Guided Search

What is Guided Search?

Guided search is a structured discovery flow that clarifies intent with prompts, chips, and step-by-step filters before (or alongside) showing results. It reduces guesswork by turning vague goals into concrete constraints.

How It Works (quick)

• Prompts & chips: Quick picks for budget, size, brand, use-case, material.
• Intent detection: Classify the query (informational vs transactional) and preselect likely facets.
• Progressive disclosure: Ask the next best question only when needed.
• Grounded retrieval: Apply collected constraints → hybrid recall (BM25 + vectors) → re-rank.
• Feedback loop: Log skipped/selected chips to refine guidance.

Why It Matters in E-commerce

• Fewer dead ends: Less zero-results and pogo-sticking.
• Speed to product: Shorter path to fit/size-in-stock items.
• Education: Inject short tips and guides where confusion is common.

Best Practices

• Start with highest-impact chips (size-in-stock, price, brand).
• Keep choices small and clear; avoid cognitive overload.
• Respect hard rules (region/stock) early; leave preferences for later.
• Personalize gently (remember size/brand) with consent.
• Measure solved-in-≤3 steps, CTR, conversion, and reformulations.

Challenges

• Over-guidance feels pushy; stale chips; latency from extra calls; accessibility concerns if chips aren’t keyboard-friendly.

Examples

• “Trail running shoes” → chips: Men/Women, Waterproof, Size, Budget, then results.
• “Office chair” → chips for Ergonomic, Lumbar support, Price, with a “Compare” shortcut.

Summary

Guided search turns intent into the right constraints up front, cutting search friction and boosting conversion.