Have you ever searched for something online and experienced problems finding the exact products or service you were looking for? Did ever wonder to if local web developers or search engines have anything to do with manipulating search results?
If you answered yes to either or both of these you are right. Seasoned website designers tailor specific pages so they fall into certain categories to appear in specific local search results. Search engine algorithms learn what people are looking for by utilizing “long-tail key word phrases to return search results
Online search: more than meets the eye
The first thing you must factor in to your search results is which search provider you are using. Google and Bing are probably the most popular search providers, but Yahoo! and AOL still contend with the big dogs. Many people still use Yahoo! and AOL because that’s what they started browsing with and what feels most comfortable. Keep in mind that the search provider you use plays a significant role in your search results, but you should use what is most familiar and comfortable for you.
Tailoring your search
Suppose you’re looking for a specific product or item and you decide that you are going to do an online search to find some place that sells the product or item you’re looking for. Suppose the product you’re looking for is software for your computer, and suppose the specific computer software you need should offer website development tools.
Knowing your parameters, you fire up your PC and punch your search into the search bar to find your software, right? WRONG!
If you want to return the best and most relevant search results you must employ the proper search term to get exactly what you’re looking for.
Aside from knowing the specific criteria for a search item, you also have to determine whether you are going to travel to a brick and mortar business to physically purchase the software, or whether you’re going to purchase the software online. Knowing how you wish to shop plays a significant role in how you conduct your search so the right results are returned.
In the next series, “Online Search Results – Making the Web Work for You,” we will be demonstrating how various search results are returned based upon the words and phrases you use to search.