Filter Types
The following sections list the types of filtering options for Dynamic Filtering and Filter by Value for both criteria and promotions:
Dynamic Filtering
Dynamic inclusion rules are more powerful than static inclusion rules and they yield better results and engagement. Consider the following:
-
Dynamic inclusion rules deliver recommendations by matching an attribute in a user’s profile parameter or in an mbox call.
For example, you can create a “Most Popular Criteria” recommendation. From the set of returned recommendations, you can filter out any recommendations (in real time) against an attribute passed when the user accesses a page where the recommendations are displayed.
-
Use static rules to limit which items are included in the recommendation (instead of using collections).
-
You can create as many dynamic inclusion rules as necessary. The inclusion rules are joined with an AND operator. All rules must be met to include an item in a recommendation.
The following options are available for dynamic filtering:
Dynamic filtering option | Details |
---|---|
Entity Attribute Matching |
Filter dynamically by comparing a pool of potential recommendations items to a specific item that the users have interacted with. Use Entity Attribute Matching when you want to show recommendations most likely to appeal to the visitor, such as the visitor’s favorite brand. |
Profile Attribute Matching |
Filter dynamically by comparing items (entities) against a value in the user’s profile. Use Profile Attribute Matching when you want to show recommendations that match a value stored in the visitor’s profile, such as size or favorite brand. |
Parameter Matching |
Filter dynamically by comparing items (entities) against a value in the request (API or mbox). Use Parameter Matching to recommend content that matches the page parameters or the visitor’s parameters, such as device dimensions or geo-location. |
Filter by Value
The following option is available for filtering by value:
Filtering by value option | Details |
---|---|
Static Filter | Manually enter one or more static values to filter. |
Available operators
Dynamic criteria and promotions are much more powerful than static criteria and promotions and yield better results and engagement.
The following examples provide general ideas about how you can use dynamic promotions and exclusions in your marketing efforts:
Operator | Examples |
---|---|
equals any of (Available with Entity Attribute Matching, Profile Attribute Matching, Parameter Matching, and Static Filter.) |
Using the “equals” operator in dynamic promotions, when a visitor is viewing an item on your website (such as a product, article, or movie), you can promote other items from:
|
does not equal any of (Available with Entity Attribute Matching, Profile Attribute Matching, Parameter Matching, and Static Filter.) |
Using the “does not equal any of” operator in dynamic promotions, when a visitor is viewing an item on your website (such as a product, article, or movie), you can promote other items from:
|
is greater than or equal to any of (Available with Entity Attribute Matching, Profile Attribute Matching, Parameter Matching, and Static Filter.) |
Using the “is greater than or equal to any of” operator, when a visitor is viewing an item on your website (such as a product), you can promote other items that:
|
is less than or equal to any of (Available with Entity Attribute Matching, Profile Attribute Matching, Parameter Matching, and Static Filter.) |
Using the “is less than or equal to an of” operator, when a visitor is viewing an item on your website (such as a product), you can promote other items that:
|
contains any of (Available with Entity Attribute Matching, Profile Attribute Matching, Parameter Matching, and Static Filter.) |
Using the “contains any of” operator, when a visitor is viewing an item on your website (such as a product), you can promote other items that:
|
does not contain any of (Available with Entity Attribute Matching, Profile Attribute Matching, Parameter Matching, and Static Filter.) |
Using the “does not contain any of” operator, when a visitor is viewing an item on your website (such as a product), you can promote other items that:
|
starts with any of (Available with Entity Attribute Matching, Profile Attribute Matching, Parameter Matching, and Static Filter.) |
Using the “starts with an of” operator, when a visitor is viewing an item on your website (such as a product), you can promote other items that:
|
ends with any of (Available with Entity Attribute Matching, Profile Attribute Matching, Parameter Matching, and Static Filter.) |
Using the “ends with an of” operator, when a visitor is viewing an item on your website (such as a product), you can promote other items that:
|
is between (Available with Entity Attribute Matching, Profile Attribute Matching, and Parameter Matching.) |
Using the “is between” operator in dynamic promotions, when a visitor is viewing an item on your website (such as a product, article, or movie), you can promote other items that are:
|
list contains an item in (Available with Profile Attribute Matching and Parameter Matching.) |
Using the “list contains an item in” operator in profile attribute matching, when a visitor is viewing an item on your website (such as a product, article, or movie), you can promote other items that are:
Example: You want to recommend items that are available only in a visitor’s geographic area. Your filter rule might look like:
Note: When using this operator, a list is expected in the right side of the rule. |
list does not contain an item in (Available with Profile Attribute Matching and Parameter Matching.) |
