Background

Land.com is a leading platform connecting buyers and sellers of land properties across the United States. As the platform grew, user feedback highlighted challenges in navigating the search experience, refining results, and viewing property details efficiently. To address these concerns and stay competitive, we embarked on a comprehensive redesign of the search experience.

Our focus was to simplify the user journey, enhance functionality for both free and paid listing tiers, and ensure seamless usability across all devices. This project aimed to create an intuitive, visually engaging, and tier-aware experience that better serves users and highlights premium listings effectively.

Project Highlights

• Simplified homepage search with geographic input, type-ahead suggestions, and progressive refinement.

• Enhanced list view with side rail filters and tier-based differentiation for premium visibility.

• Improved map view with dynamic updates, floating filters, and tier-prioritized map markers.

• Expanded listing detail pages with larger media galleries, sticky summary bars, and interactive tools.

• Designed all features for seamless use on desktops, tablets, and mobile devices.

• Achieved significant engagement boosts, including a 25% rise in searches and 50% more inquiries for premium listings.

We conducted a comprehensive review of competitors, including Redfin, Zillow, Trulia, Airbnb, and Google Places, to identify industry trends and best practices for search and filtering experiences. Key findings included:

Default Map View

One of the most striking commonalities across competitors is the default use of a map view as the primary interface for search results. Platforms like Zillow and Trulia immediately present users with a map-centric layout, which provides spatial context and encourages exploration. This approach reflects user preferences for visualizing property locations relative to their surroundings. Initially, Land.com defaulted to a list view; however, based on these insights, we transitioned to a map-first experience. This change better aligned with user expectations and significantly improved the intuitive nature of our interface.

Filter Usage

Filters play a pivotal role in helping users refine search results quickly and effectively. Competitors prominently display filters near the map or search bar for quick access, with common options like price, property size, and amenities consistently highlighted. Advanced filters, such as property type (e.g., residential, commercial) or specific features (e.g., swimming pools, proximity to schools), are often grouped under expandable menus to reduce interface clutter. Our redesign mirrored these strategies, ensuring that filters are always accessible and intuitive while offering advanced options for users with specific needs.

Search Behavior

Platforms like Airbnb and Trulia emphasize keyword search functionality, which allows users to input specific terms or phrases to narrow down their results. Redfin and Zillow, on the other hand, prioritize location-based inputs, complemented by type-ahead suggestions and geolocation features. This dual approach caters to both broad and highly specific search intents. Drawing inspiration from these platforms, Land.com introduced enhanced type-ahead suggestions and keyword search capabilities, enabling users to locate properties with greater precision and efficiency.

Mobile Experience

All competitors excel in optimizing their platforms for mobile use. Features like responsive map views, touch-friendly filters, and streamlined interfaces ensure a seamless experience across devices. Recognizing the increasing importance of mobile access, we designed Land.com’s search experience to match or exceed these standards, ensuring full functionality and ease of use on smartphones and tablets.

By adopting these insights, we tailored Land.com’s redesign to:

• Prioritize a dynamic map view as the default for search results.

• Offer persistent, easy-to-access filters with advanced options for granular control.

• Enhance mobile usability to match competitor standards and improve user satisfaction.

Multi-Location Searching

Users often need to explore properties in multiple geographic locations simultaneously. The challenge is to provide an intuitive experience that accommodates this need without overwhelming users with complexity.

We implemented a multi-location search feature allowing users to add multiple cities, states, or counties in a single search.
Key design elements include:

Dynamic Search Bar

• A responsive search bar that accepts multiple inputs separated by commas or tokens.

• Auto-suggestions for locations as users type, minimizing input errors.

Visual Tags for Locations

• Each location is displayed as a removable tag below the search bar, providing clarity on selected areas.

Seamless Integration with Filters

• Results from all selected locations are dynamically updated in real-time with applied filters.

UX Impacts

• Simplifies cross-location property comparisons.

• Reduces the need for repetitive searches.

• Enhances user satisfaction by saving time.

List View

Users need to quickly narrow down search results based on their preferences, but extensive filtering options can clutter the interface and complicate the search process. For our desktop users, we adopted a side rail, drill down approach for filters in the list view.

Side Rail Design

We limited this design to Desktop devices, as there is not screen room to accommodate the results and filters at the same time. This defeats the point of having instant feedback on the filters. The Side Rail Filters are positioned in a collapsible side rail, ensuring that the main content area remains focused on property listings. This design allows power users and those familiar with a specific area to see results update instantly as they adjust filters. By avoiding the need to apply multiple filters before submitting them, users can interact with the listings dynamically, observing immediate changes and refining their choices in real-time. The collapsible functionality minimizes visual clutter while keeping filters accessible when needed, and the sticky positioning ensures they remain within reach during scrolling. This approach is particularly effective for users who prioritize speed and precision in their search workflow. Sticky positioning ensures the side rail remains accessible while scrolling.

The list view is ideal for users who are already familiar with the geography of the area they are searching. It enables them to view more listings at a time and quickly apply and adjust filters to find properties that meet their criteria efficiently.

Quick Drill-Down Options

• Core filters (e.g., price range, property type) are always visible.

• Advanced filters are grouped in expandable sections, enabling users to access detailed options without feeling overwhelmed.

Real-Time Updates

• The list view updates instantly as filters are applied, providing immediate feedback.

