How Relevant is Google's Personalized Search?

Which search engine REALLY gives you the results you're looking for?

With Google in the news so much lately regarding their attempts to personalize your search experience, I thought it would be fun to test out just how relevant their search results are to my needs.

Before I get into it, though, I wanted to warn everyone about a little thing I noticed the other day.  I was in my Gmail account reading emails.  I looked over to the right side of the page at the "featured" advertisements, and noticed that the ads were surprisingly related to the content of the email I was reading.

At the top of the ads, there was a link in small print that says "Why these ads?"  When I clicked on it, a small window opened.  I tried to get a screen shot of it but when I hit Alt-prtscrn the little box disappeared.  What it said was "These ads are based on emails from your mailbox. Visit Google’s Ads Preferences Manager to learn more, block specific advertisers, or opt out of personalized ads."

I didn't like the sound of that so I went to the Ads Preferences Manager and found this:

"How ads are personalized on Gmail
When we personalize ads, we display ads based on the contents of all your emails. For example, if you've recently received lots of messages about photography or cameras, we might show you a deal from a local camera store. In your inbox, we might also show you ads related to information from different emails in your inbox. We show you these ads on Gmail depending on your preferences in the Ads Preferences Manager. Read more about this in the section be low."

So unless you opt out of all personalization, Google will be screening your emails to find content that matches their advertiser's wares.

And you thought your email was private!

Ok, back to the original topic.  How "relevant" is Google's personalized search?

Thought I'd start simple.  Suppose you wanted to read my latest blog post, but you didn't bookmark the blog (and why not??) and you couldn't remember the URL.  So you type Collectible Corner blog into the search box.  Since I'm searching for myself and the Google search is supposedly personalized, you'd  think my blog would be near the top of search results.

Not so!  You'll find my Facebook page with a reference to my blog.  If I click on that link I get part of my facebook page with an error message.  There are also images that belong to me, pulled from Picasa, which were posted to another blog of mine NOT Collectible Corner.  What you won't find is the blog itself, at least not in the first 10 pages.  Since Blogger is a google product, you'd think they'd rank it fairly high.

So what happens if I do the same search using Bing?  Page 1, first two entries.

Yahoo search?  Page 1 again.

Google fails!  If I type in Collectible Corner, give me that BEFORE you give me Collector's Corner!  Bing and Yahoo both gave me what I was looking for, but not Google.

I don't want this blog post to get overlong, but I'll do one more search. 

Just yesterday I listed a Limoges plate, Alice in Wonderland Alice and the Mad Hatter.  I didn't think I'd get much from search since I just listed it yesterday, but when I search Bing there I am on page 1 of search results!

Same with Yahoo!

But Google?  Nope.  Not in the first 10 pages.


I spend a great deal of time trying to placate the Google gods when I'm creating my listings.  More than half of the traffic that comes to my Bonanza booth does so through Google.  But when I search, I get better results by far from Bing and Yahoo.


So what does this very unscientific 1-person experiment mean?   Maybe you'll find more relevant search results from alternate search engines.  I find myself using Bing more and more because I don't get irrelevant results as often as I do on Google. 

I'd love to hear what your experience has been with the various search engines!  If you'd like to share, please leave a comment at the bottom of this post.

And oh yeah, Happy Friday!

Sarah