Search For Better Search: Winning Users’ Trust
In our first “Search for Better Search†conversation, we asked you what you expect from a better search experience. You said you want a search engine that understands your query the way human does.
Yet, a funny thing happened as Web search became part of our everyday lives. You and I have started to provide more and more information about our search habits and history to our search engines. Gradually, users’ trust has become a hot topic and an important issue.
Many of you are following the active privacy/trust conversation in the press with Google primarily in the spotlight as the largest player, and on the verge of the DoubleClick deal. We have participated in the discussion by talking about hakia’s different approach: We don’t need your personal information to improve our search algorithms. We will communicate with you clearly if some data must be captured for a particular reason and your privacy line could be seemingly crossed. You can read more about this in my prior blog post and in an Investor Business Daily article
With user trust being such a key issue and hot topic, we have dedicated the second “Search for Better Search†conversation to trust. This time we ask your opinion on how the search industry can “win users’ trust†and invite you to blog about it. You can see the comments on trust from some of the top bloggers. Again, we ask for your opinion and input: Do you trust your search engine? What is the single most important issue search engines can address to win users’ trust? Please visit www.searchforbettersearch.com and let us know what you think.
As the search industry evolves, it will naturally have issues and growing pains, like search engines winning users’ trust, just like a friend must win your trust. How does your friend win your trust? By communicating with you so that you get to know and understand each other.
We think there could be a better way for a search engine to build trust with Web searchers. Search engines can engage users in a conversation about their privacy in a transparent way. Will it take more effort on the part of search engines? Definitely. Is it worth it? Absolutely!
What do you think?
June 1st, 2007 at 5:31 am
Until you filter out spammy SEO’ed sites, you are not adding any value to the Google user.
But its good. should pay your bills.
June 1st, 2007 at 5:00 pm
Hi Umesh,
Please bear in mind that our search engine is in BETA operation and not a finished product yet. We are in development mode and are continuously improving the search engine with new features and products. Our capabilities will be more visible as we make progress.
Please keep on searching at hakia.com!
June 16th, 2007 at 11:36 pm
Hi Melek!
?
I agree with you as usual and applaud your approach to this increasingly sensitive issue. In a perfect world a person’s search tool would know them rather intimately and would have “safeguards” built in that would never ever reveal anything about the user. I expect this is digitally possible and potentially of supreme value both in terms of PR and intrinsically. What if a search engine, well even something beyond a search engine, could be a confidant if you will.
Of course the people and the business behind this entity would have ultimate control, but the inherent integrity of such a business along with the innovation would (I expect) be of a value that exceeded all competitors. Of course I know this is where you are headed, but proving it will take time. On Web 2.0 it may be enough to “say it” to begin with but knowing the value and methods of everyone at Hakia I am sure you will discover a meticulous method for demonstrating trustworthiness in short order.
Assurances and the lack of a need for what Google has taken advantage of will go a long way to being demonstrative in this regard. I hope I can think of some “key” elements that might anchor such “assurances.” BTW answer my email LOL
My Warm Regards Always,
Phil Butler
June 19th, 2007 at 12:16 pm
Hi Phil,
Thanks for sharing your thoughts! Check out Rob’s post (June 19th).
I did answer your email:-)
Melek