Usability testing tools like UserTesting have made a huge impact by putting UX research into the hands of more teams. They offer fast, scalable ways to launch studies, hear from users, and observe behavior. But when it comes to search experience – one of the most complex parts of a digital product – they don’t always deliver the level of depth or clarity teams are hoping for.

Search behavior is complex and hard to simulate

In a real-world environment, users approach site search with specific goals, expectations, and time pressures. They might search broadly (“boots”) or use highly specific terms (“waterproof hiking boots size 10”). Tools like UserTesting typically rely on scripted tasks, which may not reflect authentic query behavior. This can make it difficult to evaluate true user behavior in site search.

Additionally, testers may not be representative of your actual customer base in terms of search intent. While UserTesting’s participant pool is wide, it doesn’t always align with niche, high-intent user segments that matter most for product teams or retailers.

Search-specific feedback is inconsistent

Many teams report that responses gathered during search usability testing are vague. Feedback like “I didn’t find what I was looking for” or “it was hard to use” often lacks the detail needed to isolate problems in search algorithms, filter presentation, or content tagging. DIY research tools don’t always prompt users in the right ways to articulate what specifically went wrong in their search session.

Tool limitations hinder testing search functionality thoroughly

• Tasks don’t always capture the iterative nature of searching (e.g. refining terms, scanning results, using filters).
• Basic recordings may miss context like doubt, hesitation, or unclear mental models.
• Built-in analysis tools often lack tagging or filtering to identify trends in keyword behavior or result comprehension.

This leaves teams asking questions like: Are users misunderstanding our categories? Are filters buried or confusing? Was the product just not returned because it’s not in stock – or because the taxonomy is broken?

How On Demand Talent can help bridge the gap

Professional UX researchers experienced in search testing can help design better tasks, interpret user feedback, and isolate breakdowns in the search journey. By leveraging On Demand Talent, teams can add expertise exactly when it’s needed – from crafting contextual user tasks to diagnosing deeper issues in navigation, search relevance, and information architecture.

Rather than reinvent your testing approach, the right expert support can unlock more useful insights from tools you’re already using, accelerating learning and improving relevance testing outcomes.

When using DIY insights tools like UserTesting to assess search experience, it’s easy to get tripped up by misleading or incomplete findings. That’s not because your search doesn’t have problems – it’s because most DIY tools aren’t purpose-built to capture the subtle, interconnected issues typical of on-site search.

Here are some of the most common search UX issues in UserTesting – and how to fix them:

1. Users aren’t finding relevant results

This is arguably the number-one complaint in search experience research. Users type in a term and either get no results, or see irrelevant ones. But the feedback here is often too vague – making it unclear whether the problem is with search logic, tagging, or something else.

How to fix it: Include tasks that ask users to explain why a result did or didn’t match their expectations. On Demand Talent professionals can help design queries and follow-up questions that reveal gaps in taxonomy, synonym mapping, or backend logic. They also know how to probe gently to uncover assumptions users are making.

2. Filters confuse or overwhelm users

Another common issue is poor filter comprehension. Users often don’t see filtering options or don’t know what they mean – then abandon search altogether. Testing filter usability with UserTesting requires thoughtful task design or you risk missing the issue entirely.

How to fix it: Ask users to find a product or article using specific filters. Don’t just observe behavior – collect real-time commentary to understand if labels are understood or ignored. An experienced UX researcher can analyze patterns across sessions and detect mismatches between filter labels and user expectations.

3. Site structure isn’t intuitive

Underlying site architecture issues can wreck even the cleanest search UI. If product categories are misaligned with user mental models, even great search tools won’t boost findability.

How to fix it: Conduct simple card-sorting or guided navigation tests alongside your search testing. UserTesting doesn’t always surface architectural issues unless users hit major roadblocks. Insights professionals can help you connect the dots between filtering behavior, browsing patterns, and deeper IA (information architecture) flaws.

4. User motivations don’t match test scenarios

Lastly, many UX issues come down to misaligned testing setups. If scenarios feel artificial or low-stakes, users behave differently than they would in real life. This dulls insights, especially for relevance testing or deeper behavior interpretation.

How to fix it: Experts from SIVO’s On Demand Talent network know how to craft realistic, user-driven tasks that reflect your customer’s actual journey. They know how to match personas to use cases and guide testing to get clearer, more actionable feedback.

Instead of chasing incomplete data or confusing feedback loops, leveraging On Demand Talent gives your team the UX clarity and confidence needed to make meaningful improvements in your search experience.

While DIY research platforms like UserTesting offer speed and simplicity, extracting meaningful insights about on-site search performance requires more than launching a few usability tests. Without the right structure and interpretation, you can end up with vague feedback, irrelevant sessions, or even conflicting responses. This is where On Demand Talent steps in.

