Ali Nehme digitalBlog

Google's New Interface, Beyond the Aesthetics

2010-05-07T02:30:00.002+04:00

Starting with the fresh look: thumbs up. The new theme is aligned with both Chrome and Wave logos: brighter, cleaner & no longer 3D old school

Moving to the changes on the SERP:

Result Type:
Allow you an easier navigation to the type of results (previously available only on the top of the page), with some new additions: updates, discussions...

Realtime Content

Option to filter by article timing with more realtime results from both twitter and facebook. The below example depicts a scenario of a user looking for updates on the volcanic ashes. New results will appear on-the-fly as they become available

Localisation:
Localization is one of the key areas that Google are focusing on. In addition to giving local relevance depending on the interface you're using (Google.com vs. Google.ae), now you have the option to filter the results to show the ones near you. So here's an example, if you search for Dubai Mall; you'll end up with the official site as a first result:

If you pick the "Nearby" results, the outcome is totally different. You'll end up with all the related local business results

Refined Queries:
Wonder wheel is the name of their product and it helps you refine your search. Here's an example, you're looking for an airline ticket to Lebanon. Enter "Ticket to Lebanon", click search then on wonder wheel. From there, click "Airline tickets to Lebanon" and then "Airlines Fly Beirut": You end up with many options: Emirates, Qatar Airways, Turkish Airlines...

Timeline:
The timeline option gives you both a visualization and a filtering tool to refine your search based on a timeperiod. Here's an example: If you want to read more about "Barack Obama" childhood, start by searching for his name then select "Timeline" from the left pane. The result is a timeline from the 1960 till today, with some snippets of the event that occurred during this period; all you have to do is select the 1960 timeframe and more articles will come up within the selected timeperiod for more specific content

Something Different:
This technology is based on Google Squared, it allows you to find more topics related to your search query. A search for Jimmi Hendrix will result with similar options: Pink Floyd and Janis Joplin! I don't know about you but both are my favorite too, well done Google!

Other features:
The list goes on to cover searching for sites that contain images related to your search query, previewing the results within the SERP to many others...

To wrap this up, yes the page is a bit cluttered yet it's more options for the users. If you got used to all the Facebook changes you can easily adapt to Google's. It's nice to see all their Labs products translating into usable components. For people who are picky with their search results, the new interface is perfect for them. For those who don't care about accurate relevancy, close your left eye and continue to use the old interface.

Is Google Buzz an Implementation of Wave? A Social Takeover Attempt?

2010-02-10T16:32:00.001+04:00

Breaking News: Google started rolling out Google Buzz, as a gradual launch (luckily without the need for invites this time)
Once Google grants you access to Buzz, you will see an additional link to the left of your Gmail Screen (Under Inbox)

For everybody who tried Wave, you'll see a resemblance: from real-time collaboration and communication to embedding all their previous products (formatted text, photos, videos, maps...)
I'm one of many users who played around with Wave after it was launched but eventually lost interest; Rasmussen brothers came up with a great platform, but their Wave came as a standalone; not enough incentive to start using a new mail platform.

Yesterday, Google launched Buzz; a mini-social platform embedded within Gmail: a typical Google easy-to-use tool where you can effortlessly integrate your multimedia assets, share with your email contacts or even for public; all within your Gmail Interface

For all of the users who were frustrated while using Wave, Buzz is a more Googley approach: same features, more social and within your Gmail interface. It's more user friendly and have a higher potential of becoming mass.

Without breaking anybody's heart, Google is no angel (sorry Googlists), this might be a first step to consolidate our social conversations within their properties. Not that Google SideWiki was a hit, but there's no harm in re-trying, right? Maybe soon we'll updating our facebook/twitter from our Gmail account

Html Anchors within the Natural Search

2010-01-03T14:06:00.000+04:00

Google started to pick up Html Anchors within the crawled web pages by displaying a "Jump to" link to take you directly to that section.
An anchor is nothing but a pointer (hyperlink) to a specific section within a page.

An anchor link looks like this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kantar_Group#Millward_Brown_Group . It's your regular URL with the "#" tag. In this case, it's pointing to the "Millward_Brown_Group" section in the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kantar_Group page

Here's an example, Google "Millward Brown":

The 4th result is your typical wikipedia!, the main page is Kantar Group; right underneath it, you'll find the "Jump to Millward Brown Group:"
Once you click it, it will take you directly to that section in the Kantar Group page:

Notice the URL, it's an anchor linking directly to the section.

