Post on 24-Feb-2016
description
Successful Enterprise Search by Design
Be the Hero, not the Goat
AgendaSearch is a user experienceBad search = low productivityWhy configure searchWeb search is not Enterprise searchConfiguration Framework
–Define Problem space–Define Scope–Content is king, Context is the realm–Build something beautiful–Build something meaningful–Must haves – Nice to Haves
Key Takeaways
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SEARCH IS A USER EXPERIENCE
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A Frustrating Experience
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A Bad Experience
Loss of capacity for discernment• 36% did not go beyond the first 3 search results • (not pages…results on page 1)• 91% did not go beyond the first page of search
results• 55% selected irrelevant results 1 or more times
Searchers do not know “how to search”• 56% constructed poor queries• Proficiency with the machine does not translate into
proficiency with the software
Searchers get lost in the data• 33% had difficulty navigating/orienting search results• 28% had difficulty maintaining orientation on a
website
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A Weakening Experience
Loss of capacity for discernment• 36% did not go beyond the first 3 search results
– not pages…results on page 1• 91% did not go beyond the first page of search
results• 55% selected irrelevant results 1 or more times
Searchers do not know “how to search”• 56% constructed poor
queries• Proficiency with the machine
does not translate into proficiency with the software
Searchers get lost in the data• 33% had difficulty
navigating/orienting search results
• 28% had difficulty maintaining orientation on a website
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Difference in Looking for Information
Human Retrieval•Contextual•Free form•Navigational or informational •Focused and random– Berrypicking
•Constrained– By technology– By biology
Machine Retrieval•Literal•Directed•Rigid– One way– Sequential
•Constrained– By size of index– By nature of
instructions
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Difference In Relevance PerceptionThought-Processing Biped Relevance•Emotional•Environmental
Good means pleasing, honest, truthful, operates
with integrity
Machine Relevance•Literal•Logical
Good means fulfills a programmed criteria based
on computational mathematics
"I shall not today attempt further to define the kinds of material I understand to be embraced within that shorthand description; and perhaps I could never succeed in intelligibly doing so. But I know it when I see it.”
Justice Potter StewartMiller v California (1973)
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WEB SEARCH IS NOT ENTERPRISE SEARCH
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Web Has Machine RefinementsSemantic• Authority• Contextual relatedness• Phrase indexed based on popular searches:
Index, categories, keywords, document-specific data
• Similarity estimation: Compares a “sketch” or compact representation for document and uses an established similarity threshold to delete duplicate entries
Prediction• Orion Algorithm: Search engine algorithm uses
vector space analysis that combines vector positioning with previous user action– Google 2009– Microsoft Powerset Acquisition
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Web Relies Heavily on Relevance Inputs
Behavior that influences relevance• Query• Click through• Time on page• Path
Social Influences• Likes• Comments• Recommendations• Retweets• Click-throughs
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Bad Search = Low Productivity
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Many Voices Same ConclusionEnterprise searchers spend longer looking
because “they know it is there somewhere”• IDG: 2.5 hours/week/employee• Ford:5-15% of time on non-productive information
related activitiesCoping mechanisms for poor enterprise
search• Recreate • Use older assets• Interrupt a co-worker• Start without info needed• Don’t start
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Configuring Enterprise Search
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Your Manager Saw the Demos
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The OOB Experience Won’t Cut It
It is not what the vendor used in the demo
No matter what “they “ say
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Governance Does Not Optimize Search
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Controlled Vocabulary Will Not Optimize Search
And neither will a taxonomy
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CONFIGURATION FRAMEWORK
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Know What Problem You’re Solving20
Define Problem SpaceObjectives• Find out: who is searching • Find out: what they are looking for • Find out: How they are searching (what
keywords/phrases, how often they iterate, etc)
• Find out: What drives their determination of relevance
Tools• Site analytics • Search logs • User/stakeholder interviews
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Don’t Boil the Ocean
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Define the ScopeObjectives• Define the search requirements
• Find out: What to crawl? • Find out: Where the content lives? • Find out: how to index Map internal and
external resources• Discover the sacred cows
Tools• Discovery workshop• Infrastructure review • Client/stakeholder interviews
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No…They Don’t
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Use Content Enrichment MethodsObjectives• Have a content Strategy
• Reduce the amount of content• De-dupe and Archive
• Describe content in effective, machine-readable fashion
• Build content relationships (relational content models)
• Sustain best practices through educationTools• User surveys• Content Audit• Content Creator Workshop• Managed properties• Define custom entities
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Content StrategyIntersection of what you have/do with how customers look for what you have/doUse online tools to mine customer search behaviorCheck to see if you have relevant content and fill gaps
ToolsCore Metadata Google Insights for SearchSite analyticsContent audit
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Relational Content Modeling
ToolsGuided ToursProduced ViewsTask List Drop DownsRelated LinksBest Bets
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Build Something Meaningful
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StructureObjectives•Compensate for lack of link relevance
o URL Depth: the further from the homepage, the less important it must be
o Click Distance: the further from an authority page, the less important it must be
•Create Meaningful URLso Keywords found in URLs are weighted for
relevanceo Hyphens as separators is best
Tools• Flat structure within CMS• Analytics• Cross linking
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Build Something Desirable
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Design Relevant User ExperienceObjectives• Wean users from Google Web search
performance expectations• Encourage and enable better query
construction through abstraction
Tools• Filters• Facets• Subscription• Clustering
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Provide User Assistance
ToolsSuggestions as query is entered• At page search box• On search page
Augmented Search results• Preview in browser• Contact information
Did You Mean (spell check)Best Bets
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Give the User Some Control
Tools• Facets• Filters• More Like This…
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Post Launch
Analytics/Reports are your friendsZero results are the road to PerditionRefine, iterate, tuneUser feedback is not a one-time affair 34
Evaluate/Review/Refine methodsObjectives• Keep ahead of user satisfaction by fixing
problems early• Obtain client feedback on performance• Be agile: review and tune accordingly• Benchmark success
Tools• Establish benchmarks on what represents
success• Search logs • Power user feedback• Periodic company-wide survey feedback
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Key TakeawaysSearch is a user experience Users bring outside expectations and behaviors inside the enterpriseEnterprise search engines are not smartOOB is not what you paid for
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End Result Will Be
Getting more from less by …making what you have
work smarter
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Thank You
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