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Search Success Tracking

Search Success Tracking helps you measure and improve your search performance. It provides insights into the most important metrics, showing how well your search is meeting user expectations over time.

Search Studio

To activate Search Success Tracking, please contact your Zoovu representative or send a message to the Customer Success Team.

Once success tracking is activated for your Search Studio project, you can see the dashboard in Search Studio > Analytics > Search Success Tracking.

Use the date picker in the top-right corner to select a time period for the analytics.

Overall Score​

The search success score is a metric that helps you understand how well your search performs. It combines multiple key factors into a single number.

The score is based on the following formula:

4 x Click-through Rate (CTR) + 0.2 x Search Session Rate - Zero Result Rate - Abandon Rate + 0.5 x Filter Rate

Search Studio

Each factor in the formula represents a different aspect of user interaction. The data shown is the average for past 7 days.

  • Click-through rate (CTR) – Higher clicks on search results indicate users are finding relevant results.
  • Search session rate – Tracks how many searches are happening per session.
  • Zero result rate – Measures how often users get no results (lower is better).
  • Abandon rate – Shows how often users leave search without clicking anything (lower is better).
  • Filter rate – Tracks how often users refine results using filters (higher is better).

The formula was updated in January 2025, which may cause a sudden shift in scores.

Interpreting the Overall Score​

The search success score ranges from 0 to 250. A higher score means users are finding relevant products quickly. A lower score may indicate issues like poor search relevance or high abandonment rates.

Improve your search quality score​

To improve your overall score, focus on increasing positive metrics (CTR, Search Session Rate, Filter Rate) and reducing Zero Result Rate and Abandon Rate.

Click-through Rate​

Click-through Rate is the percentage of users who click on a search result. A low CTR may mean the results are not relevant or users can see the information they need without clicking.

To increase CTR:

  • Go to the "all queries" section and sort queries by CTR in ascending order. Filter down to those with at least 10 unique searches to find low-performing ones.
  • Next, analyze search results by clicking on the search icon under "actions." Check if the best matches appear at the top. If not, you may need to adjust your ranking strategy or create a curated result set using the Result Manager.
  • Check query details by clicking the information icon. This reveals what users searched for before and after a query.

If you notice popular products or articles ranked too low, consider:

Suggestion Click-through Rate​

Suggestion Click-through Rate is the percentage of users who click on a search suggestion in the autocomplete dropdown. A low rate might mean the suggestions aren’t helpful or users can see the information they need without clicking. (Tracked since January 2025.)

Search Session Rate​

Search Session Rate is the percentage of users who use the search.

A low search session rate means users aren’t using the search bar as often as expected. Here's how you can make the search bar more visible:

  • Place it at the top of your site where users naturally look.
  • Make sure it stands out with the right size and contrast.
  • Add helpful placeholder text like: "search for product name, category, or brand."

Use the result manager to create curated search pages.

Zero Result Rate​

Zero Result Rate is the percentage of searches that return no results.

Zero results happen when users search for products or content that don’t exist or when search settings need adjustments. To fix that:

  • Check analytics for common no-result searches.
  • If a product or brand isn’t available, suggest alternatives using the Result Manager.
  • Add synonyms in the Dictionary.

Abandon Rate​

Abandon Rate is the percentage of searches where users don’t interact with the results (no clicks, no filtering).

A high abandon rate means users search but don’t interact with results.

Possible causes and solutions:

  • If results aren’t relevant, follow the CTR optimization steps to improve ranking.
  • Some users find what they need without clicking. If this is the case, a high abandon rate may not be an issue.

Filter Rate​

Filter Rate is the percentage of users who use filters to refine their search. A higher rate means filters are helping users find exactly what they need.

If filter rate is low, they may not be useful or visible enough. To fix that:

  • Offer relevant filters and order them by usage so the most-used filters appear first. Learn more.
  • Test whether filters work better on the left or top of the results page. Change the layout in the Search Designer