SearchSearch

• Search Engines• Search Engine Optimization• Search Interfaces• The openness of the Web changes everything- Access- Technological progress- Expectation

Designing search for USERSDesigning search for USERS

• Web Searching Metaphors- Are we there yet?- Is everything the same design?

• How do people visualize the Web?• Is Browsing better?• Do we need new metaphors for using the

Web?- Searching- Browsing- What else?

How is IA for search different?How is IA for search different?

• Links are the difference that makes the difference- Internal links on a page- Internal links on a site- Relationships between sites- Link freshness

• Popularity is very different for types of users• Kleinberg’s HITS method (1998)- Hypertext Induced Topic Search- Number of pages that point to (processed) query- Authorities (relevant content by links)- Hubs (links to varied authorities)

Problems with PageRank for SEOProblems with PageRank for SEO

• Are more links always better?• What about pages without many outgoing

links?• How do you count multiple links from within

one page to another?• Do automatically generated sites/pages have

an advantage?- CMS systems may have linking “fingerprints”- Metadata

• How varied are the link weights?- Simple counts- Modified by other IR measures

Popularity?Popularity?

• Do you always want the most popular information source?- Talk Radio- New York Times Bestseller List- “Lincoln’s Doctors Dog”- “The C.S.I. Diet and Cookbook”

• Trend or Fad?• Blogs, Editorials and Propaganda vs.

“Facts”?• Result Diversity• Death of the Mid-List

Search Engine OptimizationSearch Engine Optimization

• Found by spiders and submissions- More links to and from site- Registration on major directories- Links to and from major directories

• Real Contact information Helps prove validity- META tag- Header and footer of home page- About Us or Contact Us pages- Location/Map page

Good Design is SEOGood Design is SEO

• Basic interface• Well-structured links- Comprehensive Site Navigation- Updated and accurate links

• Easy to find (via the Web or on the site itself)• Clear labels- TITLEs- Headings- Term consistency- Link consistency

• Small sizes to download quickly

Let’s look at some good pagesLet’s look at some good pages

• How well designed are these pages for SEO?- UT- iSchool Main page- My home page- Who else?

• Why do blogs have good SEO rankings?- www.boingboing.net- Engadget.com

• How do they use CSS, Metatags & XHTML?

Web Search TestsWeb Search Tests

• Perform searches with targeted keywords• Compare and contrast top results with your potential

site- Similar terms- Links (external and internal)- Popularity (sites that link to the site)

• Use Data to- Build a keyword list- Build an introductory text

• Blurbs• Description (2 sentences max)

• Any page found via a Web search engine should have search for the site itself

• Regularly monitor Search with your terms

Internal SearchInternal Search

• Robots.txt• Log and analyze search results- Measure success and failure- Tune for click-through productivity- Keep list of terms- Match terms to pages• Add terms• Script terms to certain pages

- Provide list (links) of most recent search terms- Provide list (links) of most popular search terms

Page DesignPage Design• Use CSS

- <style type=“text/css”>- Keep content in pages, not CSS templates

• Put JavaScript, etc. in external files- <script language=“JavaScript” src=“scripts/myscript.js”

type=“text/javascript”> </script>

- <noscript> tag too for alternate content

• Continually verify external links• ALT tags & Accessibility Compliance• Index link on Splash page (if needed)• Exact consistency on internal links (ending “/”s)• <noframes>• Redirects <META HTTP-EQUIV=“refresh” content=“0”; URL=

http://www.newsite.com/index.html>

Search and MIME typesSearch and MIME types

• Flash now supports internal text• PDF files

- Add comments and authorship info- Modify existing PDFs

• Check Document PropertiesFonts with fonts shows that PDF can be indexed (not a group a graphics files)

- Provide text abstract or summary of PDF

• PPT, use text if possible• Java interfaces prove difficult• Dynamic pages should have key(word) static

elements• FORMs not always completely indexed

Track your TrackingTrack your Tracking

• Keep list of sites submitted to- When, Who, Email address, exact URL submitted- Suggested categories, Current site description- Terms and Conditions

• Keep list of “goal” keywords• Keep list of sites you check keywords- Keywords- Dates- Successes/Failures

How can we re-design for SEO?How can we re-design for SEO?

• Good, consistent metatags- Mostly Dublin Core- Alternative search words & phrases

• Good page naming conventions• External information in CSS, Javascript (&

PHP)• Labels for links- Navigation- Anchor / link text on pages

Analytics & SEOAnalytics & SEO

• Analytics (on Web server access logs) give us another type of insight into use

• Learn about how the Web site is actually used• Learn about how ads get people to your Web

site- And what they do once they’re there- Or what they’re missing once they’re there

• Searching for your site, then searching within your site?- SEO - SEM - SEC?

Search Analytics Search Analytics • for making site search better

• Search is another way to get around a site• Just like the WWW, give non-sequential access to

anyone (with the right keyword)• You can control what people find when they search

on your site- Understanding users- Featuring content- Best bet - “what you really meant to search for was…”

• Map specific terms to certain pages- “admissions” to www.ischool.utexas.edu/admissions/

• Look at REFERs to see how people got to your site- Do you have good query support for those same referring

keywords?

SA for your site, cont.SA for your site, cont.

• Change is good- As the site evolves- Topics are added- Seasons change- User sophistication with the content

(understanding)

Querying your QueriesQuerying your Queries

• What are the most common queries?- What do they have in common with other popular

ones?- Number of query terms?- Matches to referring queries?

• What’s the avg number of results for queries?• Common queries• Rare queries• Complex queries?

• What’s the clickthrough rate on queries?(clickthrough = users clicked on a result)

- Popular queries always = higher clickthrough?

How can you help SA?How can you help SA?

• Better search engine• Better searc box (features)• Searching help• Modifying search results intefaces• Provide FAQs, indexes (A-Z), site maps

• Often in the context of a search page• As part of the results page

• Keep up with the latest ideas:- http://www.rosenfeldmedia.com/books/

searchanalytics/

From SA to AdsFrom SA to Ads

• Google does both, of course- How do you think they’re related?

• AdSense- Contextual links on Web pages

• AdWords- Sponsored links on Google.com

• Both charge or pay when clicked- Google is experimenting with cost-per-action• (you don’t pay if they don’t buy)

Using AdsenseUsing Adsense

• Know your content- Is it something that there will be ads for?- How would your audience take ads?

• Sign up• Configure your setup

- Ads or links- Layout (designs)- Alternate ads?- Set up tracking with channels- Add in the adsense code- Evaluate & test appearance

• Check results & monitor performance• Google has lots of help available

Site advertisingSite advertising

Issues with SEO & SEMIssues with SEO & SEM

• How do you see this changing over time?- More routine?- Advances in targeting users?

• Site tuning for SEO- For ads- For better use on the site

• How does privacy fit in?• What about ethics of advertising?