Indexing attributes

The cartridge can index various product, price, inventory and categories data from Salesforce B2C Commerce environments.

Default records

The cartridge can generate two types of records, depending on your record model preference:

• Variation Product records: create one record per product variant (default).
• Base Product records: create one record per base product, containing all the variants in a variants attribute.

For more information about which model best suits your needs, see Ecommerce records.

Variant-level default model

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{
  "name": "Apple iPod Classic",
  "categoryPageId": [
    "electronics",
    "electronics-digital-media-players"
  ],
  "in_stock": true,
  "price": { "USD": 219.99 },
  "image_groups": [
    {
      "_type": "image_group",
      "images": [
        {
          "_type": "image",
          "alt": "Apple iPod Classic, Silver, large",
          "dis_base_link": "/images/large/ipod-classic-silver.jpg",
          "title": "Apple iPod Classic, Silver"
        }
      ],
      "view_type": "large"
    }
  ],
  "url": "/electronics/ipod%20%26%20mp3%20players/apple-ipod-classic-silver-120gM.html"
  "__primary_category": {
    "0": "Electronics",
    "1": "Electronics > iPod & MP3 Players"
  },
  "objectID": "apple-ipod-classic-silver-120gM"
}

Product-level default model

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{
  "name": "Apple iPod Classic",
  "categoryPageId": [
    "electronics",
    "electronics-digital-media-players"
  ],
  "__primary_category": {
    "0": "Electronics",
    "1": "Electronics > iPod & MP3 Players"
  },
  "defaultVariantID": "apple-ipod-classic-silver-120gM",
  "variants": [
    {
      "variantID": "apple-ipod-classic-silver-120gM",
      "in_stock": true,
      "price": { "USD": 219.99 },
      "color": "Silver",
      "url": "/electronics/ipod%20%26%20mp3%20players/apple-ipod-classic-silver-120gM.html"
    },
    {
      "variantID": "apple-ipod-classic-black-120gM",
      "in_stock": true,
      "price": { "USD": 199 },
      "color": "Black",
      "url": "/electronics/ipod%20%26%20mp3%20players/apple-ipod-classic-black-120gM.html"
    }
  ],
  "colorVariations": [
    {
      "image_groups": [
        {
          "_type": "image_group",
          "images": [
            {
              "_type": "image",
              "alt": "Apple iPod Classic, Silver, large",
              "dis_base_link": "/images/large/ipod-classic-silver.jpg",
              "title": "Apple iPod Classic, Silver"
            }
          ],
          "view_type": "large"
        }
      ],
      "variationURL": "/electronics/ipod%20%26%20mp3%20players/apple-ipod-classicM.html?dwvar_apple-ipod-classicM_color=Silver",
      "color": "Silver"
    },
    {
      "image_groups": [
        {
          "_type": "image_group",
          "images": [
            {
              "_type": "image",
              "alt": "Apple iPod Classic, Black, large",
              "dis_base_link": "/images/large/ipod-classic-black.jpg",
              "title": "Apple iPod Classic, Black"
            }
          ],
          "view_type": "large"
        }
      ],
      "variationURL": "/electronics/ipod%20%26%20mp3%20players/apple-ipod-classicM.html?dwvar_apple-ipod-classicM_color=Black",
      "color": "Black"
    }
  ],
  "objectID": "apple-ipod-classicM"
}

Example

A site might have the following configurations:

• hostname: example.com
• site-id: clothing
• Two locales: en_US, fr_FR
• Two currencies: USD, EUR
• Five additional product attributes: short_description, long_description, brand, color, size

This setup will generate the following indices in Algolia:

• example-com__clothing__products__en_US
• example-com__clothing__products__fr_FR
• example-com__clothing__categories__en_US
• example-com__clothing__categories__fr_FR

Algolia generates a separate product and category index for each locale to give you the most flexibility in terms of configuration. This setup lets you to have synonyms, rules, and other locale-specific settings on your index without interfering with the settings for other locales.

The prefix ${hostname}__${site_id} prevents accidental name collisions between your environments. It makes using a single Algolia application with multiple sandboxes or sites completely safe. You can always change the prefix with the Algolia_IndexPrefix custom site preference.

