AdWords users may see an increase in the number of impressions though as reported by Google. When a user types a query and pauses for three seconds, it counts as an impression. Now, when the query is completed and the results get refreshed, it will count as another impression if your ad gets displayed. This could mean a reduction in the clickthrough rates.
The job of SEO experts was made difficult since the time search started getting more and more personalized. Two people could be searching on the same term, yet see different results based on their geographical locations, especially if they are signed into their Google Account.

In such a case, there is only a certain amount of search engine optimization that you can depend on because the results are not within your control. However, to say that the search engine optimization is becoming less relevant would be incorrect. The days of keyword stuffing and AdSense ads are definitely over – SEO techniques are getting more sophisticated and businesses actually want to provide their users with information that will make them keep coming back.

This is all fine, untill your data grows in size to petabyte scale, then old way simply isn’t feasible. Tagging, sorting, and categorizing, would take an emmence amount of time. A single computer, no matter how large, just can’t crunch that many numbers at once.

Google Data Structure

Google use a very different approach, when sifting and ordering the world wide web. Thier solution for working with colossal data sets, is an approach called MapReduce.

It works like this:

1. Collect

MapReduce does not depend on traditional databases, where information is collected then categorized. We’ll just gather up the full text of every book Google has scanned.

2. Map

You then write a function to map the data: “Count every use of every word in Google Books.” The request then splits among all the computers within your army, each is assigned a chunk of data to work with.

3. Save

Each PC doing a map, writes the results to its local hard drive, cutting down on data transfer time. Then the computers that have been assigned a “reduce” function grab the lists from the mappers.

4. Reduce

Then the Reduce computers correlate the lists of words. Now you would know the frequency of a particular word that is used, and in which books.

5. Solve

The system finally creates a data set about your data! In my example, the final list of words is stored as separate sets, so it can be quickly referenced or queried. So then you don’t have to plow through unrelated data to get your answer.

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Implications For Your Brand!

This obviously has huge implications for previously indexed sites and brands. Business have to adopt a more universal methodology when optimizing and branding content. This will engage the searcher with as many of these additional properties which will now be included in standard search queries, if they do not, they will be lost in the noise once more!

A Universal Search example, KW 'credit cards'

Engage Or Die

That being said universal search is here, and here to stay, adapt or die is the message reverberating throughout the search community. If brands choose to engage with multiple mediums, then surly the searcher will have a richer user experience, and the brand will have greater opportunity for branded impressions right? But which stakeholder within your organization will this task fall on? Why the good old CMO of course. CMO’s who are already engaged with search marketing must learn to adapt and move with the change, embellishing their online artifacts to include Universal search within their media spends. Brands and organization who are just entering this space must also be made a aware of Universal and Blended Search, and engage with it as much as possible. Its my belief that companies who do not optimize a range of content, will see a diminished CTR and traffic volume.

What Is It?

Yahoo as always are in hot pursuit, naming their new SERP output ‘Blended Search‘  increasing integration of  video and photos directly in search results, and Search Assist which feeds suggestions and query refinements to the user. Yahoo’s version of Universal search aims to work in  much the same way.

So “Universal Search” as Google defines it:

Over several years, with the help of more than 100 people, we’ve built the infrastructure, search algorithms, and presentation mechanisms to provide what we see as just the first step in the evolution toward universal search. Today, we’re making that first step available on google.com by launching the new architecture and using it to blend content from Images, Maps, Books, Video, and News into our web results.

Historically search rankings focused primarily on HTML based text content, optimized by keywords, relevancy, meta data and all those other lovely SEO methods. With the shift to Universal Search, mixed within the regular content will be media rich properties such as images, video’s, maps, books, shopping feeds and much more. If a brand or business engages and optimizes with all these mediums, then their coverage an brand value must be greater for it.

What About Vertical Search?

Googles organic results for several years have included a results  filtering system, dividing the SERPs content into verticals, this had the obvious name of Vertical Search, but due to lack of use of these filters, Google has evolved the concept. Many people just didn’t know vertical search existed, and I think if google had made the vertical filter a little more prominent then a larger number of user would have used them, user interface design for dummies guys.

New Google Universal model explained

Vertical search is part of a subset now aptly named “specialized” search, it consists of search engines focusing on slices of content such as news or images. For instance avideo search engine would simply relay video results excluding all other results. Or a books search engine would topically relate too author and book information only…simple! What universal and blended search does is combine that search data. and outputs a mix of results; the user can still filter the results. Search engines have effectively taken the default choice out of the hands of the user.

The images below shows the old model of vertical results and below the new model of blended results now not necessarily structued in a linier manor. Previously a query on google would only return webpages (html text) and document content. A user now will be faced with mixed media results.

Challenges for Search Agencies

Agencies are often to slow to move with changes in industry, as a result of client uncertainty or institutionalized MD’s. What ever the case the big bears in the room, Google and Yahoo have repainted the walls, this new search paradigm cant be ignored and its not going to go away! Agencies and search intuitions have to lead brands to water, advocating the benefits of this change with confidence; after all this universal search is free, and billable right? Its a fantastic opportunity for brands to engage with there user base through mixed media, for free, ….well the cost of content production and optimization, but still a low cost of entry. I for one, am excited and inspired by the change, and will be shouting about Universal and Blended search from the rooftops for some time to come!

What do the pro’s say about all of this? John Battelle at SES

So what do the search engines say? Dr. Larry Cornett from Yahoo

Let us know your thoughts on this subject, has your brand engaged with this? Are you an agency? How have you updated your SEO strategies for the change?