Categories and brands
Importing a feed gives the bot everything. These two pages let you decide what it should actually offer.
Categories
Ecommerce → Categories shows the category tree built from your feed, with a product count per branch.
Categories come from g:product_type in a Google Shopping feed, or product_category in a CSV. Items without that field produce no category, which is why an import warning about missing product_type matters.
Selecting categories
Tick the categories the bot may suggest from. Untick the ones that should stay out of chat — clearance, trade-only ranges, spare parts, gift cards.
- Expand All / Collapse All navigate a deep tree
- Select All / Deselect All work on the visible branch
- Selections are saved per chatbot and per language, so switch language and check both
- Clear Saved resets your selection
Selecting a parent selects its children. If a branch shows a product count of zero, its products are missing a category in the feed, not hidden by your selection.
Follow-up questions
Each category has a followup question toggle.
Turn it on for a category where one more question meaningfully narrows the choice — Plants is useless without knowing the light, Pots is useless without a size. Instead of dumping a list, the bot asks first.
Enabling follow-up on a category turns its children off, because the follow-up question replaces the need to browse deeper. Use it on the level where the choice actually gets made, not at the top of the tree.
Keep it to a handful of categories. Every follow-up adds a step before a visitor sees a product.
Brands
Brands are only relevant when Ecommerce → AI configuration → Enable brand awareness is on. Turning it on adds a Brands page to the menu.
Brands come from g:brand or the brand column in your feed.
Choosing which brands stay available
Ecommerce → Brands lists every brand found in your catalog. Untick a brand to keep it out of suggestions.
Reasons to untick:
- The brand is being discontinued
- A supplier does not permit online advice
- Its data is poor and drags results down
- It is a house brand you only sell in-store
Use Select all and Deselect all to work through a long list quickly. Save when you are done.
Unticking a brand does not delete products. Re-tick it and they return immediately.
Brand names in the feed
Brand matching is only as good as the data. Watch for the same brand written several ways — GreenCo, Green Co., GREENCO — which will appear as separate entries. Fix them in your feed and re-import.
Checking your work
- Ask on the Demo page for something in an unticked category — it should not be suggested
- Ask for a brand you unticked — the bot should offer alternatives, not that brand
- Ask a question in a category with a follow-up — the bot should ask before listing
- Watch Catalog Coverage on the Dashboard; a sharp drop means you excluded more than you meant to
Related
Related articles
Connect a product feed
Import your catalog from a Google Shopping feed, a CSV URL, or a CSV upload.
Product feed field reference
Exact column and element names Mikabot reads from CSV and Google Shopping feeds.
Product recommendation settings
Choose a search strategy and tune how the AI finds and presents your products.
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