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Wikipedia: Page one of Google UK for 99% of searches

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Wikipedia: Page one of Google UK for 99% of searches
Posted By Sam February 8th, 2012

There’s been a lot of questions in blogs for ages wondering why Google loves Wikipedia so much and why it is so dominant in Google and how dominant it actually is. Everything we search for in Google seems to have Wikipedia on at least page one. So we thought it was about we did some research to get some clarity.

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I’ve seen previous research done in this area in one instance the searches conducted were for actual Wikipedia page titles, which of course it would do well in. So we searched nouns (Def. A word used to identify any of a class of people, places, or things) from a couple of random noun generators. A full list of the words we searched are below.

The Methodology of Wikipedia Research:
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We used a random noun generator to obtain the keyword We then searched that keyword on Google UK (the internet) To get around any personalisation issues we used Google Chrome Incognito browser The search settings were ten results per page There was no other filtering of search results within Google’s settings. We did not include shopping or video results within our count (as these were additional to the 10 on a page) We searched from Brighton, south England We made 1,000 unique searches, any duplicates were removed and re-searched.

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The Results:
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Wikipedia is Page One of Google for 99% of searches (of nouns) Wikipedia is position one of Google for 56% of searches 96% of searches had Wikipedia in position 1-5 on Google

How the positions were shared (total 1,000 searches)

Position One dominance As you can see from the charts, 96% of the searches landed in the top 5 positions. Is Wikipedia’s dominance deserved?

We all love Wikipedia, but should it really be so prominent and all conquering in Google? We know that Wikipedia is a vast site with millions of pages and thousands of editors offering unique vital content on multitudes of subject matters. But should Wikipedia be the defacto resource for pretty much all subjects? Surely some pages are riding on the back of other quality pages or perhaps lazy references to the site from businesses and bloggers across the internet. Google obviously loves Wikipedia and still ranks it despite there being next to zero content on some of the pages.

General Observations Unsurprisingly Wikipedia, did extremely well (top two positions generally) for oldschool encyclopaedic searches. What I mean by this is searches with any geographical,

scientific or natural reference. For example Himalayan, bird and paediatrician. This was expected, but more surprising is that it also did extremely well for food substances and clothing. I’d imagine butter, milk and mayonnaise as well as trousers, underclothes and wallet would be fought over tooth and nail by large corporations within their respective industries. Some flawed results from Google When searching for the word “Air” in Google there are so many results that could have come up in the SERPs: Adobe Air software, Nike Air trainers, the French Band, Apple Air laptop, any Airline, a science page on the make-up of our atmosphere. But no. In second place is the Wikipedia page, not for any of the above, but a disambiguation page for the term “Air”. How can this page, which is ultimately full of links to other Wikipedia pages, is short of real content, and presumably not linked to by external authoritative sites, the second best possible result for this huge search? This is where there are ultimately flaws in Google’s offering of Wikipedia content. Google Loves Wikipedia – But Why? So is Google being lazy? Does it feel that at least one result needs to be there, is that an unwritten law within the algorithm? However, after reading this article about SEO bad for the Internet, it got me thinking, that if there was one place taken up in every search by Wikipedia, then that would mean there is one less place in the Top Ten for possible PPC paying corporations. Just a thought, not a fact. The ones that got away There are so few that were not on Page One that I can list them here.
     

Mail news trainers national sweets wardrobe

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phone flight

All these words are obviously highly competitive or incorporate the word within major corporations and services (for example National). Feedback We will be re-doing this research again soon. We will be using different random noun generators too (maybe even human generated ones). But if anyone has any questions about the methodology or recommendations please leave a comment.

The Full List of 1,000 searches and their positions in Google Word Aries Aardvark abigail Acrylic Actor Adapter Addition Agave Agreement Alley Position 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Word Illegal Insect Instrument Interest Invention Island Israel Jacket Jam James Position 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Word Tiger Timbale Timpani Tire Titanium Toe Toenail Tortoise Town Tray Position 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Word Result review Rhinoceros Ricardo Ring Rowboat Sagittarius Salesman scarf Second Position 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2

Word Alloy Almanac almond aluminium Amy Andy Anger Angora Ankle Antarctica Anteater Apology Argument Ashtray Asia Asparagus Asphalt Attention

Position 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Word Japanese Jaw Jewel Join jug June Jute Kamikaze Kenya Kevin Kilometer Kite Knife Knot Kohlrabi Ladybug larger Laundry

