A Search Engine is an Internet program that rapidly searches and identifies items in a database that correspond to keywords or characters specified by the user. It then provides a list of results that best match what the user is trying to find. It is used specifically for finding particular sites on the World Wide Web. Search results are generally presented in a line of results referred to as Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs). Information in SERPs are links to webpages, images, videos, infographics, articles, research papers and other types of files.
The search engine was born in 1990, exactly 1 year after the worldwide web was invented. At the time, there was limited data on the Internet. However, one website quickly turned into an overload of websites on the Internet, which arose the need for structure and accessibility on the web. Companies like Excite, Yahoo and Alta Vista, the pioneers that started revolutionizing how information was categorized, induced the first search engines into the Internet from 1991-94.
However, the real breakthrough came when a search engine called BackRub introduced itself into the game. BackRub, created by Larry Page and Sergey Brin would become the biggest and most recognized search engine to date. Backrub eventually became Google in 1997. Google revolutionized the search engine because it solved a problem a lot of searchers were experiencing in existing online search engines such as hacking practices, spammy links and keyword stuffing (an unethical way of inserting a large number of keywords into web content in attempt to artificially increase page’s ranking on search engines) by creating an algorithm (computer based series of programming instructions) that would reward quality and relevant content that connected users with what they wanted to find on the search engines. Basically, the more legitimate one’s site was, the more visible it became to the public.
Google rapidly evolved Search Engine Optimization, forcing unethical marketers to stop cutting corners and use ethical optimization techniques which made the internet a much better place by publishing content that actually holds value to visitors. Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is a process of improving your site to attract more visibility from relevant searches. You’re more likely to get attention and attract prospective and existing customers to your business if your page is visible on the search engines.
Below are the three processes that Google search engines go through before attaining the necessary information for searchers.
- Crawling- is when the search engines dig through the internet for content. This process happens in milliseconds. To know exactly how quickly the search engines have gone through the internet to find content, Google shows it right below the search bar (if you haven’t noticed)
- Indexing- occurs after information has been attained during the crawling process. It is a process where the search engine stores a huge chunk of data that’s relevant to a query.
- Ranking- After the search engine has obtained this large chunk of data, it scours through it for the most relevant information based on the searcher’s query then arranges it in descending order (most relevant information on top). The higher a website is ranked, the more relevant the search engine believes the site is relevant to the query.
If you want your content found by searchers on the Google search engine, you have to first make sure pages are accessible and recordable by crawlers. If you already have an existing website, and you want to find out whether Google is crawling and finding all your pages, one way to do so is to search “site:yourwebsitename.com” on the Google search bar. This will give you all the results Google has indexed for your website. The results on the Google’s SERP will give you an idea of which pages are indexed on your site and how they show up on the search results.
If your website isn’t showing on the Google search engine, here are some of the possible reasons as to why:
- Your website has been penalized by Google for sneaky tactics
- Your site hasn’t been crawled yet because its brand new
- Your website hasn’t been linked by an external website
- Your websites navigation isn’t friendly enough for effective crawling
One of many ways to get the best out of SEOs, is that you need to have CLEAN information architecture, which is a process of categorizing, structuring, labeling (how you present information), navigating (how users move through information) and building friendly search systems (how users look for information) on your website that will improve efficiency and fundability for searchers perusing information.
There are so many things to learn from Google. It’s a whole another study that’s worth a pile of materials. I wouldn’t want to dive in deep because, despite my articles being educational, I want you to enjoy your time while reading through it. Giving you the feeling of wanting to learn more is enough for me. Never the less, right now more than ever before, results are being influenced by real-world data. This interactivity is how searchers interact with and respond to local businesses. Since Google wants to deliver the best, most relevant local businesses to searchers, it makes sense for them to use real-time engagement metrics to determine quality and relevance. So now that you’ve got the gist of things, GET ON BOARD!
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