Search Redirects

The Search Redirects page sends selected Shopify storefront searches directly to a collection, page, blog post, or other URL.

Why Use Redirects

Redirects help merchants guide shoppers when a known destination is more useful than a standard results page. Common uses include:

• Sending brand, category, or campaign searches to a curated collection or landing page
• Sending informational searches such as delivery or returns to a relevant store page
• Shortening the path for high-intent searches with one clear destination

Redirect Rules

Select New Redirect Rule to create a merchant-managed rule:

1. Add one or more Search Queries. Each query is an exact phrase that should use the same destination.
2. Choose a Target Type: Collection, Page, Blog Post, or Custom URL.
3. Search for a Shopify destination or enter its Target Path directly.
4. Select the storefront Languages that should use the rule, or leave the field empty to use every language.
5. Set the rule status and select Save.

Opening an existing rule allows merchants to edit, disable, or delete it. A disabled rule stays in the table but does not redirect shoppers. Deleting a rule cannot be undone.

The card actions also let merchants export or import editable rules. These actions are not shown on the read-only Google Cloud tab. Export CSV exports every editable rule, including rules outside the current table search or page.

CSV Format

CSV files must use these exact headers in this order:

queries,target_type,target_path,languages,enabled

• Separate multiple queries or languages with |.
• Write a literal pipe as \| and a literal backslash as \\.
• Use COLLECTION, PAGE, BLOG_POST, or URL for target_type.
• Leave languages blank to use every language.
• Use TRUE or FALSE for enabled (capitalization does not matter).

Standard CSV quoting supports commas, quotes, Windows line endings, and multiline cells. The file may include a UTF-8 BOM.

Import Modes and Limits

Select Import CSV, choose a file, then choose a mode:

• Replace all rules deletes every editable rule and replaces them with the file.
• Update matching queries moves matching queries to the imported rules, keeps unmatched queries in existing rules, and deletes only rules left empty.

Imports are limited to 10 MB and a final total of 1,000 rules. Each rule accepts 1–100 unique queries of up to 300 characters and up to 50 valid languages. The same query cannot belong to multiple rows. Retail Cloud Connect also rejects imports whose storefront configuration would exceed Shopify's 128 KB JSON metafield limit.

Validation errors identify the row and field. Up to the first 100 are shown, along with the total error count. No rules change unless the entire file validates and the storefront configuration sync succeeds. Collection, page, and blog-post paths are checked for valid syntax only; Retail Cloud Connect does not contact Shopify to confirm that each destination still exists.

Storefront Behavior

Retail Cloud Connect ignores capitalization, leading or trailing spaces, and repeated spaces when comparing a shopper's query with a redirect rule. Matching is otherwise exact: a rule for running shoes does not match red running shoes unless that phrase is also added to the rule.

Configured redirects are evaluated in this order:

1. Retail Cloud Connect redirect rules
2. Google Cloud redirect controls
3. Brand redirects

Retail Cloud Connect and brand redirects do not run after a shopper applies filters, changes sorting, or opens another results page. This prevents a refined search from unexpectedly leaving the results page.

Google Cloud Redirect Controls

Advanced stores with redirect controls in AI Commerce Search see a read-only Google Cloud tab. These controls must be created or edited in the Google Cloud Merchant Console.

Retail Cloud Connect displays each control's queries, name, and target. Google Cloud matching and active-time settings continue to determine when the control applies.

System Redirects

The settings at the bottom of the page cover common redirect patterns. Changes to these switches take effect only after the page's Save action is selected.

Single Result Searches

Enable Redirect Single Result Searches to send a shopper directly to the product when the initial keyword search returns exactly one result.

This redirect does not run for collection results or after the shopper applies filters, sorting, pagination, or other refinements.

Brand Searches

Enable Redirect Brand Searches to send a brand query to the matching Shopify automated collection. Retail Cloud Connect builds these mappings from collection conditions that use Shopify's product vendor field; collection titles alone do not create a brand redirect.

Enabling the setting refreshes the mappings before it is saved. Select Refresh Brands after changing relevant Shopify collections to sync the mappings again.

Collections with sale conditions are used for searches that combine the vendor with a supported sale or discount term, rather than for the plain vendor query.

Theme Requirements

Search redirects run on the Shopify search template through the Search Results App Block. The Core Components App Embed resolves configured redirects earlier in the page load when it is enabled. See Theme Installation for activation steps.