The Case for Building a Custom Search Results Page on Your Website

Your website's search results page, or SERP, is a digital gateway for visitors to navigate your content. It's an easy way to enrich the digital experience while serving visitors your most valuable content.

A custom SERP goes beyond standard search functionality. While templated search solutions provide a quick fix, there's an undeniable allure to the bespoke – a tailored experience that aligns with the uniqueness of your brand and speaks directly to the needs of your visitors. 

In this blog, we'll discuss the compelling case for building a custom search results page that goes beyond the basic and embraces the future of search. Let's begin!

Types of search result pages

When it comes to designing a search results page that meets your organization's needs, there are two ways to go about it: by either using a search template or custom building.

Search templates

Search templates are a useful option when you have limited resources and budget, but still want to offer a great search experience. Templated search is a straightforward search result page that offers minimal features, such as one category and a basic description for each result.

A benefit of using search templates is that you can have your search up and running in a just a few hours. The downside to search templates is that there are minimal options to style and customize your search results page.

Custom-built search

When looking to provide an enriched search result page with robust functionality, custom building is the way to go. With a custom-built search page, the ways you can customize really are endless. 

Custom SERPs are meant to showcase your content in a manner that is both visually exciting and streamlines the experience for your users. A custom-built search can display photos and videos, incorporate multiple categories, offer sorting and filtering options, and ensure no content is left undiscovered.

To get a better understanding of the difference between each experience, watch this video:

Why build a custom search results page?

• Tailor the search experience
  A custom-built search results page acts as a guide that each visitor can tailor to their specific needs. Unlike search templates, customized search enables you to showcase specific types of content based on the unique needs and preferences of your audience. This personalized approach transforms the search experience from a generic scroll to a curated exploration, increasing visitor engagement and satisfaction.
  
  
• Align your brand with the search results page
  Long gone are the days of ads within search results or pages that resemble an external search engine more than they do your actual website. By opting for a custom design, you can ensure that the aesthetics, color schemes, and overall visual identity of your SERP seamlessly aligns with the rest of your website. This reinforces your brand image and enhances the user experience by helping establish trust with new visitors. 
  
  
• Control of your search
  Build a search results page that truly aligns with all your website has to offer. Prioritize what's most important while deprioritizing content that may be outdated or irrelevant. With a custom search results page, you have the ability to control what content is promoted, included or excluded, ensuring that visitors are presented with the most appropriate information.
  
  
• Put the fun in functionality!
  A custom-built search offers more functionality than a simple search results page, making it a more enjoyable experience for your site visitors. Adding facets and filters takes search from exhausting to successful, while search suggestions and sorting options guide visitors that may not know exactly what they need. 

The benefits of custom SERPs

Any results page can serve a list of answers to sift through. A customized search results page is an opportunity to deliver a better user experience that aligns with your organization's goals. A few benefits to building your custom search results page include:

• Avoiding the endless scroll
  Visitors often have specific needs in mind when searching for information, meaning they want to find relevant content fast. Avoid the dreaded endless scroll by filling your search results page with ways to distill content. Categories and filters allow visitors to refine their search based on parameters such as date, type of content, location, price or other important attributes. 
  
  
• Ongoing optimization, helping to improve the experience and meet your goals
  A custom SERP allows you to future-proof your search functionality. You can easily adapt to changes in technology, visitor behavior or industry standards, ensuring that your search results page remains effective and relevant over time.
  
  
• Providing a more user-friendly, interactive experience
  A well-designed and intuitive results page encourages navigation, making it easy for visitors to seamlessly interact with your content.

Combining user experience with innovation

A custom-built search results page surpasses the limitations of standard templates, unlocking endless possibilities that align with your brand, captivating your audience and delivering a user-centric experience.

As your website evolves and content library grows, consider the value of a personalized approach – one that elevates your search results page from a mere utility to one of the most effective pages on your website.

Ready to build the SERP of your dreams? Request a custom search demo today!