Saylor URL: http://www.saylor.org/books Saylor.org
How Do Search Engines Access These Data?
Search engines use cookies to maintain a history of a user’s search activity. This will include keywords
used and Web sites visited from the search engine. Search engines gather data on the click-through rate of
results and on bounce rates.
Most search engines also provide other services, all of which can be used to gather data relevant to search.
For Google, some examples of these services include the following:
- Google AdWords
- Google AdSense
- Google Analytics
- Google Web Site Optimizer
- Google Checkout
- Google Toolbar
As of 2010, this is a relatively new area of SEO. It no doubt plays a part in search engine rankings, and
that contribution is set to grow. So what does this mean for SEO? When it comes to a Web site, SEO must
do the following:
- Be valuable enough to attract both visitors and links naturally
- Retain visitors and make sure they return to the Web site
- Convert visitors
What Not to Do
Black-hat SEO refers to practices that attempt to game the search engines. Should a search engine
uncover a Web site that is using unethical practices to achieve search engine rankings, it is likely to
remove that Web site from its index.