A typical variant-level record in these indices has the following structure:

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// index: example-com__clothing__products__en_US

// Base set (non-configurable attributes)
// theses fields are always added to your product record
{
  "objectID": "8987698M",
  "name": "Red T-shirt from PopularBrand",
  "categoryPageId": [
    "womens",
    "womens-tops",
    "womens-tops-tshirts"
  ],
  "__primary_category": {
     "0": "Womens",
     "1": "Womens > Tops",
     "2": "Womens > Tops > T-shirts"
   },
  "in_stock": true,
  "price": {
    "USD": 12.99,
    "EUR": 11.99
  },
  "image_groups": [ /* */ ],
  "url": "/s/RefArch/womens/tops/tshirts/8987698M?lang=en_US"
  // configurable attributes
  "short_description": "Short description of this red t-shirt",
  "long_description": "A much longer description of this red t-shirt",
  "brand": "PopularBrand",
  "color": "Red",
  "size": "L",
}

Configure product records attributes

You can configure the list of attributes that are exported to your Algolia index. The list has a set of base attributes which you can extend to match your business needs. Configure the product attributes to send to Algolia by adding them to the Additional Product Attributes preference. You should do this before performing a complete (re)index of your data.

1. Go to Merchant Tools > Algolia > Algolia

   

2. Set up your Additional Product Attributes:

   

Base attributes (non-configurable)

The base set of attributes is always included in product indexing, except when using the attributeListOverride job step parameter, which overrides both the base attributes and any additional product attributes configured for that job.

Configurable attributes

You can choose to send additional Product record attributes such as the following to Algolia by defining them in Additional Product Attributes.

You should start with the following attributes: short_description, long_description, then expand the list according to your use case (for example brand, color, size).

Flexible attribute indexing based on default behavior

From version 24.5.0, the Algolia cartridge supports indexing any product attribute, even if they aren’t explicitly listed as configurable attributes. This feature simplifies the process of indexing custom or specific attributes, allowing for more flexible and comprehensive product data in your Algolia index without requiring extensive configuration.

For attributes that aren’t explicitly listed, the cartridge uses the following default indexing configuration:

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{
    attribute: attributeName,
    localized: false,
    variantAttribute: true
}

This means that by default, all unlisted attributes:

• Aren’t localized
• Are indexed in the variants array (for the product-level record model)
• Use the default Salesforce B2C Commerce attribute name (with dot notation)

To change this default behavior, override it with advanced attributes configuration.

Nested attributes

Nested attributes are grouped under their parent object in the Algolia record. For example: If you want to index activeData.impressionsDay and activeData.revenueDay, they will be indexed in Algolia as:

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{
  "activeData": {
    "impressionsDay": 5,
    "revenueDay": 141
  }
}

If you prefer indexing these attributes at the root level of your Algolia records, use the method described in the advanced attributes configuration section.

Usage

To use this feature:

1. Add the corresponding Salesforce B2C attribute names (including nested attributes) to the Additional Product Attributes list in the Algolia Business Manager module Custom Preferences. Refer to custom attributes as custom.<attribute_name>.
2. Apply the Custom Preference changes and run a full re-index.

Check your Algolia index after the indexing job finishes. It should contain these new attributes in the product records now.

Advanced attributes configuration

Extend attributes declarations

The cartridge has an extension mechanism that lets you add new attributes, modify existing ones, or remove base attributes.

Create a productAttributesConfig.js file in the int_algolia/cartridge/configuration/ directory. For an example, see this file in the cartridge code. This file must export a configuration object. The keys of this object are the name of the attributes in your Algolia records. Each key holds an object with the following properties:

The attribute property lets you declare attributes with their direct name (simple values like name, brand, etc.) or their “path”, for nested values with direct access. For example, you can access the revenueWeek attribute of a product’s activeData object by declaring activeData.revenueWeek.

Other values are more complex and must be computed. For that, the attribute property accepts a function to define how to export such complex attributes.