On Demand Talent provides immediate access to experienced UX research professionals who know how to design, run, and analyze studies with tools like UserTesting – ensuring your research supports smarter product decisions. Whether you're evaluating filter comprehension, relevance testing, or information architecture, these experts know how to fine-tune tasks and ask the right follow-ups to get to the real story behind your users' behavior.

Where On Demand Talent Adds Value

• Study Design: Professionals frame tasks to avoid bias and confusion while aligning with business objectives.
• Tester Targeting: Experts select participants that match real-life audience profiles to avoid skewed insights.
• Interpretation: They can distinguish between surface complaints and deeper usability issues, helping teams avoid misdirected fixes.

For example, say your team launches a UserTesting session to test an apparel website’s search function and filter usability. Users complete the tasks, but responses vary wildly – one tester finds the size filter useful, while another says it’s "confusing" without elaboration. A consumer insights expert can identify whether the confusion stems from label wording, filter placement, or skipped instructions in the task, putting your team back on track quickly without second-guessing results.

By integrating On Demand Talent into your UserTesting workflow, you eliminate guesswork, reduce rework, and drive decisions based on reliable, context-grounded insights. This is especially helpful for fast-growing teams or organizations with tight internal research bandwidth.

Instead of hiring a full-time researcher or relying on freelance help with variable quality, On Demand Talent offers consistent, high-caliber support exactly when – and how – you need it.

Search UX research often feels straightforward until you start reviewing feedback and find inconsistencies – unclear filter behaviors, vague mentions of "annoying" results, or missed error states. Many of these challenges are common when testing search functionality in UserTesting, but they can be addressed with a more strategic approach to study setup and analysis.

1. Filter Confusion

One of the most frequent issues in usability testing is unclear filter rationale. Test participants might say they found filters hard to use, but not explain why. Was it because the labels didn’t align with their expectations? Or did the filter reset without warning?

To resolve this:

• Be specific in your test tasks, prompting users to describe what they expect before applying filters.
• Use post-task questions to ask directly about filter intuition, label clarity, and usability ranking.
• Bring in On Demand Talent to structure probing that captures mental models and expectations.

2. Overlooking Error States

Error states – such as null results or incorrect spelling corrections – are key usability components that often go unnoticed in DIY research. In UserTesting, test participants might not naturally trigger them, leaving gaps in your evaluation of the full experience.

Expert UX researchers can guide your test setup with intention. They might incorporate edge cases (e.g., searching for misspelled products like “tredmill”) or ask users to search for out-of-stock items to observe the system’s response. These scenarios help ensure your site gracefully handles errors and keeps users informed.

3. Relevance Validation

Another common challenge is measuring how well your search results align with user expectations. This concept of perceived relevance isn't always obvious to users, especially if they're not shown alternative options to compare.

To dig deeper:

• Have participants explain why a search result met – or didn’t meet – their expectations.
• Ask them to rate their confidence in finding what they need based on the first page of results.
• Use On Demand Talent to moderate live sessions or review unmoderated sessions with an expert eye, spotting subtle disconnects in behavior versus commentary.

Understanding these nuances is critical, especially if you're redesigning your on-site search or evaluating a new AI-powered feature. A professional familiar with these traps can help your team spot false positives and dig into what truly matters to your users.

DIY tools like UserTesting have transformed the way product, marketing, and UX teams gather feedback – fast, accessible, and more affordable than ever. But without the right guidance, the speed and simplicity of these tools can come at the cost of insight depth and direction.

Working with expert UX researchers through On Demand Talent helps teams overcome the most common pitfalls of DIY platforms: underpowered test design, misaligned participant selection, and surface-level analysis. These insights professionals know how to extract meaningful observations without overwhelming budgets or timelines – especially important for fast-paced teams making decisions weekly, not quarterly.

When to Bring in Expert Support

Consider supplementing your internal efforts with On Demand Talent when:

• Your team is running frequent tests but getting conflicting or vague feedback.
• There’s no dedicated researcher on staff leading usability testing or relevance studies.
• You’re planning a critical product release and need reliable data to support decisions under pressure.
• You’ve invested in DIY tools but aren’t confident in the ROI you’re getting.

By embedding experienced researchers into your workflow, even temporarily, you unlock more value across your toolkit – from smarter task design in UserTesting to strategic use of AI-generated insights or clickstream tools.

For example, when testing site search UX on a B2B platform, teams often focus on whether users found the result they wanted – but overlook how they went about it. An expert can identify friction in result scanning, ineffective filters, or SERP noise, helping your designers and developers make targeted, measurable improvements without reengineering the entire system.

Most importantly, On Demand Talent supports your team in the way that works best for you – fractional support for a single study, ongoing help across multiple initiatives, or even coaching to build your internal team’s testing confidence. This flexibility is an advantage over hiring individual freelancers or expensive long-term agency retainers.

With SIVO’s On Demand Talent network, you gain access to experienced research professionals who not only know how to use tools like UserTesting – they know how to use them well, and align tests with your strategic goals.