People misspell things, especially on a phone. Without help, one wrong letter can return nothing at all. Typo tolerance gives a misspelled search a second chance.
It is part of PRO and switched on by default.
How it works:
When a search finds nothing, the plugin builds a relaxed version of it and searches again:
- Runs of three or more of the same letter are cut to two, so doughhh becomes doughh
- Each word longer than five letters loses its last two letters, so buttercreem becomes buttercre
Because the search matches the start of words, the shorter word still finds the right pages. If the retry finds something, those results are shown.
What the visitor sees:
The results, with a line above them: Did you mean, followed by the relaxed search as a button. Clicking it runs that search properly. It works in the dropdown, in Spotlight and on the results page.
The suggestion is the shortened search the plugin used, such as buttercre, rather than a dictionary word. Its job is to show what was searched for and offer it again.
The suggestion only appears when the retry actually found something the visitor is allowed to see, so you never get a Did you mean above an empty list.
Turn it on or off:
Open AiX Search, then Settings, click PRO Settings, and under Search Power tick or untick Typo tolerance, with a did you mean suggestion. Click Save PRO Settings.
Typo tolerance and synonyms together:
Typo tolerance only steps in when a search finds nothing. Synonyms work on every search. Use both: synonyms for different words that mean the same thing, and typo tolerance as the safety net for spelling slips. If Insights shows the same misspelling again and again, add it to a synonym group so it finds the right page first time.
A real example:
A member of The Home Bakery Club typed buttercreem. Instead of No results found, they saw Did you mean buttercre, then Smooth Buttercream In Five Minutes and the Cake Decorating Course.
Tips:
- For common misspellings of your own names and products, add a synonym group with the misspelling in it. See Synonyms: Teaching Search Different Words.
- Insights shows the misspelled searches people make. See Search Insights: What Your Visitors Look For.