What is a metasearch engine? SISTRIX
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With Google Flights results, it is important to note that Google also acts as an aggregator of aggregators and displays results from direct providers, e.g. Lufthansa, in addition to flight portals, e.g. Expedia, and forwards web users on to the respective platform for bookings.
With the Maps results, it is important to note that Google acts as an aggregator of aggregators and displays the results that it has compiled. When it comes to making bookings, the searcher is forwarded to the respective platform, such as Booking.com.
The organic hits below this include large (travel) comparison platforms, such as booking.com, in addition to local and specialist sites. With the Maps results, it is important to note that Google acts as an aggregator of aggregators and displays the results that it has compiled. For bookings, the searcher is forwarded to the relevant platform.
What is a metasearch engine
From: SISTRIX Team Steve Paine 24.08.2021 SEO Basics DMCA: What is a DMCA takedown notice? CMS: What is meant by Content Management System? Landing Page: Definition, Benefits and Tips Methods and strategies for more website visitors Google Analytics: Definition and functions Search Engine Ranking: What "ranking" means in SEO Google Quality Rater Guidelines: How the Algorithm Recognises Quality What is SEO? The SEO Beginners Guide What is an SEO keyword? The 8 Most Common SEO Mistakes Made By Beginners What is a captcha? What is Baidu? What is the World Wide Web Consortium - W3C? What Is A DNS Record And What Is It Used For? What are interstitials? What is JavaScript? What is Pop-under advertising? What is a metasearch engine What are affiliate codes? Back to overviewMetasearch engines submit search queries to a number of other search engines. The results are then sorted according to certain filters and displayed to searchers.ContentsContentsWhat is a metasearch engine The time before GoogleMetasearch engines todayMetasearch engines for specific vertical searchesFlightsHotelsHoliday flatsJobsCar RentalsShoppingMetasearch Engines and SEOConclusionWhat is a metasearch engine
The idea behind metasearch engines is that more results, from different sources, can lead to better answers. In addition, by querying different, smaller databases, a higher recall for more general search queries can be achieved.The time before Google
In the days before Google shook up web search, metasearch engines were a frequently used service. Rather than the index of one search engine being searched for queries, the indexes of several search engines were consulted at the same time. This gave a broader picture of the website landscape: at the turn of the millennium, the indexes of the search engines were very manageable compared to today. With the advent of Google and the constant expansion of the Google index, the era of general metasearch engines came to an end. In most cases, Google had sufficiently diversified results in its index to generate the best result for web searchers.Metasearch engines today
Metasearch engines have become more specialised over the years: they have moved away from general search queries to very specific questions, which can often be covered better by specialised services than by Google itself.Metasearch engines for specific vertical searches
Even today, there are a number of metasearch engines that can hold their own in web search and often make up the top search results on Google for the non-specific but very high-traffic, short-tail keywords that relate to certain subject areas. Some of the best-known and widely-used metasearch engines and their corresponding subject areas can be found here:Flights
In the flight search landscape, there are meta-searches that focus entirely on flights, such as fly.com and skyscanner.net, as well as larger travel comparison portals, such as expedia.com, and general price comparisons like airhint.com. This vertical is also served by Google itself with Google Flight Search (google.com/flights), which occupies its own box above the organic results. Google's Flights featureWith Google Flights results, it is important to note that Google also acts as an aggregator of aggregators and displays results from direct providers, e.g. Lufthansa, in addition to flight portals, e.g. Expedia, and forwards web users on to the respective platform for bookings.
Hotels
In the case of hotels, we again find websites that are focused on one subject area, such as hotels.com, as well as the larger travel comparison portals and general comparison portals, such as trivago.co.uk. Google is also represented in hotel search with its own information box, the Maps integration, which is again displayed above the organic search results. This box moves the organic hits beneath the fold on a 27 inch monitor, as can be seen in this screenshot: Google's hotel search featureWith the Maps results, it is important to note that Google acts as an aggregator of aggregators and displays the results that it has compiled. When it comes to making bookings, the searcher is forwarded to the respective platform, such as Booking.com.
Holiday flats
In this example, Google has not only displayed AdWords ads for holiday homes, it has lso integrated a Google Maps integration above the organic results.The organic hits below this include large (travel) comparison platforms, such as booking.com, in addition to local and specialist sites. With the Maps results, it is important to note that Google acts as an aggregator of aggregators and displays the results that it has compiled. For bookings, the searcher is forwarded to the relevant platform.