Goodbye Google SERPs
February 10th, 2010 | 
Author: Google is rolling out its Social Search Option in full form now and as a marketer, I don’t like it. Even as a consumer or a regular person, I don’t like it. Google Social Search is going to take info from your Google profile and use THAT to determine what results you see in the SERPs. So assuming you’re logged into your Gmail account (and what a PITA to have to log out each time you search to see clean results), you’re going to see SERPs (Search Engine Results Pages) that are created and presented to you based on your profile settings.
So if you have a Twitter account set up in there, they’re going to tap into it to see what results you should get – if you have contacts in your gmail, those results will influence what you see.
As a marketer, it’s going to be harder than ever to try to rank high at the top of the SERPs because we’ll all be seeing something different. As a consumer or average Jane, I don’t WANT my friends influencing what I see – and I don’t want the inconvenience of having to log out OR having to remove items from my Google profile to make sure I see unbiased SERP results.
What do you think?
Tiff
Posted in Internet Marketing
Tiffany, I’m with you on this one. It will make marketing much more difficult and confusing. Maybe Google can make this a search option that can be toggled on or off. I don’t know how the Big G. can be discouraged from moving in this direction but maybe we can try to create a very vocal movement of protest against the idea or maybe we can just start aiming our efforts more towards Yahoo and Bing. I don’t know what options we will have but I don’t like this move by Google.
You know, I just was wondering how this social search option will affect marketing tools like Micro Niche Finder. I would like to know if all this customization with the search results will somehow skew the Micro Niche Finder results in a way that keeps me from getting accurate search results from Google. If so, it will hurt a lot of marketers.
Social Search doesn’t just apply to those with Google accounts, it applies to everybody. When you go to the search results, click “Web history” on the top right, and disable customization (they automatically enable it and I’ll bet the majority of searchers don’t realize it).
I’m not sure if social search is cookie-based or IP-address based, but before you check where you are in the results, make sure you are disabled first to get a true picture.
Okay I went to web history and I don’t see anything about customization on there. But I’d love to know how!
Tiffany,
Two things: One, how can anyone really trust Google after they implimented the unavoidable DART cookie?
Two: Google is looking out for their customers i.e. search engine users. Google will constantly be changing, as if that is not obvious. Now, instead of targeting the Search Engines, you have to target your prospects. Similar tactics probably apply, but the results will, or at least should be that more people interested in what you are offering will see your product on top where those who aren’t will see results they are more accustomed to browsing.
It is hard to describe, but I think you can understand my point.
Now to find new tricks to outsmart Google… for a season.
Dart cookie? I must go Google this to see what it is! LOL Okay just Googled it and I still don’t understand what it does. Like your seasonal outsmarting Google outlook. So true!
Hmmm… It’s being more than a year that if one has a G account and being login the search result it’s affected according to your web history. For development purposes I’ve been using FF login with my G account and for browsing I use Opera without any G account and it works till now. It seems that e-marketing it’s going to change its face completely and the way SEO works. Phew! More tools to learn
This is really going to suck.
Tiff, do you know when this is going to go into effect, or has it already begun?
It’s already begun. In fact I first learned about it a little while back when I THOUGHT my PLR site was ranking #1 in Google for many terms. I bragged about it until someone else said, “Um not on my Google you’re not.” Then once I poked around I discovered that Google gave that to ME first because I visit the site often. So then I started using Scroogle to see where I really stood. http://www.scroogle.org/cgi-bin/scraper.htm – I was disappointed. LOL
Hey Tiff,
Found the web history at the bottom of the page when I clicked on search settings.
I seen a program about Google a few months ago and with all the information they have collected on everyone that use Google Search there is no telling what will come down the pipes in the future.
I think Google are running out of good ideas so they’re employing people to sit around in ‘think tanks’ dreaming up new ways to diversify. Just like Governments who do this, they’re being led down the garden path.
The trouble is, everyone is so tied into Google now that they really are like the internet government.
Five years maximum folks. Better get accumulating that dosh while you can
Re diabling customization, well this is how it works on my computer at least!
Go to Google.com. Do a search on something, anything. Once the results come up, at the top right there will also be a link for “Web History”. Click that. It should say “Your search results may be customized using search activity from this computer”, and underneath will be a link saying “diable customizations based on search activity”. Click that and you should be disabled.
yeah mine doesn’t have that. If I click web history I see my web history and a link that says Expand your web history. That’s all.
Here is something I came across last year, if it is the same concern.
At SMX Matt Cutts said you can turn Google’s personalized web search results off by adding &pws=0 to the URL of a search query.
This was at http://www.seobook.com/archives/002285.shtml last June.
There seems to have been an application called dePersonalizer here:
http://www.presseblog.at/depersonalizer/ but it goes to a German website with some English items. No Depersonalizer.
Here is a bookmarklet that can be dragged to the toolbar and some other suggestions for turning it off easier.
How to temporarily disable Google Personalized Search? Add &pws=0 in the address bar at the end of a Google search URL. Or drag this bookmarklet to your bookmark toolbar:
Turn off Google personalization
Unfortunately, the parameter is not persistent, so this only works for the current query. If you want to add a link that disables the personalized search, this Greasemonkey script will help you (requires Firefox + Greasemonkey or Opera).
http://googlesystem.blogspot.com/2007/04/how-to-disable-google-personalized.html
I’m going to see what is at Firefox now and how it works.
Problem is as I see it, 99% of Google users probably could care less. I noticed it when I started seeing local maps show up on searches.
Hope something here helps.
Eureka! Here is a list of plugins for browsers to turn this demon child of Google off.
Yeah Yoast!
http://yoast.com/tools/seo/disable-personalized-search-plugin/
Firefox shows that link Tiff. Don’t forget, it’s that tiny little link up in the far RIGHT of the page
Are you logged into your Google account perhaps? Log out, clear all cookies and try again?
Hey Tiff
I’m reading (& rereading) Michael Campbell’s (the guy who wrote ‘Revenge of the Mininet’) ‘Jiggling the Web for Instant Search Engine Rankings’. It’s about using links & social media for getting indexed quickly & generating traffic quickly. Here’s the link (it’s free w/no opt-in): http://www.jigglingtheweb.com/.
Michael isn’t the only one talking about this – Jimm Morris (NicheBot) is teaching his subscribers about this as well.
Ray