Using the “list does not contain an item in” operator in profile attribute matching, when a visitor is viewing an item on your website (such as a product, article, or movie), you can exclude other items that are:
Example: You do not want to promote items that the visitor has recently viewed and has shown no interest in. Your filtering rule might look like:
Note: When using this operator, a list is expected in the right side of the rule. |
list contains an item in (Available with Entity Attribute Matching, Profile Attribute Matching, and Parameter Matching.) |
Using the “list contains an item in” operator in profile attribute matching, when a visitor is viewing an item on your website (such as a sporting event or concert), you can promote other items that are:
Example: You want to recommend games that are associated with one of the visitor’s favorite teams. Your filtering rule might look like:
Note: When using this operator, a list is expected in both sides of the rule. |
list does not contain an item in (Available with Entity Attribute Matching, Profile Attribute Matching, and Parameter Matching.) |
Using the “list does not contain an item in” operator in parameter attribute matching, when a visitor is viewing an item on your website (such as a product, article, or movie), you can exclude other items that are:
Example: You want to exclude items that are available to visitors that are adults, such as tobacco and alcohol. Your filtering rule might look like:
Note: When using this operator, a list is expected in both sides of the rule. |
list contains all items in (Available with Entity Attribute Matching, Profile Attribute Matching, and Parameter Matching.) |
Using the “list does not contain an item in” operator in profile attribute matching, when a visitor is viewing an item on your website (such as a job posting or recipe), you can promote other items that:
Example 1: Suppose that a visitor has a set of skills (Java, C++, and HTML). The items in the catalog are jobs with required skills (Java and HTML). You want to ensure that the visitor’s profile contains all the required skills before recommending the job to the visitor. Your filtering rule might look like:
Example 2: Suppose that a user has a list of pantry ingredients. The recipe has a list of required ingredients. You want to ensure that the visitor’s profile contains all the required ingredients before recommending the recipe to the visitor. Your filtering rule might look like:
Note: When using this operator, a list is expected in both sides of the rule. |
list does not contain all items in (Available with Entity Attribute Matching, Profile Attribute Matching, and Parameter Matching.) |
Using the “list does not contain all items in” operator in entity attribute matching, when a visitor is viewing an item on your website (such as sporting event or concert), you can promote other items that:
Example: Suppose a sporting event includes two teams. The visitor’s profile indicates that this visitor does not want to view games for these teams. You want to ensure that you do not recommend a game if these teams are playing. Your filtering rule might look like:
Note: When using this operator, a list is expected in both sides of the rule. |
Handling empty values when filtering by Entity Attribute Matching, Profile Attribute Matching, and Parameter Matching
You can choose several options to handle empty values when filtering by Entity Attribute Matching, Profile Attribute Matching, and Parameter Matching for exit criteria and promotions.
Previously, no results were returned if a value was empty. The “If x is Empty” drop-down list lets you choose the appropriate action to perform if the criteria has empty values, as shown in the following illustration:
To select the desired action, hover over the gear icon (
Action | Available For | Details |
---|---|---|
Ignore this filtering rule | Profile Attribute Matching and Parameter Matching |
This action is the default for Profile Attribute Matching and Parameter Matching. This option specifies that the rule is ignored. For example, if there are three filtering rules and the third rule doesn’t pass any values, instead of not returning any results, you can simply ignore the third rule with the empty values. |
Do not show any results for this criteria (Criteria only) | Entity Attribute Matching, Profile Attribute Matching, and Parameter Matching |
This action is the default for Entity Attribute Matching. This action is how Target handled empty values before the addition of this option: no results are shown for this criteria. |
Do not promote any items (Promotions only) | Entity Attribute Matching, Profile Attribute Matching, and Parameter Matching |
This action is the default for Entity Attribute Matching. This action is how Target handled empty values before the addition of this option: no results are shown for this criteria. |
Use a static value | Entity Attribute Matching, Profile Attribute Matching, and Parameter Matching | If a value is empty, you can choose to use a static value. |
Caveats
The following table shows effective rules and rules that might not be compatible during runtime:
Compatible Rules | Potentially Incompatible Rules |
---|---|
value - is between - 90% and 110% of current item’s - salesValue | salesValue - is between - 90% and 110% of current item’s - value |
value - is between - 90% and 110% of current item’s - value | clearancePrice - is between - 90% and 110% of current item’s - margin |
margin - is between - 90% and 110% of current item’s - margin | storeInventory - equals - current item’s - inventory |
inventory - equals - current item’s - inventory |