Use rule-based relation automation in Norce Commerce
For many retailers, product relations are one of the most valuable tools in the catalogue – and one of the most time-consuming to maintain. Showing the right accessories, spare parts, or compatible products alongside each item drives both conversion and average order value. But when your catalogue runs to thousands of SKUs, keeping those connections accurate by hand is a losing battle.
Norce Commerce solves this with rule-based relation automation. Instead of linking products one by one, you define criteria once, and Norce creates the relations automatically – for existing products and every new product added that meets the conditions.
The rules are built around the product data you already have. You set criteria based on manufacturer, category, and product attributes, then specify which product or products should be connected as a result, and under which relation type. A practical example: define a rule that adds a specific set of headphones as an accessory to every Apple product in the Tech category. When new Apple phones arrive in the catalogue, the relation is created automatically. No manual step, no risk of it being missed in a busy week.
Relation types give the connections meaning. You can define as many types as your business needs – accessories, spare parts, upsell suggestions, matching products, warranties – and the automation rules are set up per type. This means the right products show up in the right context in the storefront, without the frontend needing to guess what the relation is for.
Relations created by automation rules are clearly marked in the admin interface and cannot be edited manually, which keeps the logic clean. Manual relations remain fully editable alongside automated ones.
For retailers managing large or rapidly changing assortments, this is the difference between product relations being a live, accurate part of the shopping experience and an afterthought that only gets updated when someone has time.
