5.1. Recommend additional products

When you are recommending additional products, there are two main goals:

1. Visitors cannot always decide if the product is for them based only on the information on the category page. Sometimes they have to look at quite a few products before finding the right one. In such situations, it may be useful to facilitate their browsing and recommend products on the product page that are similar to the specific product, thus supporting the buying process.
2. In order to increase the transaction value, it’s beneficial to recommend products that are traditionally purchased together or when one product complements another product, such as a light bulb for a lamp, a carrying case for a laptop, or a polish for leather shoes.

These two different goals demand different sets of product recommendation methods. For example, to support the buying process show:

Other customers have purchased this after looking at the product: Show customers the products that other customers have purchased after looking at the specific product. This is one of the most refined methods of recommending additional products. If there are enough orders and you have adequate metadata at your disposal, then you can give customers targeted recommendations, and It seems as if the system is reading their mind.

A perfect example from Amazon

Similar in certain specifications: A simple method of recommending additional products is trying to offer customers similar products, those ones “close” to the specific product in the product list on the category page. So you could recommend products from the same category, same brand, same style, or same price range. This is a great place to go for the upsell and show a newer or more expensive model of the same product type.

The site Watchshop.com recommends similar types and prices of watches from the same category.

Crutchfield recommends different products from the same category and the same manufacturer.

Products in the specific category: Best selling products do not become best sellers by accident, but rather because they are the most desired. These can be shown to customers to give them an option or an alternative to the item listed on the product page. However, take caution as sometimes the system will recommend the same products for every product in the category.

Enter them manually: If you feel you know which products are related to a specific item, and which ones will catch the customers' attention, then you can enter these related products manually.

Now let’s take a look at how you can use these and other methods to increase the value of the transaction:

Others have purchased these for this product: Like selling an alternate product, you can sell accessories or complimentary products based on previous customer purchases. By knowing how many orders other customers have placed, you can provide a relatively precise estimate of which other products the other customers have purchased, so there is a good chance current visitors will be interested in them as well. These could be accessories for a phone, related books or movies, etc.

Amazon is one of the kings of cross selling through additional product recommendations.

Enter them manually: It is advisable to determine those products that you want to recommend for the specific product as accessories, based on your own experience and expertise. This recommendation can be explicit by entering the products themselves, or you can also assign a category to the product, and then allow the system to select an accessory randomly.

Best Buy displays possible accessories for a product on a separate tab, and they can be added to the cart without leaving the product page. When you can select more than one accessory you can build even more transaction — for example, besides the earphones, you could select a case, a docking station, or screen protectors for your iPod Touch.

Amazon offers accessories right next to the “Add to cart” button in an important and clearly visible position, which captures customer attention.

Create package deals: Accessories are sometimes worth putting into preset package offers or customer-created package offers. Providing a discount on these can significantly improve the effectiveness of this method of increasing cart value.

Amazon creates packages from products often purchased together, which can be added to the cart altogether or even placed into the wish list.

Abercombie & Fitch creates complete garment collections on their online store, and places them on its category pages. You can also purchase individual pieces of the collection on the collection landing page.

Summary

Your product page is your sales pitch for a particular item. It should highlight your product with exciting images and desire-inducing descriptions. Your product page should detail the features, advantages, and benefits of your item and inform shoppers. Every product page should answer three main questions: what, how much, and when. Online buyers can’t touch or try on the products they’re shopping for. Letting them know “what” the product is will help them visualize the product. Informing them of your great offer helps to seal the deal, as well as sharing the expected arrival time.

Once you have all the information necessary to answer potential questions, you’ll want to maximize the likelihood of purchase and increase the transaction value. By recommending similar products to your visitors, you are helping them save time and helping provide a possible solution. Showcasing accessories and items frequently purchased together can also increase the value of your customer’s cart before checkout.

Online shoppers are becoming increasingly savvy as they shop for deals. By providing them with all the information they need to make a decision, recommending items, and providing good offers, you’re making their experience easier and increasing the likelihood of return business. The steps we’ve just illustrated will help take your product pages up to the next level and assist you in creating an online store where customers want to shop and shop again.