Google Removed the Operator For Google Branding - Not User

[CMidd]

I'm a big user of the + search Operator and a ton of my queries come in using "+".

When Google got rid of it, I was shocked.

I figured, Hey Google knows more about it's use and maybe me and my users are the minority that's using it.


Now I know real reason.

The "+" operator is now going to be used as Branding for Google+

Read Google Official Blog and watch the video here: [googleblog.blogspot.com...]


Then it dawned on me. My users are not webmasters, and probably don't know about the "+" operator being discounted.

If they are using + who's page will they be taken to.

some of my queries are "keyword" +hotels. Will they be sent to who ever control the Hotel Google Plus Page?

[tedster]

The plus operator is simply ignored right now. Let us know if you start seeing Google+ pages in response to a query that uses the operator. My best is that won't happen. The timing of the two events is a bit suggestive, though.

[levo]

[img705.imageshack.us...]

[flatfile]

I get [plus.google.com...] when searching "google+" without quotes, and www.google.com/ when searching "google" also without quotes. To me it doesn't appear like Google is ignoring the + on this query.

[Andem]

Interesting find, levo. My original thought (months ago) was that because Google was fiddling so much with their algorithms and front-end, that they also managed to break the + operator.

Your screenshot makes me view those type of queries as a kind of dmoz 2.0: a very exclusive directory.