Basics

Setup wizard

Step by step through the WP InPlate setup wizard – from checking WooCommerce through payments to the first kitchen staff account – and the readiness-to-sell list.

Applies to WP InPlate 1.35.2 · Updated:

The wizard takes you through the basic setup in a few minutes. You can change every decision later in the settings.

Until the wizard is finished, it waits in the menu: InPlate → Setup wizard. Once it is finished, it disappears from the menu, and you can run it again in InPlate → Settings → System → Setup wizard.

The wizard saves your progress as you go. When you close it and open it again, you are back on the step where you stopped. The step list on the left marks with ✓ the steps finished with “Next”. Every step you have opened before is clickable – you don't have to go through the wizard from the start to change something.

If your store is already set up and you don't need the wizard, click Hide the wizard in the top right corner of the wizard. After you confirm, the wizard disappears from the menu – you can still open it from the settings.

Step 1. Welcome

The screen shows what the wizard will do: create the menu and order pages, set the hours, fulfillment methods and payments, add sample products and prepare the kitchen screen.

Step 2. WooCommerce

The wizard checks that WooCommerce is active and that the store's basic setup (currency, country) is filled in.

  • If WooCommerce isn't active, install it and click “Check again”.
  • If the currency or country is missing, you can continue and fill them in later in Sales panel → Settings.
  • If the store is in “Coming soon” mode, the wizard warns you. In this mode customers cannot place an order – you see the store as usual because you are signed in as an administrator. You launch the store in the last step.
  • If pretty permalinks are off (the “Plain” format, addresses like ?p=123), the KDS, the courier app and the table QR codes open with a 404 error. Click Turn on pretty permalinks – the wizard sets the “Post name” format (e.g. /menu/). Old ?p=123 links keep working. When the server doesn't allow writing the .htaccess file, the wizard tells you to set permalinks in Settings → Permalinks – WordPress shows there what to paste into the file.

Step 3. Fulfillment methods

Choose how customers get their orders:

  • Pickup – the customer collects the order at your venue,
  • Delivery – you deliver to the customer's address,
  • Dine-in – guests order online and eat in.

You must choose at least one method. Ordering at the table from a QR code is set up after the wizard in QR tables.

Step 4. Payments

Without a payment method an order stays unpaid and the kitchen gets no alert – that's why this step is required.

  • Pay at the venue or to the courier – the wizard shows the InPlate payments for the methods you chose: Pay at the counter (pickup and dine-in) and Pay the courier (delivery). They are on straight away; one click turns them off.
  • Online payments – the wizard shows the ones already working in WooCommerce. Add cards, BLIK or Przelewy24 with a payment gateway plugin in Sales panel → Settings → Payments. The payment keys stay in WooCommerce.

If customers couldn't pay for one of the methods, the wizard says which one. See Payments.

Step 5. Pages

WP InPlate needs two pages:

PageWhat it contains
MenuThe list of dishes (shortcode [wp-inplate-menu])
OrderThe cart and checkout (shortcode [wp-inplate-checkout])

Choose Create automatically or Use existing and pick your pages. If you pick existing pages, make sure they contain the right block or shortcode – see Blocks and shortcodes.

Step 6. Hours and schedule

You set two things: when customers can place orders and which times they can order for. Under every field the wizard tells you exactly what it sets.

  • Online order-taking hours (from–to) – when customers can place an order on the website. “To” is the last moment to place an order, not the pickup time. When “from” is later than “to” (e.g. 17:00–01:00), order-taking runs past midnight. The two times must differ.
  • Times customers can order for – a separate window for each method you chose: pickup, delivery and dine-in.
  • Preparation time – the earliest time a customer can pick is now + preparation time.
  • Closed days – on the days you tick you take no orders and no time can be picked.

Running the wizard again starts from your current schedule, so nothing is overwritten by accident. You fine-tune the details in InPlate → Schedule. All the options are described in Schedule.

Step 7. Delivery zone

This step appears only when you choose delivery. Draw your first zone on the map: a circle (a radius from your venue) or any area. Enter the name, the delivery fee, the order minimum and free delivery from (0 = none).

You set up more zones and their priorities in InPlate → Settings → Delivery zones. See Delivery and zones.

Step 8. Pickup address

This step appears when you choose pickup or dine-in. Enter your venue's address – customers get it in the “Ready for pickup” email, with a “Get directions” button when you add a Google Maps link. The wizard suggests the store address from WooCommerce. You change it later in InPlate → Settings → Sales → Pickup address.

Step 9. Sample data

Optionally add data to see the system working straight away:

  • Sample products – a dozen or so dishes in 5 categories, with allergens filled in, including a pizza in two sizes.
  • Sample orders – 5 orders in different states that fill the kitchen screen. They need the sample products.

You remove the sample data with one click on the wizard's last screen, or later once you add your own products.

Step 10. Dynamic dishes

Create the first dish type with an active date, e.g. “Dish of the day”, “Burger of the week” or “Chef's choice”, and add the first dish with a price and a date.

You can also click Add sample – the wizard creates the “Dish of the day” type with a dish ready for today – or skip this step. More in Daily specials and time-limited offers.

Step 11. Kitchen operator (KDS)

Create the account your staff use to sign in to the kitchen screen. Enter the login, email and password and choose a profile:

ProfileScope
CookKitchen screen: accepting and preparing orders
CourierCourier app: picking up and delivering orders
CashierHanding out orders, seeing prices and customer details
ManagerFull control of the KDS and the menu

Give the sign-in details to the staff member. You add more accounts in the WordPress panel (Users → Add new). See Team, roles and permissions.

Step 12. All set

The summary shows what was set up and gives shortcuts to the menu, the kitchen screen and the settings. You can also remove the sample data here.

Under the summary is Readiness to sell. While something still blocks orders, the screen is called Almost ready. A store in “Coming soon” mode is launched here with Launch the store – after you confirm, customers see the site and can place orders.

Readiness to sell

The list checks live whether the store can take orders. You see it on the wizard's last screen and at the top of InPlate → Settings → System, long after the setup too. Every item has a button to the place where you fix it.

CheckBlocks sales?
There is at least one fulfillment methodyes
The menu and order pages are publishedyes
Customers can pay for every method (QR tables too)yes
The store isn't in “Coming soon” modeyes
Pretty permalinks are on (KDS, courier app, QR tables)yes
With delivery on, there is an active zoneyes
There is a pickup address (pickup, dine-in)no – a warning
The kitchen has a staff account (not only the administrator)no – a warning
At least one device gets KDS notificationsno – a warning
Dishes have allergen informationno – a warning
Customers accept the terms at the order (a consent)no – a warning

While something blocks sales, the InPlate screens in the WordPress panel show a red “The store won't take orders” notice with a link to the list.

Next step: Your first test order.