Now, how would that help you? Well, if you own a site with a lot of content, creating anchors will decrease your bounce rate and increase your site's stickiness. It all goes back to providing the relevant content that your user is looking for (with the least effort).

Local trends through Google Suggest

2009-12-06T00:16:00.001+04:00

Ever stopped at your Google's Suggest box and took a minute to think what other valuable information it offers? Well, here's something to get you started:

For example, the word "family" shows different interest in the users' behavior in these 3 regions: Google.com, Google.ae and Google.co.in

Google.com

Google.ae

Google.co.in

Google.com depicts an interest in the "family guy" series and the family feud show. If you look at the UAE's outcome, there's an interesting result with around 42MM searches: the family outings. And finally in india, the scene is totally different, the interest is skewed towards family heath.

Same goes for another example i saw online, the word "removing" will show either computer related results or removing stains in Google.com. In the UAE, it showcases two outcomes which validates the local interest : removing hair and windows piracy/messenger.

So, if you use Google to answer your personal queries then this can be irrelevant to you but if you're looking for insights, keep on digging there's much more than you think.

Google Dictionary

2009-12-04T22:57:00.000+04:00

Another service from Google, this time it's a full fledged dictionary: a mixture of the "define:" function and the translator.

If you write "define: artificial intelligence" in the search box, you would end up with this. Comparing it to the new dictionary, you'll find the same web definitions with an added result (Check result here): A new sourceless definition. Googling that same definition will lead to the reverso.net site with results taken from Collins dictionary!

If you want to use the English>Arabic dictionary, you'll end up with the actual translation and the traditional web definitions.

I wouldn't say that this is a replacement for Answers.com but i'm sure Google are up to something. Microsoft's Encarta experience was a failure, let's see what Marissa's team is up to.

Google Caffeine is Live

2009-12-01T16:57:00.000+04:00

Google decided that the Caffeine is ready for some real action
It is now being tested on some data centers, so expect some refined and larger implementations
i believe http://209.85.225.103 is one of them; if not blame Google

IAB In-Gaming Ads Measurement Guidelines

2009-09-25T20:20:00.001+04:00

With the online gaming attracting more of the advertising investments and with the maturity of the product, the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) released a final in-game advertisement measurements guidelines document.

The new guideline document covers both static and dynamic in-gaming ads in addition to 3D and mobile environments; it is applicable to both PC and Console games industries.

The guideline details the guidance for the Ad Impressions, reach and frequency.

Ad Impressions: on the duration side, the Ad Impression should last more than 10 sec to be counted and need to be displayed during an active time of playing. On the size level, it needs to be 1.5%+ of the screen size with enough lighting and the angle less than 55 degrees relative to the game screen. In addition to the above, the document covers the sound bit, deferred impressions, session definition and even frequency capping.

Two other measurements were added: the reach and frequency: these metrics are now mandatory for the marketers to better assess their campaigns efficiency.

To read the full document please refer to: http://www.iab.net/media/file/ingame-guidelines-final.pdf

This document will help audit the online gaming industry to further boost its credibility; an industry that is more developed in the US but expected to grow rapidly in this part of the world.

Loyal to the Game: Addicted Arabs

2009-09-21T00:05:00.000+04:00

Gaming is the fastest growing media worldwide; it is estimated to grow to 1.8 Billion US dollar by next year (according to Massive Inc). Advertisers and game developers are on a non-stop pursuit to make commercial sense out of the gaming industry.

In-Game Advertising triggered a debate between gamers and developers: an opportunity that will help cover the high production cost from one side and the decency of using such a medium for commercial purposes. Developers argue that the income from the in-game advertising help them emerge with higher quality and more original games.

According to a "Massive & Factor" study, 95% of the gamers are Males between the age of 13 and 34: a multi-tasking audience that is not easily captivated; an audience that gets repelled by intrusive advertising; one of the reasons why developers try to keep the in-game advertisement as subtle as possible.

The importance of gaming relies in the level of engagement; the same study mentioned above exhibits the high impact of the medium: a 10%+ increase across brand favorability, Purchase intent & Ad Likeability.

Going back to the gamers’ debate on the controversy of in-game advertising, continental research published a set of gamers’ quotes that expresses their favorability for such ads from the standpoint of adding reality and the sci-fi theme to the game.

