X-Cart:Rich Google Search Results

This article is a draft.

Overview

What X-Cart's Rich Google Search Results add-on module does

Rich Google Search Results is an add-on module for X-Cart that enables products to be displayed on a web search results page in an enhanced format that is more convenient and intuitive for potential buyers. After you install and configure the add-on module, information about the products sold at your store will be included into web search results in the "rich" format as soon as the respective product pages are indexed by the web search engine.

Why use Rich Google Search Results?

The following screenshot demonstrates how a product is presented in the Google search results without the Rich Google Search Results add-on module installed at the store:

Now compare it with the screenshot below displaying the same product after the add-on module has been installed, and the store pages have been indexed by the Google search bot:

As you can see, the presentation of the product in the search results has changed: what you see in the second screenshot looks a lot more attractive and provides more valuable information. Needless to say, the way your products are displayed in search results is important for your business: if a prospective buyer sees useful and relevant information brought from a page into the search results, they are more likely to click through.

Key features

So, what exactly helps your store's pages stand out from the search results delivered by a search engine when you use the Rich Google Search Results add-on module?

• The path to your store page is displayed as a chain of breadcrumbs instead of just a URL.
• Product price is shown directly on the search results page.
• If your product has any options or variants that modify its price, a price range is displayed.
• Average star rating is shown directly on the search results page.
• Prospective customers can see whether reviews are available for the product.

Although this add-on module is focused in the first place on meeting the Google requirements, it uses the schema.org format for data, which is recognized by other search engines as well.

System requirements

To be able to successfully install and use the Rich Google Search Results add-on module, you need to have an installed working copy of X-Cart 4.1.0 or later. Make sure that the version of the module is the same as the version of your installed copy of X-Cart.

Note: If you do not remember the version of X-Cart on which your store is based, you can look it up in the Environment info section of the Summary page in X-Cart Admin area.

Please note that X-Cart versions 4.2.3 and earlier do not support the star ratings feature out of the box (This feature is enabled by X-Cart's built-in module Customer Reviews starting with version 4.3.0; before version 4.3.0, the Customer Reviews module did not support the star ratings feature, but operated with ratings like "excellent", "very good", "good", etc). Accordingly, if you use the Rich Google Search Results add-on module in a store based on X-Cart 4.1.0-4.2.3, star ratings will not be included in the 'rich' format search results. However, the star ratings feature can be implemented in X-Cart versions 4.2.3 and earlier by installing the add-on module Advanced Customer Reviews. With the star ratings feature enabled by Advanced Customer Reviews, the 'rich' format search results will include star ratings even on versions 4.1.0-4.2.3.

Installing the Rich Google Search Results add-on module

Installation for X-Cart 4.4.x - 4.5.x

To install the module:

1. Obtain the Rich Google Search Results add-on module distribution package by downloading it from the File Area section of your X-Cart Account. The distribution package you need is contained in the archive file x-rich-gsearch-results-x.y.z.tgz where x, y and z stand for X-Cart version (These need to match the version of X-Cart on which your store is based).
2. Copy the distribution package to the X-Cart root directory on your server or hosting account.
   • If you use a Windows-based server, or a UNIX-based server without terminal access:

   a) Decompress the archive with the Rich Google Search Results distribution package to a directory on your system using your favorite compression program (WinZIP or any other archiver with support for TAR files).

   b) Use an FTP client to upload all the files contained in the archive (retaining the directory structure) to the X-Cart root directory on your server or your hosting account.

   • If you use a UNIX-based server with terminal access:

   a) Use an FTP client to upload the archive with the distribution package to the X-Cart root directory on your server or your hosting account.

   b) Decompress the package using the following command:

   tar -xzvf x-rich-gsearch-results-x.y.z.tgz

   Important: Make sure you keep the directory structure while unpacking and uploading the distribution package, otherwise some necessary files can be overwritten!

3. In a web browser, run the installation script httр://<YOUR_XCART_DOMAIN>/install-rich-gsearch-results.php replacing the variable <YOUR_XCART_DOMAIN> with the actual domain name of your X-Cart based store.
4. Enter the Auth code, accept the License Agreement and click the Next button.
   
