Integrate search
General
Searching for products is a fundamental feature of every online shop. SCAYLE offers multiple endpoints to fit varying tenant requirements. The image below presents an overview of the different search and filter usages in online shops.
In this tutorial, you’ll be guided through SCAYLE’s search capabilities. You’ll discover the pros and cons of our search endpoints and understand how they can best fit your needs.
Use cases
Online shopping presents various search scenarios. While there’s a vast array of search terms, we’ll focus on the high-level requirements most relevant for our online shops. Those include:
- Search Bar Capabilities: It should suggest products, brands, and shop categories matching the entered term.
- Product Name Priority: In the search suggestion, the product name should stand out as the primary information.
- Consistent Search Results: What the search bar suggests, the results page should display.
- Synonyms and Stop Words: It should be possible to define synonyms and stop words considered in the search suggestion.
Storefront API
Search endpoints in SCAYLE
SCAYLE offers a variety of search endpoints through its Storefront API, each with unique features and settings to help you find exactly what you're looking for. Here’s a quick guide:
| Endpoints | Products?filters | Typeahead | Typeahead |
|---|---|---|---|
| Description | Finds all products matching your search term. | Suggests categories, products, and brands, all scored for relevance. | Points you to the best category based on attributes you’re looking for. |
| Usage |
| Search bar category, product and brand suggestions. | Redirected to a category page instead of the search result page based on products. |
| Response | A list of products, including attribute information. | A scored list of brands, categories, and products. | The category that best fits your search term based on attributes. |
| Configuration |
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| Example | Search Term: Sneaker Result: Products with product name or type = sneaker | Search Term: Vans Result: Suggestion for brand "Vans" and related shop categories which includes "Vans" related products. Additional products with “Vans” as part of the name can also be part of the response. | Search term: "schwarze Hose" Result: Shop category that includes products that match “Hose” and the possibility to apply filter “schwarz.” |
| Documentation | click here | click here | click here |
Be aware that outdated search-related endpoints are available in the resource center. However, these are older versions and are not recommended for use in new implementations.
Configure your search in SCAYLE
In the SCAYLE Panel, you can fine-tune your search settings (see overview table above). Here’s what you can adjust:
- Search Result Logic
Define and prioritize which attribute groups should be considered in the search suggestion. - Synonyms
Set up synonyms for words, categories, and attributes for more accurate searches. (We recommend working with word synonyms only for the first integration.) - Typo Tolerance
Default is auto-correction, but you can adjust it, switch it off,or define the number of errors allowed (1 or 2.) We recommend using the auto-correction at first and activating the “ignore numbers” feature. - Words
Choose words to ignore during searches, like “and” or “with.”
More on configuring SCAYLE’s search can be found here.
Recommended solution
For most search scenarios, we recommend combining the Products?filters[term] and typeahead.
Solution design
To enhance your online shop's search functionality, we've developed solutions using SCAYLE's search endpoints. Here’s how our recommended solution addresses common use cases:
| Use case description | Solution design | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Search bar suggestions: Should display products, brands, and categories matching the search term. | Our recommended solution is to combine Products?filters[term] and typeahead. Use Products?filters[term] for specific product searches and typeahead for broader suggestions including brands and categories. |
| 2 | Emphasizing product names: Focus on product names in search suggestions. | In the Products?filters[term]endpoint, you can customize the search result logic. This allows you to select which attribute groups matter most in searches. For prominence, place the product name at the top of your list. |
| 3 | Consistent search results: The search result page should show the same products as the search bar suggestion. | Use Products?filters[term] for the search bar and search result page for consistent outcomes. Different search endpoints will always provide different search results. |
| 4 | Using synonyms in searches: Add synonyms to improve search suggestions. | Adjust both Products?filters[term] and typeahead to recognize word synonyms, as defined in the SCAYLE Panel. We recommend working with word synonyms only. |
