Blog & Events

Installation

• Open the Plugin Manager via Settings > System > Plugins
• Upload, install and activate the plugin

Plugin configuration

Settings → Extensions → Blog & Co. Articles → Additional settings

• Default Shopping Experiences layout for blogs: Defines the Shopping Experiences layout that is used by default for blog posts. If no individual layout is assigned to a blog post, this layout is loaded automatically.
• Default Shopping Experiences layout for events: Defines the default layout for events. This layout is used if no individual Shopping Experiences layout has been assigned to an event.

Suitable default layouts are created during installation and assigned to both article types. The layouts can be adjusted or replaced with custom layouts under Content → Shopping Experiences .

• Google Maps API key: API key required to display event locations using Google Maps.
• Privacy mode – embed only after cookies have been accepted: Defines whether Google Maps is loaded only after consent has been granted for the corresponding cookie.
• Only embed Google Maps after cookies have been accepted: The map is initially blocked and loaded only after the visitor has given consent.
• Always embed Google Maps: The map is embedded immediately, regardless of the current cookie consent status.
• Google Maps privacy notice: Defines how the notice is displayed while consent has not yet been granted.

• Enable Blog & Co. search: Integrates blog posts and events into the Shopware search.
• Maximum number of Blog & Co. search preview results: Defines the maximum number of blog posts and events displayed in the search preview.
• Hide “No search results” text: Prevents the notice from being displayed within the Blog & Co. search preview if no matching editorial content is found.

• Last cache invalidation: Displays when the cache for scheduled Blog & Co. articles was last updated automatically. The value is managed by the plugin and cannot be changed manually.

Automatic cache updating ensures that articles are automatically displayed or hidden when the defined Active from or Active until date is reached.

Create authors

Settings → Extensions → Blog & Co. Articles → Authors

• First name: First name of the author. This field is required to save the author.
• Last name: Last name of the author. This field is also required.

Create groups

Settings → Extensions → Blog & Co. Articles → Groups

• Internal name: Name of the group within the Shopware Administration.
• Active: Determines whether the group and its assigned articles are taken into account in the storefront.

• Breadcrumb category: Links the group to a Shopware category. The breadcrumb navigation of this category is then used on the detail pages of the assigned articles. If no category is selected, no breadcrumb is displayed for the group.
• Breadcrumb priority: Determines which group is used for the breadcrumb if an article is assigned to multiple groups with a breadcrumb category. The group with the highest priority is used.

Create a blog post or event

Content → Blog & Co. Articles or Settings → Extensions → Blog & Co. Articles → Blog & Co. Articles

• Internal name: Internal name of the article within the Administration.
• Type: Defines whether the article is a standard blog post or an event. Additional input fields are displayed depending on the selected type.
• Display date: Date used as the publication date of the article and displayed in the storefront. The display date can be defined independently of the actual creation date.
• Author: Assigns a previously created author to the article.
• Active: Activates or deactivates the article.
• Active from: Optional date from which the article is displayed in the storefront.
• Active until: Optional date until which the article remains visible. The article is automatically hidden after this date.

If Event is selected as the type, additional fields for the event date are displayed.

• Event date: From: Start of the event. This field is required for events.
• Event date: Until: Optional end date or end time of the event.

The event date is independent of the display date and the active period of the article. The display date determines which publication date is shown in the storefront. The event fields define the actual date and time of the event.

• Blog & Co. groups: Assigns the article to one or more thematic groups. At least one active group is required for the article to be displayed in the storefront.
• Sales channels: Defines the sales channels in which the article is available. Without a sales channel assignment, the article is not displayed in the storefront.
• Rules: Restricts the display using defined rules.

• Title: Main heading of the blog post or event.
• Subtitle: Optional additional heading that can be displayed using a dedicated Shopping Experiences element.
• Short description for the Blog & Co. listing page: Short introductory text displayed within the article listing.
• Content: Main content of the detail page.
• Blog & Co. preview image: Main image of the article. The image can be used in the listing and on the detail page.
• Additional Blog & Co. images: Additional images for the article. These can be displayed using the Blog & Co. Image Slider Shopping Experiences element.
• Reading time: Estimated reading time of the blog post in minutes. This field is available only for the Blog type.
• Content type: Determines whether the detail page uses a fixed default display or an individual Shopping Experiences layout.

