to line up well with the shopping catalog items, especially when condensing the view to a mobile view vs desktop view.
It seems that while there are various templates for music, they are not very user friendly when it comes to actually creating a music shop website.
So I figured to ask any of you out there who use WSX5 and have perhaps made a music shop website, as to what kinds of workarounds you may have used?
I'm hoping that in the near future, that the developers of WSX5 will consider my suggestions to either changing the Product Catalog objects to function more like the "Template Content" section that allows us to design how product catalog objects appear, or to update the Product Catalog objects and add the ability to select an MP3 or WAV file (or even MP4 for those who may be selling videos or video templates) that will show up on each individual product catalog, vs how it is set up now.
Until then, I wondered if any of you out there have had similar issues with shop catalogs and mp3's, and if you've figured out some workarounds that work.
Thanks in advance.
Hello.To demonstrate each product separately, you will have to create a separate page for each product.If there are many such products, then this is not very convenient.
I think that at the moment you will not be able to realize your plans with the help of the program's capabilities without a large time investment.
(It > En) ... should not be difficult; ... as an idea, try to consult this Guide:
How to sell ebooks and other digital products in your online store
.
ciao
.
Author
Thank you for the replies.
Aleksej, I remember us briefly discussing the individual products, and I know that probably won't be possible right now until the developers (hopefully) create it to where it is much easier to set up individual product pages directly related from the product rather than having to create each one. I had suggested that this be possible similar to the "Blog post settings" where the URL of "http://www.website.com/blog/?" shows preset, and you create the remaining part of the URL. However, as I am not a developer, it is harder for me to explain how I can visualize things to work vs whether or not they are possible on the programming side.
The website editor I had currently used for my site, seemed to have a method of auto-creating a product page and numbering it for each new one I'd create, so that all I had to do was create the template for the product page, and then in its catalog data table, I would list the description to each object, the price, the name, etc., and it would plug into each page by variables identified as %price% or %description% and so on, rather than having to create each individual page as with WSX5. I wish I could send the developers screenshots of the older editor as it was a very useful setup in how it worked.
I have other suggestions but again, not sure how possible from a programming standpoint it is or not. Still crossing fingers, as I love the way WSX5 websites can look... however, this has been my obstacle since day one regarding MP3 / WAV files and not being able to add a Player to each product to appear on the shopping catalog, such as the way this site seems to do with the little play buttons: https://www.20dollarbeats.com/rap-beats/rap-beats.php
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KolAsim, I have seen that article before, and while it explains the concept of digital downloads after purchase, it doesn't explain how to create a shop where you can add play buttons for each music track you want to add for people to hear what they can buy. I'm looking to create a website somewhat similar to the one I mentioned above for my own instrumentals, and another website I wish to recreate for soundkits that I make... but there is no easy way to be able to add my MP3s to a product catalog object to have it added to each product.
This is what I am hoping for and continue to try to see if I can make it happen. Crossing fingers...
German, I also hope that the developers implement what you ask.
(It > En) ... ... this is the forum for technical support on the current version;
... for your ideas you should post in the IDEA section, so that they can be seen for future developments...
... ...
... there would be different methods and ideas ...
... depends on what you need to accomplish and also depends on your approach ...
... for example as an idea, you could use the Product Catalog Object, to support the audio player, and all the descriptions you need ...
... and here I stop...
... ciao...
.
Hello German
In bottom see my example.
If you put anything on the net, then it is available. I suggest you for each audio file you want to sell, make a sample. The full version should only be available as digital download. On each product you show the sample.
You put some code in the text that generates the player for the sample for the specific product. It is only one libe of code you need and apart from the src, then it is the same code for each product.
You can see what I mean here:
libe ----> line
I know it is made with a line of code, but it is really easy to handle. And it should be fine in mobile view.
If it is something of interest, then I could do a better demo, and make it online.
Author
Thank you Aleksej, I'm glad I'm not alone in hoping for some added features for people who are looking to make a shop website for digital audio / music / etc. Hopefully they are already considering it and will work on it soon.
Thanks KolAsim, I have already submitted my suggestions to the IDEA portion of the web forum some time back. Crossing my fingers.
Thanks John S. for the information. I had attempted the HTML Code in the past for the Description box and it had seemed to work, though I wasn't sure how friendly it was in relation to different mobile or tablet access as I've had some glitches when testing it against different screen sizes.
The other thing with this method is that it seems I'll have to upload all of my MP3 files into a folder, and then create the URL for each description manually that routes to the URL of where the audio is. It seems to probably be the only workaround though from what I have already attempted and your information which falls in line.
The only thing that's not as simple with this method also, is that different browsers see the Audio Player differently, some of which seem to distort the website or product cards. Wish there was a way to make that HTML5 audio player only show a play button that paused or played instead of showing the longer player. I also would have to code it in a way that when one play button was pressed, the other one that's active then stops playing, as I would have multiple play buttons on a page.
Thanks for the information, I appreciate it. May be the only option I have at this point from what it seems. Definitely going to be a hassle for me to convert my projects into WSX5 with one website having over 900 instrumentals to do this to, and my other site having 400+ different sounds to showcase... playing around with it though as best as I can to make WSX5 work until they (hopefully) consider modifying their Product Catalog Object cards or allow audio / video files to be plugged in so that they open up. Thanks again!
Hello German
I think that nearly whatever solution that should come up, then you have to make the sample files. If you make the "full" audio file available for playing, then it will be the same as make it available for downloading or copying. All that you make available to the screen and/or the sound-card can be copied.
So - adding the HTML5 audio player in the text, is not much extra you have to do. It seems to work well in Chrome, Firefox and Edge, and also in mobile view if you make the products as only one column.
I suggest that you make an idea-post for INCOMEDIA, and ask for something like a button (option ) to put on when a product is displayed. The function of the button shoul be that a period ( setting in seconds ) of the specified product ( when a mp3 ) is to be played - without showing/revealing the location of the file anywhere in the browser.