Google Tests Site Links Search with Microsoft

I was tipped off today by a WebmasterWorld thread that Google is testing their Site Links feature that includes a search box right under the Site Links. See the screen capture below:

From what I can tell, and from the short amount of testing that I’ve done, the search box appears when you search for Microsoft at Google.com. It looks to me that it’s nothing but a Google custom search engine, or simply a site: command search of the microsoft.com domain, which includes all of their subdomains.

Being the search engine marketer that I am, I thought that I would try a few creative searches to see what I could come up with. First, I tried this search:

“search engine spam”

I thought that I would see what I can find out about search engine spam at Microsoft. Most of the results are from Microsoft’s Research area. Well, it’s certainly makes for interesting reading:

What’s interesting to me, though, is the fact that Google thinks that Microsoft’s Front Page 2002 has more to do with search engine spam than anything else. Go figure.

However, it’s kind of frightening to me that there are at least 1250 pages on the Microsoft site that do not have a title tag. C’mon, guys, clean up your site!

Back to Google Site Links search. Site Links have been around for a while, and as a search engine marketer, I have always thought that if you’ve “done everything right” so to speak, Google will “reward you” by giving you site links. After all, I haven’t seen (yet) any sites that are “spammy” sites or sites with site links that shouldn’t have them. If you come across a site like this, I would love to see it.

By adding the additional search field to the Site Links area, it appears to me that Google has identified the fact that when Google visitors search for the search phrase “Microsoft”, they’re looking for particular information about Microsoft. So, it only makes sense that a search field be added there. After all, it’s helpful.