Search is redefining the ecommerce experience
It’s not enough anymore to just design a great product. Nor is it to have the coolest store. I mean yes, it definitely helps, but in the end it all comes back to brands and emotions. Making people feel unique and special. Making people feel good and connected to a brand through experience.
The challenge for brands today is designing digital experiences that breath and exude the values, personality and attitude of the brand. So, how do you that? How do you create experiences that portray attitude and empathy as well as feeling personal and relevant to each single customer?
“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”
Maya Angelou
The new role of Search
Can you imagine Amazon, Google, Facebook, eBay, Pinterest, Airbnb and so on without a search box? No you can’t, and that’s because search is part of their brand. Search is one of the essential experiences of their product and therefore it’s intrinsically linked to their core values.
And have you noticed the growing size of search boxes in retail eCommerce sites these days. They’re no longer a small magnifying glass tucked away in a corner, they’re centred, prominent and BIG.
And why is that? Maybe it’s because the use of search in online stores has dramatically increased during the last year. Or maybe it’s because site visitors who use search are proven to buy between 3–8 times more?
Well, to be honest, yes both of these search growth indicators have certainly helped put search back in the digital agenda in 2018. However, the underlying reasoning behind this search transformation is the ability it offers to create highly relevant rich connections with every single customer.
Search customises and transforms the online store, it creates millions of new pages with personalised product and service suggestions that are aligned to the intent of shoppers. Search drives and creates highly tailored and custom-made window shopping experiences with every single keystroke.
Search is an experience, an extension of a brand
And this is why Search has recently moved from an IT-driven project tasked with a unique purpose to satisfy, that of helping people to find stuff, into a more prominent space. One that’s very tightly linked to creating that personal experience driven by data and algorithms, in fact it’s part of the perfect ecommerce strategy.
The search box has become the way for brands to connect with their customers, it’s a new conversational space, the place where online retailers start a dialogue with shoppers. Brands can personalise the experience, help customers find what they’re looking for, and also help them to discover new stuff and be inspired through meaningful recommendations and suggestions of like-minded people.
Above all, search is allowing brands to create deeper connections with their customers. Rich interactions that enable them to act and speak as they would face to face instore.
Search is slowly turning into the most trusted and knowledgeable shop assistant:
· It says hello, remembers your last search activity, and suggests trends, what other shoppers like you are looking for today.
· It provides contextual search suggestions as you search and browse, acting as a cart filling assistant.
See Ocado.com’s example below. User starts searching for Eggs, then search box suggests Bacon, Bread, and other Eggs related Searches previously paired in all user’s previous search history, then next search suggests sausages, and so on…..
· It suggests personalised search results to each single user based on their previous activity and comparing it to people with similar taste.
See Mango.com’s example below. Search results are different for the same query “denim” depending on the context of the user. In the first case, denim products for women are displayed because the user had previously browsed and searched for women products. In the second case products for menswear and shirts in particular are displayed on top considering the user in particular had a preference on that selection.
· It provides context based push notifications from a shopper’s last searches.
· It connects the camera in your mobile phone to a store’s catalogue through image search.
· And it takes a store’s catalogue to 3rd party platforms (Facebook, WhatsApp, Slack, Amazon Echo, Siri, etc..) through voice search commands, Gift Finder and shopping bots, etc..
Conclusions
These are just some flavours of the experiences created and powered by search, using search data and technology to generate personalisation and empathy. Search is entering a new age. It’s moving away from being just a “product localisation” service and is evolving into a cool discovery and customisation tool that empowers unique experiences.
Experiences that are very closely linked to the attitudes and values of the brand. Experiences that help to create a digital brand character and generate personalised interactions. Interactions that can not only surprise and delight customers through the experiences they deliver but ones that can create emotion, can make people feel special and can generate loyalty and brand affection.
Search is changing, and from where I’m standing, for the better.
