Product associations determine which size recommendation quizzes appear on which products in your Shopify store. SmartSize AI Fit Recommender uses a sophisticated matching system that evaluates multiple association types and conditions to find the most appropriate quiz for each product.

How Product Associations Work

When a customer visits a product page, SmartSize AI Fit Recommender analyzes the product’s attributes and matches them against your configured quiz associations. The system considers multiple factors to determine which quiz (if any) to display.

Product Matching Process

  1. Product Data Collection: SmartSize AI Fit Recommender gathers product information:

    • Product ID (unique identifier)
    • Collection memberships
    • Product tags
    • Product type (category)
    • Vendor (brand/manufacturer)

  2. Quiz Evaluation: The system evaluates all active quizzes:

    • Checks each quiz’s association configurations
    • Applies condition logic (ALL vs ANY)
    • Considers quiz priority levels

  3. Quiz Selection: Returns the best matching quiz:

    • Highest priority quiz wins conflicts
    • Most recently updated quiz breaks ties
    • Only active quizzes are considered

Types of Product Associations

SmartSize AI Fit Recommender supports five different ways to associate quizzes with products:

1. Direct Product Associations

What it is: Link quiz directly to specific products

  • Use case: Unique or specialized products needing custom sizing
  • Example: Linking a “Designer Dresses” quiz to specific high-end dress products
  • Precision: Highest - exact product control

2. Collection Associations

What it is: Link quiz to entire Shopify collections

  • Use case: Product groups with similar sizing characteristics
  • Example: Linking a “Casual T-Shirts” quiz to your “Everyday Tees” collection
  • Advantage: Automatic inclusion of new collection products

3. Tag Associations

What it is: Link quiz based on product tags

  • Use case: Cross-collection product characteristics
  • Example: Linking a “Slim Fit” quiz to all products tagged with “slim-fit”
  • Flexibility: Works across collections and product types

4. Type Associations

What it is: Link quiz based on Shopify product types

  • Use case: Broad garment categories
  • Example: Linking a “Pants” quiz to all products with type “Pants”
  • Scope: Store-wide garment category matching

5. Vendor Associations

What it is: Link quiz based on product vendors (brands)

  • Use case: Brand-specific sizing standards
  • Example: Linking a “Nike Sizing” quiz to all Nike products
  • Application: Consistent sizing across brand products

Association Condition Logic

SmartSize AI Fit Recommender provides two condition types that control how multiple associations are evaluated:

ANY Condition (Default)

Logic: Quiz matches if any configured association matches the product

How it works:

  • Uses OR logic between association types
  • Product needs to match only one association to trigger the quiz
  • Most flexible and commonly used approach

Example Scenario:

  Quiz Configuration:
- Collections: "Summer Dresses", "Evening Wear"
- Tags: "formal", "party"
- Condition: ANY

Result: Quiz shows if product is in Summer Dresses collection 
OR Evening Wear collection OR has "formal" tag OR has "party" tag

Best for:

  • Broad product coverage
  • Overlapping product categories
  • Simple association rules
  • Maximum quiz visibility

ALL Condition (Advanced)

Logic: Quiz matches only if all configured association types are satisfied

How it works:

  • Uses AND logic between association types
  • For each association type configured, ALL of those associations must match
  • More restrictive but precise targeting

Example Scenario:

  Quiz Configuration:
- Tags: "premium", "fitted"
- Vendor: "Designer Brand"
- Condition: ALL

Result: Quiz shows only if product has BOTH "premium" AND "fitted" tags 
AND is from "Designer Brand" vendor

Advanced Logic: For each association type you configure:

  • Product Associations: Product must be one of the selected products
  • Collection Associations: Product must be in ALL selected collections
  • Tag Associations: Product must have ALL selected tags
  • Type Associations: Product type must match ALL selected types
  • Vendor Associations: Product vendor must match ALL selected vendors

Best for:

  • Precise product targeting
  • Complex product requirements
  • Exclusive or specialized quizzes
  • Preventing quiz conflicts

Priority System

When multiple quizzes match the same product, SmartSize AI Fit Recommender uses a priority system to determine which quiz to display.

Priority Rules

1. Priority Number (Primary)

  • Lower numbers = higher priority
  • Range: 0 (highest) to unlimited
  • Default: 0 for new quizzes

2. Update Time (Secondary)

  • More recently updated quizzes have higher priority
  • Breaks ties when priority numbers are equal
  • Ensures latest configurations take precedence

3. Quiz Status (Filter)

  • Only ACTIVE quizzes are considered
  • DRAFT quizzes are ignored in product matching

Priority Examples 

  Scenario: T-shirt product matches multiple quizzes

Quiz A: Priority 0, Updated yesterday
Quiz B: Priority 1, Updated today  
Quiz C: Priority 0, Updated today

Result: Quiz C wins (Priority 0 + most recent)

Strategic Priority Use

Priority 0 (Highest):

  • Critical or specialized quizzes
  • Brand-specific sizing requirements
  • Premium or unique products

Priority 1-5 (High):

  • Important product categories
  • Collection-specific quizzes
  • Major garment types

