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January 14, 2004

Googlewashing

Posted by Carole Matthews at 10:48 AM

Seems that all of this webblogging isn't doing much for Google. Apparently, terms that are bandied about in webblogs tend to show up higher in the ranks than the document from which the term was originally derived. This "googlewashing," as described by Danny Sullivan in a ClickZ article today, makes it much more difficult to find a legitimate site for a term since the most relevant sites seem to be pushed to the bottom of the pile.

Honestly, I can't remember the last time I found the most relevant site for a term on page one of a Google search. I've had to increasingly dive into at least page two if not deeper before finding something of real substance. Have you had the same problems? What search engines do you use?

11 Comments

Posted by: robb at January 14, 2004 11:33 AM

still using google, but I've also noticed bad results in the last several months. Skipping the first few pages of results has become commonplace, reminds me of altavista.

Posted by: Justin Hitt at January 14, 2004 11:35 AM

It seems as Google Adwords becomes more popular that general search results get worse. Google is still my engine of choice, but you are right, it's getting harder to find what what I want.

Speaking of Adwords (noticed your ad for it just left of this dialog box), it is doing a much better job of matching search context. Google's Adsense program is becoming a useful site navigation tool. Is the lack of quality search engine results a tool to drive Adword revenue?

Best regards,

Justin Hitt
Consultant, Author & Speaker
http://iunctura.com/weblog

Posted by: Jeremy C. Wright at January 14, 2004 11:58 AM

I always find the result I need on the first page. Just use drilling down. Want to find a church in Toronto pastor'd by John Arnott?

"church" "john arnott" "toronto"

Bang. Bad example, I know, but the best I could come up with on short notice.

Posted by: Ron Dearing at January 14, 2004 2:59 PM

You might want to try Vivisimo. They use categories to organize the results from a group of search engines (Google, Altavista.)

Posted by: Ellen Thompson at January 15, 2004 12:46 AM

Until November's "Florida" update, Google was a great example of a "Purple Cow." Like other companies in Seth Godin's recent book, Google grew because it offered a great product that was so different from its competition (i.e. generated the best search results) that it was a no-brainer resource. In November, Google did a massive overhaul of its algorythm and I'm not sure who benefitted, including Google, which may increase its pre-IPO valuation with increased AdWords revenue, but is certain to lose a large number of loyal followers. Never a long term winning strategy!

I use dozens of searches every day to do research for my business. In many cases, I'm looking for the official web site of a city or town, and I am contantly amazed by the proliferation of gargage sites that have been search engine optimized to take advantage of the AdWords affiliate program. More often than not, I find a number of them before the official web site!

Right now, Google, Yahoo! and AOL's results all rely on Google's algorythm. Shortly, Yahoo! will begin using Inktomi search results (it bought the search company and is terminating just terminated its agreement with Google). Microsoft is also investing cash from its huge reserves and you can be sure MSN's search will be killer by the end of the year. Rumors are flying that eBay may enter the game, too.

For now, I use Google and often find myself clicking AdWord links. Next, I go to MSN and sometimes make my way to www.metacrawler.com.

The people at Google are very smart, but going through huge growth and the inevitable change in culture that comes when needed controls are put in place. Let's hope they get their act together fast so we can get back to the level of productivity we used to enjoy with our search results. Otherwise, can you say MS Search?

Posted by: Ron Heller at January 15, 2004 10:53 PM

Ellen,

Your comments about the search engine giants was very helpful..

Posted by: Ellen Thompson at January 16, 2004 10:46 PM

There are a number of sites that provide good content and free enewsletters which can keep you up to date with search engine marketing.

Good sites are www.searchenginewatch.com and www.webpronews.com.

By the way, just read MSN has just switched from using Looksmart to Inktomi results. That's the kind of stuff you learn through these newsletters.

Ellen

Posted by: Chuck Huckaby at January 18, 2004 6:20 PM

I use Google instinctively, but I have noticed that after the latest revision there do seem to be more problems. There are lots of Google optimized sites that are simply links pages and have no relevant content whatsoever on the topic being searched. I thought that Google automatically banned those sites...

Re Google... Search Engine Optimization expert Michael Campbell says that he prefers Inktomi for ecommerce purposes now... less competition.

His comments are here...

http://1stHowToWorkAtHome.com/NothingButNet

Posted by: Morgan at January 19, 2004 12:35 AM

RE: Altavista.

I've been using Altavista since it was launched. The results of my searches with Altavista compared to Google's results have always been much better. For those who do a lot of searching, I recommend buying a copy of Copernic Agent Pro from Copernic.com. Try the demo. You'll like it.

Posted by: Geoffrey at January 19, 2004 11:18 AM

My primary search engine is Google. I changed my preferences from 10 results to 100 results. This allows me to scan across more results versus the top 10.

Posted by: Goshorty.com at January 20, 2004 5:20 PM

I cannot imagine what life would be like without Google.

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