The Pandia Post Newsletter No. 15

December 2002

Editorial

Welcome to another issue of the Pandia Post, our free newsletter on Internet searching and search engine optimization.

Yes, this edition has definitely been delayed. We have been working on a new model for this publication, partly based on comments from our readers.

Several of you have told us that previous versions of the newsletter have contained too much content, which does not fit well with the nature of Web reading. We have therefore decided to limit the number of articles to two in the future, one on searching and one on search engine marketing.

In addition we will give you short presentations of relevant articles and news items published at the Pandia site during the past two months. In this way you will be able to stay in touch with the latest search engine developments, without being overwhelmed with information.

Still, we know that a lot of you would like to receive search engine news on a more regular basis, which is why we have turned our Pandia Search World mail update into a weekly search engine news newsletter. If you subscribe to Pandia Search World, we will send you a short mail every week containing links to all new articles at Pandia as well as a few short news items. The Pandia Post however, remains a bimonthly publication (although we may send you one or two additional "special editions" every year).

Go to http://www.pandia.com/post/index.html#psw to subscribe to the weekly Pandia Search World newsletter
Go to http://www.pandia.com/post/index.html#pp to subscribe to the Pandia Post bimonthly newsletter.

On how to write search queries

Advanced Searching

In spite of the search engines' effort to develop good algorithms (Google is getting pretty good at it), the chances of finding a relevant hit are pretty slim if you enter one word in the search form only. The only exceptions we can think of are highly specialized scholarly terms not used in everyday language. Most searchers have realized this, and use more than one word in their queries.

Now, what does a search query like

computer peripherals

mean, really?

Most search engines interpret this as meaning that you are looking for Web pages that include both of these keywords. A few will present pages that include one or both of the words, normally giving you pages that include both first.

Most of us are not going around remembering this kind of trivia. It would be better if we could control the way the search engines (and directories) interpret our queries. By doing this we will avoid uncertainties like this, and what is even better: We will get more relevant and focused results.

Search engines are not a very intelligent lot and certainly cannot read your mind. The more clearly you can state what you want it to find, the better are the chances that it will find something useful.

There are three ways of doing this:

1. Using advanced Boolean searching
The term may sound intimidating, but Boolean searching is the most effective way of formulating efficient search queries. In spite of what people may tell you, it is easy to learn, as it is based on normal human language and logic. It lets you add so-called "operators", logical terms you can use to bind or divide keywords and phrases. Here is one example:

computer AND peripherals

Unfortunately not all search engines support this kind of queries. Alta Vista and HotBot.com do.

2. Using "search engine math"
"Search engine math" is a simplified form of Boolean, using mathematical signs like + and – instead of the standard Boolean operators. Practically all the major search engines and directories support this.

3. Using pull down menus
Some search engines have pull down menus presenting alternatives corresponding to various operators.

The Keyword Must Be Present

Lets say you want to search for information on the Apple Macintosh computer. If you want to make sure both words are present in the pages delivered in the search results, you may write:

This will decrease the chances of getting pages about fruit and clothing. AND is a Boolean search operator. We recommend that you always write operators in capital letters, as some search engines would otherwise interpret the word "and" as part of a search phrase.

In the lingo of "search engine math", you may write:

+apple +macintosh

The + sign signifies that the following word must be present on the pages fetched.

When using an advanced search page based on pull down menus, you enter both words in the main search form and select the "all of the words" alternative from the pull down menu.

The Keyword May Be Present

Sometimes it might be useful to ask for keywords that not necessarily has to be present on the Web pages, but that may be there. You may for instance use several synonyms covering the same concept in order to reach as many interesting sites as possible:

priest OR chaplain OR pastor

You could also add OR father to the query, but that would bring in too many irrelevant sites, as it is a very general term. OR minister will bring in sites mentioning political ministers as well. Still, you may want to include that one.

In most search engines it is impossible to use search engine math to achieve this, as most of them will default to AND if they find no "mathematical signs". Using AltaVista, however, the following might work (unless AltaVista interprets your query as a common phrase):

priest chaplain

In a pull down menu choose the "any of the words" alternative.

The Keyword Must Not Be Present

A very powerful feature is the ability to exclude certain keywords in order to filter out irrelevant pages:

apple AND NOT fruit

Some search engines use the operator NOT instead of AND NOT. Use AND NOT if you are uncertain. The only exception is the Open Directory, which uses ANDNOT in one word.

The search engine math equivalent is

+apple –fruit

Note that in this case you do not necessarily need the plus sign in front of "apple". The first keyword will normally always be reckoned as a word that must be present on the pages fetched by the search engine.

