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WebSideStory
Release date: October 5, 2006
WebSideStory Launches Industry's First Ajax-Enabled Site Search Solution
'Active Browsing' Integrates One of Web 2.0's Premier Applications to Help E-Tailers Improve the Customer Experience, Shorten Conversion Cycle
SAN DIEGO, Oct. 5 -- WebSideStory, Inc. (NASDAQ:WSSI), a leading provider of digital marketing and analytics solutions, today announced the industry's first commercially available Ajax-enabled site search solution. This capability, called Active Browsing, is an extended service of WebSideStory Search and enables any e-commerce site to integrate one of Web 2.0's enabling technologies, Ajax (Asynchronous JavaScript and XML), into their product search results. The result is greatly enhanced speed and interactivity, and an improved customer shopping experience in which shoppers are able to engage in "clickless browsing" -- the ability to preview additional product facets and "more like this" categories just by rolling their mouse over specific search results. Last year, The Gap received industry wide attention for spending a reported $10 million to deliver this same type of "quick look" product functionality to its web site as part of a major Ajax-enabled redesign. Active Browsing is available from WebSideStory at a fraction of this cost and can deliver value for any online business model. Active Browsing is currently live on Jockey.com.
"When you make online shopping faster, easier, you create a more persuasive experience, that leads to better conversions and more loyal customers," said Bryan Eisenberg, the co-founder of Future Now, Inc., a New York City marketing firm, and the author of two New York Times best-selling business books, Call to Action and Waiting For Your Cat to Bark? "Active Browsing is demonstrably better than virtually every e-tailer's current offering."
Active Browsing works by transforming site search into a highly interactive application that accesses server data optimally, and allows for user interface innovations such as "bubbles" that overlay the page to provide more information and navigation choices. This enables visitors to speed through product search results and related facets -- color, size, gender, etc. -- without having to reload the page every time. Active Browsing lays the foundation for additional product capabilities that will take site search to whole new levels of interactivity, including more intuitive interaction conventions and user interfaces. Advanced Ajax implementations at travel sites like Kayak.com are credited with having positive impacts on both user experience and market share. Hitwise, an online competitive service, recently reported that Kayak.com's market share has surged in the last six months -- an increase that one travel industry analyst attributed to the use of Ajax. Google Maps is another popular example of Ajax in action.
"Active Browsing is incredible," said Susan Aldrich, a senior vice president at Patricia Seybold Group and one of the top site search analysts in the industry. "With many e-commerce sites, I almost get motion sickness having to click back and forth between different products and facets. Not with Active Browsing. It enables you to get key merchandising information while staying focused and engaged on the product. I think it's fair to say that a majority of shoppers will be clamoring for this type of experience within the next year. With Active Browsing, WebSideStory adds yet another valuable innovation to its solutions."
In April, WebSideStory launched WebSideStory Search 4.0 with Active Ranking, the first site solution to drive site search results based on the full spectrum of web analytics data. With Active Browsing, WebSideStory expands its industry leading Web 2.0 capabilities, which also include the tracking of Web 2.0 content and applications -- such as Ajax, RSS feeds, podcasts and streaming video -- with HBX Analytics, an award-winning on-demand web analytics service.
"We are pleased to bring another industry first to the market, for the benefit of our customers," said Steve Kusmer, senior vice president and general manager of WebSideStory's search and content solutions unit. "Active Browsing is truly the next generation of site search, where you are moving from a static, click-heavy search experience to a highly interactive one."
For more information about Active Browsing and WebSideStory Search, please visit www.websidestory.com
About WebSideStory, Inc.
Founded in 1996, WebSideStory, Inc. is a leading provider of digital marketing and analytics solutions that improve online marketing, sales and business operations. Its WebSideStory suite of digital marketing applications consists of web analytics, site search, web content management, and keyword bid management. WebSideStory also provides enterprise analytics solutions through its wholly owned subsidiary, Visual Sciences, LLC, a leading provider of streaming data analysis and visualization software. WebSideStory is headquartered in San Diego, California, and has European headquarters in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
For more information, contact WebSideStory Voice: 858.546.0040 Fax: 858.546.0480 10182 Telesis Court, 6th Floor San Diego, CA 92121 Web site: www.websidestory.com.
Source: WebSideStory, Inc.
CONTACT: Erik Bratt +1-858-546-0040, ext. 365 erik.bratt@websidestory.com
Contacts:
General Information:
Erik Bratt
USA
Phone: 858-546-0040 ext 365 E-mail this person
Company Information: Name: WebSideStory Address: 10182 Telesis Court City: San Diego State: CA ZIP: 92121 Country: USA Phone: 858-546-0040 http://www.websidestory.com
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