Search Settings
Configure how Intufind's AI-powered semantic search works on your WordPress site.
Navigate to Intufind → Search in your WordPress admin.
Zero Configuration Required
Intufind automatically replaces WordPress's default search — no code changes or theme modifications needed.
Once activated, any existing search form on your site instantly uses AI-powered semantic search:
- Header search forms
- Sidebar search widgets
- WooCommerce product search
- Search URLs (
?s=query)
- Existing search forms work automatically
- Theme templates don't need changes
- Search URLs are intercepted seamlessly
- Results display in your theme's search template
Semantic Search vs Traditional Search
| Semantic Search | Traditional Search |
|---|---|
| Understands meaning and intent | Matches exact keywords only |
| "warm jacket for hiking" → finds insulated outdoor gear | Only finds items with those exact words |
| Handles typos gracefully | Typos return no results |
| Natural language queries work | Keyword-only queries |
| "something to keep coffee hot" → finds thermoses | No results unless "thermos" is mentioned |
Search Settings
Enable WordPress Search Override
Default: On
Replace WordPress's built-in search with Intufind's semantic search. This affects:
- Standard WordPress search forms
- Search results pages
?s=query parameter searches
Recommendation: Keep enabled for the best search experience.
Enable WooCommerce Product Search
Default: On (when WooCommerce is active)
Replace WooCommerce's product search with semantic search. This affects:
- Product search in the shop
- Product catalog filtering
- Admin product search
When enabled, customers can search for products using natural language like "comfortable shoes for running" instead of exact product names.
Enable Mixed Content Search
Default: On
Allow general site searches to include products alongside posts and pages.
| Setting | Behavior |
|---|---|
| On | Search for "guide" returns blog posts AND products containing "guide" |
| Off | General searches return only posts/pages; product searches remain separate |
Use case for disabling: If you want to keep your product catalog completely separate from blog/page search results.
Performance Settings
Search Results Limit
Default: 20 Range: 5-100
Maximum number of results returned per search query. Higher limits may impact performance.
Search Cache Duration
Default: 3600 seconds (1 hour)
How long to cache search results before fetching fresh data.
| Duration | Use Case |
|---|---|
| 60 seconds | Frequently changing inventory |
| 3600 seconds (1 hour) | Balanced performance (recommended) |
| 86400 seconds (24 hours) | Rarely changing content |
Trade-off: Longer cache = faster searches but potentially stale results. Shorter cache = fresher results but more API calls.
How Search Works
- Visitor searches → Query sent to Intufind
- AI processing → Understands intent and meaning
- Smart matching → Finds relevant content
- Results returned → Ranked by relevance
- Cache → Results cached per your settings
The entire process typically takes 100-300ms.
Search in WP Admin
Intufind also enhances admin searches:
- Posts list → Search posts by meaning
- Products list → Find products semantically
- Media library → Search by image descriptions (if indexed)
Admin search uses the same semantic search engine as the frontend.
Customization
Search Results Template
Intufind works with your theme's existing search template (search.php or archive.php). To customize how results display, modify your theme's templates as usual.
Programmatic Access
For developers, Intufind provides a filter to access search programmatically:
// Get semantic search results
$results = apply_filters('intufind_search', [], [
'query' => 'outdoor camping gear',
'post_type' => 'product',
'limit' => 10
]);
Troubleshooting
Search returns no results
- Check that content is indexed (Intufind → Status)
- Verify the content type is enabled (Intufind → Knowledge)
- Ensure Search Override is enabled
- Check API connection on Status page
Search is slow
- Increase cache duration
- Reduce results limit
- Check Status page for API connectivity issues
Wrong results appearing
- Re-sync affected content types in Knowledge
- Check that product/post descriptions are accurate and descriptive
- Verify excluded items aren't being searched
Old search still working
- Clear any caching plugins (WP Super Cache, W3 Total Cache, etc.)
- Clear Cloudflare or CDN cache if applicable
- Verify the plugin is activated
Next Steps
- Chat Settings — Configure the AI chat widget
- Knowledge — Manage indexed content
- Troubleshooting — Common issues and solutions