Some forms for advanced searching let you enter different key words into different form fields. Using Fast you put the word "fruit" into one of them and select the "Must not be included" alternative.

Be very careful when using the AND NOT operator. After all there may be relevant pages about Apple Computers that do mention the word "fruit"!

Searching for Phrases

One efficient way of limiting the number of hits is the use of phrases. In both Boolean searching and search engine math you may enclose a string of keywords in quotation marks, meaning that the text string should be interpreted as one undividable phrase or term:

"Indian mysticism"

The search engine will then only fetch pages where these keywords are found together in this exact order.

When using pull down menus, select the "exact phrase" alternative.

Case Sensitivity

Some search engines and directories are partially case sensitive. If you spell a word or a phrase with lower case letters in the search form, the engine will match both upper and lower case letters on the Web page.

Searches for apple computer will give you pages with apple computer, Apple Computer and even APPLE COMPUTER. It is normally not the other way round. Hence the query

Apple Computer

(with capital A and capital C) will easily limit the results to pages containing information on the computer company.

For a more detailed presentation of advanced Web search techniques, see the Pandia Goalgetter search engine tutorial (http://www.pandia.com/goalgetter/)

My introduction to search engine optimization

Pandia has asked a newcomer to the search engine promotion industry, Michelle Stoltz, to give us a fresh view of the ins and outs of optimization and marketing.

"I was under the impression that search engine optimization involved some seriously strenuous hard coding (visions of Java programming)," she says, "but instead it involves a combination of things that are all interrelated; how to make the Website easier to navigate around for a potential user, while at the same time being visually appealing with good, growing content and still be spider friendly."

Click here to read the first part of her SEO diary.

Selected search engine news

Below find recent search engine news items and articles from the Pandia Search World column (http://www.pandia.com/searchworld/):

Upcoming search engine conferences

(December 1 2002, update December 8) Nothing compares to direct communication face to face, even in this digital age. That is why we at Pandia are happy to offer an overview of upcoming search engine conferences and workshops once in a while.

Go to http://www.pandia.com/sw-2002/43-conferences.html

Is a Yahoo.com listing worth the money?

(December 1 2002) Yahoo.com (ie.e the American version of the Yahoo! directory) is one of the most important search destinations on the Web. A listing in this directory of hand-picked sites could bring in a lot of visitors, meaning business for companies and influence for informational sites.

Recently Yahoo.com switched their default search listings (i.e. the results that are presented when you use the regular search form) from Yahoo! directory results to results that are more or less identical to the results found by the Google search engine. No wonder, really, as the new Yahoo! search is powered by Google.

Suddenly Webmasters that had paid an annual fee of nearly 300 US dollars found that their listings were buried deep down in regular results. Yes, their listings can still be found on the relevant category pages. You will, for instance, find Pandia in the "How to search the Web" category (http://dir.yahoo.com/Computers_and_Internet/Internet/ World_Wide_Web/Searching_the_Web/How_to_Search_the_Web/). However, only a fraction of Yahoo! users click their way down the category hierarchy in order to find sites. Most of them use the search form and go straight for the regular Web site results.

This is why some search engine optimization experts, Pandia included, now question the value of a Yahoo! listing.

"Honestly," the SEO experts from Planet Ocean (http://www.SearchEngine-News.com/) exclaimed, "Yahoo can't be serious! ...We can't imagine what possessed them to render their own directory inconsequential by providing a disincentive for new businesses to get listed and an impetus for existing customers to exit en-masse when their listings come due for renewal starting in January 2003."

You could argue that you get value for your money if you get a sufficient number of visits from the relevant category page. One visitor every day from this page will cost you some 80 cents a day. If you get more, the price per click through will be lower.

However, the best way of getting good results in the regular search results will be to optimize your site for Google. A Yahoo! listing may boost your Google ranking somewhat, but in most cases you will probably be able to get decent results without a Yahoo! entry (you should try to get a Open Directory listing, though: http://www.dmoz.org/).

So what is a webmaster to do? We would recommend that you stay away from Yahoo! if you have a tight budget. If you already have Yahoo! listings, you should renew them if you weblog clearly proves that your links on the Yahoo! category pages bring in sufficient traffic. If not, you should seriously consider dropping your Yahoo! listing and concentrate on improving your Google rankings instead.

If you have a more generous budget, you may consider keeping your listings in order to retain the effect they have on your sites' link popularity. We are not sure if it's worth the money, though.