In-Game advertisements is not new and dates many years back. For all of you Sega addicts, you definitely remember the game “Zool” (You might have seen it in a game boy or an Atari too), it's a game that came out in the early nineties. Zool was a ninja character with a purpose to move from one land to another (level) where each land gives you a higher ranking. If you played the game, you certainly remember the first couple of levels where the chupa chups lollipops were everywhere!

Moving to our region, to a more polemic area; everybody here is competitive by nature, whether it’s a result of the years of clashes or just a DNA surplus; you can easily notice it.

The gamers' competitive edge played and will continue to play an important role in the adoption speed of the gaming in this part of the world. If you take a look at the top sites across the region, Travian will instantly grab your attention: travian is a browser-based strategy game; the goal is to build a wonder of the world. To reward the competing crowds, top players earn medals (virtual ones); how can anybody miss such an opportunity? It’s addictive, competitive and it’s a way to prove yourself among other players. The sad part is that you can purchase the “Gold” for real money, yes real money (or just to get faster production). I doubt Travian will disclose the revenue from its cash pay system, but I’m sure it’s common among Arabs. To see its popularity check the Ranking on Alexa: (Sadly, this is how we compare the traffic figures) Travian.ae is amongst the top 10 sites in Saudi Arabia, Libya, United Arab Emirates and Jordan (top 20 across all GCC countries)

According to Nielsen Global Online Entertainment Consumer Report, UAE consumers rank first when it comes to PC games purchase. With many Arabic titles being translated, it won’t be long before we witness another boom in the gaming sales in our region. Saudi figures are expected to propel and reach high levels with a generation skewed towards young male and female (the young population constitutes more than 70% of the country's overall population)

Last month Abu Dhabi Media Company announced a joint venture with Gazillion entertainment to create the region first massively multiplayer online games (MMOG) studio in the UAE. The first game from the company will be an Arabic multiplayer game, based on the fictional character Majid (the character from ADMC’s children’s publication)

On top of that, multiple on-ground console tournaments are taking place across the region; last May, Chevrolet organized a GCC wide Pro Evolution soccer tournament with the activation happening inside its dealers’ showrooms.

Gaming will keep on evolving; we’ll see more customized localizations: from tailored maps to adapted characters and most importantly personalized games that are build to target specific regions. Coming up with the concept and building the engine are the tricky part, localizing it is just an easy add-on; with more US/European entertainment firms interested in widening the reach of their games, gamers will be even more interested in the offered content.

Reinventing SEO with Google Caffeine

2009-08-28T23:24:00.012+04:00

Google caffeine is neither a minor addition nor an update on Google’s existing search engine; it’s a complete new infrastructure for the world’s largest search engine.

According to Google, a large team has been working on this secret project for months, it is believed to be the next-generation architecture that is faster, more accurate and more comprehensive. This new infrastructure works in the back-end and will be unnoticeable to most users.

But how will that affect SEO? And how will that re-enforce Google attempt to make use of personalized results based on the users’ behaviors and trends? I think this is the next step that Google is after, SERPs that are customized based on the user’s preferences, behavior & historic data.

But is there a difference in the results (especially the first page results) between the decaf and caffeinated Google? It’s testing time.

To run through some basics, I now live in Dubai (from a UAE IP address, checked). Testing both Google search engines from the .com domain, no preference/settings saved.

Scenario: I’m looking for the latest Nokia phone models in the UAE, I used the term “nokia phones in uae”, below the search engine results:

Old Google

Google Caffeine

In both cases, Google favors authority websites, which is fair (since I’m using brand terms). Now the funny part, Google caffeine returned nokia.com.hk as a first result?!

I tried to dig the reason behind this: nokia.ae has more pages indexed related to these terms; both sites are regularly updated & indexed, both have around 400 inbound links (most of them are from nokia’s domains and other high PR sites) and finally both sites reside on the same server (in Switzerland).

Now why did Google prioritize the hk over ae? The only differences that might have tipped the scale are the Page Rank and the maturity of the site. But is it enough? Not really (If you’re looking to find Nokia.ae, go to the 8^th page, position 87)

Was this one of million examples? Maybe; But I expect proper results every time I search, the same way I expect the pilot to land every plane. I shouldn’t be applauding when he lands!

