B2B eCommerce Product Filtering UI

B2B ecommerce Product Filtering UI Features

Tips for perfecting your B2B ecommerce product filtering user interface

Selling in B2B ecommerce can be complicated to say the least. You’re competing with other businesses, both online and brick and mortar, and you need to have a huge product catalog to display all of the products and product variations that you carry. But how can you help B2B buyers find the products they are looking for in a catalog as large as yours? Filtering, but not just any filtering will do; you need to implement a familiar and easy to use product filtering user interface that helps B2B buyers quickly find the products that they are searching for.

Familiarity

Although it’s not the first adjective most business owners would use to describe their site’s product filtering UI, familiarity is key to creating a UI that is easy for customers to use. They should be able to search your catalog using filters without having to figure out the set up and how to use them first. For this reason, many businesses model their filtering user interfaces after Amazon’s because most online shoppers are already familiar with and have used Amazon. If your catalog’s filtering UI is somewhat familiar, it makes it that much easier for buyers to find and purchase the items they need. Below is a screenshot from one of our client’s product search results. As you can see the filtering selections are on the left side like almost every other site you would encounter, which makes it familiar to the buyer and also easy to use.

Usability

Another major component of product filtering user interfaces is usability. Your UI needs to be easy to use, so easy to use that it is almost intuitive. Your filtering UI is only as helpful to your customers as it is easy to use. If customers find the filtering UI too complicated, then you may as well not even have a filtering system in place. Usability also goes along with familiarity. If customers have already used similar filtering interfaces, they will be able to easily use yours to find what they want to buy.

Leaving a Breadcrumb Trail

A very vital part of a good product filtering UI is leaving breadcrumb trails for users to help them better navigate their search. Including a section at the top that shows shoppers the pages, categories, subcategories, and filters they have chosen helps customers know exactly how they got to the search results. It also allows them to backpedal by clicking on one of the previous selections, if the results aren’t what they wanted or if the product choices have gotten too small. Below is an example of a breadcrumb trail in the upper left hand corner below the menu, which is where customers usually expect to find it.

Clarity Can Help

Clarity has been creating custom solutions for B2B ecommerce businesses. We understand the special demands and needs of B2B. Our team of experts has helped numerous B2B businesses create and implement product filtering user interfaces that helps their customers search their sites and find what they want to buy. To find out more about Clarity ecommerce or to speak with an expert about perfecting your product filtering user interface, call or click to contact us today!