Wordpress plugin guides for WordPress & WooCommerce

How to (Easily) Configure Vespa on WordPress

One of the best ways of improving user experience on your WordPress websites is to have a speedy and accurate search. While the default search can be quite effective on websites with limited amounts of data, it’s speed can become problematic (slow) as traffic and data increases. This is why, in this case, you should replace your WordPress search with a high performance search engine. But where do you start? Vespa is an easy choice, since it is probably the one with the best price to performance ratio.   What is Vespa.ai ? While the default WordPress search (and many other search plugins such as Relevanssi or Ivory search) use simple SQL queries to find matching posts in the WP database, Vespa is optimized for

8 Best Related Posts Plugins for WordPress (2024)

Are you searching for the best related posts plugin for WordPress to improve your clicks and user engagement? WordPress already has quite a few of them. How would you like a tour? We have tested and reviewed many related posts plugins and ranked the best. You can learn more about it down below.   1. WPSolr Pro+ Case studies from Recombee showing click rate increase by 40%. WPSolr offers a related posts plugin. It offers perfectly accurate recommendations using powerful AI recommenders such as Recombee and Algolia. WPSolr Pro+ powers the recommendations on the side of this post (or any other on this website). The advantage of AI recommenders are that they not only take into account the content of the posts but also the

The most advanced related posts plugin for WordPress

WordPress is the world’s leading solution when it comes to website creation. It is first and foremost a blog CMS so what if you wanted to link posts or any other types of products together to not only improve your SEO but also guide your users, thus greatly increasing user satisfaction? WPSolr can help with that. WPSolr offers a recommendation plugin that uses AI to accurately suggest related posts (and products if you have Woocommerce installed).   Why have related posts (recommendations) for your WordPress Most popular websites offer some form of recommendations to the users. They are an automated technology designed to suggest content that is in some way related to what the user is currently viewing. This technology can seem very similar to

Wordpress Ajax (live) search

How to add Ajax (live) search to WordPress

In today’s world, every popular website is equipped with some form of Ajax search. allowing users to experience real-time updates and dynamic search suggestions as they type. This seamless interaction enhances user engagement and provides instant access to relevant information, ensuring a smoother and more efficient browsing experience overall. So how could you add this search feature to your WordPress website. Well this step-by-step guide will teach you.   What is Ajax search Example of a autocomplete Ajax search in WordPress using WPSolr plugin. Ajax search consists of returning results in real-time as a user enters text in a search. It will simply place the clickable results under the aforementioned search bar and differentiates itself from regular search by not reloading the page. This seamless

WPSolr Wordpress facets example

Feature highlight : WordPress facets (filters)

Whether you’re running an e-commerce store with Woocommerce, managing a news platform, or curating a blog, you would want to let your users personalize their WordPress browsing experience by adding facets to your website’s search functionality.   WPSolr allows for that.   Add faceted search to any WordPress  or Woocommerce website     WPSolr is a search & recommendations plugin that can also integrate facets powered by world-class search engines.   They are highly customizable and deliver lightning fast results. WPSolr also offer quite a few of them : checkboxes, radioboxes, select box, date picker, slider, color picker, etc…   You can learn how to add them in our official documentation.

Wordpress search

WordPress search : Ultimate Guide for 2024

WordPress is the most widely used CMS and single handedly powers 40% of the web. If you haven’t tried it already, it is intuitive, powerful and if you use one of many hosting providers out there, you can easily set up a working website in minutes. But once you made all of your content, how do you ensure that your users can find it. For that, you need a good site search. Many types of search exist : keyword search, AI search, even personalized search. WordPress provides one by default, but it is incredibly slow and ineffective. This guide will go over the benefits of a fast and relevant search and how you could implement third party search engines easily into any WordPress or Woocommerce

Screenshot of Ajax search autocompletion using WPSolr

Feature highlight : Autocompletion (Ajax search)

In the modern digital landscape, websites are expected to be highly responsive, providing immediate feedback to users. WPSolr can make that happen by adding autocompletion to your WordPress websites.   How does autocompletion work     As users type, WPSolr autocompletes in real-time, displaying potential queries beneath the search bar. Clicking on these suggestions triggers the corresponding query.   Add autocompletion to your WordPress or Woocommerce website   You can add autompletion to your WordPress or Woocommerce website using WPSolr, a search & recommendations plugin.   You can check out our Ajax search documentation.   WPsolr autocompletion works with our compatible search engines : Apache Solr, Elasticsearch, Opensearch, Algolia, Weaviate, etc…

