Have you noticed the ‘frequently bought together’ section on Amazon? One that shows related products to the main product? A survey showed that Amazon witnessed a whopping 29% increase in sales after integrating the related product section within its product page.
Even though it is a bait, it is worth the revenue generated in return. Like Amazon, you can show related products on your WooCommerce store and start earning more.
Without much ado, let’s move ahead to see how to set WooCommerce related products and some smart ways to display them to boost sales.
What are related products?
In simple terms, related products are the products that are useful along with the main product a user is interested in.
For instance, a user planning to buy an iPhone 15 is likely to add a MagSafe or protective case. Similarly, a user looking to buy a WordPress website domain would be inclined to purchase a security plugin.
But does displaying the WooCommerce-related products help?
While you might have your skepticism related to optimizing your store only to show the related products on the checkout page or the product page, it is considered to be extremely important.
Here are some reasons why using product recommendations is a good idea.
Get more product visibility
- Adding a WooCommerce-related products carousel to your product page gives your customers an ample amount of choice to initiate a purchase. It may happen that customers are already looking for that product and you made it easier for them.
- Adding a pop-up showing related products embeds a sense of curiosity, forcing the buyer to look for more and leading to conversions. This way you not only add to the sales figures but at the same time build trust and customer satisfaction by showcasing a lot more that you have to offer.
And that’s how you seamlessly get upselling and cross-selling opportunities for your products.
Boosts average order value
Adding related products to catch the attention of the existing buyers increases the likelihood of a better purchase. This increases the average order value, boosting sales and revenue.
Retains old buyers
Product recommendations create the impression that you care about the tastes and sentiments of the buyer and are ready to go beyond the limits to help them meet their needs.
If customers buy a product once, they are more likely to initiate a purchase sometime later. So you can reach out to them with an offer on related products via email.
Now since you know the importance of related products, we’ll cover how to set and display them.
Using default WooCommerce, there are three ways you can show related products – upsells, cross-sells and by having the same tags or categories.
WooCommerce upsell
Promote a more feature-rich, updated version of the current products.
For instance, a customer is looking at a $49 suitcase. Upselling would be showing a bigger size suitcase or a suitcase having more security features with higher prices on the product page.
Learn more about WooCommerce upsells.
WooCommerce cross-sell
Promote a complementary product to the one the customer has already selected. For example: if you ordered a GoPro camera, then you will receive a recommendation for the camera accessories kit.
Depending on your theme template, cross-sell offers are displayed on the cart page underneath the cart products table with a thumbnail image using core WooCommerce.
Learn more about WooCommerce cross-sells.
While the above two methods require you to manually select products and add them to the page, showing WooCommerce-related products by category or tags is something that is automated.
Products that are from similar categories or have the same tags are grouped and listed as related products on the product page.
For example, if users are looking for a T-shirt, they may be shown a hoodie or a jacket. (category – clothing)
Follow these steps:
- Go to WooCommerce > Products. Open an existing product.
- Click on the
Linked Productstab. - Here, you will see two tabs as upsell and cross-sell. Select the products you wish to add in the particular options. (Make sure you have added products that are relevant to the original item).
- Click on
Update.
- Related products, up-sells, and cross-sells are all sorted randomly.
- While the traditional methods of adding related products in WooCommerce work well, they are done manually and need to be monitored now and then to monetize the strategies.
- Moreover, you are limited by showing cross-sell offers on the cart page and upsell offers on the product page.
- There’s no option to target these offers on the page you wish to. What if you want to show upsell on a cart or cross-sell on the checkout page? What if you want to show one-click upsells?
- Also, the products that have been manually selected to be in the WooCommerce upsell would never be displayed on the related products tab. Hence, if you wish to show related products, you will have to remove the upsell block for the particular product.
Now we come to the main content of the article.
Using a WooCommerce-related products plugin helps negate the limitations imposed by the default WooCommerce settings. In addition to this, the plugin is tailored to enhance the sales funnel.
Smart Offers for WooCommerce is an all-in-one WooCommerce upsell plugin to help you display related products on the go.
Here’s how can you show related products using Smart Offers:
Show an order bump on the checkout page
If you want to show an offer as a related product on the checkout page, an order bump is the best option.
It easily conveys the message without distracting the visitors. For example, offer a wireless mouse on purchase of a laptop.
More about WooCommerce order bumps
Show upsell offer via a popup on the cart page
For example, the user has added a Smart Manager single-site license to the cart. Upselling a multi-site license or a bundle can be a good option here.
Show cross-sell offers on the ‘My Account’ page
Other than product and cart pages, you can also show cross-sell offers on the ‘My Account’ page. Since users surely visit this page after their order completion or for another purpose, showing an offer here has a higher chance of conversion.
For example, offer a photography course when the user purchases a GoPro action camera.
