Is Your Search Box Working as Hard as It Could?
I recently read an article that made me rethink the basic search box. It was Advancing Advanced Search from the January edition of Boxes and Arrows. According to the article:
“Advanced search is the ugly child of interface design -always included, but never loved. Websites have come to depend on their search engines as the volume of content has increased. Yet advanced search functionality has not significantly developed in years. Poor matches and overwhelming search results remain a problem for users. Perhaps the standard search pattern deserves a new look. A progressive disclosure approach can enable users to use precision advanced search techniques to refine their searches and pinpoint the desired results.”
A few years ago Google presented us with a pristine entry field and promised to bring back top-notch results for whatever terms we entered. Since then, any site with a search box has been focusing on innovative ways to locate better results and present them in the most user-friendly way. But in doing so, many sites have neglected to innovate ways to help users enter search queries in the first place.
The article provides examples of sites that have integrated advanced search features into the standard search form, as opposed to just having a little, uninviting link to advanced search off to the side. For example, many travel sites now present features on the standard serach form that used to be hidden as advanced options, like whether travel dates are flexible and whether it’s a one-way or multi-city trip. Because the standard and advanced forms have been merged, the page design forces the user’s query to be more precise and, therefore, the results are more likely to meet the user’s needs.
The article helped me look at search boxes in a new light. My guess is that we often slap a simple search box on a site without ever considering alternatives. Don’t misunderstand me; I think simple and clear search boxes provide a wonderful user experience for many sites. But as designers we should always make decisions consciously and not because we’re following the trend. Could a design other than a single text entry field work better for you?
Related posts:
Did you enjoy this post? subscribe now to get all of the posts Comments (0)
No comments yet.