WPSolr vs WebToffee 'Related products for Woocommerce'

WebToffee’s “Related Products for WooCommerce” vs WPSolr : WordPress recommendation plugins

You could want to equip your Woocommerce website with product recommendations but don’t know which solution is the right one for you. This comparison guide will detail the differences between the two recommendation plugins : WebToffee’s ‘Related Products for WooCommerce’ and WPSolr.   You could also view our top 5 WordPress recommendations plugins list.   WebToffee’s ‘Related Products for WooCommerce’   WebToffee’s ‘Related Products for WooCommerce’ plugin‘s overrides the default Woocommerce related products. It is a simple and intuitive plugin that will filter products based on taxonomies   Specialized in Woocommerce : can only index product types. The recommendation engine is stored on the WordPress server which decreases performance greatly. Display recommendations in a slider. Recommend products in store and in product detailed view. Place

WPSolr vs Woocommerce Product Recommendations

“WooCommerce Product Recommendations” vs WPSolr : WordPress recommendation plugins

You could want to equip your Woocommerce website with product recommendations but don’t know which solution is the right one for you. This comparison guide will detail the differences between the two recommendation plugins : WooCommerce Product Recommendations and WPSolr.   You could also view our top 5 WordPress recommendations plugins list.   WooCommerce Product Recommendations   Woocommerce Product recommendations is an official Woocommerce plugin. This recommendation plugin is content-based (based on keywords) and it has the distinctive advantage of being made by the Woocommerce team.   Specialized in Woocommerce (index products and orders). Engine shares the same server as WordPress, so it is slower (less computing power available). Countless recommendation algorithms (“Recommend Best Selling Products”, “Recommend New Arrivals”, “Recommend Top Rated Products”,  etc…), all

WPSolr vs Flycart

Flycart’s “Checkout Upsell for WooCommerce” vs WPSolr : WordPress recommendation plugins

You could want to equip your Woocommerce website with product recommendations but don’t know which solution is the right one for you. This comparison guide will detail the differences between the two recommendation plugins : Flycart’s ‘Checkout Upsell for WooCommerce’ and WPSolr.   You could also view our top 5 WordPress recommendations plugins list.   Flycart Checkout Upsell for WooCommerce   As it’s name implies, Flycart’s ‘Checkout Upsell for WooCommerce‘ WordPress plugin is a plugin that is specialized in upselling products. You can place them in multiple locations and they rely on simple content-based (keywords) filtering algorithms.   Intuitive UI. Uses basic Woocommerce related products algorithm (slow and inaccurate). Create related products, upsell products and frequently bought together recommendations. Place the recommendations in predetermined locations

Image of Wordpress and Recombee

Recombee recommendations for WordPress

Recombee is a personalization & recommendations engine that is proven to improve conversion rates greatly. But what if you wanted to implement it into your WordPress website ? Well you’re at the right place. This will explain why you wold want to add Recombee to your WordPress website but also how you could go it.   Why integrate Recombee into WordPress? Integrating Recombee into WordPress offers countless benefits : Firstly, it enhances user experience by delivering personalized recommendations tailored to individual preferences, thereby increasing user engagement and satisfaction. Recombee is also a very versatile recommendation engine. It can be used for e-commerce, movie or video streaming and blog or news websites. This is because it offers countless user events (interactions) and trained models to use.

