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3 Ways to Improve eCommerce Search Functionality

One of the most important factors about every eCommerce website that tends to get overlooked is the search functionality. Search functionality is what allows your customers to find the product or content they are looking for on your website.

All it takes is for a user to enter a search query (a word or phrase) into the search function on your website so that your website can display the products that are relevant to their search. This is not only a convenient function to prioritize having on your website, but it will also help improve your eCommerce website’s user experience and site navigation.

If you are looking for ways to improve your eCommerce search functionality on your website, consider the following tips to make sure you and your customers reap its benefits.

Make Sure Your Search Bar is Easy to Find

In order for users to be able to use the search function on your website, it is important to make sure that it is easily accessible. Whether this is simply through an attractive color choice or the placement of the bar is somewhere users are guaranteed to see it, there are many quick changes you can make to grant users access to it.

You may notice that some search bars tend to have the magnifying glass icon to prompt users to take action. Even if the text around your search bar isn’t visible, the simple icon is an eCommerce web design choice that many users universally understand to be the place where searches can be made.

Include Filter Options on Your Pages

Having the basic ability to search is one aspect of search functionality, but another factor that is synonymous with user experience is allowing users to filter their search results. When you have a filtering option on your eCommerce website, the user can narrow down their search even further.

Some examples of this include having filters that give the option for users to sort their search by price, which products are the best selling, old/new products, featured products, and more. You may be familiar with this function if you’ve shopped for clothes or other gadgets online. This tip can come in handy if your eCommerce store sells a large number of products.

Implement Autocomplete

If you’ve ever started typing a search on a website’s search bar and noticed suggested words or phrases start to appear, this is an example of autocomplete. The algorithms that are used may take previous user activity into account to suggest a search that may be relevant to them.

There are a few reasons why this can be a convenient tool to use for your eCommerce business. For one, it can save a lot of time for the user to find what they are looking for on your site, especially if you carry a lot of products. Autocomplete can also allow users to discover other products on your website that they may not have had in mind before.

As a result, you may experience an increase in conversion rates by implementing this tool.

Why Is This Important?

We’ve all experienced the convenience of using a search engine or function on an online store. While it seems like a small feature, it retains a lot of potential for conversions.

As you build your eCommerce store, it’s easy to overlook features such as these, but if you work with an experienced team like ours here at 1DigitalⓇ Agency, we’ll make sure to address every single detail to maximize your store’s potential.

If you are looking for ways to improve your eCommerce customer experience, try implementing the tips above. We offer eCommerce website development services to make sure your website looks and functions at its best. When you work with us, strong search functionality will be the least of your worries.

Contact us today at 215.809.1567 to learn even more about what we have to offer.

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Dan Kogan

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BigCommerce Pros

  • All-in-one SaaS solution that provides hosting and templates for building and customizing a storefront, along with analytical, inventory management, and marketing tools.
  • The platform is supported by a huge ecosystem of designers, developers, digital marketing professionals, and thousands of apps. The open API is also compatible with countless third-party tools.
  • With multiple subscription plans available, starting at $29.95, BigCommerce can be both affordable and highly scalable.
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BigCommerce Cons

  • BigCommerce does not natively support additional languages. To do so you will need to integrate a third-party app.
  • BigCommerce imposes yearly sales limits; if your website sells more than the threshold you’ll be automatically upgraded to a higher plan, incurring additional (and potentially unexpected) costs.
  • There are a limited number of free themes available (though many premium themes are available for purchase, and the large BigCommerce ecosystem supports developers who can design and code custom themes and templates).

Shopify Pros

  • The Shopify platform is a hosted, SaaS platform that is ideal for those that are not technically savvy. The website builder is easy to use, even for those with no coding or development experience. It is also compatible with a variety of free themes and integrates easily with countless apps and third-party tools.
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Shopify Cons

  • Shopify charges transaction fees, depending on your subscription plan.
  • While Shopify does have a built-in blog, the native blog is lacking in content marketing functionality, with inflexible layouts, an outdated blog editor, and no native option to create blog categories.
  • Migration from Shopify is not particularly easy to do. All you can do is export a CSV file and use that to support the migration, so it is best handled by eCommerce migration professionals.
  • Both apps and paid themes (though there are a lot of them) can be pricey.

Magento Pros

  • Because Magento is an open-source eCommerce platform, it is effectively limitless in the scope of customizations that can be made. You’re limited by your development skills. As a result of its open-source nature, it also offers excellent omnichannel capabilities.
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Magento Cons

  • Magento demands an extremely high level of technical acumen and can be extremely resource intensive and expensive to manage.
  • The platform requires users to manage their own hosting, and requires them to keep up with platform version and security updates.
  • Magento is far more difficult to manage and customize than most SaaS platforms, and it is very difficult (nearly impossible) for someone with no coding/development experience to launch and manage a Magento store.

Volusion Pros

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Volusion Cons

  • Volusion offers a limited theme selection and only 11 are free.
  • Volusion only offers limited native functionality and has no built-in blog.
  • While building a store with Volusion is fairly easy and straightforward, some users will find it very hard to make customizations to the platform without extensive development experience. Other users even say the the editor is somewhat confusing to use.