Amazon Search Bar

When customers turn to Amazon to make their purchases, the first stop for most of them is the Amazon Search Bar. Conveniently located at the top of the Amazon website, the Amazon Search Bar functions is the header for the entire website, making the customer’s search item the page’s focus.

Buyers use the Search Bar to conduct a Product Search and find the products they seek quickly and easily. Those who are looking for a particular item may search with product details (e.g., “bamboo cutting board set”), retrieving the desired product. Those whose search is less defined may enter a general search term (e.g., “cutting board”) and retrieve a vast array of options.

Using the Amazon Search Bar Efficiently (for Buyers)

When searching via the Amazon Search Bar, buyers should understand the following points:

• Search Suggestions: When the buyer begins typing the words or phrase of the search, Amazon offers search suggestions that complete the term in a drop-down menu. The buyer may then click on the correct option suggested or continue typing.
• Department: When the buyer first accesses the Amazon site, the Search Bar is set to the default of “All,” which means that the search engine searches all of Amazon’s departments. To expedite the search and focus the results, buyers may click on “All” and select the appropriate department from a drop-down menu. The term “brush,” for example, will retrieve different items in different categories, and one who is looking for a paint brush can retrieve the correct items from the Arts, Crafts, & Sewing Department, one who needs to replace a part on a vacuum cleaner can find it in Appliances, and one who is replacing a hair brush can find it in Beauty.
• Expand Beyond Relevant Results: Amazon’s search retrieves the most relevant results for the word or phrase searched, but if the results are not what the buyer needs, then “See all results for [the search term]” appears on the screen. This option to expand the search makes the buyer’s continued search efficient.
• Related Searches: After Amazon’s search retrieves the relevant results for the word or phrase searched, the buyer may narrow the results and refine the search by selecting related searches. For example: in Beauty, the search for “brush” yields related searches: brush set, hair brush, makeup brushes.