Twitter Is Rolling Out Updated Search Interface For Desktop Users

Twitter has now confirmed it is rolling out its new desktop search interface for all logged-in users, which the company initially started experimenting with in April with a small group of users.

The new interface provides a cleaner look and feel, as well as more filtering options that allow users to sort results by top tweets, live tweets, accounts, photos, videos, news and more. The change is one of the larger updates that Twitter’s search engine has seen in recent times, and it is intended to make the search interface easier to use with increased functionality.

For dealerships and marketers, the new search interface provides an enhanced ability to search for their business, products and services to manage their reputation, and to make appropriate changes to their approach to improve the customer experience and perception. Overall, the change makes it easier for businesses and users to find information on Twitter.

In an email to Marketing Land, a Twitter representative confirmed that all Web users will soon see the new search display. “We’re widely rolling out a new search experience to users on the Web,” the company explained. “Like other features, we will continue to iterate and improve on this, to make it even easier for users to find what they are looking for when they search on Twitter.”

With the new interface, when you search for a keyword or phrase on Twitter.com, the search results display a notable tweet near the top of the page. For example, something that is related to your search that has been favorited or retweeted many times. Below that, you will see photos and other recent Tweets. The top search result is not necessarily the one with the higher metrics associated with it, but instead may be the one that Twitter thinks best matches the searcher’s intent.

Marketing Land has provided screen shots showing the difference between the old and new interface.

This is the new look:

And this is the old version:

As can be seen in the above images, the filtering options that were previously in the left-rail have now been moved to the top, placed below a bold bar that includes the search term. There is also now a “More options” heading, which enables users to refine their searches further, drilling down into News, Tweets by people they follow, and Tweets from people nearby, among other options. From the “More options” menu, users are able to save searches, embed searches by accessing widgets, and call up Advanced search options.

The enhanced search interface is likely to be a welcome change for dealerships and marketers who seek to manage their reputation via analyzing social media posts. Tweets by consumers about a company can be very effective in either improving or damaging the perception of a business. By being able to search these posts in a more refined manner, marketers will be able to monitor what’s being said about their business more effectively and respond accordingly to enhance their brand.