Introduction
WooCommerce is a versatile and widely used plugin on WordPress that powers e-commerce websites. One of its most vital functionalities is the search bar that lets customers search for products with ease. However, the default search functionality is rather basic and can sometimes give irrelevant results. Elasticsearch is an open-source search engine that powers advanced search and analytics. In this post, we will discuss the advanced Elasticsearch features that can help improve search results in WooCommerce.
Advanced Elasticsearch features
1. Fuzziness
Fuzziness refers to the ability of Elasticsearch to find results with similar spellings to the searched query. This is an essential feature when customers misspell words while searching. This feature can be enabled in the Elasticsearch index settings.
2. Synonyms
Synonyms refer to the ability of Elasticsearch to understand that specific words have the same meaning. Consider the example of “sneakers” and “running shoes.” Both of these words refer to the same class of products. Elasticsearch can be configured to treat them as synonyms and return results for both queries.
3. Autocomplete
Autocomplete refers to the ability to suggest popular or relevant search terms while customers type in the search bar. Elasticsearch can be configured to provide suggestions based on the most common search terms.
How WPSOLR can help
WPSOLR is a powerful WordPress plugin that can integrate Elasticsearch with WooCommerce to provide advanced search functionality. With WPSOLR, you do not need to be a developer to use Elasticsearch. It comes with a user-friendly interface and provides many advanced features like synonyms, filtering, and faceting out of the box. Moreover, it provides an autocomplete feature that leverages Elasticsearch’s autocomplete capability. WPSOLR supports WooCommerce search out of the box, and it is simple to set up. Therefore, WPSOLR can help improve search results in WooCommerce with minimal effort.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the default search functionality of WooCommerce can sometimes be inadequate, especially for big stores. Elasticsearch provides advanced search features like fuzziness, synonyms, and autocomplete. These features can be challenging to implement, but with the Elasticsearch-PHP client, they can be easily configured for WooCommerce. Additionally, the WPSOLR plugin provides a user-friendly interface that enables you to set up Elasticsearch with WooCommerce easily. Implementing these advanced Elasticsearch features will undoubtedly improve search results in WooCommerce, leading to a better customer experience.