Onsite Search and Discovery vs Search for Ecommerce Websites

In a Baymard Institute study of 60 Major E-Commerce Sites, they discovered that of the search queries that included a theme, feature, or synonyms, only 34% of the sites supported those queries. Furthermore, 70% of the search engines were unsuccessful in returning relevant result for product type synonyms. This data does not indicate that site users are unable to properly use search. Instead, this means that very few ecommerce sites are actually doing their job, which is to guide customers to their products in a seamless fashion. Websites are failing to “guide” and failing to do it in a “seamless” way.      

When ecommerce first began, or when companies first started on an online platform, there were little issues finding products because there was not the large amount of data and products as we see today. There also were not as many website visitors that could access your site from anywhere in the world. But as online shopping and ecommerce grew in the way that it did, websites are lagging behind the acceleration of the change of trends and customer’s desires. Customers are having more difficulty navigating large sites and are quick to leave because of the convenience of a competitor being two clicks away.            

Next Generation of Ecommerce and Onsite Search

Thankfully, there are solutions to these issues. The search bar should not be to “search” for what you want; the customer should not have trouble looking for your product during the process. The search bar should be an experience where the products come to meet the customer, and that is the discovery aspect of search, and is what has been missing from many sites. This includes normalization of data such as unit of measure.

HawkSearch Search Information Manager Analyzer Interface

Instead of overwhelming, confusing, and semi-relevant results that the customer is not interested in, a search and discovery experience would not only deliver highly relevant results for each keyword and query search term, but also provide recommendations based on the user’s past activity and what other customers had bought.            

Features to Guide Your Customer’s Discovery

Discovery is fueled by personalization, tailored to each individual’s age, geographical location, type of device used, and their previous activity on that particular site. These features give the user a sense of familiarity and that the site knows what they are like, which can lead to them not only finding what they intended to but also what they may not have realized that they needed.                  

HawkSearch Dynamic Marketing functionality

Creating an engrossing and almost adventurous environment for your user’s search experience should be your goal when thinking about the journey you want them to take to buy your products. The search bar itself can be a key component helping create that atmosphere. As a user types, and a drop-down menu appears giving suggestions, popular queries, and recent searches, the user will feel acknowledged and understood. Predictive search, or autocomplete search uses context to predict what the user may be intending to look for as they type. This feature alone can boost sales up to 24%.                          

HawkSearch Autocomplete

As the user types, the menu reconfigures and adjusts to what the customer is typing and showing the most popular searches or trending searches that match what the user is typing as well. This gives the user the feeling that your business is aware of what customers want, and furthermore, understanding of that specific customer’s wants. Additionally, this is another way of taking advantage of an opportunity to increase speed through the website. Customers will most likely see their intended query appear and will be able to click on it when they see it instead of having to type everything out. Because most users are used to being catered for in these ways on Google and Amazon, you do not them to be disappointed when not having as personalized of an experience on your site. Facets and filters are another way that greatly enhance the navigation of your site to the next level. They enable your customers to narrow results into categories applicable to the product they are looking for.      

Facets ensure that only filters that match the results are available to you. Besides creating a smoother, and more understandable experience, facets prevent from ending up at the “no results” page. Facets take the results searched for, and further the specificity of what your customers are wanting, which provides a much more interesting experience of discovery, and also gives you more data to collect and enhances your website efficiency for future customers.                          

HawkSearch Workbench interface detailing facet administration

When a customer has found a product they are interested in, or have purchased a product, your website can offer intelligent recommendations. Relevant Recommendations give searchers a display or matching results, similar products, or products from the same brand or category that allow the user to get a better grip on what they do and do not want. These recommendations are produced using key user data, such as location, age, or other demographics, as well as past search history. Moreover, this capability presents a prime opportunity for your business to offer sponsored results, high margin products, etc. Geo search is an important asset when trying to target campaigns and leverage customers based on geographic location. GEOIP lookup uses customer’s locations to keep products that are not available to them away from them and keep the products available to them. This feature also can allow you to boost products for sale or launch campaigns and banners for the customers in certain locations to see.              

The Power of a Discovery Experience

These features and capabilities are a must for an ecommerce website, and will give your customers the clear, natural experience that will quicken and ease their journey to purchasing your products and leave them happy to come back. With HawkSearch, these tools are only a part of what defines us. We can provide these ecommerce essentials and more, including real-time business analytics. These reports can be customized and adjusted however your company needs and will provide the necessary insights in a simple and understandable way so that you know how your site is interacting with your customers, and vice versa. Stop losing potential customers because inefficient search performance. This is where marketing should be focused on and capitalized on. The more you can draw your customers to your search bar, and personalize the experience from there, the more conversions you will see and the revenue goal you have been hoping to see will be surpassed. Learn more by contacting us at sales@hawksearch.com or by clicking here for more information.