   Note: The Auth code is a random code that was generated after you installed your copy of X-Cart. If you do not remember the Auth code, find it on the Summary page in X-Cart Admin area before the License info subsection. Another way to find out the code is to retrieve the value of the variable $installation_auth_code from the file <xcart_dir>include/install.php.
5. The installation script patches the files and activates the module. Click Next to continue the installation.
   
   Note: if you are using a custom skin, you will need to manually apply the patches to it. Otherwise, the module will not work in this skin.
6. The installation script generates a new system fingerprint. Click Next to complete the installation.
7. Use the ADMINISTRATOR AREA link to log in to the Admin area.

Installation for X-Cart 4.1.12, 4.2.3, 4.3.2

To install the module:

1. Obtain the Rich Google Search Results add-on module distribution package by downloading it from the File Area section of your X-Cart Account. The distribution package you need is contained in the archive file x-rich-gsearch-results-x.y.z-without-installer.tgz where x, y and z stand for X-Cart version (These need to match the version of X-Cart on which your store is based).
2. Copy the distribution package to the X-Cart root directory on your server or hosting account:
   • If you use a Windows-based server, or a UNIX-based server without terminal access:

   a) Decompress the archive with the Rich Google Search Results distribution package to a directory on your system using your favorite compression program (WinZIP or any other archiver with support for TAR files).

   b) Use an FTP client to upload all the files contained in the archive (retaining the directory structure) to the X-Cart root directory on your server or your hosting account.

   • If you use a UNIX-based server with terminal access:

   a) Use an FTP client to upload the archive with the distribution package to the X-Cart root directory on your server or your hosting account.

   b) Decompress the package using the following command:

   tar -xzvf x-rich-gsearch-results-x.y.z.tgz

   Important: Make sure you keep the directory structure while unpacking and uploading the distribution package, otherwise some necessary files can be overwritten!

3. In the X-Cart root directory locate the document 'INSTALL.X-RICH-GOOGLE-SEARCH-RESULTS' and use the instructions from this file to manually install the module.

Enabling the Rich Google Search Results add-on module

After the Rich Google Search Results add-on module installation has been completed, the module you have installed needs to be enabled in your store:

1. In Admin area, go to the Modules section (Settings menu->Modules).
2. Choose the Rich Google Search Results module by selecting the respective check box on the left.
3. Click the Apply changes button. This activates the module.
   
   

Configuring the Rich Google Search Results add-on module

After the Rich Google Search Results add-on module has been enabled in your store, you should check and adjust its configuration:

1. In the Modules section (Settings menu->Modules), click the Configure link opposite the module name ('Rich Google Search Results').
   The module configuration page (titled by the name of the module) opens:

   

2. Adjust the settings on the module configuration page:
   • Code of your primary currency: 3-letter currency code according to ISO 4217.
   • Use Star rating instead of Socialize Like button: This setting is available in the Rich Google Search Results add-on module versions 4.4.4 and later. It is intended for merchants who use X-Cart's Socialize module along with X-Cart's Customer Reviews module and Rich Google Search Results add-on. The problem that this setting is intended to solve is that using the Socialize module along with the module Customer Reviews may have some unwanted effects on the display of 'rich' web search results. Specifically, this is related to the Socialize module configuration option Use the "Facebook comments" block instead of default X-Cart "Customer Reviews" functionality. When this option is enabled in the Socialize module configuration settings, the default X-Cart's customer reviews on your store's product details pages (powered by Customer Reviews) are replaced with Facebook comments (powered by Socialize); in addition to that, the default X-Cart's star ratings (powered by Customer Reviews) are also replaced with Facebook Like ratings (powered by Socialize). As a result, Customer Reviews star ratings are not aggregated and, accordingly, cannot be displayed in the 'rich' web search results. Display of Facebook Like ratings is currently not supported by search providers like Google, so merchants using Facebook Like ratings powered by Socialize instead of star ratings powered by Customer Reviews just end up without any ratings displayed in their 'rich' web search results, which is not good - considering how valuable product rating information may be for a potential buyer. The setting Use Star rating instead of Socialize Like button gives you more control over this situation: enabling this option allows you to keep using the default Customer Reviews star ratings functionality along with the Socialize module’s Facebook comments; this way you will have the default Customer Reviews star ratings included in 'rich' web search results even with the working Socialize module.
3. Click the Apply changes button to save the changes.