You’ll need to incorporate a site search function as you develop your Shopify store. Visitors who conduct site-specific searches are more likely to convert than those who don’t use the process.
Not all site searches are created the same, and there are a few ways you can improve Shopify search on your site search to convert more site visitors into leads and customers.
#1: Locate and Design Search Boxes Strategically
The more clearly you position your search box, the easier it’ll be for your customers to find it and conduct search queries. It may be difficult to spot if your search bar is small or poorly located. Certain site visitors may leave your site prematurely if they cannot easily find your search box.
You should also place search boxes on every page of your website. If your shopper has to return to your home page to search, it may drive them away – resulting in a lost lead or sale. Try to position the search box in a similar spot on every page for easy access.
#2: Make Search Boxes Large Enough to Fit Most Search Queries
The size of your search box will depend on the types of products you sell. Certain products may garner longer or shorter searches on average regarding character count. Understand the typical search terms your customers use, and make your search box large enough to fit the average search query.
#3: Use Autocomplete
Autocomplete is a great feature, and its inclusion can make conducting searches very convenient for your users.
You may consider implementing an autocomplete feature with images, making it easy for customers to review products quickly from the search bar without navigating to the product page itself.
#4: Include Department-specific Search Options
When you sell a wide variety of products, your shoppers may want to locate a particular item within a specific product category. Make this easy for them by offering department-specific search options. If you sell clothing, allow your shoppers to search for “dress pants” within your men’s pants section or “high heels” in your women’s shoe department. This adds an extra layer of convenience for your shopper, making it easy to locate the needed products.
#5: Allow Shoppers to Search Product Codes
The need to search product codes will not apply to every shopper, but it’s an excellent feature to offer – mainly if you publish a catalog. Searching for product codes makes it easy for shoppers to quickly find the product they are looking for.
#6: Offer Accurate Search Results
Shoppers may navigate away from your store if they are not getting search results that apply to their query. Properly label and tag your products according to typical search terms to improve the quality of your search results. Keep the following in mind as you prepare your product pages for search queries:
- Style
- Color
- Size
- Brand
- Price
#7: Circumvent Pages with Zero Results
Little is more discouraging to a shopper than a search results page without any results. Even if your shopper searches for something you do not carry specifically, they may consider purchasing another product if they see it on a search results page.
Avoid being too strict about what appears for each search term. Offer accurate search results, but offer acceptable alternatives on your search results pages for products you may not carry.
