Understanding and Configuring Categories & Subcategories

Our platform offers a versatile and user-friendly way to organize and filter items using a system of categories and subcategories. Understanding how this system works will enable you to set up and use it effectively for your needs. In this guide, we will explain how the categories and subcategories work and provide recommendations for setting them up.

How Categories and Subcategories Work

1. Categories: These are the top-level groupings that represent the main characteristics of your items. Examples of categories could be "Color", "Size", or "Type".

2. Subcategories: These are the more specific options within each category. For instance, under the "Color" category, you might have subcategories like "Navy" and "Black". Under the "Size" category, you could have subcategories like "Medium" and "Large".

3. Filtering: a. "OR" Logic: When selecting multiple subcategories within a single category, the filtering works with an "OR" logic. This means that items matching any of the selected subcategories will be displayed. For example, if you select "Navy" and "Black" within the "Color" category, you'll see items that are either navy or black. b. "AND" Logic: When selecting subcategories from different categories, the filtering works with an "AND" logic. This means that only items that match all the selected subcategories from different categories will be displayed. For example, if you select "Navy" or "Black" from the "Color" category and "Medium" or "Large" from the "Size" category, you'll see items that are either navy or black AND either medium or large.

Recommendations for Setting Up Categories and Subcategories:

1. Define Clear and Distinct Categories: Start by identifying the main characteristics or attributes of your items that are most relevant to your users. These should be broad enough to cover various aspects but specific enough to facilitate efficient filtering.

2. Create Meaningful Subcategories: Within each category, define subcategories that are clear, specific, and representative of the variations within that category. This will help users narrow down their search and find the items they're looking for more easily.

3. Keep the Structure Simple: Limit the number of categories and subcategories to make it easy for users to navigate and understand the filtering options. Additionally, since the platform only supports one level of subcategory, make sure to group similar attributes under a single category.

4. Use Consistent Naming Conventions: Ensure that category and subcategory names are concise, easy to understand, and consistent across the platform. This will help users quickly grasp the filtering options and make the system more user-friendly.

Configuring Categories & Subcategories

You can setup new, and edit existing, categories for inventory items by going to Settings -> Inventory -> Edit Categories.

You can add a new category with the "Add New" button:

We recommend using categories to describe "how an inventory might be used" or a characteristic of the item, rather than "what it is" (which is what "Item Types" are for). You can assign multiple categories to one item. For example, categories for tools might be:

• Carpentry & Woodworking
• Metal Working
• Bicycle Tools
• Home Renovation
• Energy Efficiency

For Sports they could be:

• Camping
• Hiking
• Winter Sports

Sub-Categories

You can also  create groups of categories by assigning a Parent Category to one or multiple categories. We recommend that for categories, you make sure they describe the same characteristic of the item (size, color, how the item can be used, subject), for example:

• Size 
  • Small
  • Medium
  • Large
• Color
  • Black
  • Navy Blue
  • Green
  • Red
  • White

In this case, the Small, Medium, and Large Categories would all have a "Parent Category" of "Size". If you are adding a new sub-category, you can simply click "+Sub-Category" on the Category List:

If you want to make an existing Category a sub-category of another existing Category simply Edit the category and set or change its parent:

One or more categories can be assigned to each item. Defaults for an Item Type can also be set.

These categories will also appear on your inventory browse page, and visitors/users will be able to filter your inventory based on category.

Filtering with Categories

When filtering by multiple categories, if they are or have different top level categories, then we use an "and" search or require all the item to have all the categories assigned to them to be found. When multiple sub-categories are selected, items with any of the selected categories will be returned. Using the size and color categories above:

• Size 
  • Small
  • Medium
  • Large
• Color
  • Black
  • Navy Blue
  • Green
  • Red
  • White

This allow people to find items (e.g. clothing) that are "Black or Navy" in sizes "Medium or Large".