Yext, Inc. (NYSE: YEXT), a provider of cloud-based search experiences, and Cox Communications, among the largest private telecommunications companies in the United States, have announced their partnership to deliver customers official answers to their questions on the Cox website through Yext's innovative site search product, Yext Answers.
Per a press statement from the companies:
"Yext Answers uses advanced natural language processing (NLP) technology to understand the complex questions Cox's customers enter into the site search bar — everything from "How do I test my Internet speed?" to "How do I reset my modem?" — and return direct, official answers in the form of featured snippets, maps, video links, promotional banners, and more.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Answers has been particularly useful for Cox in fielding frequently asked questions about connection speeds and bill payment as customers transition to remote work, experience changes in employment status, and get their children prepared for virtual education.
In fact, the product integration has been so effective that as of May 2020, people who used the Yext-powered search bar (or "Answers Bar") on the Cox website converted at a 51% higher rate compared to those who used the company's legacy site search tool.* During the same period, Cox saw a 59% decrease in repeat on-site searches, indicating that many more of its customers found answers on the first try."
"When we first discovered Yext Answers, what we found particularly appealing was its use of advanced natural language processing and its ability to truly make search results richer," said Craig Geiger, Manager of SEO at Cox Communications. "As people become more comfortable using natural language questions, it's so important for site search to interpret context, understand intent, and actually match those questions with the most accurate answers. And that's exactly what Yext Answers helps us do for our customers, no matter what their unique transaction journey is."
"Cox Communications's use of Yext Answers is the perfect case study in how to easily transform a business's website to optimize for stronger business results and deliver the seamless customer experience people are longing for," added David Rudnitsky, EVP, North American Enterprise Sales, at Yext. "In addition to the flexibility Cox now has in adding dynamic search results, their level of visibility into customer searches allows them to make improvements so they can continue to increase conversions and reduce costs. We look forward to seeing even more amazing results as Cox unlocks the full potential of Answers."
In addition to Yext Answers, Cox also uses Yext's other signature products, Yext Listings and Pages, to manage information, like addresses and hours of operation, about its retail stores across third-party search experiences and create search-optimized landing pages.