You’ve set up your WooCommerce store. You have added products, and your store is live. Sales are coming in, but the average order value feels stuck. You know, upselling is the solution. Frequently Bought Together and WooCommerce Product Add-ons are the two most effective upselling tactics.
Studies show that incorporating upselling techniques can increase sales by 30%, yet store owners are leaving that money on the floor, either not upselling at all or adopting the wrong strategy for their store type.
Both are powerful upsell strategies, but it’s important to note that they work differently, suit the requirements of different business types, and also deliver different results.
In A Hurry? Here’s A Brief Summary…
- Frequently Bought Together tools lead to a 31% increase in sales and 28% more items per transaction.
- Retailers provide necessary accessories, reducing the frustration of customers who realize later they are missing essential parts to use their purchase.
- Frequently Bought Together eliminates this “mental strain” by offering a predefined selection, simplifying complex decisions into a single yes/no choice.
- Bakeries sometimes offer custom messages and packaging add-ons, which lead to a 35–45% increase in personalized orders.
- By showing a high-priced “anchor” product first, generally, a lower-priced add-on appears to be a much better deal.
- Developing an add-on is financially safer than introducing a brand-new product, as you are targeting an existing customer base.
- Customers are generally more open to suggestions once they have already decided to make the primary purchase.
- Those who click on a product recommendation are nearly 2x as likely to return to the site.
In This Blog, We Will Talk About…
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In this blog post, we will break down how each of these upselling strategies works and where they perform the best. So, let us see if it’s better to suggest the “obvious buy” or let customers build their own perfect product.
What Is Frequently Bought Together?
Want to replace Amazon’s most effective upsell tactics? Displaying “Frequently bought together items” is a proven way to suggest items that might go well together to increase the cart size of your customers.
When shoppers see that others have purchased multiple products, such as a laptop with a sleeve and a wireless mouse, they’re more likely to add those extra items to their own cart. This is human psychology when it comes to online shopping.
By using a product recommendation engine, stores can automate data-driven cross-selling based on what previous customers actually purchased. This not only builds trust and convenience but also subtly nudges the customers to increase their cart value without creating any additional pressure.
Think of “frequently bought together” as your digital upsell companion that shows, Hey, there are people who bought this. You can also add these to your cart.
You’ve seen it in stores, right under the product:
Frequently Bought Together: Product A + Product B + Product C
It’s one of the most persuasive ways to increase cart value and improve the buying experience.
On the shop page, store owners can use terms like “Best-sellers”, “Frequently bought together”, and “Customers who bought this also bought”. It is the perfect time and place, as your potential customer is still in the decision-making phase, and placing your overpriced items will lead to chances of conversions.
Let us also go through the implementation of the Frequently Bought Together upsell strategy for an in-depth understanding of it.
Use Cases Of Frequently Bought Together
1. Electronics Store
When a customer purchases an iPhone, he is shown –
- Protective Case
- Screen Protector, and
- MagSafe Charger
In an electronics store, the goal is to suggest essential accessories like cables or cases that are complementary products to the main device. Instead of showing these separately, customers can add the complete setup in a single click. This increases the average order value in the long run.
2. Skincare Store
A customer adding a cleanser to the cart is recommended –
- Sunscreen of a similar brand
- Toner
- Moisturizer
This is the perfect upselling strategy for a skincare store because skincare buyers usually follow a routine not a single product.
3. Fitness Store
A fitness freak purchasing dumbbells is recommended –
- Gym Gloves
- Resistance Band
- Workout Bench
This helps the customers build a home workout kit around the main product purchase. This is a win-win; the customers are happy to build their own home workout kit, and the seller is happy to increase the average order value.
Tools To Implement Frequently Bought Together
With the upsell funnel builder plugin, you can fully customize the order bump offer, enabling or disabling, setting a custom title, selecting the type of products to include, and manually choosing which items appear in the bundle.
With this feature of WooCommerce order bump, merchants can showcase a list of products that are ‘frequently bought together’ so that their customers can consider buying those products, increasing their eCommerce store’s revenue.
