Archive for month: December, 2012

Mobile shoppers and mobile devices are drastically different than traditional online eCommerce scenarios.  Mobile shoppers typically have less time to browse, screen sizes are tiny in comparison, keyboards and eCommerce navigation are awkward and voice-enabled features are becoming more common.  Here are a few things to consider while building your mobile eCommerce site.

Search is King
The limitations on mobile devices prioritize search on mobile eCommerce sites.  Faceted navigation and browsing just don’t cut it.  Shoppers want to see what they are looking for quickly and the search box is the fastest path to purchase.  You should assume that the vast majority of your mobile eCommerce shoppers will interact with your search box before making a purchase.  How can you make it easier for them to get to your search box and enter what they are looking for?

Accurate results
The importance of eCommerce site search in mobile environments means that the search box must produce accurate, relevant results, even when shoppers enter partial or complex queries.  You need a backend system that understands shopper intent and that can showcase the most relevant items from your product catalogue.  Quality trumps quantity – mobile shoppers are much less likely to scroll through pages of results.  Results need to be displayed clearly, with uniform images ranked by relevancy.

Voice enabled
Most new phones, including the iPhone and Androids, are voice enabled and your shoppers are becoming much more comfortable speaking to their devices, as they would a personal assistant. People can now click a microphone button on their mobile devices to enter text into your search box and this is leading to more naturally spoken, descriptive queries.

Remember: Mobile DEMANDS great eCommerce site search.  Consider natural language processing solutions, which automatically understand shopper intent and match queries to the most relevant items in your product catalogue.  Natural language and semantic solutions are vastly better at understanding longer, more descriptive queries, like those spoken into voice-enabled devices.  If you are not able to upgrade from keyword to natural language or semantic search, make sure you tune your system as best as possible – adding all relevant synonyms, common misspellings, as well as commonly associated terms and product descriptions for each item in your catalogue. Also frequently review your site’s analytics to see how people are searching, which will help you improve your site’s results over time.

Do you have additional mobile eCommerce site search tips to share?  Drop them in the comments below or Tweet us with #EasyAsk.

A search box should be like a friendly sales associate – engaging shoppers and directing them to exactly what they are looking for.  Search is the most important eCommerce navigation tool on your site.  It should be easy to find and available from all pages.  Below are a few basic things to consider:

Size of box and buttons
In general, boxes and buttons should be large and rectangular. Creative shapes may look nice, but can hurt you when it conflicts with expectations, as shoppers scan sites quickly and are accustomed to corners.

Make sure the search box is long enough to accommodate more descriptive search terms and phrases.  The submit button should also be large enough to click on in a hurry.

Think about a complimentary or bright color scheme to help the box and button jump off the page.  Also be sure to label the button “search” or “find” instead of something more ambiguous like “go.”

Position
Always place your eCommerce site search box at the top of each page – right, left or center. Make sure it stands out from other boxes.  Subscription or other promotional boxes can create confusion if they are not clearly differentiated. You may want to consider placing other box-like promotions at mid-page or lower.

Suggestive search box
Add a phrase to your search box like “what are you looking for?” A conversational question or phrase will lead to more descriptive searches, which will produce more accurate results.  Conversely, a search box that says “product number” will suggest to shoppers that you want succinct model number versus a conversational phrase.  Shorter eCommerce site search phrases may not have enough information to match to all the relevant items in your product catalogue.

Remember: the search box is the most valuable real estate on your site. Your eCommerce merchandising and eCommerce searchandising strategies will fail if shoppers can’t find and properly utilize your search box.  Spend the time and effort upfront to get it right.

Do you have additional search box tips to share?  Drop them in the comments below or Tweet us with #EasyAsk.

Avoid “No Results” Page and Increase Conversion Rates with these 4 Tips:

Cyber Monday sales were stellar, with some of the largest U.S. retailers seeing a 30 percent increase from last year, according to Smarter Commerce.  Research firm ComScore Inc. (SCOR) says that Monday spending reached a record $1.46 billion!  Some retailers were punished however, as sites with poor eCommerce site search lost customers due to the dreaded “no results” page.  Mobile shoppers, who accounted for 18 percent of Monday’s retail traffic, are a major percentage of that group who left, as mobile devices offer cramped screens and clumsy navigation.

Here are four tips you can apply to avoid the “no results” page to improve conversion rates and ensure you capture your share of this holiday season’s online and mobile sales.

Auto complete and spell correction
Show your shoppers full search terms as they type, so they can pick and click.  And automatically correct or compensate for your customers’ typos to provide the most meaningful results.

Relax Long-Tail Searches
Many “No Results” pages are the result of long-tail searches, such as “Men’s black Ferragamo loafers.” The worst thing an Internet retailer can do is return a “No Results” page because the visitor will just jump to another site to find what they’re looking for. A good site search and merchandising solution will “relax” out words to find something close to what the buyer is looking for. In the example above, if the retailer doesn’t carry Ferragamo brand, they can show “men’s black loafers”. The best search-relaxation systems recognize concepts, like understanding that “black” is a color and “loafers” is a category. With this understanding, a top-notch site search solution can prioritize which concept to drop first.

Explain why there are No Results and offer solutions
The most frustrating “No Results” pages don’t indicate why nothing is displayed.  Use this space to tell them why the search failed and give them options and instructions on how to continue their search.  Many sites offer a list of popular searches or popular brands offered and, if possible, personal assistance via phone or chat.

Provide a rich, mobile eCommerce solution
There are new mobile eCommerce solutions that enable Smartphone users to just hit the microphone button and speak directly into the search-box.  The very best eCommerce solutions provide this, transforming iPhones, Androids and Window’s Phones into a fully functional eCommerce shopping experience.

These are just a few tips you should consider implementing within your eCommerce software solution to mitigate the “No Results” page.  What other ideas do you have to improve your site search results? Let us know in the comments section, or Tweet them to us with #EasyAsk.