Google WebSearch is live!

[hooloovoo22]

Along with additional channels, a preview tool, additional language support, a new ad layout and some other account changes you have to agree to.

Same as before you see everything once you login and agree to terms.

Anxiously awaiting Jenstar's recap ;)

[RobbieD]

Yes, what they need for us publishers that use our own Search Engines already is a way to use a special javascript code for our search results.

We are using the standard Google Adsense Code in our search results right now but most times nothing comes up.

They need a code where we can put Search="<%Imput_Words%>" and when we paste it on our search result pages it would be dead one every time.

I'm sure they will look at doing this for us publishers that do not wish to run another search engine but keep our own with Sponsored Results...I hope :)

[RobbieD]

Just a quick question....

Can you just link to pages like

[google.com...] if you don't want to use the actual search box at the start?

[jomaxx]

As others have said, changing the code in any way is against the TOS. A plain HTML link would work from a technical perspective, but so many people have reported being kicked out of the program recently that it hardly seems prudent to experiment with it.

[RobbieD]

Guess I'll have to email Google for the final say :)

[ChrisKud5]

Why is it if you are "signed up" for this you cannot un sign up yourself. I do not want any part of this gimmick by google, but I am "signed up" for this "program" and you cannot remove the "program" from your account.

I love the horrible HTML code they generate.........what a joke.

"Do not edit the code becuase we like our own handmade code with errors in it"

[Swash]

Why is it if you are "signed up" for this you cannot un sign up yourself. I do not want any part of this gimmick by google, but I am "signed up" for this "program" and you cannot remove the "program" from your account.

Amen

I hope I havent been duped into paying some revenue percentage for this search option.

[PFOnline]

What about new sites?

I just created a new site with over 20,000 pages and just happened to be looking for a search script, so this sounded good! but am getting no results because none of the pages are indexed yet.

Also:

What if you just want the option for people to search your site and not the web? Is that possible?

I really want to remove that seemingly out of place google logo next to the search box too...

[anallawalla]

I have also emailed Adsense-support to ask:

* How much are the "fees"

* Splitting the form over 3 lines to fit in a narrow column

* Prefilling the search box

If more people write them, a theme will emerge at their end.

[chatterbug89]

mmmmm...google is comming up with new stuff all the time...LOL.

I recall someone saying that they use google adsense on there "search engine", but they get no relevant ads, and yous aid you wish you could just choose keywords. Well, maybe you could use an Iframe with the google ads in it and in white text write some keywords. Make sure not to check the frame support thing when you create your ad code and wha la! You choose your own keywords...I am not totaly sure if this is against the TOS or not, and I am not totaly sure how it will work with Iframes (I only use Iframes when the PHP include function will not do what I want).

Another thing is, just having your logo at the top of the page is kind of dull...unless you have an extrmely simple desing, it isen't goign to match with your site at all...your think they could let you link to a header file you created somewhere else on your site...it would save google a lot of bandwidth and make us happy at the same time.

As for custum search box sizes and what not...I was thinking that maybe you could have the adsense search box code in a seperate file and have another forum that when a user submits to, a PHP script would call up the file with the google code in it and automatically stick the search term the user submited into the google form completely from the background, so it appears that the user went directly though your own forum...and sense you are technically not modifieing the google's code, you would nto be breaking the TOS...however...dont' ask me how to do this...I haven't goten that far in the PHP manual yet ;-)

[huppy99]

Yes,

In my brief browsing I saw a few things that could be improved, most notably the integration into your own website (or more correctly, lack of integration) and the text "Revenue from WebSearch ads may be offset at the end of the month by fees applicable to WebSearch".

I didnt see mention of these 'fees' tat 'may' be offset.

I would like to know what they are before launching this service on my network.

[jim_w]

They need to make your logo link back to your home page or search page.

[arubicus]

You can. It is under styles.

[Kimkia]

I've been looking for a long time for an affiliate web search worth placing on my site.

I had one, but payment from them was sporadic and unreliable.

The thing is, however, I learned that a simple search box alone didn't do nearly as well as a search box, below which were certain search terms relevant to my site... so search box, and links below for specific related terms...

If google did this, it would be awesome, and the results would surpass their wildest dreams, I'm sure...

[jim_w]

arubicus

ah, I see. That’s what the ‘Destination URL of logo’ means. The example they give should be …
(example: [yourpage.com...]
not…
(example: [google.com...]

[alexandra]

Can I put google websearch in the search results page of my site? See, I will put it on the top of the search results page with these words" can not find what you want here? try to search in google"
It is allowed? Thanks.

[MrAnchovy]

they use google adsense on there "search engine", but they get no relevant ads, and yous aid you wish you could just choose keywords. Well, maybe you could use an Iframe with the google ads in it and in white text write some keywords. Make sure not to check the frame support thing when you create your ad code and wha la! You choose your own keywords

Intersting idea.

