Smart Search Recommendation: Configuring Sort Options

Configuring sorting options effectively can improve product discoverability—such as highlighting best-selling or new items—while helping customers find products faster and increasing conversion opportunities.

This article will guide you through how to configure Sorting options in the Smart Search Recommendation app. By setting sorting methods, you can control how products are displayed on the storefront, allowing customers to browse and find items based on criteria like sales, price, or launch date.

Understanding Sorting Types and Limitations

Before configuring your sort options, please be aware of the following rules and limits:

• Quantity limit: You can enable a maximum of 10 sorting options, including the mandatory default sorting option.
• Default sorting: This option is enabled by default and cannot be turned off. The default sorting includes the following settings:
  • Collection (product listing) pages: The default sorting logic is configured in your admin panel under Products > Collections.
  • Search results pages: The default sorting is automatically set to display by relevance in descending order.
• Optional sorting: You can add additional sorting options for your customers to choose from. Supported options include:
  • Pre-enabled options: The system includes several commonly used sorting options that are enabled by default, such as Sales volume (Last 90 days), Last updated (Newest to oldest), Price (Low to high and High to low), and Time created (Newest to oldest).
  • Other options: You can add or adjust additional sorting methods as needed, such as Product name, Conversion rate, Page views, Add-to-cart volume, Add-to-cart rate, and integer/decimal single-value metafields.

Configuring Your Sort Options

To set up the available product sorting methods for your customers, follow these steps:

1. From your SHOPLINE admin panel, go to Apps > Smart Search Recommendation > Sort Options.

   

2. Review your Default sort settings and the system’s pre-enabled sorting options. Except for Default sort, you can manage other sorting options by editing, enabling/disabling, or deleting them.

3. To add additional options, click + Add sort option.

   

4. Select your preferred Sort type (e.g., Product name, Sales volume) from the available list and choose a Sorting method (e.g., A–Z, Last 7 days) for it. 

   

5. (Optional) In Custom sorting text, enter the display name shown to customers. 

   

   Note: Click Translate to view instructions on how to manage multilingual versions of the sorting label.

6. Toggle Status to Activated to enable the option.
7. Click Update to save your changes.

Managing Your Sort Options

Once sort options are added, you can manage them directly in the list:

• Reorder sorting options: Drag the six-dot icon on the left of each row to adjust the display order. The order determines how sorting options appear on the storefront.

  

• Edit sorting options: Update the Sort type or Sorting method, and modify the Custom sorting text to improve clarity for customers.

  

• Enable or disable sorting options: Use the toggle under Status to activate or deactivate a sorting option. Deactivated options will not appear on the storefront.

  

• Delete sorting options: Click the trash icon on the right to remove a sorting option. Default sort cannot be deleted.

  

Best Practices

To create a better browsing experience, consider the following best practices when configuring your sorting options:

• Include commonly used sorting options such as:
  • Price
  • Sales volume (e.g., Best sellers)
  • Newest products
• Avoid adding too many sorting options to prevent overwhelming customers.
• Use time-based sorting (e.g., Last 7 days) to highlight trending products.
• Customize sorting labels (e.g., "Best sellers", "Most viewed") to make them more intuitive.
• Arrange sorting options strategically. For example, place high-impact options (e.g., Best sellers) near the top.