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How-To Guide

This guide provides step-by-step workflows for common tasks with the Product Advisor Plugin.

How the Product Advisor Works

Data Flow Overview

Customer starts advisor
        ↓
   Display question
        ↓
   Select answer
        ↓
 ┌──────┴──────┐
 │ Jump target │──→ Jump to target question
 │   exists?   │
 └──────┬──────┘
        │ No
        ↓
   Next question
        ↓
 ┌──────┴──────┐
 │    More     │──→ Back to "Display question"
 │ questions?  │
 └──────┬──────┘
        │ No
        ↓
  Filter and score products
        ↓
  Sort results (by score/weight)
        ↓
  Display product recommendations

Scoring Logic

  1. Base score: Each product starts with score 0
  2. Answer matching: For each matching answer, the question weight is added
  3. Manufacturer bonus: If configured, the manufacturer weight is added
  4. Sorting: Products are sorted by total score (highest first)

Common Workflows

How to: Create Your First Product Advisor

Goal: Create a working product advisor from scratch

Prerequisites: - Plugin installed and activated - Products with properties in the shop

Steps:

  1. Create the product advisor
  2. Navigate to: Catalogues → Product Advisor
  3. Click Add
  4. Enter title: e.g., "Laptop Finder"
  5. Activate the advisor

  6. Save

  7. Create the first question

  8. Open the Questions tab
  9. Click Add question
  10. Title: "Intended Use"
  11. Question text: "What will you mainly use the notebook for?"
  12. Question type: "Properties"
  13. Question format: "Buttons"
  14. Property group: Select an appropriate group (e.g., "Category" or "Usage")
  15. Position: 1
  16. Weight: 5

  17. Save

  18. Add answers

  19. Open the Answers tab in the question

  20. For each answer option:

    • Click Add answer
    • Enter answer text (e.g., "Office Work", "Gaming", "Graphic Design")
    • Select property option
    • Set position
    • Save

  21. Add more questions and answers

  22. Repeat the steps for additional questions (e.g., Budget, Screen Size)

  23. Embed in Shopping Experience

  24. Navigate to: Content → Shopping Experiences
  25. Open Shopping Experience or create a new one
  26. Add Product Advisor block from sidebar
  27. Select advisor
  28. Save and Publish

Result: The advisor is live and customers can use it.

How to: Set Up Jump Logic

Goal: Skip questions based on previous answers

Prerequisites: - Existing product advisor with multiple questions

Steps:

  1. Plan question structure
Question Position Description
Experience Level 1 Determines if beginner questions are shown
Beginner Help 2 Only for beginners
Starter Features 3 Only for beginners
Budget 4 For everyone
Additional Features 5 For everyone
  1. Define jump target on the answer
  2. Open Question 1 "Experience Level"
  3. Open the answer "Expert" or "Lots of experience"
  4. Set Jump to: 4

  5. Save

  6. Test

  7. Open the storefront
  8. Start the advisor
  9. Select "Expert" for question 1
  10. Verify it jumps directly to question 4

Result: Experts automatically skip the beginner questions.

Troubleshooting: If the jump doesn't work: - Check whether the position is correct (number, not question ID) - Ensure the target question exists

How to: Create a Price Range Question

Goal: Let customers filter by budget

Prerequisites: - Products with different prices in the shop

Steps:

  1. Create new question
  2. Title: "Budget"
  3. Question text: "What's the maximum you want to spend?"
  4. Question type: Price
  5. Question format: Range (for slider) or Buttons (for predefined ranges)
  6. Position: Position appropriately
  7. Weight: e.g., 3

  8. Save

  9. For Buttons format: Price ranges as answers

Answer Price From Price To Position
Under 100 Euro 0 100 1
100 - 300 Euro 100 300 2
300 - 500 Euro 300 500 3
Over 500 Euro 500 (empty) 4
  1. For Range format: Min/Max values
  2. Format automatically shows sliders
  3. Customers can enter their own values

Result: Products are filtered by price.

How to: Prioritise Manufacturers

Goal: Prefer certain brands in the results

Prerequisites: - Products from various manufacturers in the shop

Steps:

  1. Enable manufacturer weighting
  2. Open the product advisor
  3. Switch to the Manufacturers tab

  4. Click Add manufacturer

  5. Link manufacturers with weighting

Manufacturer Weight Effect
Own Brand 10 Strongly preferred
Partner Brand 5 Slightly preferred
Others 0 Neutral
  1. Save and test
  2. Save
  3. In the advisor, products from Own Brand will rank higher with equal scores

Result: Your preferred brands appear higher in the results.

How to: Enable Live Update

Goal: Customers see results in real-time during consultation

Prerequisites: - Existing product advisor

Steps:

  1. Enable setting
  2. Open the product advisor
  3. Enable Live Update

  4. Save

  5. Test

  6. Open the advisor in the storefront
  7. After each answer, the product list should update

Result: Customers immediately see how their selection affects the product recommendations.

Note: Live update can cause delays with many products or slow servers.

How to: Create Advisors for Different Categories

Goal: Different advisors for different product categories

Steps:

  1. Create Dynamic Product Group
  2. Navigate to: Catalogues → Dynamic Product Groups
  3. Add
  4. Name: e.g., "Bicycles"
  5. Conditions: Category = Bicycles

  6. Save

  7. Link advisor to product group

  8. Open the product advisor
  9. At Dynamic Product Group: Select "Bicycles"

  10. Save

  11. Repeat for other categories

  12. Create separate advisors for Laptops, Cameras, etc.
  13. Each advisor has its own category-specific questions

Result: Category-specific advice without irrelevant products.

Quick Reference

Task Key Steps Settings
Create advisor Catalogues → Product Advisor → Add Title, Active
Create question Advisor → Questions → Add Question type, Format, Position
Create answer Question → Answers → Add Text, Property/Manufacturer/Price
Jump logic Answer → Jump to Position of target question
CMS embed Shopping Experience → Block → Product Advisor Select advisor
Manufacturer priority Advisor → Manufacturers → Add Manufacturer, Weight

Best Practices

  1. Less is more: Limit yourself to 3-7 questions for optimal conversion
  2. Important first: Ask the crucial questions at the beginning
  3. Use weighting: Differentiate between critical and optional criteria
  4. Test thoroughly: Go through all paths of your advisor
  5. Incorporate feedback: Observe where customers drop off

What to Avoid

  • Too many questions (leads to abandonment)
  • Too complex jump logic (difficult to maintain)
  • Missing property links (no results)
  • Invalid jump targets (unexpected behaviour)
  • Overlapping price ranges (duplicate results)