Yext updates site search algorithm, adds experience options

AI search company Yext, which powers site search for many businesses, announced an update to its search algorithm update along with some key feature additions.

The release includes revamped test search and experience training, and also a reimagining of the company’s data connector and app frameworks.

The Phoenix algorithm update enables businesses to analyze and “rerank” the best-performing search results. In this way, it takes into account the likely search results that visitors to a site have looked for most recently and shows them first in the search window, cutting down the time it takes for users to find the information they need.

With the data connector update, businesses can use a low-code “extract, transform, load” (ETL) tool that businesses can use to extract data to be analyzed in other platforms.

The search experience training and test search enables businesses to test the search experience on their properties in the way that customers see them and use them.

Why we care. It’s all about experience and navigation for a reason. Marketers like to see their customers spend a lot of time on their digital properties, but it should be meaningful time, not time wasted. If customers are getting frustrated when they can’t find the right information after too many searches, they might not spend as much time with your site in future visits. They might instead turn to a competitor with a better search experience on their site.