BW product card

Optimising Search for Better Shopping Experience

Year.

2023

Role.

Product Designer

Tasks.

  • Research
  • Design
  • Documentation

Overview

Discoverability is a critical element of the eCommerce customer journey, particularly for new users. The ability to easily find products significantly impacts the overall shopping experience.

As our product range expands with the growing marketplace, helping users quickly and accurately find what they’re looking for becomes increasingly essential to delivering a seamless and effective user experience.

Discover

Research Objectives

  • Understand user behavior with search
  • Identify pain points and barriers
  • Evaluate the effectiveness of current search
  • Explore the competitive landscape and industry best practices
  • Measure search performance

Analytics & UX Insights

Previous research indicates that users who interact with site search convert at higher rates than those who don’t.

  • 6.21% of mobile users currently use site search
  • Users who use search convert +62.2% more (5.37% vs 3.31%)
  • 26.4% of users using search add products to their cart, from which 24.9% convert, resulting in €606.806 revenue
  • Usage of search was 9.1%, but after updating the UI and hiding the search bar behind an icon, search usage dropped to 6.2%
  • Search results often yield more than 200 product results

From January to March 2023, Google Analytics recorded the following data for all UK users.

  • 2.33% of users used the search feature.
  • Visits with site search converts almost 50% higher than visits without search.
  • Users who used search spend more time on site, view more pages and have a lower bounce rate.

Audit of the current user experience

  • Results are not contextual or easy to understand - only the number of results per category type are shown
  • No product previews
  • No search recommendations
  • UI issue with label and CTA link
  • The search is hidden behind an icon on mobile
  • Search results are categorised
  • Number of results shown (total) and individual results per categorisation
  • Search is sticky on scroll up and down

Key Insights & Findings

  • The search feature is currently under-utilised because it’s not very prominent - previous research showed higher usage when it was always visible
  • Although we are categorising results in the dynamic search, the display could be more engaging and easier to interact with
  • Recommendations are helpful to show upfront and give an exposure opportunity
  • Having the search bar sticky on mobile seems to be a popular UX practice

Define

Problem Statement

Beerwulf customers want to quickly and easily find and purchase their desired beer. Research shows that users who engage with site search are more likely to complete a purchase, but the search feature is currently under-utilised. This indicates that usability issues or low visibility may be preventing users from discovering products efficiently.

  • How might we encourage more users to adopt search, making it easier for them to find relevant products?
  • How might we enhance search engagement to guide users toward their next action in the shopping journey?
  • How might we display the most relevant search results to reduce abandonment and improve user retention?

Opportunities

  • Expose the search bar and make it more prominent to mobile users.
  • Show recommendations or popular searches within the dynamic search before a query has been entered.
  • Improve the results by using stricter parameters and product attributes to narrow down the number of returned results.

Impact analysis

To create the business case for these improvements, I conducted an impact analysis based on historical data and current Google Analytics data.

  • Total sessions per month: 461,305
  • Total sessions with search per month: 10,730
  • Conversion rate from search: 10.18%
  • Average Order Value: €119
  • Monthly Revenue from Search: €391,809
  • Expected Search Usage: 9% (taken from previous UX insights)

If 9% of the total sessions result in using search, and search conversions remain at 10.18%:

Projected Monthly Sessions with Search: 461,305 * 9% = 41,517

Projected Monthly Transactions with Search: 41,517 * 10.18% = 4,226

Projected Monthly Revenue with Improved Search: 4,226 * €119 = €502,894

Potential Monthly Revenue Uplift: €502,894 - €391,809 = €111,085

Additional benefits:

  • Improved user experience may increase user satisfaction and loyalty.
  • Reduced search abandonment can improve product discovery and increase sales.
  • Enhanced search may lead to more repeat purchases and customer retention.

Ideation and Solution

Home page
When a user taps into the search field, the immediate interaction should open a full screen modal.

Full screen search modal
Full screen view with optional marketing banner and trending products.

Dynamic results as you type
Results update when a user begins typing. They are categorised by type including number of results per category and links.

Search results page
Introduce facets on the PLP to help narrow down results, for example by category. Show total number of results so it’s clear to users that this is a search results page and how many products they can expect to see if they continue browsing.

High Fidelity Designs

Measurement plan

Goals Signals Metrics Calculations
Increase sessions with search Users are engaging with search functionality more often % of sessions with search vs % of sessions without search Data available in GA
Increase transactions Users who initiate search end their journey with making a purchase Revenue & Conversion rates Revenue of sessions with search vs without search & CR of sessions with search vs without search