Search engines perform four basic functions:

1. Crawl the Internet.  Search engines have automated programs (called “bots” or “spiders”) that use the hyperlink structure of the Internet to crawl website pages.
2. Indexing Documents.  Once a page has been crawled, it is stored in a database of documents that make up an “index”.
3. Processing Queries.  When a search is entered, the engine retrieves from the index all the documents that match the query.  The manner in which a phrase in entered can significantly alter the results.  For example, a search for car loan at Goggle returns 24.6 million results.  However, a search for the same phrase in quotes “car loan” returns 13.1 million results.  The phrase “car loan Atlanta” returns 17,100 results.
4. Ranking Results.  Search engines use an algorithm (equation used for sorting) to determine which results are the most relevant to the query.  The most relevant results are listed first.

How Well Do Credit Unions Rank?

Google, the most popular search engine, uses a system for ranking pages called “PageRank”.  The rank of any page is displayed on the Google toolbar (http://toolbar.google.com/). 

On a scale from 0 to 10, a page with a higher PageRank is deemed more important and is more likely to be listed above a page with a lower PageRank in search results.  Google considers over a hundred factors in computing a PageRank. 

If hundreds of sites link to you, you must be popular, so the theory goes.  If links come from very popular and important websites, their power is multiplied to greater degrees.  For example, a link from ncua.gov, with a PageRank of 8, is more important in boosting your ranking position, than links from low-quality, interlinked sites or link farms.

The home pages of the 100 largest credit unions were checked for their PageRank.  The following chart summarizes the rankings:

Fifty credit unions had a PageRank of 3, 4, 5 or 6, while 49 credit unions had a “greybar”, or no ranking (one credit union does not have a website).  This data suggests that credit unions will not be ranked very high in search results.  “Greybar” is a recent phenomenon, especially for mature websites.  Just because a credit union has no PageRank, it could still rank well in search results.  There are numerous possible reasons for a greybar (only Google knows for sure).   The website may be banned for performing some sort of "black hat" techniques (hidden text, keyword stuffing, etc.).  Google feels a website has supplemental results.  Supplemental results are pages on the website that Google algorithm deems as less important than your main content - pages are old, short on content, deeply buried in the architecture, spammy, rarely viewed.  There could be a lack of backlinks (internal and external), the site could be under investigation by Google, or has broken outbound links, etc.  Nevertheless, the top 100 credit unions are not ranked very high by Google.

How do people find stuff through search engines?  Most people have self-taught themselves to use search engines.  They have learned to search with phrases, not single words.  They have learned that by adding specific qualifiers to broad categories, they can refine the results.  How well do credit unions appear when searched?  The following table shows three phrases searched, then narrowed by adding “Indianapolis”, and then “credit union” to the search:

 

 

Clearly, this small test shows credit unions are not ranking very high in search results, even when the search terms are specific keywords for a credit union. 

Why pay attention to only the top 10 results of a search?  In 2005, eye tracking technology revealed the now famous “Golden Triangle”.  The triangle extends from the top of the results over to the top of the first result, then down to a point on the left side at the bottom of the “above the fold” visible results.  This key area was looked at by 100% of the test participants.

     

Additional studies have indicated:

• 68% of search engine users click results on the first page of search results.
• Only 8% review more than the first three pages prior to clicking on a result.
• 49% of search engine users who continue their search when not finding what they are looking for, change and/or re-launch their search after reviewing just the first page of results.

Thus, the studies have shown that it is very important to be listed on the first page of search results.  This is not happening for most credit unions.  What can a credit union do to improve it’s ranking in search results – especially for key phrases that relate to its products and services?

Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process of improving the volume and quality of traffic a website receives from search engines via search results.)?  Organizations worldwide spend a great amount of time and resources to make sure their website ranks high for their relevant keywords.  Search engine optimization can be broken down into three processes:

1. Keyword Research
2. Optimizing a Website
3. Growing the Site’s Popularity

© 2009 Schoenherr Consulting