7 min

Enterprise Search Software: What It Is And How To Use It

Enterprise Search Software is the future of the online experience, but what is it? Yext has the answers.

By Yext

Dec 13, 2021

7 min

The amount of content available on the internet today can be a little overwhelming, and according to studies, it's doubling in size every year.

That's a lot of data for users to sift through.

The solution that we've developed and progressed over the years is the search bar, where we can essentially ask a search engine that has access to most things on the internet to search and bring back results that closely match our request.

This is a pretty successful system, and with developments in artificial intelligence, it keeps getting refined.

But there are still tiers of quality when it comes to these search bars, and with society getting used to the plethora of information out there and using high-quality search engines, that's what they expect when they end up on your webpage.

The organization and availability of content on a page can be a make-or-break quality to users, so it's incredibly important that you have an optimized system for them to use to navigate your site and get the answers they're looking for easily and quickly.

That's where Enterprise Search Software steps in.

What Is Enterprise Search Software

Enterprise Search Software is provided by a company that absorbs all of the content on your existing webpage and organizes it into a systematic index.

It then creates an intuitive search bar that functions by utilizing one or more layered algorithms to return results to your customers' queries.

For example, Yext Answers uses a multi-algorithm system to identify not only keywords, but entire phrases. Our search engine is then able to respond intuitively to your user instead of just returning them vaguely related search results based on each individual keyword in their search.

The end result? Direct answers to your questions, instead of links that may or may not be relevant or helpful.

Essentially it's a way for your business to take advantage of the same technology Google uses to organize your companies online content, creating a reliable and easy-to-use search tool for your users.

How Does It Work

Enterprise Search Software, or ESS companies like Yext, work with each unique business to build their perfect system.

It starts with the ESS company providing an API, or an Application Programming Interface, to the client company.

The client company then uploads all of its online content to the API stored on the ESS company's cloud and hardware servers.

The data is then compiled, tagged, and organized into an index that the ESS engine can access. The search engine is developed specifically for each business to recognize their content.

While the actual operation of the search engine depends on the ESS provider, at Yext, we're obsessed with developing the future of reliable and responsive search bars.

Yext Answers has cutting-edge Natural Language Processing technology and a multi-layered algorithm system because we understand that search doesn't just search anymore: It's a system that genuinely understands language.

Why Use Enterprise Search Software?

There are a lot of reasons every business with online content should use Enterprise Search Software.

The benefits to your company and your users are immensely valuable, and we genuinely believe that an intelligent search function is essential to a successful online experience these days.

Information Overload

Like we mentioned before, the internet is massive. Users are constantly bombarded with new information and websites with new UI designs.

So it's important to have something on your page that's familiar and trustworthy to them, like a search bar.

But not just any search bar, because you certainly could implement something less than desirable.

You need a tool that organizes all of your content into a streamlined and highly accessible system because with all of the data floating around out there users don't have time to waste sifting through your content.

They expect an easy way to find exactly what they're looking for; otherwise, they may very well go find someone else who has that level of organization.

Your Customers Know What They Want

Almost half of all customers that visit your webpage already know what they're looking for, and they expect your site to be able to show them that specific product without any effort.

So even if your webpage is gorgeous in its design, a customer is not going to want to fumble around it trying to find what they're there for.

Enterprise search software optimizes this experience for your customer and gets them direct access to what they came for.

However, don't assume that this means you can't offer other products because they're in a hurry, because ESS helps you do that as well.

Because of the machine learning elements of our Yext Answers search system, we can help you identify and present products to your customers that are immediately relevant to their experience.

By taking information from all users, analyzing what each one views, and makes purchases on, ESS can make educated suggestions to your users on the same page as the specific product that they came for.

This is incredibly useful because it doesn't feel like a pushy salesperson following them around, but rather a friendly face that's familiar with their interests making a genuine suggestion.

Search Analysis

Having direct insight into what your customers search for and how they phrase their searches is incredibly valuable to your marketing and development team.

With ESS on your side, you gain visibility of exactly what your customers want, which products are the most popular, and where your users are searching from.

Yext Answers indexes all of your visitor's search terms and queries. You can view these insights to determine what your site does well, and where it may be failing your customers.

What Makes Yext So Good

Here at Yext, we're focused on two things: Our client's success and the future.

And to us, these concepts go hand in hand. Because of our dedication to constantly evolving our technology, we can offer our clients the best products, and it's because we're obsessed with client success, we're always striving for better technology.

Yext Answers uses a multi-tiered algorithm system in order to understand your users' searches and respond with exactly what they're looking for. By investing in and building a custom Knowledge Graph for your business, you can have all your information in one place from which a search platform can pull.

Imagine having a personalized version of Google on your webpage that users can use to access your content. That's the power an enterprise search software brings to the table.

What Kind Of Business Benefits From Enterprise Search Software?

Any company that has a website with content available would benefit from enterprise search software, particularly when you work with a provider like Yext.

The amount of accessibility that a search engine right on your page can bring to your clients is going to make a huge difference in their online experience, and it's never been more important to make sure that your customers enjoy their time on your site.

By 2019, online trends proved that customers would much rather find what they're looking for on their own instead of reaching out and asking. Two years later, customers now prefer their shopping experience to be their individual journey.

Not to mention the number of delays and headaches that users associate with customer service these days- Even if you have a top-tier customer service team your clients are still going to prefer to avoid contacting them.

Creating a reliable search function that your clients can use to access all of the data on your site is going to make their experience much more satisfying, which is exactly what you want to focus on.

But if your customers trust your website to be able to conveniently show them exactly what they're looking for without any hoops, your website is going to stand out to them in a positive light.

In Conclusion

Enterprise search software has the potential to add a lot of value to your company and your clients.

They can supply a heightened experience for your users and a streamlined way for your company to interact with them and personalize their time on your page.

And the data analysis included will strengthen the way you develop your products and market your content. Being able to log and analyze the content on your website that users are frequently searching for is invaluable to a business.

At Yext, our passion is to optimize your business because we're obsessed with your success. Customer relations, marketing data, and customer insights are only the beginning when it comes to what an enterprise search software like Yext Answers can bring to your website.

That's why we put so much effort into developing cutting-edge technology because with the internet moving so fast, you don't want to get left behind.

References:

  1. How Big Is The Internet? Hint: Probably A Lot Bigger Than You Think

  2. How Site Search is Killing Your Conversion Rate (And How to Fix It)

  3. The Ways And Means Of B2B Buyer Journey Maps: We're Going Deep at Forrester's B2B Forum

  4. On-Site Search & SEO: Everything You Need to Know | Search Engine Journal

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