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/* productAttributesConfig.js */
module.exports = {
    /* ... */
    "algoliaAttributeName": {
        /* Access directly a product's property (or nested property) */
        "attribute": "activeData.revenueWeek",
        "localized": false,
    },
    "siblings": {
        /* Compute an array of variants IDs from the base product */
        "attribute": function(product) {
            const variantIds = [];
            const variantsIt = product.variants.iterator();
            while (variantsIt.hasNext()) {
                var variant = variantsIt.next();
                if (variant.getAvailabilityModel().isInStock()) {
                    variantIds.push(variant.ID);
                }
            }
            return variantIds;
        },
        "computedFromBaseProduct": true,
    }
}

A more complete example is available in the cartridge code.

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module.exports = {
    "in_stock": {},
}

Post-processing customization

To customize your records just before sending them to Algolia, create a productRecordCustomizer.js file in the int_algolia/cartridge/configuration/ directory. This permits to do post-processing operations on the final records, after fetching all attributes. This file must export a function that takes as parameter the final Algolia record and does modifications on it:

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/* productRecordCustomizer.js */
module.exports = function(productRecord) {
    if (productRecord.colorVariations) {
        productRecord['availableColors'] = productRecord.colorVariations.length;
    }
}

Configure extra attributes for AlgoliaProductPriceIndex_v2 and AlgoliaProductInventoryIndex_v2

To extend the list of attributes sent by these jobs, select the job you want to configure in BM, go to the Jobs Steps tab, select the job step and edit the attributeListOverride parameter. Additional attributes can increase the job’s total runtime depending on the complexity of retrieving the attribute:

• Nested attributes from B2C model classes take longer to retrieve than the product’s own properties
• Calculated values take longer to retrieve than static values.

By default, these jobs send the following attributes:

• AlgoliaProductPriceIndex_v2: price
• AlgoliaProductInventoryIndex_v2: in_stock

If you extend the list of exported attributes, make sure to add the same attributes to the Additional Product Attributes site preference in the Algolia BM module as well so that the product delta export job also includes those attributes and updates them during its run.

Index active data such as revenue data

Indexing revenue metrics as an attribute in Algolia lets you use this data in your ranking formula.

By default, the Algolia cartridge for Salesforce B2C Commerce supports many product attributes. Attributes like Active Revenue data, which aren’t supported, can be indexed in Algolia. Use the default behavior or specify a custom behavior in a configuration file.

Using the default method

You can refer to attributes in the Additional Product Attributes Custom Preference](/doc/integration/salesforce-commerce-cloud-b2c/getting-started/custom-preferences/) in the Algolia Business Manager module using the default behavior. For example, you can refer to activeData.revenueWeek to index revenue week data or availabilityModel.inStock to index the in-stock status of a product.

Declaring attributes in the configuration file

You can declare the desired behavior (for example naming, localization, nesting, or a transformation) using the extension mechanism.

1. In the extension configuration file (productAttributesConfig.js), declare each field with their path in the attribute property:
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    /* productAttributesConfig.js */
    module.exports = {
        /* ... */
        "revenueWeek": {
            "attribute": "activeData.revenueWeek",
            "localized": false,
        },
    }
   

2. In your Business Manager, go to Merchant Tools > Site Preferences > Custom Preferences > Algolia. Find Additional Product Attributes and add all fields, such as revenueWeek.
3. Reindex your data by going in Administration > Operations > Jobs and running the AlgoliaProductIndex_v2 job.

Using a custom function

Using a custom function permits you to regroup the various fields under a common top-level attribute, such as revenueData.

1. In the extension configuration file (productAttributesConfig.js), add a revenueData declaration with the attribute property being a function that returns the data to index.
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    /* productAttributesConfig.js */
    module.exports = {
        /* ... */
        "revenueData": {
            "attribute": function (product) {
                var activeData = product.getActiveData();
                return {
                    quantityLast7Days: activeData.ordersWeek,
                    revenueLast7Days: activeData.revenueWeek,
                    quantityLast30Days: activeData.ordersMonth,
                    revenueLast30Days: activeData.revenuesMonth,
                };
            },
            "localized": false,
        },
    }
   

2. In your Business Manager, go to Merchant Tools > Site Preferences > Custom Preferences > Algolia. Find Additional Product Attributes and add revenueData.
3. To reindex your data, go to Administration > Operations > Jobs and run the AlgoliaProductIndex_v2 job.