Have you ever left an e-commerce store because you couldn’t find what you were looking for in the search bar? Even worse, you know the store stocks what you’re looking for, but it’s nowhere to be found.
Experiences like these make e-commerce search relevance key to your business’s success. This article explores search relevance and discusses site search optimization practices you can use to improve user experience and increase sales.
What is E-commerce Search Relevance?
Search relevance is about turning your site into an engine that serves the correct products to a customer based on their search query. Without it, searches look more like this: a customer types “running shoes” into the search bar and gets hiking shoes and casual footwear included. This happens more often than not in e-commerce.
Here is another scenario for a consumer:
Let’s say you’re a woman who loves shopping for shoes at a specific store. You’ve visited this website a few times before, and each time, you’ve searched for “shoes for women.” Today, you’re looking for running shoes. You type in “running shoes” and get 20 results – all their shoes: seven running shoes for men, two for women, and a few Birkenstocks for both genders.
This is an example of poor search relevance and a lack of personalization. If you were to have an advanced e-commerce search tool, it would be able to remember the user’s history. It would have immediately shown you running shoes and would have known that the customer is likely looking for women’s running shoes.
The Impact of Search User Experience
A poor site experience can cost you thousands of sales in the long run. Additionally, many sources estimate that 88% of online users won’t return to a site after a bad experience.
While it may seem that encouraging return visitors shouldn’t be the primary focus, loyal customers are truly the lifeblood of any business. A report from the Nielsen Norman Group indicates that prioritizing return visits is more valuable than analyzing bounce rates and other once-off metrics. This underscores the importance of creating a positive user experience to encourage long-term engagement.
Here’s how optimizing your e-commerce store’s internal search relevance can help your business:
- More sales: accurate search helps customers find products quickly, making them 2-3 times more likely to buy.
- Happier customers: relevant search results create a smooth shopping experience, encouraging users to explore more and return.
- Better product discovery: good search shows related products, increasing your customer’s basket size.
- Engaged shoppers: precise search keeps customers engaged, preventing them from leaving due to irrelevant or missing results.
Now that we understand the transformative impact of optimizing for site search relevance, let’s explore how to improve the search relevance of your e-commerce store.
11 Ways to Improve E-commerce Search Relevance
Implementing strategies to improve your e-commerce store’s internal search relevance can convert 1.8x more visitors. These are 11 proven ways to improve e-commerce site search.
1. Review Your Product Names and Descriptions
Take the time to name your products accurately to optimize your site’s search experience and boost your search engine ranking.
Correctly naming and describing your products is the first step in improving search relevance. Even with a sophisticated site search tool, your customers are more likely to find what they need if products are named appropriately. This allows both your internal site search tool and Google to index and display your products effectively.
Bonus Tip: do keyword research to determine which keywords are searched more often. Then, you can incorporate these keywords into your product titles and descriptions.
Sportshoes.com names and describes its products accurately and according to keyword research.
2. Use Keyword Research to Understand Your Target Audience
Do keyword research and use this data to improve your content strategy and ensure your search results align with customer expectations.
Keyword research does more than just show you what people are searching for. Knowing what queries your customers regularly search for allows you to understand and analyze their search behavior. This can help you improve the search relevance results of their queries and write content and product descriptions that speak to their needs. Keyword search analytics also provide insights such as seasonal trends, underperforming keywords, and searches that return no results.
Birkenstock used keyword research to name their categories according to “one strap” or “two strap” Birkenstocks.
3. Use Semantic Search to Optimize Site Search Results
Invest in advanced internal search software with a nuanced understanding of semantics to make your search engine smarter and more intuitive.
Customers don’t always know what they want or see what you prefer to call your products. Some call it Birkenstocks, others may call it strappy sandals – neither is wrong. You can improve your site’s search by using semantic search. Semantic search uses natural language processing (NLP) to understand what users really want. This approach helps your search tool recognize synonyms and interpret context better.
4. Create Structured Content With Categories and Subcategories
Implement clear category structures to improve your storefront’s layout so your internal search solution can interpret user queries more effectively and show the most relevant results.
Categories and subcategories make your website easily understandable and scannable. Most users prefer to scan e-commerce products and then read the descriptions thoroughly only after they find what they’re looking for. Well-structured content also has a positive impact on your e-commerce store’s SEO and improves the performance of your onsite search solution.
Asics uses categories to simplify their store’s layout.
5. Use Internal Search Analytics for Deeper Relevance
Optimize site search results based on user behavior trends on your e-commerce store to stay ahead of changing preferences.
Customer interactions with your internal site search tool can provide valuable insights into what’s working and what isn’t. Metrics like click-through rates and dwell time help you identify the most relevant e-commerce site search results and refine algorithms to match user preferences.
