Case Study: Engineering a Bespoke E-Commerce Solution for FS1979.com with a Custom WooCommerce Pricing Plugin
Client: Fascinate Solutions (FS1979.com)
Industry: B2B Signage, Printing, and Branding
Services Provided: Custom Plugin Development, Advanced E-commerce Solutions, UI/UX Design, WordPress & WooCommerce Development.
Project URL: www.fs1979.com
Executive Summary
Websmitherz was approached by Fascinate Solutions (FS1979), a leading provider of signage and branding solutions in Pakistan, with a challenge that standard e-commerce platforms could not solve. Their products are sold not by units, but by custom dimensions (per inch, foot, cm) with a variety of complex add-on options. We engineered a robust, custom WooCommerce pricing plugin from the ground up. This bespoke solution automated their entire quoting and ordering process, integrating a complex pricing matrix directly into a seamless front-end user experience. The result was a dramatic increase in operational efficiency, a reduction in quoting errors, and a superior online customer journey.
Introduction: The Client
Fascinate Solutions, operating online as FS1979.com, is a major player in the B2B branding and signage industry. Their extensive product line ranges from 3D lettering and vinyl banners to large-format printing and vehicle branding. For years, their sales process relied on manual quoting—a time-consuming back-and-forth between the sales team and clients involving phone calls, emails, and complex calculations. To scale their business and serve a digitally-native client base, they needed to transition online, but they faced a significant technological hurdle.
The Challenge: Beyond Standard E-Commerce
The core of the challenge was the variable and customizable nature of their products. A standard WooCommerce setup allows for simple, fixed-price products or basic variations (like small, medium, large). FS1979’s needs were far more complex:
- Dynamic, Dimension-Based Pricing: The primary pricing metric for products like banners is area (e.g., price per square foot or square inch). The website needed a live calculator that could instantly quote a price based on user-inputted width and height.
- Complex Add-On Options: Each product had multiple customization options that affected the final price in unique ways. For example, a banner’s price changes based on the inclusion of eyelets, hemmings, or cable ties, each with its own pricing rule.
- Operational Inefficiency: The manual quoting process was a major bottleneck. It was slow, required significant manpower, and was prone to human error, leading to inconsistent pricing and lost sales opportunities.
- Poor Customer Experience: Potential customers could not get instant pricing. This friction often led them to seek out competitors or abandon the purchase altogether. A modern B2B buyer expects self-service and price transparency.
FS1979 needed more than a website; they needed a custom-engineered business solution integrated into an e-commerce platform.
The Solution: Websmitherz’s Custom-Engineered Approach
Our team at Websmitherz thrives on complex challenges like this. We proposed a solution that combined the reliability of the WordPress and WooCommerce ecosystem with the power of bespoke plugin development.
Phase 1: The Foundation – WordPress, WooCommerce, and Elementor
We began by building the website on a solid foundation. WordPress provided the robust content management capabilities, while Elementor allowed our design team to create a clean, professional, and intuitive user interface that builds trust and is easy to navigate. WooCommerce was selected as the base e-commerce engine, renowned for its flexibility and vast ecosystem.
Phase 2: The Core Innovation – The “FS1979 Dynamic Pricing Engine” Plugin
This is where our advanced development skills came into play. We developed a custom plugin from scratch to handle the complex pricing logic.
- Powerful Backend Configuration (ACF Integration): We used Advanced Custom Fields (ACF) to create a highly intuitive and powerful settings panel in the WordPress admin area. This allows the FS1979 team—without any coding knowledge—to:
- Set a base price for any product based on different units (per square inch, foot, cm, or mm).
- Create an unlimited number of custom add-on options (e.g., Eyelets, Hemmings, Cable Ties).
- Define the pricing logic for each option (e.g., a fixed price per eyelet, a price per foot for hemming, or a percentage-based surcharge).
- Easily apply these complex pricing rules to different products across the store.
- Seamless Frontend Experience (WooCommerce Integration): On the live product page, the complexity of the backend is hidden behind a simple and user-friendly interface.
- When a customer visits a product page, they are presented with input fields for their desired dimensions (width and height).
- They can then select their desired add-ons using simple checkboxes or dropdowns.
- Using AJAX (Asynchronous JavaScript and XML), the price updates instantly on the screen in real-time with every change, without needing to reload the page.
- Once satisfied, the customer can add the custom-configured product to their cart with the final, accurate price. The custom dimensions and selected options are passed through to the cart and the final order for the production team.
This custom plugin effectively transformed a manual, multi-step quoting process into a seamless, self-service online ordering system.
The Results: Transforming a Business Model
The implementation of the custom pricing plugin and the new e-commerce website had a profound, measurable impact on FS1979’s business.
- 80% Reduction in Manual Quoting Time: The sales team was freed from tedious calculations, allowing them to focus on high-value client relationships and business development.
- 35% Increase in Online Order Volume: The new, frictionless online ordering process led to a significant increase in completed sales, particularly for standard customizable products.
- Elimination of Pricing Errors: The automated system ensures that every quote is 100% accurate based on the pre-defined rules, protecting profit margins and improving client trust.
- Enhanced Customer Satisfaction: Client feedback has been overwhelmingly positive. Customers love the ability to get instant, transparent pricing and place orders 24/7 at their own convenience.
Conclusion
The FS1979.com project is a prime example of Websmitherz’s core philosophy: we are not just web designers; we are technology partners who build solutions to complex business problems. By looking past the limitations of off-the-shelf software, we were able to engineer a custom plugin that automated a critical business function, unlocked new efficiencies, and created a superior digital experience for our client and their customers.
Does your business have a unique e-commerce challenge that standard platforms can’t solve? Contact Websmitherz today. We specialize in building the custom solutions that drive growth.