💡 Prerequisite Knowledge

We recommend that you read the following guide:

• Dynamic Categories: This guide introduces you to the Dynamic Categories feature.

Dynamic Categories - End-to-End Workflow

Follow the steps in the below order:

1. On the Dashboard side

• Create and merchandise the product collection per your unique use case using the dedicated Dynamic Categories module on the merchandising dashboard.
• Once the category is created, copy and note the unique Dynamic Category ID for passing in the API call.

2. On the API Side

• To see the desired Dynamic Category on your live site, you must initiate an API request to Bloomreach Category API, indicating category_type=dynamic.

• You also need to pass the unique Dynamic Category ID in the “q” parameter of the API call. Dynamic Category ID is autogenerated when you create a new Dynamic Category on the dashboard.

  Refer to the below sections for detailed workflows on the Dashboard and the API end.

1. Dashboard Workflow

Dynamic Categories module on the dashboard allows you to perform the below operations:

• Define the conditions for creating a category collection
• Merchandise category collections.

Configuring a New Dynamic Category

The following workflow walks you through the process of creating a new Dynamic Category.

1. Navigation

1. Go to Search & Merchandising > Dynamic categories > Category management.
2. Click the “+ New Category” button. This opens the New category wizard.
   

2. Adding Category Specifications

2.1 Naming the Category

Set the Dynamic Category's name using the Name input field.

2.2 Adding products to the Category

This section allows you to define your Dynamic Category set. To do this, you can either configure certain conditions or add products manually.

Configure conditions based on product attributes

1. Click on “Configure conditions”.

2. This opens up Configure conditions setup options.

3. Now, choose one of these options for matching the products:
   Match ALL of the following: Products must match all conditions to be included in the Dynamic Category set. The conditions will be combined by the AND operator.
   Match ANY of the following: Products must match at least one condition to be included in the Dynamic Category set. The conditions will be combined by the OR operator.

   

4. Click on “+ Add filter condition” to start adding the filter conditions. First, specify the category as illustrated below. You can search the Category with its name or ID.
   

5. Click on “+ Add filter condition” and follow the same workflow each time you’d like to add more product attribute filters. For numeric attributes, additional operators described below can be used for targeted range control.

• is equal to: The product attribute value must match the exact input value.
• is greater than: The product attribute value must be greater than the input value.
• is less than: The product attribute value must be less than the input value.
• matches range: The product attribute value is more than the minimum value and less than the maximum value.
  

6. Once you’re satisfied with the conditions, click on the "Apply conditions" button. This will fetch the matching products in the bottom viewing panel.

Add products manually

1. Choose the “Add products manually” option under the Add products section.
2. Now click “+ Add products”. This opens the Add products modal.
3. You can add products either by

• Copying and pasting up to 1024 PIDs. These can be separated by comma, space, or line.
  

• Uploading a CSV file with valid PIDs.
  

4. Click Add/Upload to add the products. The PIDs added will now appear under the panel.

2.3 Viewing Products in the Category

This section displays the products that match the conditions defined above or the products that were manually added.

3. Saving the New Dynamic Category

Click Save to save the Dynamic Category configurations. You can now see the unique Dynamic Category ID listed on the Dynamic Categories homepage. Copy and note this ID for passing in the API call.

Merchandising Dynamic Categories

You can merchandise Dynamic Categories similar to how you merchandise ID-based Categories. Follow the steps given below to create a Dynamic Categories ranking rule:

1. Go to Search & Merchandising > Dynamic categories > Ranking rules.

2. Click on Add Rule.
   

3. Enter the Dynamic Category ID. Please note that you can enter one ID at a time.

4. Start applying merchandising operations to the product recall set. You can boost, bury, slot, or block the products.
   

You can also create attribute-based rules or sequentially lock the product set to build a curated collection. Please note that you can perform up to 1024 customizations at a time when creating merchandising rules (including PID operations and attribute rules).

❗️

Features not supported

• Dynamic Categories do not support Add to Recall operation. Adding products to recall using the Left-side Product Search Panel is also not possible. The Left-side panel can only be used to search for products already in the recall. Also, Add to Recall is not supported at the global level since Dynamic Categories are currently not available at the global level.
• Dynamic Categories do not support Group Merchandising feature.

5. After making the customizations, view the changes in the Preview module.
   

6. If you’re satisfied with the changes, click Save. The rule now appears on the Dynamic Categories Ranking Rules homepage. Copy and note the unique Dynamic Category ID for passing in the API call.

📘

Global Ranking Rules impact

Global Ranking Rules will affect the Dynamic Category ranking rules. There will be no impact on the Dynamic Category creation process. That is, there will be no impact on the recall since Global Ranking Rules only influence ranking rules.

Note that Global Search Ranking Rules and Global Category Ranking Rules will not apply to Dynamic Category rules.

2. API Workflow

To make the desired Dynamic Category appear on your site, you must fetch the category via the Bloomreach Search API.

• First, build your own page to perform a Search API call on a page visit.

• Then, initiate an API request to Bloomreach Category API and indicate the below-required parameters with their correct values:
  request_type=search
  search_type=category
  category_type=dynamic
  q=<_pass the unique Dynamic Category ID here>_

  Here’s a sample Dynamic Category request.

GET https://core.dxpapi.com/api/v1/core/?
account_id=<Bloomreach Provided Account ID>
&auth_key=jazzhands
&domain_key=example_com
&request_id=8830241055597
&_br_uid_2=uid=7797686432023:v=11.5:ts=1428617911187:hc=55
&ref_url=http://www.example.com/home
&url=http://www.example.com/index.html?q=cat000922
&request_type=search #Value must be search for Dynamic Category API
&rows=20
&start=0
&fl=pid,title,brand,price,sale_price,colors,sizes,thumb_image,price_range
&q=<Dynamic Category ID>
&search_type=category
&category_type=dynamic

🚧

Please note that “fq=cat_id:[Dynamic Category ID]” is not supported and will return a 400 request error.

FAQs

1. If a Dynamic Category is based on an attribute and this attribute is missing from the feed in the next feed update, what will be the impact on the products when the Dynamic Category is live?

Dynamic Category will show 0 products.

2. If a Dynamic Category is based on a list of PIDs and all PIDs are missing from the feed after the feed update, what will be the impact on the products when the Dynamic Category is live?

Dynamic Category will show 0 products.

3. How can I access analytics for Dynamic Categories?

You can access analytics for Dynamic Categories within the existing Category reports. The fundamental structure and data points in the reports will remain consistent with the feed-based categories. The reports can be accessed here:

• Insights > Playbooks > Access Performance
  
• Insights > Category analytics > Top categories
  

4. Are additional integration efforts required for implementing Dynamic Categories?

No additional implementation steps are required. As there are no changes to the request API specification or the returned data format, you can simply reuse your existing integration as is.

5. How can I manage the existing Dynamic Categories?

The following actions are available to manage the category:

• Editing
  You can edit the configurations of an existing Dynamic Category by clicking on the Edit Action button or clicking the Category name link in blue. Make changes and save them by following a similar workflow as previously described.
• Deleting
  Use the Delete action button to delete the Dynamci Category. Please note that this will also remove the ranking rules associated with the category.