With this update, we give you more control over the presentation of search results. You can now send extra metadata via the API, such as author, publication date, or content type. You can then display this metadata in the search results so that visitors can quickly see what they find and why it is relevant.

How to set it up

Step 1: Send metadata via the API or Drupal Search API

Make sure you send the desired metadata from your CMS. Use clear system names. We link these to vragen.ai, where they are visible as metadata.

Step 2: Configure in vragen.ai

For each new field you send via the API, create a new metadata field in vragen.ai under Settings.

When adding:

• Use the system name from the API as the name.

• Choose the correct type, which determines the display:

  • Text

  • Number

  • Date

  • Boolean (yes/no)

• Optionally add a description.

• Optionally set a default value for documents without this metadata.

• Tick Is multiple if a field can contain multiple values (e.g., multiple authors).

Existing documents do not automatically receive metadata retroactively. Start a reindex from the API to add missing metadata. Contact us if you need help with this reindexing.

Step 3: Display metadata in search results

Go to My integrations and edit the desired integration. Under Semantic search, you will find Search result fields. If this is empty, the default display is used (title and brief description).

• Click on Add field to search results.

• Select the desired metadata per field and optionally provide a label, for example: Author: [metadata].

• Adjust the order as you want it to be displayed.

The changes will become visible within approximately 15 minutes.

Step 4: Adjust layout

We use a standard layout. If you want to depart from this, you can adjust the display on the website side via custom CSS.

Why this makes a difference

Well-structured search results help visitors understand what they are seeing faster. Metadata such as publication date and author provide context that makes the relevance of a result instantly clear. This is especially valuable for longer content, documents, or knowledge articles where context makes the difference between finding and understanding. Exactly what visitors expect from AI-search experiences. 

With this update, we link technical improvements to practical readability, so that your search function not only provides more relevant results, but also shows why something is relevant.