Of the websites that we’ve analysed, up to a quarter of all visits can incorporate at least one use of the On-site Search tool.
This can come as a surprise, because the search functionality is often regarded as something to ‘bolt-on’ at the last moment, with all other design and development taking precedence. Beside the small number of websites where the search box is the solution, it is otherwise regarded as a one-size-fits-all technology base-line (like hosting), and not an integral part of the website’s strategy.
An effective Site Search tool adds clarity to the customer voice, and empowers business strategists to make decisions that will ultimately empower the end-customer.
Don’t be intimidated by your website’s Site Search. Google has to collate the world’s information, and you’ve only got your audience to worry about.
At DTDigital, we think it’s essential to understand how our clients’ customers are using their websites’ search tools. For a growing number of our clients, the insight gained from this analysis has increased the profile of the eBusiness unit within their overall organisation.
How to make a Site Search Tool more User Focused
So you’ve seen the light – you want to make your website’s Site Search tool more customer-centric, now what?
Well, it’s time to get smart about your Site Search.
Group and Categorise Content
Remember that the user probably has a gut feeling about the type of content they're looking for. Whether it be a product page, an application form, a type of media (e.g. image, video, sound), or a document type (e.g. a PDF, a word document, or an excel spreadsheet). Also, consider whether to group your search results in relation to core audience segments. For example, a website may be able to define its audience as 'employees' and 'employers', and similarly it may be logical to group and categorise search results in the same manner.
A drop-down menu next to a search box 'works', but why the extra couple of clicks? Also, if the user does not find what they're looking for in the first instance, they will likely try other menu options, thinking they did something wrong - this is inevitably frustrating.
By logically grouping search results we can reduce the minimum number of decisions the consumer must make, reducing effort and increasing empowerment for the majority of users.
Use Intelligent Inclusion
By determining with more clarity where your website ‘fits’ within the customer journey, your results can ‘think bigger’ than the search phrase submitted.
For example, if a user searches for a product which is only available offline, but you also know their locale, this is your opportunity to inform the user where their nearest stockist is.
Does the gender, age, or other characteristic add a different context to what they are searching for? Are there seasonal factors?
Reduce potential search refinements. If your customer often searches for a product by its generic name and not necessary by its brand name, determine whether they are provided with the most relevant information in either case.
Avoid Programmatic Party Tricks [which don’t solve problems]
Relevancy is a given and not a party trick.
The user expects that the search results that you present are relevant. If the search results are not relevant, they’d rather not see them. When there are hundreds of results, giving each one an explicit ‘relevancy score’ is usually not of much help.
Users have learnt that the search results near the top are most relevant, and the ones down the page are less likely to be relevant – and they usually don’t know (i.e. or care) why this happens. For this reason, focus your team’s efforts on actually making the search results more relevant. ‘Telling’ the user how relevant they are, doesn’t make them more relevant.
Focus your team on algorithmic solutions that:
Lower the rate of search 'refinements'
These are discouraged customers - the customer had to adapt what they’re actually looking for into something which they think you may possibly understand.
Lower the rate of search ‘exits’
These are disillusioned customers - the customer decided to leave your website from the search results page, and probably paid a visit to your competitor. The exception to this rule is if you can determine that they found what they were looking for from within the search results page.
There are bound to be some great project opportunities that relate to the affinity of data, and can be backed by primary research, that will increase the satisfaction of your customers.
Don't waste anymore of the user’s time: Drive Conversion.
Many Site Search tools are actually used to find tangible product-related information, or perform a specific action. However, the majority of Site Search tools return long URLs and ‘fluff’, which is purely hit-and-miss.
Think of your tool as more like a means to an end (the way users do).
Make the experience more tangible, by driving conversion as early as possible. E.g. ‘Add to Cart’, ‘Download’, ‘Watch Video’, ‘Apply Now’.
Use Visual Cues
A picture speaks a thousand words.
Within your Information Architecture, allow for the possibility of small visual cues that represents the type of content, or a literal representation of the content itself. E.g. document thumbnails, document type logos, or a video ‘play’ icon. The key to effective visual cues is meaning and consistency.
The right visual cues can turn ominous content into a breath of fresh air.
Think: One Page
The most unfunny party trick of them all – delivering the maximum number of results imaginable. A level of frustration that can only be amplified by the amount of pagination.
How can something be relevant if the user has to navigate 5 pages to get to it?
Don’t kid yourself – on the average website, a top-level Site Search shouldn’t produce 100’s of results paginated over many pages as its default configuration, because there isn’t a user out-there that likes you that much. Make this a KPI if you must.
How are the Marketing and Technical Officers sleeping at night? …Because they never tested the search tool with live data. This brings me to my next point…
Test Intelligently
Test your site search functionality with a portfolio of live keyword data. And if you’re not tracking what your users are searching for, start doing it! The data that you collect via this medium can influence everything from demand forecasting, to product positioning.
Analyse and Refine
Once you start tracking what your users are searching for, keep an eye on the key metrics – which search phrases are resulting in a high volume of site exits? Which search phrases result in a high volume of search refinements, and what is the nature of these search refinements?
In both cases, there is an opportunity to refine how your Site Search tool works, so that your users:
(1) find what they’re looking for, and
(2) find it as quickly as possible.
Once you start implementing a Site Search tool strategy with these universal rules in mind, you’ll have more champions of your website; both externally and internally.