However, we asked SEO expert Paul J. Bruemmer for a second opinion: http://www.pandia.com/sw-2002/44-yahoo.html

Read also Andy Beal's article on the Google/Yahoo relationship: http://www.pandia.com/sw-2002/35-yahoo.html

How to write search engine friendly Web page copy

(November 25 2002) Guest writer Kalena Jordan tells you how to write good copy targeting the right search keywords.

http://www.pandia.com/sw-2002/42-keywords.html

On the future of paid search engine listings

(November 24 2002) Guest writer James Beriker takes a look at the recent discussion on paid search engine disclosure. Is this a golden moment for the search engine industry -- or a missed opportunity?

Read on: http://www.pandia.com/sw-2002/41-paidresults.html

How searchers search

(November 19 2002) A new study made by iProspect. (http://www.iprospect.com/) indicates that searchers all in all feel good about their search engines.Here are some of the highlights:

• 16 percent of searchers only look at a few search result listings
• 32 percent read the whole search results page
• 23 percent go to the second page
• 56.6 percent of abandon their searches after the first two pages
• 52.1 percent usually stick to the same search engine or directory
• 35 percent use more than one search engine
• 13 percent use different search engines for different types of searches
• 45.9 percent feel that their searches are successful almost all the of the time
• When they are unsuccessful, 27.2 percent of the respondents switch to another search engine, rather than refining the search query

Sources: Resourceshelf (http://resourceshelf.freepint.com/archives/2002_11_01_resourceshelf_archive.html/#85686501) and CyberAtlas (http://cyberatlas.internet.com/markets/advertising/article/0,,5941_1500821,00.html).

The new AltaVista look

(November 10 2002) AltaVista has launched its new site, presenting a new and simpler look.

Read more about the new AltaVista at http://www.pandia.com/sw-2002/38-altavista.html

Google reaches 3 billion pages

(November 7 2002) Google now reports 3 billion Web pages in its search engine database, ahead of Fast/AlltheWeb's 2.1 billion.

As we have said before, the number of Web pages is far from the only factor to be consider when discussing the quality of a search engine, but from a marketing perspective it is significant.

http://www.google.com/

Search engine damage control

(October 29 2002) Google and other search engines will boot anyone using spam tactics to get high rankings. Should Web masters fear these threats? You better believe it!

Paul J. Bruemmer takes a look at spamming and how to get back into the search engines when booted.

http://www.pandia.com/features/spamming.html

Search Engine Freshness

(October 22 2002) Search Engine Showdown has presented a new survey of search engine freshness, i.e. on how often they respider and update their search results listings.

Both Google, MSN (powered by Inktomi), HotBot.com (Inktomi) and AltaVista will include pages that are no more than one day old. The most recently updated page on Fast AlltheWeb was five days old. (However, if you go to the AlltheWeb news search engine you will find stories only a couple of hours old).

Search Engine Showdown has also tried to calculate a rough average for how often pages are revisited. The Inktomi powered search sites are the best, with an average of two weeks, next is AlltheWeb with three weeks, Google with one month, and AltaVista with three months.

For all the numbers, see the "Freshness Showdown": http://www.searchengineshowdown.com/stats/freshness.shtml

Please excuse my dear Aunt Sally

(October 17 2002) Pandia guest writer Steve Winkler takes a look at the development of a search engine marketing strategies.

He points out that the most common of all online marketing mistakes is to have no clear understanding of the order in which strategies should be implemented.

http://www.pandia.com/features/marketing-strategy.html

Advanced search features at AlltheWeb

(October 2 2002) We have already reported on some of the new advanced search features at AlltheWeb. They are now "official". Moreover Fast has added some more. Here is a summary:

• Users can restrict their search results to include documents specifically from particular regions of the world (Africa, Asia, Canada and country specific .com), Central America, Europe, Middle East, North America (.com, .net, .org, .gov, .edu, .mil), Oceania, South America and Southeast Asia.
• Searchers can specify the level of depth their search is performed within a given web server. For example, if a user is searching for information that they believe would be found on a home page, they would search on the top level.
• You can search for information containing embedded content such as images, audio, video, VBScript, RealMedia, JavaScript code, Java applets, as well as Macromedia Flash animations and Flash content.
• Users can specifically retrieve personal homepages in their search results.

Like Lycos AlltheWeb is now giving users a preview of the context in which their search term appears within the page. These text extracts come in addition to text from the meta description tag. Moreover, they will highlight keywords on the result pages using a bold typeface.

http://www.alltheweb.com/

Search Engine Commando Resurrected

(September 30 2002) From the ashes of TopDog rises the new Search Engine Commando search engine ranking and submission software.

Pandia takes a look at this new search engine submission and ranking software: http://www.pandia.com/sw-2002/32-commando.html

http://www.searchenginecommando.com/

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