Yext, Inc. (NYSE: YEXT), the AI Search Company, today announced the launch of the Yext Data Hub, an interactive data repository that allows users to explore Yext's wealth of search data and gain insights about online consumer behavior around the world.
The data hub, which features eight different views for metrics like clicks for directions, clicks to call, impressions, and click-through rates, includes high-level summaries as well as detailed year-over-year* analyses. Each can be filtered by geography, industry verticals like financial services, healthcare, and retail — and even sub-verticals like ATMs, dental services, and clothing stores.
"Our work using AI to transform the search experiences of businesses around the world has given us unparalleled access to search data that helps demystify the online customer journey," said Marc Ferrentino, Chief Strategy Officer at Yext. "Over the last year and a half, businesses across all industries have seen volatile trends in search behavior, making it difficult to measure performance and know how to adjust. We hope that by making our search data accessible in this hub, businesses can get a comprehensive understanding of customer behavior in their industry over time, benchmark their performance, and inform their strategy moving forward."
As more businesses reopen and anticipate a full return to "normal," the Yext Data Hub is particularly useful in comparing current consumer search behavior before, during, and after peak pandemic levels. Some key insights** include:
Foot traffic to food rebounds. In March 2021, directions to restaurants in the US returned to near-normal levels as more and more consumers were vaccinated and felt safer enjoying meals indoors. Comparing data from April 2020 and 2021, foot traffic rose an average of 244%.
Consumers bank on call-to-action buttons. Traffic to web pages of banks, mortgage lenders, and other financial services in the US dipped — in some months down by 29% — throughout the pandemic. While this dip applied in May 2021 as well, during that month there was actually an average increase of 16% when it came to customers clicking call-to-action buttons on brands' websites, like scheduling an appointment or learning more about a service.
Patients elect for treatment. As people get back into their healthcare routines, elective healthcare services such as dental, eye care, and medical specialities saw an upward tick in search volume, reaching 26% higher than expected levels in the US since February this year.
Consumers add in-store shopping to their cart. Foot traffic to stores in the US began increasing in the spring of this year, peaking at an average 201% higher in April 2021 compared to 2020. This trend was mirrored around the world in countries like the UK, France, and Japan.
Hotels slowly become a destination for UK travelers. With most consumers still cautious about traveling and staying in hotels, foot traffic to hospitality businesses steadily increased this spring but remained at 45% below average levels in May.
Online engagement goes on the menu in Germany. In May, as Germany emerged from lockdown, clicks to restaurant websites by consumers in the country rose to 139% compared to normal levels, after having been below normal levels for months. Clicks to call also rose to 124% compared to normal levels.
French consumers take a shine to jewelry. After a lackluster year for the retail industry in France, jewelry stores have bounced back, seeing 22% more search volume in recent months and a higher foot traffic than other retail sub-verticals in the country.
Explore consumer search behavior in Yext's interactive data hub here.
*Yext plans to regularly update the hub, which currently displays data from January 2019 to May 2021.
**Timeseries data is shown as a monthly average per location across many businesses within a given subset of entities. Year-over-year calculations compare 2021 to 2020 and 2020 to 2019 unless otherwise noted, are normalized by count of locations, and exclude locations launched after the beginning of the timeframe. Where multiple sub-verticals, geographies, and/or business types are rolled up, equal weighting is given to each unique combination of the three. Insights are shown only on a region and industry level where there are sufficient businesses, locations, and search engine data sources, in order to maintain anonymity for Yext customers and allow for a sufficient period of time to provide a meaningful comparison year over year.