Search Preview gives merchant a controlled way to review search results before relying on them in the live storefront. It shows which products rank for a query, why they appear in that order, and whether relevance, merchandising rules, inventory, or performance signals are influencing the result.
This information can be used to compare products, validate that merchandising rules are working as intended, identify gaps in product data, and determine whether the result supports your commercial priorities.
It enables merchant to take take targeted action to improve it or leave the ranking unchanged.
To access:
- Log in to Merchandising Cloud.
- From the left menu, click Search.
- Click Search Preview.
This opens the Search Preview page, where you can enter a search query, review the ranked results, and investigate the factors influencing each product’s position.
Search Logic
Search Preview helps you understand why one product ranks above another for a specific search term. For example, when you search for “button down”, you can review whether the result order is being influenced by:
- Search relevance, such as matches in product titles, descriptions, tags, or SKUs
- Merchandising rules, such as Pin, Boost, Bury, Exclude, or Filter
- Business signals, such as product performance, inventory, or campaign priority
This helps you determine whether the ranking is relevant and commercially useful, whether existing rules are producing the intended outcome, and whether further merchandising action is required.
Preview Search Results
On the Search Preview page, enter a search term in the search box.
Once the search runs, the products are displayed in ranked order. For example, you may see products ranked as #1, #2, #3, and so on.
Select a product from the result list to investigate its ranking. A panel opens on the right side of the page with product information and an explanation of the factors influencing its position.
Understanding Product Ranking
The product detail panel helps you understand why the selected product ranks above or below other products for the query.
For example, the panel may show that a product is ranked #1 for “button down” because of its query match and popularity.
The explanation may include factors such as:
Factor | What It Means |
|---|
Search relevance | How closely the product data matches the search query |
Popularity | Whether shopper engagement and purchasing behaviour are contributing to the product’s position |
Merchandising rules | Whether a Pin, Boost, Bury, Exclude, or Filter rule influenced the product |
Inventory | Whether product availability or stock information is influencing the result |
This gives you a practical explanation of the ranking so you can assess whether the result makes sense from both a relevance and merchandising perspective, without relying only on technical scores.
Query Match Details
Search Preview can show which product fields contributed to the query match. For example, for the query “button down”, the selected product may show:
Field | Match |
|---|
Title | Matched |
Description | Matched |
Tags | Matched |
SKU | Not matched |
If irrelevant products are appearing, or relevant products are ranking too low, these details can help you identify gaps or inconsistencies in the product data used by search.
Depending on the match details, you may need to improve product titles, descriptions, tags, searchable fields, or synonyms so relevant products can be found and ranked more accurately.
Search Result Insights
Search Result Insights brings together the main signals affecting the selected product so you can determine whether its position is being driven by relevance, merchandising rules, inventory, or performance.
The product detail panel shows whether merchandising rules such as Pin, Boost, Bury, Exclude, or Filter influenced the selected product.
If no rule affected the product, you may see:
No active merchandising rules affected this product.
When the ranking requires adjustment, go to Default Merchandising or the relevant merchandising rules area to create or update the appropriate rule.
Search Preview may also show performance information for the selected product or query, including clicks, purchases, revenue, and overall product performance. Use these signals alongside relevance and rule information to decide whether the product should be promoted, repositioned, or left unchanged.
Advanced Scoring Details
Search Preview may also include an Advanced Scoring Details section.
This section can show technical ranking information such as:
- Final score
- Search score
- Popularity score
- Query popularity score
Use these details when you need a deeper view of how the ranking was calculated. For most merchandising decisions, the ranking explanation, query match details, applied rules, and performance information provide sufficient context.
Review and Take Action
After reviewing the result, determine whether it is relevant, commercially useful, and consistent with your intended merchandising strategy.
Based on the available insights, you may choose to pin a product to a specific position, boost it higher, bury it lower, exclude it from the query, improve its product data, or leave the ranking unchanged.
By validating relevance, confirming rule behaviour, identifying product data gaps, and reviewing performance signals, Search Preview helps you make more informed merchandising decisions before shoppers rely on the results in the live storefront.