WooCommerce: How to Make a Product a Featured Product (The Beginner’s Guide)
So, you’ve got a WooCommerce store and you’re ready to highlight your absolute best-selling, newest, or most exciting products? Excellent! Making a product a “featured product” is a powerful way to grab your customer’s attention and drive sales. Think of it like this: imagine you walk into a physical store. What usually catches your eye first? It’s probably the display right at the front, showcasing the store’s current promotions or most popular items, right? Featured products do exactly the same thing for your online store.
This guide will walk you through the process, step-by-step, even if you’re a complete WooCommerce newbie. We’ll cover the “why,” the “how,” and even some tips for getting the most out of your featured products.
Why Feature a Product?
Before we jump into the mechanics, let’s quickly understand *why* featuring a product is a good idea.
- Increased Visibility: Featured products get prime real estate on your website. They’re often displayed on your homepage, in sidebars, or on category pages. This increased visibility naturally leads to more clicks.
- Highlighting New Arrivals: Just launched a fantastic new item? Make it a featured product to get it noticed. This is like yelling “NEW PRODUCT ALERT!” without actually yelling.
- Boosting Slow Movers: Got a product that’s not selling as well as you’d like? Featuring it might give it the boost it needs. Think of it as giving a struggling artist a spotlight on center stage.
- Promoting Seasonal Items: Christmas decorations in December? Summer dresses in July? Featured products are perfect for highlighting items relevant to a specific time of year.
- Upselling Opportunities: Consider featuring a product that complements another product a customer is already interested in. For instance, if someone is looking at a camera, feature a high-quality camera bag or a spare battery.
How to Mark a Product as Featured in WooCommerce
Okay, let’s get practical. Here’s how to mark a product as featured within your WooCommerce store:
1. Log in to your WordPress Dashboard: The place where all the magic happens.
2. Navigate to Products: On the left-hand side menu, find and click on “Products.” This will take you to a list of all your products.
3. Find the Product: Locate the product you want to feature. You can search, filter, or browse the list.
4. Quick Edit (The Easy Way): Hover over the product title. You’ll see a set of options appear: “Edit,” “Quick Edit,” “Trash,” “View.” Click on “Quick Edit.”
5. Check the “Featured” Box: In the “Quick Edit” panel, you’ll see a checkbox labeled “Featured.” Tick this box.
6. Update: Click the “Update” button. Boom! Your product is now marked as featured.
Alternatively, you can edit the product directly:
1. Follow steps 1-3 above
2. Click ‘Edit’: Click ‘Edit’ on your chosen product.
3. Find ‘Publish’ box In the Publish box on the right hand side (usually), you can check the ‘catalog visibility’ setting.
4. Make sure the item can be seen You will need to ensure that the item is set to be viewed in the shop & search results, otherwise it won’t be found, even as a featured product.
5. Click ‘Update’: Your product is now ready to go.
That’s it! You’ve successfully made a product a featured product.
Displaying Featured Products on Your Website
Marking a product as featured is only half the battle. You need to *display* them on your website for them to have any impact! WooCommerce provides a few ways to do this.
1. WooCommerce Shortcode:
This is the most versatile method. WooCommerce offers a shortcode that allows you to display featured products anywhere on your site – pages, posts, sidebars, you name it!
The shortcode is:
[products limit="4" columns="4" visibility="featured"]
* `limit=”4″`: This defines the number of featured products to display (in this case, 4). Adjust this number as needed.
* `columns=”4″`: This specifies how many columns to display the products in. Experiment with different values to find what looks best on your site.
* `visibility=”featured”`: This is the crucial part! It tells WooCommerce to only display products marked as featured.
Example: Let’s say you want to display 3 featured products in a row on your homepage. You would use the following shortcode:
[products limit="3" columns="3" visibility="featured"]
How to use the shortcode:
1. Go to the page or post where you want to display the products.
2. Add a “Shortcode” block (if you’re using the block editor) or paste the shortcode directly into the content area (if you’re using the classic editor).
3. Paste the shortcode you created.
4. Update the page/post and view the results!
2. WooCommerce Widgets:
WooCommerce often comes with widgets specifically designed to display products. Look for a widget like “WooCommerce Featured Products.”
How to use a widget:
1. Go to Appearance > Widgets in your WordPress dashboard.
2. Find the “WooCommerce Featured Products” widget (or a similar widget).
3. Drag the widget to the desired widget area (e.g., sidebar, footer).
4. Configure the widget settings (e.g., number of products to display, title).
5. Save your changes.
3. Theme Options:
Some WooCommerce themes have built-in options to display featured products on specific pages, like the homepage. Check your theme’s documentation for details.
Tips for Maximizing the Impact of Featured Products
- Use High-Quality Images: This is crucial! Your featured products need to look appealing. Invest in professional-looking images. Imagine if a fancy restaurant served amazing food but took photos of it on a dirty old plate. It wouldn’t be too great, would it?
- Write Compelling Descriptions: Don’t just list the product’s features. Highlight the benefits and how it solves a problem for your customer.
- Choose Wisely: Don’t feature *everything*. Focus on a select few products that you truly want to promote. Too many featured products can overwhelm visitors.
- Rotate Your Featured Products: Keep things fresh by regularly updating your featured products. This keeps your store looking dynamic and encourages return visits. For example, you could change them weekly or monthly.
- Track Your Results: Use Google Analytics or WooCommerce’s built-in analytics to track the performance of your featured products. This will help you identify what’s working and what’s not.
A Real-Life Example
Let’s say you run an online store selling handmade jewelry. You’ve just launched a new line of beautiful gemstone necklaces. To promote them, you could:
1. Mark the necklaces as featured products.
2. Use the shortcode `[products limit=”3″ columns=”3″ visibility=”featured”]` to display them on your homepage.
3. Write captivating descriptions that highlight the unique beauty and craftsmanship of each necklace.
4. Use stunning photos that showcase the gemstones’ vibrant colors.
By following these steps, you’ll significantly increase the visibility of your new necklaces and boost your sales!
Conclusion
Making a product a featured product in WooCommerce is a simple yet effective way to promote your best items and drive sales. By following the steps outlined in this guide, you can easily highlight your chosen products and create a more engaging shopping experience for your customers. Remember to experiment, track your results, and continuously optimize your approach for the best possible outcome. Good luck!
