While product search typically gets all the buzz when it comes to ecommerce search engine optimization, content search is a powerful capability that shouldn’t be ignored. After all, when you make it easy for shoppers to find more than just products via your website’s search bar, you can move them closer to making a purchasing decision.
This blog post shares everything you need to know about the almighty ecommerce content search, including, what it is, why you should be leveraging it on your website, and how to do it right.
What is ecommerce content search?
Usually when folks in the ecommerce industry talk about the search bar on an ecommerce website, they’re talking about product search: the process of searching for a query with the intention of finding a particular product or type of product.
However, shoppers may not always be looking for products when they use your website’s search bar. Or, they may not have enough information about the product they have in mind to make a purchase just yet. That’s why making other content – like blog posts, videos, or shipping information – available on your website, and discoverable through your search bar is extremely valuable.
That’s where ecommerce content search comes into play. Content search helps shoppers find useful content on your website that guides them towards a purchase. If you don’t have content search enabled on your ecommerce website, you could be making it difficult for customers to find the information they need to buy something.
Customer education
If shoppers aren’t sure which product is best for them, content search can lead them to educational content on your website that fills the gaps in their knowledge. It’s especially useful for considered purchases that tend to require more information than is typically provided on a product description page.
Let’s see content search in action. When you search for “fungus” on gardening store Flower Power, the search results page surfaces both product results that are related to fungus treatment, as well as blog posts on the topic.
Ensuring customers can easily find this content eliminates the need for them to go to Google for further research. If a shopper goes back to a search engine at this point in their journey, they could come across a competitor’s website that has both the information AND products they need, and you could lose the sale.
Content search turns your site into a one-stop shop for the information and products customers are looking for.