Enhanced site search

Metricon’s website already had Algolia powering search queries, but lacked a functional search results experience, meaning users could type a term, but there was nowhere definitive to explore outcomes.

With a rich catalogue of home designs, display homes and H&L packages, Metricon wanted to unlock that content and guide customers more effectively toward inspiration and conversion.

The goal was clear: uplift search to be product-centric, intuitive and inspirational, delivering relevant results (home designs, display homes, H&L packages) and surfacing popular searches and predictive options that help customers explore with confidence.

Working within Metricon's existing Algolia infrastructure, we prototyped, designed, and delivered a production-ready search experience that dramatically improved how customers discover and engage with the catalogue.

Strategic product focus

The work began with a clear strategic focus: to orient the search surface around the content types that matter most to customers planning a new home. Home designs, display homes, and house & land packages became the backbone of the results experience, ensuring that from the first query, users are guided toward the products most relevant to their journey.

Predictive and inspiring UX

For search to feel genuinely helpful rather than static, we introduced predictive suggestions drawn from popular and high-value queries, smart categorisation that surfaces home types and featured packages at a glance, and clear pathways from initial search through to deeper exploration. The result is an entry point that feels responsive and considered, not a blank results page, but a starting point for discovery.

Backend intelligence with Algolia

Under the hood, we refined the Algolia configuration to better match what users actually mean when they search. Curated synonyms capture varied phrasing and surface content that might otherwise stay hidden, while enhanced indexing prioritises the product tags and content hierarchies that matter most. These improvements work quietly in the background, making every query smarter than the one before.

Our process balanced strategic planning, design iteration and rapid delivery:

Wireframes & concept exploration

During the first phase, we explored multiple approaches to the search UI, mapping user flows, stress-testing interactions, and validating concepts before committing to a direction. This ensured the experience we designed was grounded in how customers actually think and move through the site, not just how search typically looks.

Design approval to implementation sprints

Once the visual language and UX were signed off, we moved into sprint cycles focused on rapid build, test and rollout. By keeping development tightly scoped, we delivered a polished results page and predictive experience without delay.

Metricon’s new search experience gives customers a powerful tool to discover homes, explore popular ideas and quickly navigate to relevant content, all powered by a refined Algolia backend and intuitive front-end experience.

A smarter search, built to drive discovery.