Study: Searches Ignore Real-Time Search Results

OneUpWeb released an eye-tracking study that showed how most searches ignore the real time search results. The takeaways from the study, as Greg Sterling recapped nicely include:

• 73% had never heard of real-time results before participating this study
• Only a quarter of the consumers cared for the real-time results compared to 47% of the information foragers
• The majority of the participants surveyed were indifferent to the real-time results

The Guardian notes that these real time results cost Google $15m and Bing $10m - what is the return on investment for that then?

A WebmasterWorld thread has conversation around this where most people say they are not surprised by the study's findings. Just hard to imagine blowing $15 million on something like this.

Forum discussion at WebmasterWorld.

Google Help Forum Search Adds 3rd Party Content

All of the content published on this site is sourced via discussion forums, that is what makes this site unique from the thousands of other SEO blogs out there. Much of that content is sourced from the Google help forums. So when Google changes something in their help forums, I typically notice.

One thing Google recently changes was the help forum search feature. Now, Google is including content in the help forum search that is from external web sites, not owned or maintained by Google. For example, a search at the Google Analytics Help forum returns several results that are from third party web sites. Here is a screen capture:

Each web site that is not maintained by Google is clearly labeled as such, with a message that reads:

The site you are about to visit is not maintained by Google Inc., but its content might be helpful.

There is then a way to “Report Abuse” on a site listed here.

What I find interesting is that Google labels their own blogs as “not maintained by Google,” when indeed, it is maintained by Google. But it does differentiate between what is “user content” versus Google content - so I find that interesting.

A hat tip goes to PizzaSEO.com for letting me know about this new feature.

SEO? That Sounds Like Work

Let there be no mistake: if you're going to do SEO properly -- unless you're willing to outsource everything to an SEO provider -- you're going to need some folks on your team to chip in.

Performance-Based Pricing for SEO?

Performance-based pricing of search ads makes perfect sense. But for search engine optimization services? The challenge is that SEO has so many variables to consider, many of which are outside the SEO firm's control.

Blogging for Search Engine Optimization

Search engines like to see you add content to your Web site on a regular basis. Creating a blog is a great way to do this. Once you know you want to begin blogging, where should you start?

Redesigning Your Web Site? Don’t Neglect SEO

When a company redesigns their site, it's usually for non-SEO reasons. But ignoring SEO issues during a redesign would be a big mistake. Here are some common mistakes that can happen when you're redesigning your Web site.

SEO Horror Stories

Our industry has made so many strides in gaining a more credible reputation. Yet we still suffer from many people and companies who claim to do SEO, but that really don't know anything beyond how to write a title tag.

Addressing the ‘O’ in Search Engine Optimization

Tips for improving optimization efforts.

Hand Edits or ‘Vince’ at Work in Google Search Results?

It's Google's job to rank the most qualified search results for their searchers. But is Google purposefully helping big brands rank higher?

SEO Site Review: Beadsbug.com

Mark offers tips for improving Web sites using basic search engine optimization tactics, including title tags, resolving duplicate content, link building, and much more.

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