Using product tags for the way shoppers actually ask

Updated 2 August 2026

Tags are organisation data AI platforms consider. The trap is that most catalogs use them for operations rather than for shoppers, filling them with codes like bfcm-eligible that describe a promotion rather than the product.

Why this weakens matching

Tags are organization data AI platforms consider when matching products to a request.

Tags are named by Shopify as product organization data that AI platforms consider.

How common it is

We scanned 19 established Shopify catalogs covering 3,562 products. This appeared in 26% of those stores, affecting 0.5% of all products scanned. These are brands with staff and agencies, so it is not a small-merchant problem.

How to check it yourself

Review your tag list and separate operational tags from descriptive ones.
Add tags for attributes shoppers say out loud: material, occasion, fit, use case.

The fix

Add tags describing attributes shoppers actually ask for, such as material, occasion or fit.

Source: Shopify documentation

Check your own catalog

Endcap runs every check in this guide and shows you which products fail, and why.

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