How to Add a Related Posts Widget with Thumbnails in Blogger
Enhancing user engagement on your Blogger site is crucial for reducing bounce rates and encouraging visitors to explore more of your content. One of the best ways to keep users engaged is by implementing a “Related Posts” widget with thumbnails.
What Is a Related Posts Widget?
A Related Posts Widget is a tool that displays similar articles on your blog posts. This helps users find content that interests them and encourages them to stay longer on your site.
Why Use a Related Posts Widget?
Reduces Bounce Rate
A high bounce rate means that visitors leave your site after reading just one page. A related posts widget encourages users to click on other articles, helping to reduce the bounce rate.
Increases Page Views
By showing related content, visitors are more likely to explore more articles, increasing your total page views.
Boosts SEO
When users stay longer on your site and visit multiple pages, Google considers your site more valuable, which can help improve your search engine ranking.
How to Add a Related Posts Widget with Thumbnails in Blogger
Step 1: Access the HTML Editor
- Open your Blogger dashboard.
- Go to Theme.
- Click on Edit HTML.
Step 2: Insert Necessary Scripts
Find the closing </head> tag in your HTML code (press CTRL+F and search for </head>).
Add the following code before </head>:
<link href="//netdna.bootstrapcdn.com/font-awesome/4.7.0/css/font-awesome.css" rel="stylesheet"/> <script src='https://ajax.googleapis.com/ajax/libs/jquery/3.1.0/jquery.min.js'></script>
Step 3: Add CSS Styling
Find the closing ]]></b:skin> tag in your template.
Add the CSS code above ]]></b:skin>.
Step 4: Insert the Related Posts Widget Code
Find the <data:post.body/> tag in your template.
After this tag, insert the following script:
<b:if cond='data:blog.pageType == "item"'>
<script id='related-posts' type='text/javascript'>
// Your related posts script here
</script>
</b:if>
Final Thoughts – Is a Related Posts Widget Worth It?
A Related Posts widget is a great addition to any Blogger site, helping to:
- ✅ Increase engagement and reduce bounce rate.
- ✅ Improve SEO by keeping users on your site longer.
- ✅ Boost monetization with additional ad placements.
However, be mindful of potential performance issues and ensure that the widget is optimized for fast loading speeds.