It doesnt appear to be against the terms, as Google even has a reply to such a thing:

Our targeting technology is not optimized to serve ads within an IFRAME. If you placed the AdSense code in an IFRAME, your site may display less targeted ads or public service ads. For better results please implement our ad code directly into the source of your web page. Once you make these changes, relevant ads may not appear immediately. Until we are able to re-crawl your site, which may take up to 30 minutes or more, you page may continue to display untargeted or public service ads.

However, the above is written for someone having problems as a result of using an iframe, an dpossibly to deter such a thing... but it's a possible work-around for those who are being served non-relavant ads.

I would still guess that it's an iffy move... if Google wanted us to picking our keywords, it would have been one of the first options avail.

FWIW, on of my site's has a rotating thought of the day... yesterday it was "My neighbor has a treadmill & a riding lawn-mower" And, of course, Google seemed to ingore ther other 95% of content & served up nothing but lawn-mower ads all day.
Day like that I wish I had more control over which ads were shown.... as continually going to the URL filter gets kinda old.

[Dayo_UK]

Mmm - Interesting changes.

Under the address section you also have to register as an Individual or a Business - this needs to be done for payments to be released in future.

Also suggests that you can not change your details at a later date....as I will be changing from an Individual to a Business shortly just creates extra admin for Google when people get in touch with them to change these details (as there are some reasons why people would.)

[bts111]

My love for Google is getting stronger and stronger everyday :)

[AW_Learner]

I wonder if I would get in trouble if I just simply unlinked the Google logo on the search button. So someone doesn't accidently click it then decide to do there search at google just because they are there already.
Whenever I put any Affiliate links on my site I NEVER put any direct links to the merchant that do not have my Affiliate code in it. Why would I do that for Google?

I also want to really know what these mysterious "fees" are. Don't you just love that it's not only a secret what Google will pay you in revshare for being an affiliate but now also a secret what they will "charge" you and bill you as well for being an affiliate?

[yump]

I hope the guys from Google take some comfort from the occasional positive comments that appear in these threads. Isn't the net supposed to be a place where new ideas are welcomed? Whatever they come out with is always going to develop and its never going to suit everyone. So far I've seen one comment about the improvement of the reporting being put above the fold and that was something that was brought up here and it was a pain and now its fixed.
</gripe>

Adding search looks very promising...
Consider the widgets!

We have a site about blue widgets. Our visitors also regularly surf looking for stuff about green widgets, but they also look for bodgits, wodgits and cradgits.

So now if they use the Google search on our website, we might get some revenue from adverts that we would never have got before.

I'm afraid I can't see the negative side of this.

[sidewinder]

I wonder if I would get in trouble if I just simply unlinked the Google logo on the search button.

Don't you know they only did that to increase their PR. ;)

[arubicus]

yump

I agree. Most of us get a huge percentage of traffic from google anyway. We are sending it right back into the pool to get recycled plus a percentage oftraffic we get form other sources. It is brilliant!

Google adverts on their own results and they keep it all.
Google send us traffic.
Google adverts on our websites they keep a percentage.
Us sending traffic BACK into the pool, adding also to the pool, in front of Google adverts and google keeps a percentage.

[Dayo_UK]

Surely the CTR on this should be huge!

I have set it up as a site search on one of my sites (10,000) pages and obviously there is potential for anyone who is using it as a site search just to have a serp returned with no or few pages from the site but plenty of sponsered results (9?).

Also with a site search I would prefer my pages to be before the sponsered results.

I will see how it goes on one site to start with.

[arubicus]

Although I am curious if we get paid for the clicks on ads off of the first set of results, mulitiple pages and new searches. Or are we limited to just the first initial results.

[rfung]

personally i think that the sponsored links take up too much space and will distract from the users finding the information on my own site(with site search). They take up almost the whole page.

[Shannon]

You could style the form, search box and submit button using CSS, changing the colors and sizes of every part of it... maybe even the google logo. In order to notice it Google reps would have to physically see your site.

Not that I'm going to do that just yet :)

[brakkar]

This web/site search is great, but sometimes I wish adsense would not try to be so "smart".

I'm sure I would get more clicks with ads ONLY targeting the nich topic of my site. Site search ads are really untargeted in the context of my site, since it only target a single searched word , and has no clue to grab the general context of my site as adsense usually does well on regular pages with reccurent words.

So I forsee the system to generate few clicks since most of the ads served will appear really untargeted in relation the the topic of my site.

Cordially,
Brakkar

[edited by: brakkar at 9:49 am (utc) on June 18, 2004]

[dcrombie]

I don't see this as a good thing - maybe for some sites, but not the web in general. If everyone takes up WebSearch then there will be a Google logo and a link to them all over the web. I can see that getting very annoying very quickly.

[TinkyWinky]

Wonder if sites with this in will get slightly better positioning within the SERPS? What a great way to increase revenue and tie in developers setting up new sites..... IMHO

[alika]

My main concern are the "FEES" which are unknown at this point. I do not wish to be in a situation where my search revenues is LESS than the fees involved -- and they would even dip into my Ad revenues.