Website Search: Lost in the MazeWebsite Search: Lost in the Maze
Have you ever visited a website, typed in a search term, waded through dozens of irrelevant entries before bailing to somewhere more user friendly? Unfortunately, I experience this all too often. (Note: We won't talk about the possible navigation issues that drive us to search boxes to begin with.)
If you are a website owner, you should be especially sensitive to the search results people get on your site--especially as your site grows. First you may have a basic 25 page website. Then you add a blog. Then you add a store to sell products. Before you know it, finding useful information has become a maze to your site visitors.
Is this sounding familiar to you? This scenario has played out for many of the organizations that we work with. We have used a number of different search engines over the years, but after doing some fresh research recently, we have started recommending and implementing Google's Custom Search Business Edition (CSBE). Here's why:
- Relevant Results - CSBE is driven by the same search results that drives Googles search at google.com. You can't beat it for relevent results.
- XML output - With a little bit of coding knowledge, you can format the results to look however you want them to be viewed, including removing the Google logo.
- No Ads - Using the XML output, you can configure the search results to hide any Google ads or the Google Logo.
- Include Multiple Sites - You can set Google Custom Business Search to include multiple websites in your results. This is great if you have a store that is located at a different URL than your main website, or if you have multiple web domains to search.
- Refinements - Google will let you offer suggested refinements to your searchers. For example, let's say that the user types "Audio Bible" into a search engine that sells audio Bibles. As part of their search results, you can offer the user suggested refinements: NIV, ESV or KJV that will automatically refine their search for "Audio Bible" in the version that they select.
- Low cost - Google's price for CSBE starts at a relatively low cost of $100 per year for a website that includes up to 5,000 pages. Compared to a Google Mini Appliance or other search solutions available, this is tough to beat.
Here are three websites where we have recently implemented Google's Custom Business Search Engine. Take them for a spin and let us know what you think:
Google Custom Search Business Edition -- a search solution that will grow with you as your needs grow.
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