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econsultancy_xml

According to recent figures for UK etailers from Coremetrics, <a href="http://www.coremetrics.co.uk/solutions/industry-report.php">35% of visitors used site search </a>in August, with a search conversion rate of 7.4%. Here are some of <a href="http://www.grokdotcom.com/2008/10/13/making-the-most-of-your-internal-searches/">Daniel's site search tips</a>, along with a couple of our own... Offer sorting options Avoid putting customers off with long lists of results by giving them plenty of <a href="/blog/985-feature-filtering-what-is-it-and-why-do-you-need-it">filtering options</a> to help them narrow their product selection. I would also recommend limiting the number of results shown on the page to a maximum if ten, even before sorting options have been applied. Correct misspellings An easy mistake to make, so Daniel recommends either linking to results for the term they probably meant to enter or providing them directly on the page. Use search data to improve An excellent tip, as site search can provide a useful resource for finding out more about your visitors. For instance, you can look at the terms customers are entering and use this to optimise your search results in future. This is something that <a href="/blog/2805-q-a-lou-rosenfeld-on-site-search-analytics">site search analytics expert Lou Rosenfeld</a> touched on when we talked to him recently. Offer options for failed searches Daniel suggests offering similar products when searches draw a blank, or present links to featured / popular items if all else fails. And some tips from E-consultancy... Keep previous search term in search box Keeping the original search query in the box when users are shown the results page means that they can easily revise and refine their search without the inconvenience of having to retype the whole term. Show results from non-product areas Some customers may be looking for information such as returns policies or delivery costs, as well as searching for products, so give them this information in the search results as well. For sites which also offer related content such as technical information or other advice, showing this in site searches is also a good idea. For instance, in this <a href="http://www.mothercare.com/gp/search/ref=sr/203-1142849-2872724?field-keywords=car+seat&size=12">search for a car seat</a>, Mothercare offers articles about fitting, laws etc. Related articles: <a href="/blog/2671-tips-on-site-search-box-design">Tips on site search box design</a>

<FormattedContent xmlns="http://www.e-consultancy.com/schema/formattedContent/"> <Paragraph>According to recent figures for UK etailers from Coremetrics, <Link URL="http://www.coremetrics.co.uk/solutions/industry-report.php" Window="Self">35% of visitors used site search </Link>in August, with a search conversion rate of 7.4%.</Paragraph> <Paragraph> <Quote>Here are some of <Link URL="http://www.grokdotcom.com/2008/10/13/making-the-most-of-your-internal-searches/" Window="Self">Daniel's site search tips</Link>, along with a couple of our own...</Quote> </Paragraph> <Paragraph> <Emphasis>Offer sorting options</Emphasis> </Paragraph> <Paragraph>Avoid putting customers off with long lists of results by giving them plenty of <Link URL="/blog/985-feature-filtering-what-is-it-and-why-do-you-need-it" Window="Self">filtering options</Link> to help them narrow their product selection.</Paragraph> <Paragraph>I would also recommend limiting the number of results shown on the page to a maximum if ten, even before sorting options have been applied.</Paragraph> <Paragraph> <Emphasis>Correct misspellings</Emphasis> </Paragraph> <Paragraph>An easy mistake to make, so Daniel recommends either linking to results for the term they probably meant to enter or providing them directly on the page.</Paragraph> <Paragraph> <Emphasis>Use search data to improve</Emphasis> </Paragraph> <Paragraph>An excellent tip, as site search can provide a useful resource for finding out more about your visitors. For instance, you can look at the terms customers are entering and use this to optimise your search results in future.</Paragraph> <Paragraph>This is something that <Link URL="/blog/2805-q-a-lou-rosenfeld-on-site-search-analytics" Window="Self">site search analytics expert Lou Rosenfeld</Link> touched on when we talked to him recently.</Paragraph> <Paragraph> <Emphasis>Offer options for failed searches</Emphasis> </Paragraph> <Paragraph>Daniel suggests offering similar products when searches draw a blank, or present links to featured / popular items if all else fails.</Paragraph> <Paragraph> <Quote>And some tips from E-consultancy... </Quote> </Paragraph> <Paragraph> <Emphasis>Keep previous search term in search box</Emphasis> <LineBreak /> <LineBreak /> Keeping the original search query in the box when users are shown the results page means that they can easily revise and refine their search without the inconvenience of having to retype the whole term.</Paragraph> <Paragraph> <Emphasis>Show results from non-product areas<LineBreak /><LineBreak /></Emphasis>Some customers may be looking for information such as returns policies or delivery costs, as well as searching for products, so give them this information in the search results as well.</Paragraph> <Paragraph>For sites which also offer related content such as technical information or other advice, showing this in site searches is also a good idea. For instance, in this <Link URL="http://www.mothercare.com/gp/search/ref=sr/203-1142849-2872724?field-keywords=car+seat&size=12" Window="Self">search for a car seat</Link>, Mothercare offers articles about fitting, laws etc.</Paragraph> <Paragraph> <Emphasis>Related articles:</Emphasis> <LineBreak /> <Link URL="/blog/2671-tips-on-site-search-box-design" Window="Self">Tips on site search box design</Link> </Paragraph> </FormattedContent>

2008-10-14T08:54:00+01:00

econsultancy_xml

As ever, Grokdotcom has some useful e-commerce tips, this time on optimising site search results pages. According to Daniel McGuigan, the search box can be the last chance to get a visitor to take action on your site, if they haven't found what they want through navigation, landing pages or your homepage. This is certainly true, but some visitors may also use the search box as their first port of call if they have a particular product in mind when visiting a site.

<FormattedContent xmlns="http://www.e-consultancy.com/schema/formattedContent/"> <Paragraph> <Emphasis>As ever, Grokdotcom has some useful e-commerce tips, this time on optimising site search results pages.</Emphasis> </Paragraph> <Paragraph>According to Daniel McGuigan, the search box can be the last chance to get a visitor to take action on your site, if they haven't found what they want through navigation, landing pages or your homepage.</Paragraph> <Paragraph>This is certainly true, but some visitors may also use the search box as their first port of call if they have a particular product in mind when visiting a site.</Paragraph> </FormattedContent>

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Related Econsultancy reports include our <a href="http://econsultancy.com/reports/e-commerce-platforms-buyer-s-guide-2009">E-commerce Platforms Buyer's Guide</a>, <a href="http://econsultancy.com/reports/delivering-successful-e-commerce-projects">Delivering Successful E-commerce Projects</a> and <a href="http://econsultancy.com/reports/online-retail-2007-checkout-special">Online Retail Checkout Special</a>.

366520

Tips on site search results pages false

2008-10-15T09:00:00+01:00

tips-on-site-search-results-pages

2009-04-29T21:13:22+01:00

2009-10-13T09:49:42+01:00

752