Media Centre: News Releases
MSN Search Beta update
- new personalization features.
November 11th, 2004
Today
Microsoft launched an updated Beta version of their new search engine.
It contains some intriguing new personalization features.
The preview can be seen at: http://beta.search.msn.com
The main MSN website still uses Inktomi to power its search results, and whilst generally the Beta of MSN Search still has a long way to go to be a fully fledged product, there is one part of it that demands much closer inspection, the Search Builder, which is accessible just below the search box.
It contains the same basic functions as most other search engines: Search Terms, Site/Domain restriction, Country/Region, Language options, but there is an additional feature called ‘Results Ranking’ which gives an indication of the direction MSN may be taking in personalization.
‘Results Ranking’ has three equalizer slider(s) that a searcher can use to customise the results. They are interesting because the sliders have an impact at algorithmic level, influencing the way the search engine actually looks for results. This is a novel approach to personalization as most user level search engine filters are applied to a set of results, delivered via a standard query mechanism.
How to use the slider:
1. To modify
your search to add emphasis to sites that have been recently added to
the search index, you move the third slider up.
2. To add emphasis to sites by the number of other sites that link to
them, move the middle slider up.
3. To put the most emphasis on the match between your exact search words
and your results, move the first slider up. This will de-emphasize the
two other rankings as search parameters.
Neutralize (*\*) will be testing the equalizer functionality for ourselves as part of our optimisation readiness programme for the full MSN Search. While most people believe MSN wont be able to compete with Google or Inktomi we think there’s some interesting potential there. We can’t wait to see what they come up with in the final version.
To monitor your sites visibility keep an eye on our free http://roxy.neutralize.com ranking analysis toolset, which will soon be updated to include MSN Search.
About
Neutralize
Neutralize is one of the UK’s leading full service search
engine marketing agencies. An Overture Accredited
SEM (Search
Marketing Company), UK Premier Affiliate to Atlas OnePoint(GoToast)
and also a Contributor Member of SEMPO
(Search Engine Marketing Professional Organisation)
http://www.sempo.org the global body
representing members of the search engine marketing industry. Clients
include the Houses of Parliament, Asserta Home, OCRA and the Eden Project.
Lotte Mahon
T. 0870 0630707
E.
U. http://www.neutralize.com
