Site search is becoming more than a means to increase website traffic. Now 40% of content and collaboration professionals see the feature primarily as a tool to improve customer self-service, according to a new Forrester report, Site Search Evolves from Technical Feature to Customer Touchpoint, by Leslie Owens with Stephen Powers and Anjali Yakkundi. The next objectives were: increased sales conversion 30%, increased search traffic (SEO) 12% and increased page views 10%.
However, the report also finds that most corporate websites provide an inadequate search experience, lacking customer friendly self-service in areas such as speed, adaptability, relevance, content integration and task fit. In fact, 69% of Web sites examined did not even offer searchable self-help for customer service. Asked to rate the overall success of their search initiative, a survey of 188 content and collaboration professionals gave an average score of just 6 out of 10, reflecting a need for better, more measurable value from search.
The report found that two thirds of search decision-makers are planning to expand their implementation and usage of site search this year. To be successful, according to Owens, IT and marketing teams must collaborate to develop the top three improvement areas in search: better relevance, enhanced usability, and quality content. They need to move the search functionality from a siloed activity to a cross-functional search partnership. I would add that this business involvement is the success formula for most IT initiatives.
The report suggests that as marketers begin to take a greater role in search vendor selection and administration in the coming years, they may even completely take over tasks like boosting and blocking content, and setting up metrics to gauge growing levels of customer experience.
Forrester sees site search as a key area for investment. My sense of the market and my own experiences with Web sites has be agreeing with them. Web sites have often replaced people as the face of the enterprise. It makes sense to put your best face forward. I was pleased to receive a review copy of the report. You can see the report at the Forrester site.
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