While doing our usability consultant series we come across many different search engines. Some are great, while others need serious improvements. A great example of a well-working search engine is the one found at online jewelry retailer Ice.com’s site. Internet Retailer pointed out in an article that Ice.com has raised their conversion rates by 25-50% by including their best sellers at the top of every search result page.

The search engine not only displays results for what you are looking for, but also the top sellers related to your search. For example, in searching for “rings,” the search engine will give you all the ring results, with the top selling four rings listed in a “Top Sellers” section at the top of the search results.

On top of that, sorting results within a search is made easy. Dropdown menus make sorting by a specific stone, metal, stone shape, or occasion easy. Links near the top of the search result make it possible to sort by price or new releases. The standard option of choosing how many products to display also makes viewing search results easier for the consumer. Retailers can learn a lot to improve their own search engines from this example.