6 eCommerce Site Search Examples to Boost Your Bottom Line
Learn how optimizing your eCommerce website search can increase conversions and improve user experience with these 6 great examples as a guide.
Updated April 7, 2025.
An efficient eCommerce site search is essential for delivering a seamless shopping experience. When customers can easily find what they’re looking for, it boosts satisfaction and conversion rates. Optimizing site search for eCommerce enhances product discovery, personalizes the experience, and increases sales.
In this blog, we’ll show how Fast Simon’s innovative features can help create some of the best eCommerce search experiences, ensuring a smoother, more engaging journey for your customers.
» Skip to the solution: Fast Simon's AI-powered eCommerce site search tool
Meet the Expert
Arjel Vajvoda, Head of Product at Motomtech, draws on her deep background in customer support to develop user-centric SaaS products, incorporating innovative documentation solutions.
Benefits of an Effective eCommerce Site Search Function
1. Higher Conversion Rates
Imagine you're shopping online and quickly find exactly what you need. An efficient eCommerce search function makes this possible by delivering precise and relevant results.
When customers can effortlessly locate their desired products, they're more likely to complete a purchase. In fact, shoppers using site search are 6.4 times more likely to convert, highlighting the importance of a great search feature in turning browsers into buyers.
» Learn more: How site search optimization boosts conversion rates
2. Increased Average Order Value
Picture this: you're searching for a new camera. Alongside it, the site suggests compatible lenses, memory cards, and stylish camera bags. A smart search function not only finds the main product but also recommends complementary items, encouraging customers to add more to their carts. This strategy naturally boosts the average order value, as shoppers discover additional products that enhance their initial purchase.
» Need more help? Learn more about cross-selling and upselling in eCommerce
3. Improved Customer Retention
Think back to a time when an online store made your shopping experience a breeze and you found yourself more likely to return to that site. When an eCommerce search function consistently provides accurate and personalized results, it fosters customer satisfaction and loyalty. Happy customers are more likely to return, leading to increased retention rates and sustained revenue growth.
4. Reduced Cart Abandonment
Shoppers often leave without purchasing when they can't quickly find desired products. An effective site search function for eCommerce websites minimizes this issue by understanding various keywords, correcting typos, and suggesting related products. By enhancing the search experience, customers are less likely to leave their carts behind, resulting in more completed transactions.
» Make sure you avoid these eCommerce search mistakes
Key Features of a High-Performing eCommerce Site Search
- AI-powered personalization: AI-driven search analyzes browsing history, purchases, and behavior to deliver personalized results. First-time shoppers get tailored suggestions, while returning customers receive refined recommendations.
- Predictive search & autocomplete: Typing full product names can be tedious, especially on mobile. Predictive search suggests products, categories, and popular queries in real time. First-time visitors quickly discover what’s available, while returning shoppers can access past searches instantly, reducing effort and search time.
- Natural language processing & semantic search: Shoppers don’t always use perfect keywords. Whether searching for “best laptop for gaming” or “comfortable black sneakers,” advanced search understands intent, not just words. This helps new visitors who may not know exact product names and ensures relevant results for all users.
- Filters & faceted search: Scrolling through endless results is frustrating. Optimized filters for price, brand, size, and color help shoppers refine searches. First-time visitors compare options, while returning customers quickly locate specific items.
- Visual & voice search: Some shoppers prefer snapping a picture over typing, while others use voice search for hands-free browsing. Visual and voice search simplify shopping—new visitors find similar items effortlessly, and returning customers use voice commands for quick lookups.
- Zero-results handling & product recommendations: A dead-end “no results found” page drives shoppers away. Instead, an intelligent search suggests similar or trending products. First-time visitors stay engaged with alternative options, while returning customers receive recommendations aligned with past behavior.
- Mobile-friendly search: A search that works on desktop may feel clunky on mobile. Mobile-friendly features like large search bars, voice integration, and responsive design ensure a smooth experience. New visitors get a great first impression, while returning shoppers enjoy quick, seamless searches anywhere.
Fast Simon's eCommerce Personalization and Search
Fast, accurate search based on shopper intent
Tailored upsell and cross-sell product recommendations
Personalize the entire eCommerce journey
» Learn more about the power of AI in eCommerce site search
6 Best eCommerce Site Search Examples
1. Steve Madden
Steve Madden’s eCommerce site search showcases AI-powered sophistication, tailored for a global brand. With Fast Simon integration, it supports multiple brands and languages across 25 stores. The search provides autocomplete results with product images—horizontal on desktop and vertical on mobile. Self-learning algorithms track search performance, continuously refining results to match shopper intent, ensuring customers quickly find the styles they’re looking for.
Short-Term Benefits
The personalized product displays captivate visitors, encouraging them to explore more items and spend more time on the site. Users who engaged with the new search were 2X more likely to convert than those who browsed normally.
Fast Simon’s no-code, plug-and-play integration allowed Steve Madden to migrate to Shopify Plus smoothly with advanced search in place, which helped reduce bounce rates and keep impatient fashion shoppers engaged.
Long-Term Benefits
The conversion rate from search users doubled and has remained significantly higher than non-search sessions over the long run. Fast Simon’s scalable solution enabled Steve Madden to expand from one site to 10+ international online stores post-adoption without worrying about search performance.
