WooCommerce: How to Highlight Your Best Sellers with Featured Products (Even if You’re a Beginner!)
So, you’ve got your WooCommerce store up and running, products are listed, and hopefully, sales are trickling in. But how do you nudge those sales along and draw attention to your most profitable or popular items? That’s where featured products come in. Think of them as your store’s “stars,” displayed prominently to entice customers. This guide will walk you through how to set them up, even if you’re a complete WooCommerce newbie.
What are Featured Products and Why Should You Use Them?
Featured products are simply products you designate as being special. WooCommerce gives you a way to flag them, and then your theme (the design of your website) is responsible for displaying them in a visually appealing way. Think of it like this:
* In a physical store: A featured product is like the item displayed on a prominent mannequin in the window, or a special display at the front of the store.
* Online store: It’s a product showcased on your homepage, in a sidebar widget, or on a specific “Featured Products” page.
Why bother? Here’s why highlighting featured products is a smart move:
* Increased Visibility: Featured products get more eyeballs. They’re front and center, making them easier for customers to find.
* Boost Sales: By highlighting your best-selling or most profitable items, you encourage customers to purchase them, increasing your revenue. Imagine highlighting a new, highly-rated item during the holiday season.
* Promote New Arrivals: Want to generate buzz for a new product? Feature it! This is a great way to get early adopters and build momentum. Think of a brand new cookbook being displayed at the checkout of a bookstore.
* Clear Out Inventory: Struggling to sell a particular item? Featuring it (perhaps with a small discount) can help move slow-moving stock. This is like a clearance rack, but more targeted.
* Control the User Journey: Guide customers towards specific products that align with your marketing goals.
How to Set Featured Products in WooCommerce: A Step-by-Step Guide
The process of setting a featured product is straightforward:
1. Navigate to Your Products: In your WordPress dashboard, go to Products > All Products.
2. Choose Your Product(s): Find the product you want to feature. You can use the search bar or filters to narrow down your choices.
3. Quick Edit or Edit: You have two options:
* Quick Edit: Hover over the product name. You’ll see several options, including “Quick Edit.” Click on “Quick Edit”.
* Edit: Click on the product name itself to go to the full product editing page.
4. Mark as Featured:
* Quick Edit: In the “Quick Edit” box, find the checkbox labeled “Featured.” Tick this box.
* Edit: In the “Publish” module on the right-hand side, find the “Catalog visibility” option. Click “Edit” then ensure visibility is public, then check the box labeled “This is a featured product.”
5. Update:
* Quick Edit: Click the Discover insights on How To Show Woocommerce Product Categories In Menu “Update” button.
* Edit: Click the “Update” button.
That’s it! You’ve successfully marked the product as featured. Repeat these steps for any Check out this post: How To Add Buy Not To Product Woocommerce Product Page other products you want to highlight.
Displaying Featured Products on Your Storefront
Marking products as featured is only half the battle. You need to display them strategically on your website. How you do this depends on your theme. Most popular WooCommerce themes offer built-in widgets or shortcodes specifically for displaying featured products. Here’s how to find and use them:
1. Widgets:
* Go to Appearance > Widgets.
* Look for a widget named something like “WooCommerce Featured Products,” “Featured Products Slider,” or similar. The exact name will depend on your theme.
* Drag the widget to the desired sidebar or widget area (often your homepage or shop page sidebar).
* Configure the widget settings. You can usually choose how many products to display, the order in which they are displayed, and whether to show the product price, title, and image.
2. Shortcodes:
* Some themes provide a shortcode to display featured products. A shortcode looks something like this: `[featured_products columns=”4″ limit=”4″]`
* Refer to your theme’s documentation to find the correct shortcode and its available attributes (like `columns` for the number of columns and `limit` for the number of products to display).
* Paste the shortcode into Explore this article on Woocommerce How To Select 2 Checkout Pages a page or post where you want to display the featured products.
3. Theme Options:
* Many themes have dedicated theme options panels where you can configure featured product display settings. Look for options related to your homepage layout, shop page layout, or product display.
Example: Using the `woocommerce_products` shortcode (a general WooCommerce shortcode)
You can use the built-in `woocommerce_products` shortcode with the `on_sale=”true”` attribute. This will display products marked as on sale. You’ll need to mark all desired products as on sale temporarily to make them display as featured (not ideal, but useful in certain situations).
[woocommerce_products columns="4" limit="4" on_sale="true"]
This code would display 4 products in 4 columns that are currently on sale.
Important Note: If your theme doesn’t offer specific options for Explore this article on How To Build A Woocommerce Shop With Avada featured products, you might need to explore custom coding or plugins to achieve the desired display. Consider using a page builder that supports WooCommerce blocks. Many offer a “Featured Products” block.
Tips for Effective Featured Product Placement
* Homepage: This is the most valuable real estate on your website. Use it wisely to showcase your best or newest products.
* Shop Page: A dedicated “Featured Products” section on your shop page can help customers quickly find your highlighted items.
* Category Pages: Check out this post: How To Set Woocommerce Shipping Consider featuring products relevant to the specific category the user is browsing.
* Sidebar: A sidebar widget on relevant pages can keep featured products top-of-mind as customers browse.
* Product Pages: Strategically place featured products on individual product pages to encourage cross-selling. For example, if someone is viewing a camera, feature related accessories like tripods or lenses.
Choosing the Right Featured Products
Selecting the right products to feature is crucial. Consider these factors:
* Best Sellers: These are your proven winners. Highlight them to keep the momentum going.
* New Arrivals: Generate excitement and early sales for new products.
* Seasonal Items: Promote products that are relevant to the current season or upcoming holidays. (e.g., Christmas decorations in December).
* High-Profit Margin Items: Focus on products that generate the most profit for your business.
* Clearance Items: Move slow-moving inventory by featuring discounted products.
* High-Converting Products: Analyse your sales data and identify products with a high conversion rate.
Conclusion
By effectively using WooCommerce’s featured product functionality, you can increase product visibility, boost sales, and guide customers towards your most important items. Experiment with different product selections and placements to find what works best for your store. With a little effort, you can turn your featured products into a powerful sales engine!