Integrate Recombee into Woocommerce website

Integrate Woocommerce with Recombee

Woocommerce is the #1 solution for e-commerce globally. This WordPress plugin provides a powerful and customizable platform for online businesses to sell their products and services. With its user-friendly interface and easy integration with various payment gateways, Woocommerce has become the go-to choice for many entrepreneurs. One of the key features of Woocommerce is its flexibility. It offers a wide range of extensions and themes that allow you to customize your store according to your specific needs. Whether you want to add new functionalities or enhance the design of your website, there is an extension or theme available for almost any requirement. One of these features you could consider adding is recommendations.   Why equip Woocommerce with personalized search & recommendations? Woocommerce already offers users

Recombee logo

Recombee Review : The most versatile AI recommender

Recombee is an AI-powered recommender that offers both recommendations & personalized search. Whether it’s recommending products, articles, or movies, Recombee leverages advanced algorithms and machine learning to deliver personalized recommendations & search that keep users engaged and satisfied. With its easy integration and customizable features, Recombee empowers businesses to optimize content discovery, increase user retention, and drive conversions effortlessly.       Highly-performing recommendations   Recombee prides itself in increasing conversion rates and in turn revenue tenfold. You can verify this by reading their case studies. Using the case studies, you can observe that Recombee improves website performance in most situations whether it is general purposes, e-commerce, streaming, news, etc…     Here are the main types of recommendations :   1. Item recommendations  

Image of Wordpress plugins

Top 5 Recommendation Plugins for Woocommerce & WordPress

Recommendations are an emerging technology today, often used in e-commerce or video streaming. If you wish to equip your WordPress or Woocommerce website with recommendations, there are quite a few plugins available.  However, not all of them are created equal. Some may be limited in functionality, while others may lack compatibility with certain themes or other plugins.   Here are the top 5 :       1. WPSolr   WPSolr is a complete search and recommendations WordPress plugin that integrates countless search engines & recommenders into your WordPress website. Apache Solr, Elasticsearch, Opensearch, Weaviate, Algolia, Recombee, Google Retail are all compatible (check out our engine features comparison). It is versatile and can be used for multiple purposes : blog website, e-commerce website, news website,

Photo of a person looking through a magnifyer.

What is Retrieval-Augmented Recommendation (RAR)?

I bet that the name Retrieval-augmented recommendation reminds you of something. That’s right! It’s a similar process to RAG (retrieval-augmented generation) but with a twist. Instead of using a search engine to retrieve the items and then feeding them to a generative AI, you retrieve the items using a search engine and then re-rank them using a recommender (personalization).   This way you get the best of both worlds : any search engine of your choice but with personalization. This is powerful since you can basically build your own personalized search.   Why?   At WPSolr (WordPress search and recommendations plugin), we came up with this new method of search because one of our clients needed a personalized vector (AI) search for their e-commerce website

8 Best WordPress Search plugins in 2024 (Free + Paid)

Over two decades since its inception, WordPress stands as the prominent CMS globally. Originally a basic tool for blogging, it has evolved into a versatile platform capable of supporting a diverse array of website types. Despite its strengths, the default WordPress search often falls short, making plugins an essential upgrade for those needing an efficient and relevant search experience on their site. While many of these search plugins are available for free, some require a purchase. This article will teach you what are the top 10 plugins to refine your website’s search.   1. WPSolr (Free or €99/month) WPSolr is a very complete WordPress search plugin since it delivers all the components any website would need to have a great search experience. You can check

Image of CTR skyrocketing using AI recommendation systems

What are AI-powered Recommendation systems : A 2024 complete beginner’s guide

In the past, you used to increase your website’s click-through/conversion rate by adding a high performance and relevant search experience. But recently, a new type of technology has emerged : recommender systems (or recommenders). Recommendation systems often operate more subtly, with users interacting minimally with the recommendations and not fully registering their presence. They rely on personalization and are closely related to personalized search. Some of the most prominent recommenders on the market are Recombee, Amazon Personalize, Algolia and Google retail. Why choose a recommendation system?   Example of the Amazon homepage full of recommendations to guide the user   Recommendation systems offer an effortless browsing experience   Forcing your users to search for the products or articles they want adds unnecessary steps to a

Elasticsearch for WooCommerce setup on a dedicated server

Introduction Elasticsearch is a powerful search and analytics engine that is designed for distributed environments. It provides capabilities for full-text search, real-time analytics, and data visualization. When combined with WooCommerce, Elasticsearch can significantly improve the search functionality of your online store, making it easier for customers to find the products they are looking for. Setting up Elasticsearch on a dedicated server can be a complex process, but with the right guidance, it can be done efficiently. In this post, we will walk you through the steps required to set up Elasticsearch for WooCommerce on a dedicated server, along with an integration using the PHP client.   Prerequisites Before we begin, it is important to note that setting up Elasticsearch on a dedicated server requires a