Priority 10+ (Standard):

  • General product categories
  • Fallback quizzes
  • Broad association rules

Quiz Selection Algorithm

SmartSize AI Fit Recommender uses this exact process to select quizzes:

Step 1: Filter Active Quizzes

  • Only considers quizzes with status = “ACTIVE”
  • Skips all DRAFT quizzes
  • Ensures only customer-ready quizzes are shown

Step 2: Evaluate Association Matches

For ANY Condition Quizzes:

  Match if ANY of these are true:
- Product ID matches any product association
- Product collection matches any collection association  
- Product tag matches any tag association
- Product type matches any type association
- Product vendor matches any vendor association

For ALL Condition Quizzes:

  Match if ALL of these are true:
- Quiz has at least one association configured
- For each association type configured:
  - All product associations match (if any configured)
  - All collection associations match (if any configured)
  - All tag associations match (if any configured)
  - All type associations match (if any configured)
  - All vendor associations match (if any configured)

Step 3: Apply Priority Sorting

  • Sort matching quizzes by priority (ascending)
  • Secondary sort by update time (descending)
  • Return first quiz from sorted list

Step 4: Return Result

  • Return matching quiz with highest priority
  • Return 404 if no quizzes match
  • Cache result for performance

Best Practices for Product Associations

Association Strategy

Start Simple:

  1. Begin with collection or type associations
  2. Use ANY condition for broader coverage
  3. Add specific product associations as needed
  4. Refine with tags and vendors for precision

Avoid Conflicts:

  1. Use priority system strategically
  2. Test associations with overlapping products
  3. Monitor quiz performance and coverage
  4. Regular review of association effectiveness

Common Patterns

Pattern 1: Hierarchical Coverage

  Priority 0: Specific product associations (specialty items)
Priority 1: Collection associations (product lines)
Priority 5: Type associations (garment categories)
Priority 10: Vendor associations (brand defaults)

Pattern 2: Condition-Based Segmentation

  ALL Condition: Precise targeting (premium + fitted + designer)
ANY Condition: Broad coverage (any casual wear category)

Pattern 3: Tag-Driven Flexibility

  Use consistent tagging strategy:
- Size-related tags: "slim-fit", "oversized", "regular"
- Style tags: "casual", "formal", "athletic"
- Feature tags: "stretch", "non-stretch", "fitted"

Testing and Validation

Before Activation:

  • Test associations with sample products
  • Verify quiz appears on intended products
  • Check for unintended quiz appearances
  • Validate priority conflicts are resolved

After Activation:

  • Monitor quiz performance analytics
  • Review customer feedback on sizing accuracy
  • Analyze return rates by quiz
  • Adjust associations based on data

Association Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Issue: Quiz Not Appearing on Products

  • Check: Quiz status is ACTIVE
  • Check: Product matches association criteria
  • Check: No higher priority quiz is overriding
  • Solution: Review association configuration and test with Linked Products page

Issue: Wrong Quiz Appearing

  • Check: Multiple quizzes match the product
  • Check: Priority settings and update times
  • Solution: Adjust priorities or refine associations

Issue: Quiz Appears on Unintended Products

  • Check: Association criteria too broad
  • Check: ANY vs ALL condition logic
  • Solution: Use more specific associations or ALL condition

Issue: Inconsistent Quiz Coverage

  • Check: Product tagging consistency
  • Check: Collection organization
  • Solution: Standardize product attributes and associations

Debugging Tools

Linked Products Page:

  • View which quiz appears on each product
  • Search and filter products
  • Verify association effectiveness
  • Identify coverage gaps

Quiz Dashboard:

  • Monitor active quiz performance
  • Track association usage
  • Analyze priority conflicts
  • Review recent changes

Advanced Association Techniques

Multi-Level Associations

Combine different association types strategically:

  Example: Athletic Wear Strategy
Quiz 1 (Priority 0): Specific Nike running shoes (Product associations)
Quiz 2 (Priority 1): Athletic collections (Collection associations)  
Quiz 3 (Priority 5): Athletic types + Nike vendor (Type + Vendor, ALL condition)
Quiz 4 (Priority 10): General athletic tag (Tag associations)

Seasonal Associations

Use priority and timing for seasonal coverage:

  Example: Winter Coat Strategy
Winter Quiz (Priority 0): Active Oct-Mar, Winter collection
General Outerwear Quiz (Priority 5): Year-round, Outerwear type

Brand-Specific Associations

Implement brand-specific sizing strategies:

  Example: Multi-Brand Store
Brand A Quiz: Vendor = "Brand A", Priority 1
Brand B Quiz: Vendor = "Brand B", Priority 1  
Generic Quiz: No vendor association, Priority 10 (fallback)

Next Steps

After understanding product associations:

  1. Set Up Collection Linking - Associate quizzes with product collections
  2. Configure Condition Logic - Master ALL vs ANY conditions
  3. Set Priority Levels - Manage multiple quiz priorities
  4. View Linked Products - Verify your associations work correctly

Ready to start linking your quiz to products? Begin with our collection linking guide for the most common association method.