Merchandising associations associate different catalog objects for promotional purposes. These associations model desired relationships between catalog objects. As product recommendation strategies to increase store sales, merchandising associations define relationships between selected catalog entries or catalog groups. In addition to promotional associations such as cross-selling, up-selling, and suggested accessories, key words highlight extra semantic information of merchandising relationships, such as requires, optional, and comes with.
Merchandising associations are separated into two categories:
- Catalog entry, where a certain catalog entry is associated with another
catalog entry:
- Cross-sell, where a merchant suggests other catalog entries based on an already chosen catalog entry. For example, a merchant can suggest a high-resolution color printer when a digital camera is purchased, or a particular type of batteries when a flashlight is purchased.
- Up-sell, where a merchant suggests a better catalog entry based on the one selected. For example, a merchant can suggest a higher quality television when a low-end model is selected.
- Accessory, where a merchant suggests an accessory that will complement the selected catalog entry. For example, a merchant can suggest an extra game controller when a video game system is selected.
- Catalog group, where a certain catalog group is associated with another catalog group. Note that all preceding catalog entry association descriptions and examples also apply to catalog group merchandising associations.
Merchandising associations can be static, which is a fixed relationship, or dynamic, which customizes rules and queries to form personalized associations.