Different Elasticsearch search patterns for WooCommerce

Introduction Elasticsearch has emerged as a popular solution for building search functionality into web applications. WooCommerce, being one of the leading eCommerce platforms, can greatly benefit from integrating Elasticsearch to enhance search capabilities. In this post, we will explore different Elasticsearch search patterns specifically tailored for WooCommerce, along with some code examples to get you started. Elasticsearch PHP Client To use Elasticsearch in your WooCommerce store, you need to communicate with the Elasticsearch server using a programming language. In this example, we will be using the official Elasticsearch PHP client. The first step is to install the Elasticsearch PHP client library using Composer. Open your terminal and navigate to your WooCommerce project directory. Run the following command: Next, let’s create a simple search function that

How to implement autocomplete search with Algolia in WooCommerce

Introduction Implementing an autocomplete search feature in WooCommerce can greatly enhance the user experience and make it easier for customers to find the products they are looking for. Algolia is a powerful search platform that specializes in providing fast and relevant search results, and integrating it into your WooCommerce store can significantly improve the search functionality. In this post, we will discuss how to implement autocomplete search with Algolia in WooCommerce. Step 1: Setting up Algolia Account and Indexing: The first step is to create an Algolia account and set up an index for your WooCommerce products. Once you have created an account, you will need to install the Algolia plugin for WooCommerce. This plugin will facilitate the integration between WooCommerce and Algolia by providing

Different ways of integrating Elasticsearch with WooCommerce

Introduction Elasticsearch is an open-source search engine that helps in storing and indexing data quickly and efficiently. It is a powerful tool that can be integrated with various applications, including eCommerce platforms like WooCommerce. WooCommerce is a free WordPress plugin that allows businesses to sell their products online through their websites. Integrating Elasticsearch with WooCommerce can enhance the search experience for users and provide better search results. In this post, we will discuss different ways of integrating Elasticsearch with WooCommerce and how WPSOLR can help in this process. We will also add some PHP code to help you get started with the Elasticsearch client. Integrating Elasticsearch with WooCommerce There are different ways to integrate Elasticsearch with WooCommerce, and we will discuss some of them here:

Top Elasticsearch plugins for WooCommerce

Introduction Elasticsearch is a powerful and popular search engine that can be integrated with WooCommerce to improve search functionality. However, Elasticsearch alone may not offer many features that you may want or need for your online store. That is why Elasticsearch plugins are important. In this post, we will discuss some of the top Elasticsearch plugins for WooCommerce and how they can add more functionality to your search engine. We will also give a brief overview of the plugins and how they work with Elasticsearch. Top Elasticsearch Plugins for WooCommerce 1. Elasticsearch for WooCommerce – This plugin is designed to help you integrate Elasticsearch with WooCommerce. It has many features that will help you create a more powerful search engine that can handle large amounts

Ivory search logo

How Ivory Search works compared to the Default WordPress search? (w/ speed test)

Since forever, websites have offered search functionalites to help their users find the content they need. It is no different for WordPress websites. A good WordPress search is invaluable since it increases user engagement and reduces frustration. Well WordPress offers a default search. But is it a good idea to use it? Well apparently not enough since Ivory search exists. Ivory search is a WordPress search plugin that replaces the default search with a more refined and efficient one. If you want to learn about more WordPress search plugins, you could check out our list.   Which features does Ivory search add ? Index any WordPress data type The default WordPress search doesn’t offer configuration options, even choosing which data is searchable is not possible.

The relevanssi logo

How Relevanssi works compared to the default WordPress search?

Since forever, websites have offered search functionalites to help their users find the content they need. It is no different for WordPress websites. A good WordPress search is invaluable since it increases user engagement and reduces frustration. Well WordPress offers a default search. But is it a good idea to use it? Well apparently not enough since Relevanssi exists. Relevanssi is a WordPress search plugin that replaces the default search with a more refined and efficient one. If you want to learn about more WordPress search plugins, you could check out our list.   Which features does Relevanssi add ? Index any WordPress data type The default WordPress search doesn’t offer configuration options, even choosing which data is searchable is not possible. This type of