In the recent roll-out of our Android app (version 5.9.0 and above), we have made enhancements to our search results page (SRP) to show train fare and availability information upfront along with the train details. Furthermore we have tweaked our sort algorithm so that trains with available seats rank higher on the search results by default.
How would this change benefit the users?
In our earlier SRP, we showed only train details such as train name, number, route & schedule, departure and arrival times along with their stations. Also the sorting algorithm was based on departure time by default.
What was lacking as part of the details were the fare and availability information which is vital to any user to make a booking decision. We were handicapped by the unavailability of this information from IRCTC in the search results. Because of not showing these details upfront, an user would have to click on several trains, classes, dates before he could find a train to book.
However, over a period of time, aided by our large search volumes, we started storing the fare and availability information on trains/class and quota level to show the cached data upfront on a large number of routes.
In addition to showing the fare and availability info, we also show the time when the availability was last obtained from IRCTC. We hope by showing these details, users would have more data to make their booking decision in as fewer clicks and as short time duration as possible.
Tweaking our sort algorithm
Considering that we had the data for train availability and that nearly a fourth of our tickets are booked in the last two days before travel, we modified our sort algorithm to show trains having available seats at the top of search results. This is intended to further reduce the user friction by limiting the scrolling.
Are users liking the new feature?
Based on the initial trends, we have observed a 200 basis points (1 bps= 0.01%) increase in number of users who are proceeding beyond SRP and a 60 bps improvement to our overall conversion numbers on the latest app version when compared to the prior app versions. In the coming days, the feature will be rolled out on iOS as well.
