SAI case study
Search and filters for a catalog of nearly 270 products
Five navigation dimensions and a search by code, brand, name, or registration number that always lead to the same product page.
The starting point
Everyone looks for an implant in their own way.
SAI's catalog grouped implants that people searched for by name, code, or anatomical region, but it didn't support cross-filtering.
People search catalogs in this industry in different ways. Some know the code; others start with the brand or trade name. A surgeon may start from the anatomical region or procedure without remembering the product's exact name.
If each path leads somewhere different, or to a PDF, the catalog depends on someone answering the phone.
What we found
- Search by name, code, or anatomical region
- Filters couldn't be combined
- Results that ended in a PDF
The approach
Five paths that end at the same product page.
We combined area of interest, anatomical region, product type, procedure, and brand to narrow the grid, and added site search by name, code, brand, and registration number.
First we decided how each product relates to everything else: five navigation dimensions with 86 terms. With that structure in place, the filters can be combined and every path ends at the same product page.
Site search finds a product by title, code, brand, trade name, and registration number, which is how many distributors and procurement departments search.
What we did
- Area of interest
- Anatomical region
- Product type
- Procedure
- Brand
- Search by registration number
The hardest part
Filters that don't keep people waiting
With nearly 270 products and five navigation dimensions, every filter combination creates a different page. Those views weren't using the site's cache, so each one had to be built when someone requested it: it took 2.6 seconds.
We adjusted the cache for filtered views, and the same view went down to 0.18 seconds. It's the difference between browsing a catalog and waiting every time a box is checked.
The work
What stayed in place
- 2.6 s0.18 sfiltered catalog view
- 5navigation dimensions
- 86terms
