Content Recommendation: Definition, Benefits & the Appropriate Tools

Whenever the talk turns to Content Marketing or Digital Marketing, the term "Content Recommendation" often comes up. With Content Recommendation, users see content tailored to their desires. Thus, boring content that invites continued scrolling, is a thing of the past. With the right content recommendations, users spend more time on your website and contribute to the recognition of your company. But what exactly is Content Recommendation? How does it work? And how can you as entrepreneurs benefit from Content Recommendation?

In this article, we answer all these and many more questions, and present you the most popular Content Recommendation tools.

What is Content Recommendation? 

Content Recommendation is a system that draws website visitors' attention to content relevant to them. Based on the previous searches of the users, the system decides which content could be interesting. If your website is, for example, an online shop for bicycles and users are searching for a bicycle helmet, thanks to Content Recommendation they are automatically suggested further models, blog posts or suitable category pages.

Content Recommendation belongs to Native Advertising, as it is seamlessly integrated into a website. The website visitors do not realize that Content Recommendation is in play. Usually, users are pointed to further content recommendations with phrases like "recommended articles" or "You might also like this".

Source: Meta

On-Page- vs. Off-Page-Content-Recommendation

There are two types of Content Recommendation: On-Page and Off-Page Content Recommendation.

On-Page Recommendations suggest your website visitors more content, posts, or products on your website. The users are therefore encouraged to linger longer on your website. The benefits of On-Page Content Recommendations are:

• Increasing website traffic
• Longer visits to your website
• Increasing interaction with your content
• More frequent sharing of your content, for example in social media
• Increasing the popularity of your brand and website

Especially if you generate valuable and information-rich content, you should deal with On-Page Content Recommendation sooner or later. Because this is how users find out about all your interesting content and recommend your website to others.

Source: lytics

If your website is relatively new and you haven't uploaded many contents yet, we recommend you to rely on Off-Page Content Recommendations. While On-Page Content Recommendation always recommends internal content, Off-Page Content Recommendation redirects your visitors to other external pages. If you earn income through recommendations or partnerships, this variety of Content Recommendation brings many benefits. These include, among others:

• Increasing cross-website traffic
• Improving collaboration with partners
• Increase in income from partnerships
• Building a common network
• Increasing the recognition level through recommendations

Always ensure with Off-Page Content Recommendation that the recommended content is of high quality. The users will also associate your content recommendations with your website. Therefore, it is essential that you identify yourself with the content of the recommended website. Also, you should never redirect your visitors to competitors' websites. Off-Page Content Recommendations should therefore provide relevant and high-quality information and still not support the competition. 

Source: taboola

Placement of Content Recommendations

Essential for achieving the content goals is the placement of Content Recommendations on your website. So where exactly do your website visitors find further recommendations? 

A popular placement is directly below the article, blog post or product. This way, users have the opportunity to go to another interesting page for them immediately after reading the corresponding page. So before they can even think about their next move, you confront them with the appropriate Content Recommendation.

But placing Content Recommendations at the end of the page is not your only option. You can also work with In-Site Widgets and have content recommendations faded in. If, for example, the users are nearing the end of a page or have already been on a page for a few seconds, a faded-in Content Recommendation could invite them to stay longer on your website. The secret to Pop-up Content Recommendations is the timing. Make sure to pop up the recommended content at the right moment, otherwise, your users may get annoyed. 

What are the advantages of Content Recommendation? 

Depending on the area of application, Content Recommendation brings many different advantages. You can, among other things, increase the traffic on your websites, generate more leads, or boost your sales. Additionally, with Content Recommendation you can personalize user experiences, so that your website visitors see especially relevant content for them. This encourages users to spend more time on your website. Furthermore, with the help of content recommendations, you can attract new visitors and increase your popularity. Plus, you always know which articles, blog posts or products are particularly popular. Content Recommendation should therefore be an integral part of every advertising strategy.

What is Content Recommendation Software?

Content Recommendation can either be used with the help of a website plugin or software. Each tool implements Content Recommendation in different ways. Either the users' keywords are analyzed and based on this suggestions are made or the software observes the behavior of the website visitors and relates it to the diverse content. This way the users receive recommendations adjusted to them. 

Some tools also operate based on the customer profile. If, for example, enough data have been collected about your customers, the program can suggest appropriate Content Recommendations. There are also hybrid Content Recommendation programs that combine several approaches.

What are the best Content Recommendation platforms?

There are Content Recommendation Software solutions almost as numerous as grains of sand. To keep track of them all and select the right tool for your needs is a small challenge. But you are not alone. As always, we support you with reviews and user ratings. Our users have put the most popular Content Recommendation platforms to the acid test and have rated them for you. The following Content Recommendation Software solutions scored particularly well:

• Taboola

• trbo

• Outbrain

• Plista

• Opinary

• Demandbase

• Crownpeak

• 8SELECT

• econda Cross Sell

• symplr engage

• Revcontent

• Picalike

On OMR Reviews you will find all tools listed and precisely described. There you can also find a comparison of the Content Recommendation Software, so you can quickly and easily find the most suitable platform for your company.

Conclusion: With Content Recommendation you can and should improve the presence of your website

With Content Recommendation, you can exploit the full potential of your website and improve your company's presence. Thanks to customized content recommendations, the visit to your website becomes an engaging experience for users. They are encouraged to look at more and more products, blog posts, articles, etc. on your website. You then benefit from many new leads, a higher level of recognition, and increased sales. 

Whether you should choose On-Page- or Off-Page-Content-Recommendation depends on the size of your website. If both concepts convince you, a hybrid version could be the best decision. With the help of different Content Recommendation software, content recommendation becomes a breeze. At OMR Reviews you will find all recommended tools compared.