Over the years, I have often been asked about Google’s personalized search results. So I thought it might be a good time to provide an executive level overview and update.
1. Definition – Personalized search results provide users “more relevant, useful search results” by tracking a user’s complete web history. Personalization is based on geography (e.g. IP address, GPS, etc.), topicality, preference, patterns, and social circles. At present, the only ways to opt-out of the program are to create and sign-in to a Google account and disable customizations, or disable cookies.
2. How it Works – Google monitors user behavior via a cookie. Each cursor and keyboard movement is tracked. The search engine monitors when search results are clicked on and uses this information to populate new search results. It also notices when no search results are clicked on and assumes the user did not find what they were looking for, which may change results for new and related search queries. In summary, preferred sites are more likely to appear in search results. And everyone’s search results are personalized.
3. History – The company first began tracking search history for users signed in with a Google account in April 2005. In June of that year the company introduced personalized search based on search history as a Google Labs experiment. Less than two years later (February 2007), they extended the service so that the web history of anyone who signed up for a Google account was tracked. Then, a few months later (April 2007), the company then began monitoring everything users did on the web in order to fine-tune results (Note: users with a Google account could opt-out of the program). By December 2009, every search result was personalized regardless of whether a user was logged in to their Google account or not. At present, personalized search results are currently incorporated into many Google products and services.
4. Technology & Market Drivers – From a business perspective, other technology and market drivers continue to fuel personalized results. For example, the mobile device market has enabled the growth of location-based services such as FourSquare, Gowalla, Yelp and Google Hotpot via mobile device apps, GPS, and other technologies. And with the advent of Google search for mobile and Android-powered phones, Google also captures mobile device searches. Regardless of the point of origin, Google populates local search results via Google Places for Business that are displayed using the company’s map service.
5. Implications – What are the implications of personalized search? These include:
a. SEO Best Practices – In general, some feel that personalized results negatively affect smaller web sites more often than large web sites. Search engine ranking reports that use an anonymous proxy “provide an accurate average position number.” According to Eric Sidone at iCrossing, one of the implications of personalized results for marketers is to continue to implement and sustain SEO best practices over time to ensure domain authority and trust.
b. Content is Still King – In 2009, Danny Sullivan pointed out that content is still very important: “Does [personalized search results] mean SEO is dead? No. I’ve warned for years that search results would be getting more personalized. Still, for many queries, there will continue to be ‘normal’ results until Google harvests enough information to start personalizing them. SEO remains important to ensure that you’ve got that first shot at being considered. And the best tip in this new world of personalization remains the same. Make a good impression. Titles and descriptions are important, as is having outstanding content.”
6. Recommendations – Based on these and other factors, here are some basic building blocks for online marketers to consider:
a. Build a Foundation – Build a solid foundation for SEO best practices and business initiatives by creating relevant content and an engaging search user experience as outlined in the post on search usability best practices.
b. SEO – SEO best practices are just as, if not more important after the advent of personalized results. Some of these practices include: 1) Conduct keyword research to determine the best search queries for your organization and its audience; 2) Create superior content based on searchers’ intent and expected experience level; 3) Develop a user experience that facilitates a search user’s ability to complete the task at hand; and, 4) Ensure pages can be easily liked/recommended, tweeted and shared.
c. Social Media – Continue to grow your organization’s brand via social media. Where appropriate (e.g. similar content based on searchers’ intent and desired user experience), build links between the web content and social media content. Even though social has evolved over the last few years, it’s still important to make content easily shareable by prominently placing social media icons on each landing page depending on the page’s call to action.
d. Local Search – If you haven’t already embarked on expanding your local search program, consider test marketing local search listings for brick and mortar locations based on the quantity of local search queries. Local listings can be claimed so results appear for personalized search results. Evaluate success over a three to six month period to determine next steps.
e. International – International SEO presents its own set of challenges. Make sure the content on your organization’s site is targeted towards the appropriate audience using Google Webmaster Tools. Additionally, ensure web pages correctly identify your target audience’s language. Lastly, build links to the site’s content from within the target country of origin.
f. Geo-tagging – Geo-tagging provides another way to gain online visibility. Web pages, and in particular images, can be geo-tagged so they appear in online mapping services. And depending on rights, images can be made available in services such as Flickr and Panoramio.
g. Offline-Marketing – If your organization is embarking on an integrated marketing campaign, consider using “Just google <Brand name>” in off-line branding messages so branded queries are more likely to appear in search users’ web history and at the top of search results.
In summary, Google personalized search results have come a long way. But don’t expect the search giant to stop tweaking results. That’s simply core to their business.
