Exclude rules for slots

This is for:

Merchandiser

In the Recommendations manager of the Coveo Merchandising Hub (CMH), merchandisers can define Exclude filter rules to hide products that meet specific criteria from being displayed in recommendation slots.

Exclude rules | Coveo

Use case examples

Exclude filter rules can be used to address a variety of use cases. Here are a few examples:

  • You want to ensure that out-of-stock products aren’t displayed in recommendation slots. For example, you can create a rule to exclude products where the ec_in_stock attribute value is false.

  • You want to ensure that products with certain undesirable attributes aren’t shown in a recommendation slot. For example, you can create a rule to exclude products where the ec_category attribute value is Padlocks.

Prerequisites

To create rules, merchandisers must ensure they have properly configured their query pipeline and chosen the correct tracking ID to ensure that their changes impact the intended slots.

Create an exclude rule

To create a rule:

  1. In the CMH, access the Recommendations manager.

  2. From the navigation tabs, select Filter rules.

  3. Click Create filter rule, and then, select For a specific slot.

    Note

    Currently, filter rules only apply to specific recommendation slots.

  4. Select the Locale for which the exclude rule will apply. By default, a rule applies to all available locales.

  5. Select the Slot to which the exclude rule will apply, and then click Done.

  6. Under Choose an action, select Exclude.

  7. Under Attribute, select the attribute on which you want to apply the exclude rule. For example, if you want to exclude products based on the brand attribute, select brand.

  8. Under Operator, select the operator that you want to use.

  9. Under Value, select the attribute value that you want to use to filter products. For example, if you want to filter products based on the brand attribute, enter the brand value that you want to use as a filter, such as Barca Sports. Note that you can select multiple values for the attribute.

    • For a recommendation slot using a seeded strategy, you can select the Use "Same as product…​" option to use a dynamic value. For example, on a PDP, you could create an Exclude rule that uses the brand attribute and the Use "Same as product…​" option to exclude products from the same brand as the product being viewed. If a visitor is viewing a Barca Sports product, the recommendations will exlude other Barca Sports products.

  10. (Optional) If you want to add more attribute-value pairs to the exclude rule, click Add attribute and repeat the process.

  11. Click Next: Review and publish.

    Tip
    Leading practice

    You can preview the effect of your rules by using the Preview panel on the right side of the page. You can use this panel to see how the rule affects the products on the recommendation slot for a given locale.

    If you’re previewing a rule for a recommendation slot using a seeded strategy, you must choose the product(s) for which you want to simulate recommendations to see the effect of the rule.

  12. Review your rule configuration, and then click Publish.

  13. In the Publish now panel, enter a meaningful name for your rule, and then click Publish. The rule now applies.

Manage existing exclude rules

To manage an existing exclude rule:

  1. In the CMH, access the Recommendations manager.

  2. From the navigation tabs, select Filter rules.

  3. Locate the rule you want to manage.

  4. Click Modify. You can now decide to edit the rule or delete it.