I wanted to summarize my Google Caffeine observations, for anybody who’s interested in a quick read:

Indexing: massive increase in the number of indexed pages
Results Speed: Google did it again, Caffeine is much faster
Relevancy: this goes back to the user and his subjective opinion of the presented results. I’m pretty satisfied with Google Caffeine
Updated content: some test showed mixed results, Google is adding real time web results to the indexed pages, and that might one of the reasons in the increased number of indexed pages
Universal Search: less exposure for both images and videos (at least for now)
Authority domains: I do think that Google are giving a higher weightage on authority domains
URL redirects: I’ve been hearing about a new way of handling the redirects (301 in particular). Can’t confirm
Timestamps: Google Caffeine is now adding timestamps on the next to the URL indicating the last time the site was updated (this was also noticed In the decaf Google, but now it’s showing on all kinds of site, not only on top news sites)
Wikipedia: everybody keeps on wondering whether Wikipedia will be given more authority and higher rankings; well, I don’t know…In many test, I’m seeing it in higher positions while it remained in the old positions for others.

The enhancement I’m still waiting for (that is improving, but not perfect yet) is the linguistic issue. Whether it’s for more localized insights and correlation for the searched terms or keywords usage (synonyms or keyword types –adj vs. noun vs. verb)

PS: Google Caffeine is still being tested and if you have any comment just scroll down and click on “Dissatisfied? Help us improve”.

And don’t click on “Try Google Experimental”, I got a 404 J

Google Caffeine is in town

2009-08-26T00:35:00.013+04:00

A new version of Google’s Search Engine! Well, yeah everybody heard of it by now; 2 weeks ago, Google launched a new and improved version of its famous search engine (codename: caffeine).

The new version is still in its pre-beta edition yet fully available for the public and can be accessed here

To assess the new engine, i divided the tests into 5 categories: indexing, results speed, results relevency, updated content and Universal search.

1. Indexing:

To start with the size of the indexed pages, i ran some tests to compare the search engines, below an example on the term "Dubai":

Google Caffeine

Old Google

Cuil

Bing

The only reason I included cuil is because it claims/has the biggest database size in terms of indexed pages; the outcome is clear: cuil has double the number of results compared to its next rival.

Google Caffeine showed a 23% increase in the indexed pages (vs. the current Google engine)

However, such a large index might only be useful if you’re looking for atypical or out of the ordinary information. For most of the users, the above will not make a big difference; in all cases, the number of results does not necessarley equal better results.

2. Results Speed

I can't see a difference between a user waiting 0.07 or 0.1 sec to get the results of his search query. However, when the variation is higher, the impact is bigger and search engines might lose the users' fidelity we all tend to have toward them (whether for its practicality, easy-to-use, relevancy...)

I tested the term “Arab’”, the difference is phenomenal (eventhough sometimes i got mixed results, the overall disparity is remarkable)

Google Caffeine

Old Google

Ayna

Araby

A 150% increase in performance is huge, especially if you think of the increased number of pages searched and served. Bottom line, Google Caffeine outperforms the old one in terms of speed. The test was also made on many other keywords, all of them proved a better performance with Google Caffeine.

For the sake of comparison, I added the top 2 Arabic search engines; the gap is still too big for any of them to be a serious competitor for Google (even if sometimes you might see similar performance results, overall performance tilts to Google's side)

I couldn’t compare it to bing as it does not revert back with the query speed (And I’m too lazy to create an app that can test it)- Might do it soon though J

3. Results Relevancy

To test relevancy I used the term “Dubai” looking for any information about the city (i used Google.com in both cases- and not the localalized pages)

Old Google

Google Caffeine

The first thing I noticed is the universal search; both pictures and news are missing. This might be because these features haven’t been finalized yet and will be added at a later stage.

Both gave me relevant results based on my broad search term, the surprising thing is that Wikipedia was given a higher rank, as if they needed better rankings!

4. Updated content

I wanted to test how the search engine reacts to new events. Today is August 25^th 2009 and there’s a bombing in Kandahar that’s all over the news:

Old Google

Google Caffeine

I guess here is where i was a bit dissapointed, it’s breaking news. The search engine algorithm did identify that type (breaking news in this case) as its part of the news box. The old Google prioritized france24's breaking news over an article on Wikipedia (on the same topic) that dates from 2008- Which makes sense; Google caffeine did the opposite.

5. Universal Search

As mentioned in the results relevancy section, universal search is giving mixed results.Here's an example on the term "Lebanon"

Old Google

Google Caffeine

Both versions had the articles, maps and blogs results. Google caffeine did not show any images yet the old one did. Relevancy here is another issue; On the old Google, I was served “Miss Lebanon” pictures as first results instead of the actual country pics (not that i'm complaining but still!)

Images are still far from being optimized as opposed to the articles, hopefully it's a work in progress with Google Caffeine.