Bonus Tip: AddSearch offers user analytics to give you a deeper understanding of your audience’s behavior.
AddSearch’s user analytics dashboard
6. Optimize Your E-Commerce Store for Mobile Search
Ensure your search bar, filters, and product results are responsive and optimized for smaller screens.
Mobile phones have taken over online shopping and will continue to dominate the e-commerce market in 2025. 68% of all online orders are made on smartphones, even though millennials once favored shopping on their laptops. Optimizing your e-commerce store for mobile search results is no longer optional.
7. Use Personalized Images and Videos
Improve the user search experience by optimizing search results with the addition of real-time product images.
E-commerce search is a highly visual experience because customers prefer to see the products they are considering for purchase. You can enhance search relevance by incorporating product images or videos and allowing them to appear in real-time during searches. These visual elements can be customized based on the search query, customer intent, and individual preferences.
Nike uses product images in search results to improve search relevance.
7. Give Your Customers Relevant Search Filters
Add relevant filters and test them regularly to ensure they remain effective and relevant for your audience.
Filters are essential for improving your e-commerce store’s search relevancy. By adding useful filters, you help your customers refine their search results to quickly find what they need. Add filters that align with typical search queries and customer intent, such as:
- Price range
- Brand
- Reviews
- Subcategories
8. Optimize for Fuzzy Search Queries
Use a site search solution that continuously expands your synonym library and tests your typo tolerance settings.
You may have noticed that your customers often make typos or use unclear keywords, especially when searching for products on their mobile phones. Your search tool should account for these by offering typo tolerance, synonyms, and autocomplete features to guide users to the right results. You can read more about fuzzy search here.
Bonus Tip: AddSearch can help you reduce bounce rates with Automated Synonym Suggestions. It automatically detects and adds synonyms for zero-result searches to ensure users find what they need.
9. Monitor and Address Zero-Result Queries
Redirect users to similar or related products instead of leaving them at a dead end.
Zero-result queries can frustrate customers and result in lost sales. Regularly analyze search queries with no results and adjust your product catalog or search settings to minimize these instances.
10. Adjust Search Results According to Click-Through Rate (CTR)
Monitor top-performing results and highlight them to make them more visible and appealing.
Knowing which search results get the most clicks helps you see what customers find relevant. Use this information to improve your algorithms and future search experiences. Search analytics can show you which parts of your search box or results page work best. Understanding which content gets more clicks is key to knowing what customers value.
11. Personalize Search Results With Upselling Opportunities
Customers enjoy getting personalized results and tend to convert better when the results of their search queries are tailored to their preferences. Personalization offers an excellent upsell opportunity, as many e-commerce shoppers are more likely to buy more products once they’ve already added one key item to their cart.
Give your customers an opportunity to add relevant items to their shopping cart. This makes them feel understood and allows you to make a bigger sale.
Adidas offers suggestions for products that will match the items that are already in your cart.
Take Your E-commerce Search Relevance to the Next Level
Improving your e-commerce search relevance is key to providing a smooth shopping experience, increasing sales, and keeping customers coming back. By using our site search optimization practices, you will boost your e-commerce store’s conversion rates and stay competitive.
If you’re looking for an advanced site search solution that can help you implement these strategies, AddSearch provides advanced, customizable search solutions designed to increase relevance, improve user experience, and drive sales.
Are you ready to take your e-commerce site search to the next level? Give AddSearch a try today.
FAQs: Improving E-Commerce Search Relevance
Here, we’ve answered all of your e-commerce search relevance questions.
1. What is the Best Site Search Solution for E-commerce?
The top e-commerce site search solutions include features like smart search, error correction, autosynonyms n, and analytics to enhance user experience. Tools like AddSearch are tailored for e-commerce, offering custom search options and insights to increase sales.
2. How Does Search Relevance Impact E-commerce Sales?
Accurate and relevant search results improve customer satisfaction by helping users find what they need. This improves the shopping experience, increases conversion rates, and encourages customers to return, which leads to higher overall sales.
3. What Features Should I Look for in an Internal Site Search Tool?
When choosing a site search tool, prioritize the following features:
- Personalized recommendations: tailors search results based on user behavior and preferences.
- Mobile optimization: ensures seamless functionality on smaller screens for mobile shoppers.
- Filtering options: allow users to refine results by price, brand, category, and more.
- Automated synonym suggestions: recognizes synonyms and reduces zero-result searches.
- Analytics: tracks user behavior to continuously improve search relevance.
- Natural language processing (NLP): understands user intent and interprets context for accurate results.
AddSearch, for example, offers all of these features and more – view the comprehensive list of features here.
4. How Do Personalized Search Results Improve Customer Engagement?
Personalized search results consider user history, preferences, and intent, ensuring customers find the most relevant products. This customized experience improves engagement, encourages longer browsing, and increases conversions.
