Lighting by Gregory Achieves 40% Higher Conversion Rates With SLI Systems Hosted Site Search

Major Lighting and Ceiling Fan Distributor Successfully Converts More Browsers to Buyers After Implementing SLI's Learning Search Solution

SLI Systems, a provider of on-demand, intelligent search services for Internet and e-commerce sites, today announced that Lighting by Gregory (www.lightingbygregory.com), one of the largest lighting and ceiling fan distributors in the U.S., has experienced close to 40% higher conversion rates since it adopted SLI's hosted site search and user-generated search engine optimization (SEO) offerings.

A multi-channel retailer, Lighting by Gregory is using SLI's Learning Search and Site Champion products to improve the relevance of site search results and leverage site search data to drive more traffic to its site from natural searches on Google and other search engines. The overall result has been an improved online experience for customers and visitors to Lightingbygregory.com.

Lighting by Gregory has more than 150,000 products in its e-commerce inventory. However, prior to working with SLI, the company saw a poor percentage of its online visitors convert to buyers through the use of its site search. Usage reports showed that only shoppers who spent time thoroughly navigating the retailer's site purchased products. In addition, Lighting by Gregory's previous site search solution was very slow and didn't offer refinement options to help customers find the products they were seeking. Consequently, the company began looking for a more robust site search solution to improve the visitor experience and increase sales.

"Our prior site search solution, which was designed specifically for us, was inefficient, unintelligent and provided users with an unsatisfactory online experience," said Daniel Pfeffer, Lighting by Gregory CEO. "We needed a tool to expertly guide our users to the products they wanted. After looking at a number of site search solutions, we found SLI to be the most robust and cost-effective. Its unique Software as a Service (SaaS) model was very appealing, as we wanted to reduce the time required to manage site search so we could focus more on our core business."

Lighting by Gregory conducted a 30-day free trial with SLI -- a standard offering for all new SLI customers -- and saw immediate results. Since implementing SLI's Learning Search and Site Champion, the company has experienced up to 40% higher conversion rates due to its new site search functionality. Visitors to Lighting by Gregory's site now leave positive feedback highlighting how easy the site search is to use, and how quickly they can locate products and information. Also, because Lighting by Gregory conducts their business through telephone orders, the company's customer service team now benefits from a better performing site search, as it helps them easily locate product information in response to phone requests.

"Apart from the stellar results we've seen through SLI's technology, we are incredibly impressed with the level of service we receive from the company," said Pfeffer. "They are always amenable to making whatever changes we need to improve our e-commerce business. SLI is our best vendor in terms of dedication, attention to detail and response time -- and their search product continues to exceed our expectations."

About Learning Search and Site Champion

Based on SLI's patented "Learning Search" intelligent search technology, the company's hosted site search and user-generated SEO solutions "learn" from user behavior by tracking the search terms people use on a retailer's site and the resulting items they click on. SLI's solutions improve the user experience for Web site visitors and ensure the products people are searching for show up in the right searches -- whether those searches are conducted on their own sites or on a Web search engine like Google.

Learning Search is a hosted site search solution that continually tracks visitors' aggregate search terms and the corresponding items clicked on, and uses that data to deliver results based on popularity. For example, if someone searches for "ceiling fan," Learning Search automatically ranks the items so that those with historically higher click-rates are listed at the top. Learning Search also shows how many products exist and in what categories, and gives visitors the option to sort the results by ascending or descending prices, or filter by category. More information is available at http://www.sli-systems.com.

More than 300 sites use SLI Systems' hosted search offerings including ULTA, Tupperware, Harry and David, Smith & Hawken, NRS (Northwest River Supplies), FTD and Etronics.com, among others.

About SLI Systems

SLI Systems is the developer of learning-based search and navigation technology for corporate Internet sites, e-commerce destinations and consumer Internet portals that Searches, Learns and Improves the user experience. SLI Systems' hosted site search and automated SEO solutions empower businesses to enhance customer satisfaction while increasing sales, reducing costs and yielding valuable customer information. Unlike traditional search software, SLI Systems' patented technology continuously "learns" from the behavior of visitors over time to deliver more relevant results. SLI Systems is a privately held company, with offices in Silicon Valley, London, and Christchurch, New Zealand. For more information, visit www.sli-systems.com, or see the company's blog at http://blog.sli-systems.com/.

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