For articles of the Event type, additional fields for directions and the event location are displayed.

• Directions: Free-text field for information about arrival, parking, public transport or the event venue.
• Street and house number: Street address of the event location.
• Postal code: Postal code of the event location.
• City: City in which the event takes place.
• Country: Country in which the event takes place.

The stored address can be displayed on the detail page using the Event Address element and shown as a map location using the Event Google Map element.

Three additional HTML content fields are available in this section.

This section is displayed if Shopping Experiences layout is selected as the content type.

• Products: Select individual products to be displayed on the detail page in connection with the article.
• Dynamic product groups: Links the article to one or more dynamic product groups.

The linked products can be displayed on the detail page using the Blog & Co. Product Slider Shopping Experiences element.

• SEO URL: Individual path for the detail page. A single term or a multi-level path containing slashes can be entered, for example guides/product-care . The value must not begin with a slash.
• Meta title: Individual page title for search engines and the browser tab.
• Meta description: Description of the content for search engines.

The general SEO path template for Blog & Co. detail pages can also be adjusted under Settings → Shop → SEO .

Additional individual information can be stored for the article in this section. The values can then be used through data mapping within a Shopping Experiences layout.

Design detail pages with Shopping Experiences

Content → Shopping Experiences

The included default layouts for blog posts and events can be adjusted, or custom layouts of the Blog & Co. detail page type can be created. Various blocks and elements are available in the ACRIS Blog & Co. block category.

• Blog & Co. Title: Displays the title of the current article.
• Blog & Co. Subtitle: Displays the stored subtitle.
• Blog & Co. Author & Date: Displays the author and publication date together or separately. Available display options include default, author with text, author only, date with text or date only.
• Blog & Co. Image: Displays the preview image of the article.
• Blog & Co. Image Slider: Displays the additional article images in a slider. The preview image can optionally be included as the first image.
• Blog & Co. Content: Displays the main content of the article.
• Blog & Co. Group: Displays the assigned thematic group.
• Blog & Co. Product Slider: Displays the products assigned to the article or products from dynamic product groups.

• Event Date: Displays the start and optional end of the event.
• Event Calendar File Download: Adds a button that allows visitors to download the event as a calendar file.
• Event Address: Displays the stored event address. The directions can optionally be displayed above or below the address.
• Event Google Map: Displays the event location using Google Maps. Settings such as the map zoom level and height can be configured for the element.

Create a Blog & Co. listing page

Content → Shopping Experiences

The created ACRIS Default blog listing layout can be used for the listing page, or a custom Shopping Experience of the Shop page type can be created. The Blog & Co. Article Listing element displays blog posts and events in a box or list layout.

Display latest posts

Content → Shopping Experiences → ACRIS Blog & Co. block category

In addition to the standard article listing, two additional elements are available for current content.

This element displays current content in a highlighted layout containing one large article and several smaller articles.

This element displays the latest articles in a horizontal slider.

Link the listing page in the navigation

Catalogues → Categories

To allow visitors to open the Blog & Co. listing through the storefront navigation, create a new category or open an existing category.

• Assign the ACRIS Default blog listing layout or a custom Blog & Co. listing page to the category.
• Assign the category to an active navigation area of the required sales channel.
• Activate and save the category.

The detail pages of the individual articles are accessed automatically through their respective SEO URLs and do not need to be created separately as categories.

Maintain multilingual content

Blog posts, events and groups can be translated using the language selection in the Administration.

Storefront display requirements

• The article must be active and within any defined Active from and Active until period.
• At least one active Blog & Co. group must be assigned to the article.
• The current sales channel must be assigned to the article.
• If Rule Builder rules are assigned, at least one of the rules must apply.
• A start date must be stored for events.
• When using a Shopping Experiences layout, either a layout must be assigned directly to the article or a global default layout must be available for the respective article type.
• A valid Google Maps API key is required to display the event map.