How to Optimize Search for Mobile Customers

cell-3Nearly half of the mobile users that visit ecommerce sites on their phones are smartphone users, according to SLI Systems. Which means that your site and, and more importantly, your search functions need to be mobile and tablet ready.

Besides adjusting your mobile ready sites so they can cater to your customers using their fingers to navigate, retailers also need to make sure they site is “optimized for smaller screens, limited typing functionalities, and slower loading times.”

Here are some tips from SLI Systems on how to perfect your mobile search experience:

  1. Make sure your site has “multiple drill-down refinement options” which will ultimately save space while also enhancing the user experience.
  2. Make sure your customer’s queries match what your site is suggesting. This move can increase your revenue by 10 to 15%.
  3. Your search box should be located on your homepage in order to encourage visitors to search.
  4. Display thumbnail images instead of full images to speed up your site.
  5. Mobile users want quick answers, make sure all your product titles and prices are easy to see.
  6. Allow visitors to sort by relevance, price, gender, and brand on all searches.
  7. If a visitor searches for something that declares zero results, offer a result similar to what they are searching. Do not every bring them to a page that is empty, always give then options.
  8. Make ratings and customer reviews prominent on your search results pages.