FAQ: How our Boutiques plugin works

Built with the LTK and ShopStyle Collective affiliate programs in mind, our Boutiques plugin displays up to five tabbed affiliate shopping widgets on a dedicated page (or pages!) of your site. Other features include: 

  • Controls to add a list of URLs, most commonly used to add retailer links (though you can link to any external site you wish). 
  • Multiple layout options, giving you the ability to feature a LiketoKnow.it (LTK) or ShopStyle Looks feed, or change the position of the filter tab menu. For a breakdown of the Boutiques plugin layouts, click here. 
  • The plugin is compatible with most WordPress themes, including those not built by us. 

NOTE: The plugin does not offer functionality to upload your own own product images and links. If you would like to create a Shop page using the native WordPress block editor, refer to this Help Desk article.

Please read on for more FAQs about Boutiques:

GENERAL QUESTIONS

Q: HOW DOES THE PLUGIN WORK?

The EmPress Boutiques plugin provides a way to feature up to five affiliate widgets on a single page of your site. It requires shortcode or HTML code from a third party affiliate network, such as LTK or ShopStyle. 

Each of the shopping widgets uploaded to your Boutiques controls includes a corresponding menu tab, which may be edited by you. 

Use the tabs to create themed shops and content verticals. For example:

  • Create a Shop page featuring five "boutiques" of general shopping picks, such as fashion, home decor, skincare, makeup, and kids picks.
  • Create a themed Shop page for seasonal events, such as the holidays. Your five widgets could correspond to price points (e.g. "Gifts Under $50), or recipients (e.g. "Gifts for Mom").
  • Create a themed Shop page for seasonal sales events, such as the annual Nordstrom Anniversary Sale, or Sephora's major discount sales.
  • The plugin layout may be applied to more than one page on your website, giving you the ability to create multiple shop pages for different types of content. For example, some customers create a dedicated Amazon shop page and feature LTK affiliate widgets linking only to Amazon. Or, create a single page dedicated to style picks, another to beauty, etc. 

IMPORTANT: The plugin does not control any aspect of the embedded affiliate widget itself, nor does it allow you to build shoppable product grids. Instead, you must build your product widget on the affiliate platform of your choice. Most customers use LTKe or ShopStyle Collective.

Q: WHAT DOES THE PLUGIN LOOK LIKE IN ACTION?

For live examples of how the Boutiques plugin formats, explore the screenshots and buttons on this page. Keep in mind Boutiques may format slightly differently depending on your theme (specifically, fonts and colors may vary).

Q: Can I upload links/products/images from any retailer into the BOUTIQUES PLUGIN?

No. The plugin does  not offer functionality to upload your own own product images and links into a product grid. If you would like to create a Shop page using the native WordPress block editor, refer to this Help Desk article.

However, the plugin does offer the ability to add in a list of Retailer links, which may link to any URL you choose. Some customers have chosen to use this space to link to blog posts, or social media platforms.

Q: Will the plugin work with a theme not made by EmPress?

Boutiques works on many WordPress themes not created by us, though not all. It is highly dependent on your theme code and theme vendor. In the event you purchased it and it was not compatible with your site, just let us know! We offer a full refund on all purchases if requested within 14 days of the original purchase date. 

Q: Is the plugin compatible with Gutenberg/WordPress block editor?

At present, you must use Classic Editor with the EmPress Boutiques plugin. We explain why here. However, you may still use the WordPress block editor on all other post and pages of your site, if you prefer. Learn how to assign a default editor here.

WORKING WITH BOUTIQUES PLUGIN

Q: How do I create widgets or code for the Shop the Post plugin?

Please read this article, which discusses where to build LTK and ShopStyle widget codes for Boutiques.

Q: WHERE/HOW DO I EDIT CONTENT FOR MY BOUTIQUES PLUGIN?

For information on editing/customizing Boutiques, refer to this Help Desk article.

Q: Can I USE THE BOUTIQUES PLUGIN LAYOUTS ON MORE THAN ONE WORDPRESS PAGE?

Yes, you can! On any new page on your site, simply apply your preferred EmPress Boutiques page attribute template. The templates can be applied to an unlimited number of new pages on your site.

AFFILIATE SPECIFIC QUESTIONS

Q: I'm new to LTK. What's the difference between their BOUTIQUE widget and your BOUTIQUES plugin? Do I need both?

The LTK Creator platform offers a widget that is named Boutique.

With this application, you can create widgets featuring a masonry grid of your desired products, each with an attached affiliate link that is unique to your account. We offer limited instructions on how to build your widget within the LTK Creator platform here, but if you need more assistance, please reach out directly to your LTK account representative or submit a support ticket via their Help Desk, as we're not able to offer support for their products.

Once your Boutiques widget is built on the LTK platform, you embed it with a WordPress shortcode (e.g. "[show_boutique_widget id="12345"]). This shortcode is what you paste into our Boutiques  plugin fields.

In other words: The LTK/ShopStyle widget piece provides the actual product grid widget; the EmPress plugin piece provides a way for you to format those widgets on a page on your website. Without the EmPress Boutiques plugin, you may embed an affiliate boutique widget onto any page, and it will format similar to this. 

Q: I'm an LTK member. Why do I need to install the rewardStyle plugin in order to use the BOUTIQUES plugin?

The LTK rewardStyle widgets plugin provides your theme with code so that it can read their widget shortcodes. Specifically, when you build an LTK Boutique widget and select "WordPress" as your platform, it will output a shortcode (e.g. "[show_boutique_widget id="12345"]). Without the plugin, WordPress does not know how to read this code or feed in your specific widgets.

The LTK plugin may be downloaded here. You may need to be logged in to the LTK Creator dashboard in order to view their help articles.

Q: I'M AN LTK MEMBER. HOW DO I REMOVE THE GRAY FRAMES AROUND THEIR BOUTIQUES WIDGETS?

LTK's Boutique widget include a masonry style layout and gray frames around each product by default. If you would like to square each product size and remove the gray frame, we've written a Code Hack for this customization here.