Want to Upsell Your Customers In The Right Way?
What Are WooCommerce Product Add-Ons?
WooCommerce product add-ons allow store owners to add product customization options or additional services directly on the product page before the customer can add the products to their cart.
Instead of recommending related products like Frequently Bought Together, WooCommerce product add-ons are responsible for enhancing the main product. The customers can personalize or upgrade their purchases as per their liking.
One of the many advantages of WooCommerce product add-ons is flexibility. Customers can build the products according to their needs, while store owners can increase the average cart value through extra product options.
Product add-ons focus on product customization, allowing users to select optional extras for a personalized shopping experience. Store owners can provide the customers with the following WooCommerce product add-ons –
- Warranty extensions
- Premium packaging
- Gift wrapping
- Custom text or engraving
Use Cases Of WooCommerce Product Add-ons
1. Personalised Gift Stores
Customers can buy mugs, photo frames, pendants, or other WooCommerce product options –
- Add custom names for the products
- Upload custom images for frames or mugs
- Include gift wrapping and custom messages
This turms a ordinary WooCommerce product into a memorable and personalised gift experience.
2. Print-On-Demand Store
Store owners can allow customers to –
- Upload a custom artwork, and get it printed on a T-Shirt
- Add custom text
- Choose from premium fabric options for the T-Shirt
- Select the placement for the print
This can be ideal for team wear, a custom fabric store, or bulk merchandise.
3. Freelance Photography Services
WooCommerce product add-ons are an ideal option for freelance photography services. They can offer –
- Faster Delivery
- Drone shot coverage
- Edited photographers
- Photographs made into an Album
- Extra shooting hours
This helps them create tiered pricing opportunities without the hassle of creating separate products.
Frequently Bought Together Vs Product Add-Ons: Head-To-Head
When looking at Frequently Bought Together & WooCommerce product add-ons, at first glance, they might seem similar because both are upselling strategies designed to increase the average order value and improve customers’ shopping experience.
However, the way they influence buyers’ purchase decisions is completely different.
To make the distinction clearer, let’s break down how both upsell approaches work across different aspects of WooCommerce –
In a nutshell,
- Frequently Bought Together: Recommending Related Products
- WooCommerce Product Add-ons: Customizing the Same Product Purchase
Which WooCommerce Upsell Strategy Should You Choose?
When used strategically, keeping in mind the merchant’s revenue goals, WooCommerce product add-ons can do more than just fill up blank spaces on your product pages. They can guide your customers’ purchases, enhance their shopping experience, and ultimately improve your overall revenue.
From WooCommerce product add-ons to frequently bought together tactics, help store owners make the most of every customer interaction.
Did you know that – Merchants can also utilize shortcodes to design pages to portray your post-purchase or after-sales upsell offers. Plugins like Upsell Funnel Builder provide shortcodes for Buy Now, No Thanks, Product Title, Description, Short Description, Image, Price, Variations, Offer Quantity, & Urgency Timer. The choice between these two strategies often comes down to conversion rate optimization (CRO) and how much checkout flow friction you are willing to introduce to increase your Average Order Value (AOV)
Always remember, Smarter suggestions not just lead to more clicks. They lead to bigger sales and long-lasting conversions.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. How to add product addons with WooCommerce?
Customers can easily add product addons with WooCommerce. To create Global Add-ons, go to Products > Add-Ons and select Create your first add-on.
2. What is a product add-on?
WooCommerce product add-ons allow store owners to add product customization options or additional services directly on the product page before the customer can add the products to their cart.
3. What are some examples of add-ons?
These are some examples of WooCommerce product add-ons –
- Warranty extensions
- Premium packaging
- Gift wrapping
- Custom text or engraving
4. What are popular types of add-ons?
One of the most popular types of WooCommerce product add-ons is personalised gift shops. Customers can buy mugs, photo frames, pendants, or other WooCommerce product options –
- Add custom names for the products
- Upload custom images for frames or mugs
- Include gift wrapping and custom messages
About the Author: Muskaan Sabarwal