The show offers on the thank you page – a one-click upsell for WooCommerce
If a user places an order, then on the thank you page, upsell another product where the purchase happens in a single click, without the need to complete the payment process again.
That’s WooCommerce one click upsells.
For example, on buying a ‘Woo Album 2’, the user is offered ‘Woo Album 1’ on the order received page.
Run multiple offers in the sales funnel to nudge customers
If the user accepts an upsell, show a cross-sell. If rejected, show a down-sell.
For example, on the purchase of the GoPro action camera, the camera kit bundle is shown as an upsell. If accepted, a memory card is shown as a cross-sell. If rejected, a battery is shown as a down-sell.
Show Amazon like ‘Frequently Bought Together’
The fifth way will require another plugin by StoreApps – WooCommerce Frequently Bought Together.
The plugin automatically shows users WooCommerce product recommendations/WooCommerce-linked products to the product they are already viewing, nudging them to buy together those products.
The plugin intelligently assigns a product as frequently bought together to the main product based on your previous orders, as an automatic cross-sell.
For example, If the majority of users buy a black color case with an iPhone 15, the plugin will automatically recommend a black color case to users viewing an iPhone 15.
AI product recommendations for WooCommerce
Sounds exciting, right?
Our Offermative plugin makes it possible.
The plugin automatically picks up products/categories to promote, targets users, generates high-converting designs and even writes headlines and all other copy text.
You can show Amazon-like frequently bought together items, related products upsell, cross-sell, BOGO, and discount coupons automatically.
You would want to boost your sales and therefore you want to display more items. But you are probably doing it wrong. Adding so many items could refrain buyers from making a choice.
So WooCommerce provides an option to change the number of related products shown to customers.
Add the below code to your child theme’s functions.php file or via a plugin that allows custom functions to be added.
Avoid adding custom code directly to your parent theme’s functions.php file as this will be wiped entirely when you update the theme.
Please note that it does not work for all themes because of the way they’re coded.
/**
* Change number of related products output
*/
function woo_related_products_limit() {
global $product;
$args['posts_per_page'] = 6;
return $args;
}
add_filter( 'woocommerce_output_related_products_args', 'jk_related_products_args', 20 );
function jk_related_products_args( $args ) {
$args['posts_per_page'] = 4; // 4 related products
$args['columns'] = 2; // arranged in 2 columns
return $args;
}
Why hassle with code when you have Smart Offers or Frequently Bought Together plugin?
WooCommerce Frequently Bought Together plugin allows you to show a maximum of three and a minimum of one product as a related product so that customers see limited yet the best options.
And with Smart Offers, you can create custom-fit rules and target multiple offers at the same time. Offers like upsell-downsell, upsell-downsell-cross-sell, etc.
This way you not only boost the possibility of making a sale but also win customer trust.
These powerful strategies can lay the foundation for prompt conversions.
When a new visitor lands on your website and sees your top-selling products, you want to encourage them to make a purchase. Displaying related products that complement these best sellers can boost your sales.
Offer a bundle of products sold together
A product bundle seems like an irresistible deal because of the value it provides compared to a single product.
Instead of a single related product, combine multiple related products as a bundle and offer them as a related product. For example, laptop accessories on purchase of a laptop.
Analyzing customers’ buying behavior to segment related products is an excellent way to increase average order value.
Based on your orders, you can have an idea of what products customers usually buy and offer related products to these customers.
Promoting similar products at discounted prices
Customers purchasing a product might be inclined to a similar product but would hesitate considering the price. Offering them at discounted rates increases the possibility of purchase.
Show ‘Others bought X along with Y’
Creating a sense of curiosity helps increase the sales of a product. Display products by showing ‘People who bought this also bought’ on the product page to increase the likelihood of sales.
Suggest products via email
Shoot an email or a notification after the customer has made a purchase. Your email can include messages such as: Thank you for shopping with us or suggesting more products you might be interested in.
This helps promote WooCommerce related products.
Conclusion
Adding related products to the WooCommerce store helps boost the overall sales of the store while creating a community of users that lay their money and trust in you.
To create an intelligent sales funnel for your store, buy Smart Offers and Frequently Bought Together plugins and get started with selling products on the go.
FAQs
Q1. How are AI product recommendations for WooCommerce used?
The AI algorithm behind the feature analyzes customers’ browsing behavior and purchase history to identify product relationships and patterns. This information is then used to display relevant products to customers.
Q2. How do I control related products in WooCommerce?
You can control/manage related products in WooCommerce by going to the product edit page by manually choosing related products or using plugins and algorithms to automate the process.
Q3. How to create a related products carousel?
To create a related products carousel in WooCommerce, you can use a plugin or a WooCommerce-related products shortcode to add a carousel or slider that displays related products based on the current product being viewed.
Q4. Is there a limit on related products in WooCommerce?
No. There is no limit to the number of WooCommerce custom-related products you can add. It depends on your theme and how many related products you want to show.