Posted: March 13, 2015
Search engines are programs that crawl websites in order to index each site based on categories and keywords in order to provide relevant results to search queries. Each search engine completes these actions in its own way, with its own set of algorithms to sift through data and organize websites.
Search engines work by compiling data on trillions of web pages and filing that data away for retrieval purposes. When a user conducts a search, the search engine’s software tries to find the same or similar search terms within its compiled data. Then, it ranks the data in order of relevance or purpose. For example, the most relevant link for a search of the term “dog” might be the dictionary definition, but it’s more likely that the user is searching for dog photos, videos, breeds or illness symptoms. A search engine sorts out these possibilities in order to provide what it determines to be the best possible websites based on the search term or phrase.
The three major search engines used in the United States are Google, Yahoo and Bing. There are other search engines available, including Ask and AOL, and the majority of them all function in similar ways.
Google utilizes the “crawl and index” technique on every web page it can encounter. “Web crawler” software, sometimes called spiders, sounds more menacing than it really is. Crawlers check out web pages and follow links found within the pages similar to the way a human would browse a website. While crawling pages, the software compiles data and delivers that information to Google’s servers.
It’s up to Google’s programs to determine how often Googlebot will crawl a website, but website owners are able to to be a part of this process. The vast majority of websites are able to be crawled with no interaction on the owner’s part. However, through Google Webmaster Tools, it is possible to opt out of Googlebot’s crawling or provide additional information on how Googlebot should process pages found on specific websites.
Once the crawling stage is complete, Google files websites away through an indexing process. This process is similar to conducting research -- first you gather information, and then you organize that information. Indexing puts websites into categories based on keywords and search terms so that Google can find relevant information later. Much like an index found at the back of a resource book or textbook, Google’s index includes data concerning words and where they are located. So when a search query is completed, Google can use those search terms to find the most relevant information, just like looking up a keyword in a book’s index.
Of course, Google has refined this process over the last few decades, so it has become extremely complex. With the addition of Google’s algorithms and updates, search results have become refined and ranked based on credibility and relevancy.
Although Google is now the go-to search engine, Yahoo was the original giant of the industry. Once the most popular way for users to search the Internet, Yahoo is now powered by Bing (owned by Microsoft) as a way to compete in the market against Google and other search engines.
Bing is referred to by Microsoft as a “decision engine” because, as the company states, Bing was created to minimize spammy websites with poor (or “thin”) content and promote websites that prove most useful in the target areas of health, local, travel and shopping.
In the grand scheme of things, Bing functions very similarly to Google. Although features may differ, the software behind it all is a complex set of algorithms that sort through websites based on their parameters.
Although Google releases information about the majority of its algorithm updates and how they affect searches and website rankings, Microsoft keeps that information private. The company does not disclose what makes it’s algorithms tick, but there is a noticeable difference in search results when using the same terms on Google as on Bing. Which one is the best to use? It likely comes down to your searching preferences of features available as well as the way you search and the topics you search.
The best way to optimize your website for all of the search engines is to stop cutting corners and relying on quick tricks to get instant results. Abandon any Black Hat SEO tactics and instead invest the time and money on creating an informative website with a purpose. Across the board, websites with a higher level of available information that is well-written and presented in a more professional manner are ranked higher than other websites in organic listings (organic search results exclude paid links and advertisements).
If you’re struggling with determining where to begin, consult an inbound marketing company like Jumpem. We have the expertise and experience to revamp your website -- both in content and design -- to get you better results when it comes to search engine rankings.