How to Change Zen Cart for Affiliate Links
Online retailers generate sales without increasing advertising costs by establishing an affiliate program that rewards webmasters for displaying banner ads or text links on their websites. Zen Cart is an open source e-commerce software that anybody can freely use, but as of publication, the core software does not include an easily managed affiliate program. The installation of an optional add-on module provides retailers the ability to manage an affiliate program.
Other People Are Reading
Things You'll Need
- SnapAffiliates file set
- FileZilla or other FTP client
- Emacs, Notepad++ or other source code editing software
Instructions
-
Back Up Existing Installation
-
1
Save copies of existing Zen Cart store files. Cpanel users can compress and download a copy of files, or use an FTP software such as FileZilla to transfer copies of all files to the computer or a file storage location on the Internet.
-
2
Back up the database. Log into web server. Go into phpMyAdmin. For phpMyAdmin v3.4 or higher use the default settings to create a zip file with an SQL format. Select the "Structure and Data" option, and ensure all the boxes for Creation Options are checked. Under Data Dump options, choose "Insert" and check "Both of the Above." Click on the "Export" tab and choose a location for save the file on the computer prior to completing the download.
-
-
3
Double check all back up files. Open up files on the computer to confirm server files and SQL have been saved.
Install Affiliate Module
-
4
Unzip the SnapAffiliates file set. Open the file with an archive compression utility such as WinZip or 7-Zip. Open the unzipped file. Change the file named "Admin" to the previously customized named of your admin folder. Open the "Includes" folder. Rename the "YOUR-TEMPLATE-NAME" file to the name of your template, or "Classic" if using Zen Cart's default.
-
5
Edit the "snapconfigure.php" file. This step is optional. The code on Line 5 is: define('SNAP_KEY_PREFIX', 'CNWR_'); The database table name prefix for affiliate keys is currently "CNWR_." For added security, change the four letters to a combination of lowercase letters and numerals, however the first character must be a letter. Open the file in source code editing software, preferably Emacs or Notepad++.The file is located within the SnapAffiliates file set, in the folder labeled "Includes."
-
6
Upload files to the server. Use FileZilla or other FTP software. The files are organized using Zen Cart's file path, however, sometimes after extraction, an additional file folder is created that holds the set. Be watchful and adjust FTP settings accordingly.
Warning: SnapAffiliates contains files that overwrite existing files. Previously installed add-ons will be erased once these files are uploaded to the server. Michael Burke, the developer of SnapAffiliates recommends using the free source code editor, Emac, to locate and highlight differences, then add SnapAffiliates code to existing Zen Cart files.
-
7
Log into the Zen Cart administration panel. Locate and hover over "Tools" in the green horizontal menu. A drop down menu will appear. Select "Install SQL Patches." Use the "Browse" option to locate the file named "snap.sql" in the first folder of the file set. Click the button labeled "Install."
-
1
References
Resources
- Photo Credit Comstock Images/Comstock/Getty Images