» Check out these strategies to optimize your B2C eCommerce site search
2. Spiceology
Spiceology implemented an advanced eCommerce site search that serves two distinct shopper groups—professional chefs and casual home cooks—in one seamless experience. Fast Simon enhanced the search with visual merchandising, incorporating product images and previews in autocomplete and results to create a "Pinterest-like" discovery. Its AI-driven hyper-tagging generated dynamic filters for Spiceology’s 200+ products, allowing users to filter by flavor, ingredient, or collection without manual coding.
Short-term benefits
Right after overhauling the search, Spiceology saw shoppers spending much more time on site. Session durations jumped by 32% as customers used the intuitive filters and visuals to explore more products.
The new search functionality translated into more sales almost instantly. Customers who used the enhanced search were 1.5X more likely to convert than before, reflecting a significant uptick in conversion rate from search-driven sessions.
Long-term benefits
As customers grew comfortable with Spiceology’s search and discovery experience, they began buying more per visit. The average purchase price climbed by about 30% after implementing Fast Simon.
The advanced site search set the stage for sustained revenue growth, and Spiceology’s leadership reported ongoing sales increases directly linked to Fast Simon’s optimizations.
» Learn more about merchandising
3. Staghead Designs
Staghead Designs offers unique, handcrafted jewelry pieces. To showcase their diverse collection, they've employed Fast Simon's advanced filtering system. This includes tag-based filters that allow customers to sort products by attributes such as material, style, and customization options. Additionally, the implementation of an effective autocomplete tool ensures that customers receive accurate search results, even when dealing with complex product names or common misspellings.
Short-Term Benefits
Customers can easily navigate through various categories to find items that match their preferences. The site has seen more than twice the greater revenue from autocomplete compared to the non-search sessions.
Long-Term Benefits
A good shopping experience encourages customers to return for future purchases. Filter usage insights help optimize inventory management and marketing strategies, enabling a more responsive approach to business.
Pro Tip: By allowing shoppers to narrow down options based on specific attributes, you can facilitate a more personalized and efficient shopping experience.
» Learn more: How to optimize autocomplete search
4. Mastermind Toys
Mastermind Toys leveraged Fast Simon to create a highly curated eCommerce site search experience, akin to having a personal toy expert on the website. One standout innovation is their signature Gift Finder tool, which lets gift-givers customize searches by the recipient’s age, interests, or occasion, yielding a tailored selection of toys. This feature, powered by Fast Simon’s search and merchandising engine, turns a generic query into a guided experience.
Short-Term Benefits
The impact of implementing Fast Simon was almost immediate in sales figures. Mastermind Toys grew its online and mobile channel sales by roughly 300% in just 12 months following the advanced search rollout. It began boosting average order value and conversion rates from day one by intelligently showcasing relevant products as customers searched.
Long-Term Benefits
A reliable and user-friendly search experience encourages repeat business. By investing in advanced search, Mastermind Toys strengthened its position as a go-to destination for toy shoppers.
5. AmerCareRoyal
AmerCareRoyal improved its eCommerce platform with Fast Simon’s upsell and cross-sell features, dynamically suggesting complementary products like cutlery with napkins. The eCommerce site search function includes typo tolerance and auto-correction, ensuring accurate product discovery.
Short-Term Benefits
Customers are encouraged to add complementary products to their carts, increasing their overall spend per transaction. A well-organized search function reduces friction, allowing customers to find and purchase what they need quickly, leading to a 50% increase in conversions.
Long-Term Benefits
By prioritizing best-selling and high-margin products, AmerCareRoyal can optimize stock levels and reduce overstock. A seamless shopping experience encourages repeat purchases, keeping customers coming back.
Take Note: If you sell a variety of products that naturally go together, incorporating AI-driven upsell and cross-sell features into your search can significantly increase revenue. It’s not about pushing random items, but about offering relevant, helpful suggestions.
» Understand the benefits of upsell and cross-sell personalization
6. BulbAmerica
BulbAmerica’s eCommerce site search, powered by Fast Simon’s AI, handles a vast and constantly changing catalog effortlessly. It provides instant autocomplete with product images and names, when customers search for terms like “LED,” they see relevant suggestions right away. The search also ensures a better experience by showing in-stock alternatives first if a customer searches for a discontinued or out-of-stock item, rather than a dead-end result.
Short-Term Benefits
BulbAmerica experienced a 10X increase in the conversion rate from search users almost immediately. The average order value doubled once relevant recommendations and easy-to-use filters were in place.
Long-Term Benefits
Customers return because they feel the store understands their style and offers tailored recommendations. Sessions involving search now generate 3X more revenue than sessions where customers only navigate normally.
Pro Tip: Make sure that your search can handle out-of-stock products gracefully. Rather than showing “no results” or a sold-out item, set up your search to suggest in-stock alternatives or newer models.
Delivering the Best eCommerce FastSearch Experiences with Fast Simon
A well-optimized eCommerce site does more than just display results—it shapes how customers interact with your store. Fast Simon takes this to the next level with AI-powered personalization, predictive search, and visual discovery, ensuring shoppers find what they need quickly and effortlessly.
By refining search results based on real-time behavior, it increases engagement and conversions. In today’s competitive market, delivering one of the best eCommerce search experiences is not just a benefit—it’s crucial for driving long-term success.
» Ready to get started? Schedule a demo with Fast Simon
