Boost User Engagement: A Comprehensive Guide to Displaying Related Posts in WordPress
As your WordPress website continues to grow, it is crucial to help your visitors discover new content and keep them engaged. One effective way to achieve this is by displaying related posts. In this all-inclusive guide, we will explore two simple methods to effortlessly showcase related posts in WordPress and enhance user engagement.
Method 1: Showcasing Popular Posts with MonsterInsights
The simplest and most efficient way to exhibit popular posts in WordPress is by using MonsterInsights, the leading WordPress Analytics plugin. With MonsterInsights, you can seamlessly integrate Google Analytics into your WordPress site and access invaluable reports in your dashboard. Here’s how you can display related posts using MonsterInsights:
Install and activate the MonsterInsights plugin. For detailed instructions, refer to our comprehensive tutorial on how to install a WordPress plugin.
Once the plugin is activated, go to the Insights tab in your WordPress admin panel and click on the “Launch the Wizard” button to configure the plugin.
From your WordPress dashboard, access Insights » Popular Posts. You can choose to display related posts using the “Inline Popular Posts” feature or the “Popular Posts Widget.”
Customize the design of your related posts widget by selecting a pre-built template or adding custom CSS to match your website’s appearance.
Select which related posts to display based on comments, share count, or a curated list of posts. You can even connect your SharedCount account to showcase posts with the highest number of shares.
Enable the “Display Title” option and enter an enticing title for your related posts section.
Choose the post type to include in the widget and exclude specific posts if necessary.
Finally, decide how to embed your popular posts widget in WordPress. You can choose automatic placement or manually add a shortcode or Popular Posts block to any post or page.
Method 2: Leveraging Yet Another Related Post Plugin (YARPP)
An alternative and popular method for displaying related posts in WordPress is by utilizing the Yet Another Related Post Plugin, also known as YARPP. With YARPP, you can automatically showcase your top blog posts based on customizable algorithms. Here’s how you can use YARPP to exhibit related posts:
Install and activate the YARPP plugin on your WordPress website.
From your WordPress dashboard, go to Settings » YARPP to configure the plugin settings.
Choose the post types to include in the related posts and customize the algorithm settings to determine their strictness.
Select your preferred display options for the related posts, such as List, Thumbnails, or even a custom theme.
Specify where you would like to automatically showcase the related content on your website.
Enable the RSS Feeds and REST API options for additional functionality.
Save your changes and visit your website to witness the related posts in action.
Method 3: Manually Adding Related Posts Using WPCode
While plugins offer convenience, manually adding related posts gives you complete control over the content and appearance. Here’s how you can achieve this using the WPCode plugin:
Install and activate the WPCode plugin on your WordPress website.
From your WordPress dashboard, go to Code Snippets » + Add Snippet.
Add the provided code snippet from this article and select “PHP Snippet” as the code type.
Choose the “Insert After Content” option as the location for the snippet.
Activate the snippet and save your changes.
Now, related posts will automatically be added at the end of your content.
Conclusion
Displaying related posts in WordPress can significantly enhance user engagement, increase pageviews, and reduce bounce rates. Whether you choose to use a plugin like MonsterInsights or YARPP, or manually add the code using WPCode, implementing related posts is a valuable strategy for any WordPress website. Give these methods a try and enjoy the benefits of helping your visitors discover new and exciting content.
