Advanced Mode

Advanced Mode gives you full control over how SortLab sorts your collection. Instead of picking a preset goal, you build your own sorting formula by combining multiple data signals, adjusting their weights, setting schedules, and configuring tag-based rules.

Who Is Advanced Mode For?

Advanced Mode is for merchants who want precise control over their product ordering. Use it when:

• You have a specific sorting formula in mind (e.g., 70% daily sales + 30% profit margin)
• You want to factor in tag-based merchandising rules
• You need scheduled, hands-off sorting with custom timing
• The preset strategies in Simple Mode do not quite match your goals

To switch to Advanced Mode, open a collection and click Want more control? at the bottom of the Simple Mode strategy section, or click the Switch to Advanced mode toggle at the top of the collection detail screen.

You can always switch back to Simple Mode by clicking Switch to Simple mode.

Sort Parameters

Sort parameters are the core of Advanced Mode. Each parameter is a data signal that SortLab uses to score and rank your products.

Adding Sorters

Click the Add sorter button to add a new sorting parameter. Each sorter has three controls:

• Signal dropdown — Choose the data signal (e.g., Daily Sales, Revenue, Profit Margin, Page Views, Inventory Level, Review Score, Date Created)
• Weight slider (0-100) — Set how much influence this signal has on the final sort order
• Sort direction (Desc / Asc) — Choose whether higher values rank first (Descending) or lower values rank first (Ascending)

You can add as many sorters as you need. Click the Remove button on any sorter to delete it.

Understanding Weights

Weights determine how much each sorting parameter influences the final product order. The weight system is relative -- what matters is the ratio between your weights, not the absolute numbers.

Example configurations:

Choosing Sort Direction

Most signals work best in Descending order (highest value first) -- you typically want products with more sales, higher margins, or better reviews at the top.

Use Ascending order for signals where lower values are better:

• Inventory Level (Asc) — Surface low-stock items first (scarcity-driven merchandising)
• Price (Asc) — Show the most affordable items first
• Date Created (Asc) — Show oldest products first (useful for FIFO inventory clearance)

Sort Frequency

Sort frequency controls how often SortLab automatically re-sorts the collection.

Choose a frequency that matches how quickly your store's data changes. Most stores do well with 1x or 2x per day. Hourly sorting is useful for high-volume stores where sales patterns shift throughout the day.

Schedule Hour (UTC)

When you select a daily or twice-daily sort frequency, you can choose what hour the sort runs. The schedule hour is set in UTC (Coordinated Universal Time).

How to choose: Pick a low-traffic hour for your timezone to minimize disruption to your customers. Sorting typically takes a few seconds, but running it during off-peak hours ensures the transition is seamless.

Examples:

For more details on choosing the right schedule, see Scheduling.

Lookback Window

The lookback window controls how far back SortLab looks when calculating performance metrics like sales, revenue, and page views.

A shorter window makes your sort order more reactive to recent changes. A longer window produces more stable rankings based on broader trends.

New Product Window

The new product window defines how long a product is considered "new" after it is created in your store. This setting works with the Boost New Products quick toggle.

Choose a window that matches your product launch cadence. If you add new products weekly, 7 or 14 days keeps the "new" badge meaningful. If you launch products less frequently, a longer window ensures they get enough exposure.

Quick Toggles

Advanced Mode includes the same quick toggles as Simple Mode, with full descriptions to help you understand each one:

• Push down out-of-stock — Moves out-of-stock products to the bottom of the collection so customers see available items first
• Boost new products — Gives products within the new product window a temporary ranking boost
• Exclude no-image — Pushes products without images to the end of the collection

These toggles are applied as final adjustments after the weighted sort parameters are calculated.

Tag Rules

Tag rules let you influence product positioning based on Shopify product tags. This is a powerful merchandising tool that layers on top of your sort parameters.

Push Up Tags

Products with any of these tags get a boost in the sort order, pushing them higher in the collection. Use this to promote specific product lines, featured items, or seasonal picks.

Example: Add the tag featured to push up products you have tagged as featured in Shopify.

Push Down Tags

Products with any of these tags are deprioritized, pushing them lower in the collection. Use this for items you want to keep in the collection but do not want in prominent positions.

Example: Add the tag discontinued to push down products you are phasing out but have not removed yet.

Exclude Tags

Products with any of these tags are excluded from the sort entirely and pushed to the very end of the collection. Use this to effectively hide products from the sorted results without removing them from the collection.

Example: Add the tag hidden to exclude draft or internal-use products from appearing in customer-facing positions.

Building an Advanced Configuration

Here is an example of setting up a custom sort configuration from scratch.

What's Next?

• Scheduling — Deep dive into scheduling options and best practices
• Sorting Strategies — Compare your custom configuration against preset strategies
• A/B Testing — Test your Advanced Mode configuration against a preset strategy