UX Impact

• Enhances clarity and usability by organizing filters logically.

• Improves decision-making efficiency.

• Encourages exploration with minimal cognitive load.

While maps are invaluable for spatial property searches, users often require granular control over displayed results based on specific criteria. We integrated advanced filtering options directly into the map view, ensuring users can refine their search without switching contexts.

Core filters, such as price and acreage, are directly accessible within the map interface, offering users a convenient and interactive way to refine their searches. Slider controls allow users to make precise adjustments to these parameters, ensuring they can quickly narrow down their options without leaving the map view. This design not only saves time but also enables users to see the immediate impact of their filter changes on the property listings displayed, enhancing the overall search experience.

Advanced Filters Modal

A modal accessible from the map view offers extensive filtering options, ensuring a smoother user experience by keeping the main map interface uncluttered. This design allows users to focus on the spatial aspect of their search while still having access to advanced filters when needed. By opening filters in a modal, the platform avoids overwhelming users with too many controls on the main screen, providing a more organized and intuitive approach. This feature is particularly beneficial for users who want detailed filtering options without compromising the clarity and usability of the map view.

Filters included are: Property Type, Housing Information (e.g., number of bedrooms, bathrooms, Listing Type (e.g., for sale, for lease), Status (e.g., active, pending), Keywords, Date Listed, Multimedia (e.g., has a video, virtual tour), Mineral Rights, Price Reduction

Dynamic Results Display

As filters are applied, the map updates in real-time, with pins reflecting the refined results.

Various map layers, such as topography, flood plains, and commute times, provide critical context that enhances the decision-making process for users. The topography layer helps users understand the landscape of a property, which is especially important for those planning agricultural projects, outdoor recreation spaces, or construction. For example, steep slopes or uneven terrain may impact usability and development costs. Similarly, the flood plains layer is crucial for assessing the risk of water-related damage, especially for users interested in properties near rivers, lakes, or other water bodies. Identifying whether a property lies within a flood-prone area can influence decisions on insurance, construction, or property value.

The commute times layer, on the other hand, serves urban and suburban buyers who prioritize accessibility. By visualizing travel distances to key locations such as workplaces, schools, or shopping centers, users can better gauge the practicality of a property in their daily lives. These layers are designed to be toggled on and off, allowing users to focus on the information most relevant to their needs. This customization ensures a streamlined and personalized search experience, enabling users to explore properties with confidence and efficiency.

Users can click on pins to view property details in a pop-up card.

UX Impact

• Combines spatial and attribute-based searching seamlessly.

• Reduces the back-and-forth between map and list views.

• Increases user confidence in finding the right property.

Tier-Based Differentiation

To create a sustainable business model and enhance the visibility of certain listings, we implemented a tiered listing system. This approach incentivizes sellers to upgrade their listings for better placement and additional features, aligning with their marketing goals.

The platform offers five distinct listing tiers, each designed to provide varying levels of visibility and features:

Diamond Tier

• Listings in this tier receive the largest photo and the highest placement in search results, ensuring maximum visibility.

• Features include a carousel of images within the search results, allowing users to scroll through multiple property photos without navigating away.

• Custom titles and detailed descriptions make these listings more engaging.

• Broker branding and multimedia icons (e.g., videos, virtual tours) further enhance the listing’s appeal.

Platinum Tier

• Includes all the features of the Diamond tier but with slightly reduced prominence.

• The description is shorter, and the main image is smaller, placing these listings second in the results hierarchy.

Gold Tier

• Similar to the Platinum tier but with even shorter descriptions and smaller images.

• Positioned after Diamond and Platinum listings in search results.

Standard Tier

• Provides a more basic listing format with the fourth-largest image.

• Excludes descriptions and image carousels, focusing on simplicity.

• Positioned second to last in search results, offering limited visibility.

Free Tier

• Offers minimal visibility with the smallest card size.

• Lacks branding, image carousels, and detailed descriptions.

• These listings are placed last in the search results.

UX Impact:

This tier-based differentiation system allows sellers to choose a package that best fits their marketing needs and budget. By providing enhanced visibility and rich media options, higher-tier listings appeal to serious sellers looking to stand out. Buyers also benefit, as the most comprehensive and well-presented listings are highlighted, making their search experience more efficient and enjoyable.

Key Takeaways

The new search experience exemplifies user-centric design by addressing common pain points in property searches. For instance, the integration of real-time filtering allows users to see results immediately as they refine their criteria, saving time and enhancing decision-making.

In early testing, according to user feedback, this feature has reduced search times by over 30%, demonstrating its effectiveness in streamlining the property search process. By integrating multi-location searching, well-organized list view filtering, and advanced map view filtering, the platform enhances usability and empowers users to make informed decisions.

Prioritize Clarity and Accessibility
Ensure filters and controls are easy to understand and navigate.

Real-Time Feedback Matters
Dynamic updates to search results enhance user engagement.

Context-Sensitive Features Improve Usability
Embedding filters in both list and map views reduces user effort.

Test with Real User
Gather feedback on filter organization, search workflows, and performance to refine the experience further.

old Navigation Design

• Success Rate: 84.4%

• Failure Rate: 15.6%

• Average Time on Task: 6m 43s

New navigation Design

• Success Rate: 96.1%

• Failure Rate: 3.9%

• Average Time on Task: 32.6s

• Completion Time Improvement: 92% reduction (12.4x faster)