Optimizing for Universal Search

By: IMPAQT Strategy Team

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In May 2007, Google announced they would be working toward the development of a "Universal Search" experience – images and news results would be displayed on regular Search results pages depending on the query typed in. Initially, many online marketers debated whether or not Searchers would find the new Search results pages confusing or overwhelming. Fast forward three years later, and a Search results page with images, videos, maps, and news has become both second nature and expected.

In April 2008, ComScore reported that 58% of queries done on Google had a Universal or blended result. This number has likely increased since then due to the consistent growth of Google owned properties like Google News, Google Images, and YouTube; and the company's more recent innovations with microformats and rich snippets. This new blended Search experience isn't unique to Google either. Over the last several years Google, Yahoo, and MSN have all continually enhanced their Search engine results pages to incorporate more rich content.

Search Engine Optimization isn't as simple as it used to be. We're no longer dealing with white pages and blue links. Getting your site to rank for a specific set of keywords is really just the tip of the iceberg. As marketers, we need to be cognizant of how the Search landscape has changed and is changing if we want to stay competitive. Successful campaigns have become more about how you market your Web site and the types of unique content you place on it.

Understanding Universal Search

Before you can optimize for Universal Search, you must fully understand it and be aware of all the opportunities it provides.

In the early days of Universal Search, blended Search engine results pages were a way for the Search engines to bring their little-known vertical Search engines into the light. In particular, Google Maps and Google News weren't the entities they are now until they began being incorporated more thoroughly into the general Search engine results pages.

Now, more than ever, Universal Search is a way for the major Search engines to promote their vertical engines and other Web properties. Google, Yahoo, and Bing are not the only Search engines of importance. Each engine has a News, Local, Video, Image, and Retail vertical engine. Google also has other vertical Search engines, such as Google Scholar, which indexes scholarly publications.

The sites that rank in these vertical engines all have the potential to rank in a general Search results page. If you're a local or regional company and you don't rank for key terms in Google Maps, Yahoo Local, or Bing Maps, then Search results for these key terms will not show your site next to the eye-drawing, click-enticing map image. Instead, your competitors who do rank in these vertical engines will appear in that space and get the click. Ensuring that the appropriate items on your site are ranking within these vertical Search engines is the only way to succeed in a Universal Search landscape.

While these vertical Search engines are the core of Universal Search, Google and Yahoo have also had significant innovations with rich snippets, microformats, and RDFa. With Google and Yahoo being the leaders in this area, Bing will likely follow. Currently, if proper code is implemented, Google will display rich snippets for Reviews, People, Businesses and Organizations, Events, and Recipes. If someone is looking for a review of the latest blockbuster, an organic listing could show up that displays an image depicting the rating. A Search for a specific recipe could return an image, rating, and total cook time. Google has even produced a tool called Google Base Data API, where brands can submit their recipe database, or many other types of content, to make it searchable.

Similarly, Yahoo enables site owners to display enhanced results within the Search results pages by implementing microformats or SearchMonkey code on their site. This is currently available for Products, Videos, Discussions, Businesses, Events, Games, News, and Documents. A Search for a specific business could return an organic listing with an address, phone number, rating and image. Someone Searching for a specific product could see an organic listing with a rating and price point.

Bing recently announced its partnership with Foursquare to enhance Bing Maps. They have also quietly launched several other programs to enhance Search results. For example, in early 2010 Bing began displaying enhanced Search results for recipe queries. Bing chose specific recipe sites to spider and include in this program. For the first full month that this change to the Search results was live (Feb. 2010), MyRecipes.com saw that 5.47% of their upstream traffic came from Bing according to HitWise, a 250% increase compared to a month prior to the launch of this enhancement (Dec. 2009).

Similarly, for health related queries, Bing is pulling data from several different resources to enhance Search results. A query for a specific hospital name could pull up an organic listing that includes not only a snippet of text, but patient ratings from the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. Scrolling to the bottom of that same Search result page will likely display a paragraph of text pulled from Freebase.com, an online database aimed to help sites become richer and more engaging.

Bing wasn't the only Search engine to come out with new Search result enhancements in 2010. In March, Google announced that they would be testing the inclusion of hotel price points within Google Maps. In July, this feature rolled out to all users. Now, searching for a hotel within Google Maps will return the 10 closest hotels with a price point for each.
While micro formats and these exclusive betas and tests have had a significant impact on Search over the last year, more media attention has been given to the mash-up of Search and social. All three Search engines have incorporated Twitter into their Search results pages. Currently Bing and Yahoo are displaying the official Twitter accounts and most recent 1-3 Tweets at the top of the Search engine results pages for queries related to many well known personalities. Google and Yahoo both include the most recent Tweets for some topical and brand-related queries in the middle or at the bottom of the Search results pages. Across all three engines the incorporation of Twitter within the Search results pages has been somewhat inconsistent.

Of course, inconsistency can be expected as Search engines continue to innovate and revise the Search experience. While Bing and Hunch have laid claim to the term "decision engine," Search as an industry is moving in this direction. All of the Search engines are providing more information and content within their Search engine results pages. They are all pushing Searchers closer to a decision or solution. Marissa Mayer of Google said it best when she announced Google's Universal Search with the blog title "Universal Search: The Best Answer is Still the Best Answer." All of the enhancements, betas, vertical Search engines, social media mashups, etc are what make up Universal Search. It is information that is provided to us outside of the 10 blue links and snippets of text, and it is what will distinguish one organic listing from another.

Putting It All Together

Optimizing for Universal Search means understanding that every aspect of a site has the potential of being the best answer, whether it be an article, image, video, location, product, recipe, etc. As online marketers, we must view Web sites in their entirety and never forget that optimizing written content and Meta Tags for the major three Search engines is merely the first stage of the Search engine optimization cycle.

We must not only be aware of the multiple vertical search engines and search engine owned Web proprieties, but we must also know how to get content indexed within them, how to get content to rank well within them, and how ranking in them will affect overall Search efforts.

Improving rankings within niche and vertical Search engines is nothing new for most Search professionals. What has changed is the knowledge required to be successful in Search. Rankings are no longer the be all and end all. To stay competitive, Search professionals must know the site architecture and design requirements to display rich snippets within Search results pages. Similarly, staying up to date on the latest betas or engine programs and having the engine contacts to be included in these offerings are key to staying competitive. Search professionals must also properly tag images and vides for SEO and get better at gaining links by distributing content.

Lastly, with social media being added to the Search experience, understanding how the two work together is a necessity. While tweeting may not be a requirement for your business, understanding your brand's presence on Twitter and its impact on your Search campaign is critical.

Often times, Search engine optimization can be a tough sell to key decision makers. Search engine optimization, local Search optimization, video optimization, a redesign to include microformats, and a social media analysis to determine the impact of social on Search could be an even tougher sell. Fortunately, most businesses don't need it all and if they do need it all, then the list can be prioritized. With significant multi-vertical SEO experience, competitive research, and historical data analysis, priorities often become clear. For example, a site that receives a significant amount of traffic from geo-modified key-company with well-known employees, such as doctors or news anchors, should be investing in micro formats.

Conclusion

Optimizing for the Universal Search landscape is more than just pushing your site up in the three major Search engines. It's about changing and manipulating how a site listing appears on the Search results page. Search professionals cannot ignore or become complacent about this aspect of Search engine optimization. If they do, they will continue to play a game of catch-up with the competition. Optimizing for rankings is vital, but a well rounded approach will always provide better results.