Revolutionary New Floating Search Box Drives More Revenues and Conversions on AmericanBridal.com

SAN JOSE, Calif., April 23, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- SLI Systems (www.sli-systems.com) today announced that an innovative, new "floating search box" on AmericanBridal.com has generated a substantial increase in revenue per visit and an incrementally larger conversion rate, among visitors who use the website's search box. The floating search box, a concept that was thought up by AmericanBridal.com, hovers over content as a site visitor is scrolling down a webpage, making the search box continuously accessible and encouraging greater usage of search – which leads to more purchases.

American Bridal, an online retailer of wedding supplies that has been using SLI site search since 2007, developed the idea for a floating search box while experimenting with various enhancements to its site search box to increase usage.

"We've seen many positive results of our use of SLI's full-service site search – people who use search are almost four times more likely to convert, and their average order value is 20% higher than people who don't search," said Jon Hawkins, senior e-commerce manager for XO Group Inc. "So we looked for new ways to get even more of our visitors to use site search and get even stronger results."

American Bridal conducted A/B testing for various changes to its site search, including enlarging the search box, putting the default cursor in the box on the home page, and using bold colors to highlight the search box. While each incremental change drove slightly increased search usage, the floating box – essentially a search toolbar that moves up and down a webpage to match visitors' scrolling activity – quickly yielded the best results. For visitors using site search, revenue per visit increased an additional 34%, while average order value gained 24% in value, and the conversion rate of site search pages increased 8.75%.

"These excellent results showed us that our visitors find the floating search box helpful, not intrusive," Hawkins said. "It's a great utility for our customers and helps us gain even more benefits from SLI's site search." AmericanBridal.com uses extra space on the floating site search toolbar to offer discount deals or to promote sales, giving the company an additional way to merchandise to customers and increase conversions.

SLI Systems is now encouraging all of its customers to consider using a floating search box. "We're always seeking out new ways to improve the effectiveness of site search and enhance the usability of our clients' websites," said Shaun Ryan, CEO of SLI Systems. "Users' expectations about what constitutes a good online experience are continually evolving, as is the world of e-commerce. The more we can do to make search and navigation faster and easier, the more our customers' businesses benefit."

SLI Systems' full-service, customized site search, navigation and merchandising offerings helps businesses like AmericanBridal.com meet customer expectations for relevant results and information, and also promote particular products and brands, all based on previous visitors' search and click-through activity. The solutions are dynamic, so results change as customer buying trends and search terms shift. Additionally, SLI's offerings are backed by the company's team of search and navigation experts, who oversee deployment of Learning Search and provide ongoing management and support.

About SLI Systems

SLI Systems provides full-service, customized, on-demand solutions for site-search, navigation, merchandising, and user-generated SEO.  SLI Systems' solutions empower businesses to enhance customer satisfaction while increasing sales, reducing costs and increasing site conversions.  Unlike traditional search and merchandising software, SLI Systems' patented technology continuously "learns" from the behavior of visitors over time to deliver more relevant results. SLI Systems is a privately held company with offices in San Jose, California; London; New Zealand and Australia.  For more information, visit sli-systems.com, watch the SLI overview video at WatchSLIVideo.com, read the company's blog at blog.sli-systems.com, watch site search and navigation tips on the SLI YouTube Channel at youtube.com/user/SLISiteSearch or download site search and navigation tips eBooks at GetSLIeBooks.com, follow SLI on Twitter at twitter.com/slisystems, on Facebook at facebook.com/slisystems, on Google+ at plus.google.com/101137664569293590367/posts and on Pinterest at pinterest.com/slisystems,  or listen to eCommerce podcasts at www.ecommercepodcast.com/.  

FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Nancy MacGregor Hill
RealTime Communications
510-733-6228
[email protected]
www.twitter.com/nmhill / www.twitter.com/slisystems

SOURCE SLI Systems