Google is tackling the problem of abandoned searches in the era of the endless aisle and marketing twists that impact online browsing.
To deal with the problem, the company has announced Google Cloud Retail Search, which it calls a purpose-built industry solution that gives retailers the ability to provide quality search on their own digital properties. Built on Google’s understanding of user intent and context, Retail Search offers functionality that’s customizable to address unique business needs, the company asserted, providing consumers with a higher-quality shopping experience.
Search abandonment is a costly industry-wide issue, Google noted, as shoppers display a low tolerance for bad search results on retail websites. Search abandonment impacts sales and erodes brand loyalty, costing retailers more than $300 billion a year in the United States alone, Google asserted, citing research conducted by The Harris Poll.
Retail Search helps convert purchase intent across retailers’ own websites and mobile apps by understanding consumer intent and mapping it to product inventory, Google stated. It allows retailers to provide helpful search experiences, including auto-complete, personalized results and relevant promotions. Machine learning results improve with every query, the company added, and its customers control their data.
