The Continuing Decline of Google Search - 2013 - 2014

[Wes Bucey]

Re: The Continuing Decline of Google Search - 2013

I used to think I was a maven using Boolean search symbols and terms, but google has taken away the "+" and I have no luck with the "-" to eliminate some things from searches because despite the minus sign (-) they continue to crop up in both the paid ads and the so-called "real" search returns.

I feel like a rank newbie with PostIt notes on how to use search terms on google from this page (http://websearch.about.com/library/cheatsheet/blgooglecheatsheet.htm)

Speaking of ads, has anyone noticed how inappropriate some of the ads at the top of the Google search have been to the search parameters you lay out ?

 

[Jim Wynne]

Re: The Continuing Decline of Google Search - 2013

Those ads are targeted based on your search history.

 

[Marc]

Re: The Continuing Decline of Google Search - 2013

Yup - Google started out selling ads based upon content of pages/sites. They changed to "interest based" ads some years back. It's in full swing now. They can track so much these days it's almost unbelievable.

 

[Wes Bucey]

Re: The Continuing Decline of Google Search - 2013

Is there a simple "disconnect" or do I have to go into "anonymous" mode?

 

[Stijloor]

Re: The Continuing Decline of Google Search - 2013

Is there a simple "disconnect" or do I have to go into "anonymous" mode?

Too late! Mr. Google knows everyone's search and interest history!

 

[Marc]

Re: The Continuing Decline of Google Search - 2013

Is there a simple "disconnect" or do I have to go into "anonymous" mode?

Jim Wynne can probably answer this best.

 

[Jim Wynne]

Re: The Continuing Decline of Google Search - 2013

Is there a simple "disconnect" or do I have to go into "anonymous" mode?

Google Opt-Out Options

There's also Adblock Plus if you're using Firefox, Chrome, Opera or Android.

Of course, I have no personal experience with this sort of thing.

 

[Wesley Richardson]

Re: The Continuing Decline of Google Search - 2013

I use Google for searches. Just keep in mind that Google retains your searches forever, subject to a few options in which you may be able to limit some information.

http://support.google.com/websearch/answer/465?hl=en

http://support.google.com/accounts/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=54057

http://support.google.com/accounts/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=54048

There are many seminars that put on talks about search engine optimization (SEO), but these are based on educated guesses. Most businesses would like to know what Google uses, so that they could get their web site near the top of the search list, without paying Google a fee.

You will also find many people offering SEO for your web site. I have a relative that does this for a living. This may or may not actually help because it is very difficult to test to see if changes that are made actually resulted in a position difference. The reason is that if you have searched for a particular topic, Google will bring that search up higher on the new search. The way to verify this is to have people at two unrelated locations and internet search providers (ISP), do a search using identical terms. Their results will be different, regardless of the search engine used.

For Boolean searches and other specific types, enclose quotation marks around the words, e.g. "Elsmar Cove" to force Elsmar Cove to be the search. Note even doing this, sometimes web sites that do not match "Elsmar Cove" will still appear high in the list.

Google accepts AND and OR .

Search operators http://support.google.com/websearch/answer/136861?hl=en

Wes R.

 

[Ajit Basrur]

Re: The Continuing Decline of Google Search - 2013

Thanks Wes ... this was an eye-opener for me

 

[Wes Bucey]

Re: The Continuing Decline of Google Search - 2013

OK - I went through the opt out routine, but a pop up alert says it may be several days before the opt out takes effect. Note: it does not opt out of all ads, just targeted ads aimed specifically at me. So I assume I may get random ads still which have no relevance to my search terms.

I'll report back in at the end of the week on my experience.