Position 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Word Treatment Trial Trombone trousers Trowel Trumpet Tuba Turkey Twine Ukrainian Underclothes Unshielded Uzbekistan Vacation Valley Value Van Venezuelan

Position 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Word Secure Seed Session Shade Sidewalk Signature Sister Snowflake Snowstorm Soccer soda Sort spray Square Stepgrandmother Step-sister Stinger Stocking

Position 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2

Word Author Authority Baboon Back bacon Badge Bagel Balance Ball Bankbook Barge Baritone Battery Bee beer Beetle Begonia Bengal

Position 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Word Lead Leather Legal Limit Liquid Literature Locust Love Luis Lumber Lunch Lute Lyocell lyra Maid Male Manager Maraca

Position 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Word Verse Vicki Viola Vise Volcano Waiter Wallet wand Watchmaker Weasel Weed Wheel Whiskey White Winter Withdrawal Woman Wood

Position 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Word store Suede Suit Swimming Swiss Swordfish T-shirt Tabletop Thailand Thursday Triangle Truck video Vision wales Wash Weight Whistle

Position 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2

Word Berry Bibliography Bird Birth biscuit blimp blouse Blowgun Bomber Bonsai border Bottle bottle Bread Breath bridge Broccoli Broker

Position 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Word Marble Marimba Mass Mattock Mayonnaise Meal Meeting Melody Mercury Message Metal Methane Mexican Mexico Michael michelle Middle milk

Position 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Word wooden Worm Wound Wrench Wrinkle Xylophone Yacht Yak Year yoga yogurt Yoke Zoology Account Air Airplane Alcohol Animal

Position 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2

Word Window Window Wing wipe zebra Acoustic Alibi Apparel Apple Bag Bakery Bank Bath bench Burn Century Chain Channel

Position 2 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3

Word Bronze Buffet Bugle Bulb Burma Butcher Butter C-clamp Cabbage Calf Can Canadian can candle canoe Cardboard carrot Cart

Position 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Word Millimeter Millisecond Mini-skirt Minister Missile Monday moon Morning Morocco Mosque mountain muffin nelson Neon Niece Nitrogen North america North korea

Position 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Word Ant Appliance Approval Aquarius Arch Area Armadillo Army Arrow Athlete Atm Attic australia Australian Avenue Banker Bar Beat

Position 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2

Word Chill Cord Dan debt Direction Discovery Dish Downtown draw Dugout Equipment event Find Fireman Fireplace Freeze Game Garage

Position 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3

Word Cat Cattle Cauliflower Ceiling Celery Celsius Ceramic Cereal ceylon chalk Chauffeur Cheetah Cherry Chicken Chef Child chilli Chin

Position 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Word Nose November Numeric Oboe Observation Odometer Offer Operation Organic Organisation Ounce Output Oven Oxygen Package Pancake Pansy Parallelogram

Position 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Word Beauty Bench Birthday Blizzard blog Blow Bobcat Bongo Boy Britney Cabinet Cactus Call Capricorn career Carnation Carol Caspar

Position 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2

Word Gate Government Grenade Hammer Hockey Innocent Interactive Jennifer Joseph Knickers Look magnet Maple microwave Motion Nerve Norwegian orange

Position 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3

Word China Christmas Cicada client Cockroach coffee Coil coil Cold College Colombia Colon colour Comb Committee Competition Composition Computer

Position 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Word Parent Parentheses paris Part Particle Passbook pastor Patch Pediatrician Peen Period Peru photographer pipe Pisces Plant Plantation Plastic

Position 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Word Cast Cathedral Caution Celeste Chance Character Chard Charles Chive Chocolate Circle Cod Colony Color Cook Cost Couch cream

Position 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2

Word Pair Parrot Peak perfume Polo Powder queen Quill Raft Railway Ryan Science Screen Shell Shoe Shorts Show Sparrow

Position 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3

Word Congo Consonant copper copier Copyright Cough Crab Crack Cristiano cupboard Curler Cushion Custard Cymbal Dancer Dead Death Deborah

Position 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Word Plot Poison Poland Policeman Polish Polyester Porch Porcupine Porter Potato Pound Power Prepared Print Prison Produce project Propane

Position 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Word cream Creek Crocus cromwell Cuban Current curry Curve daimond David Department Deposit Destruction Detail Development Diamond Diaphragm Difference

Position 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2

Word Spoon Spot Spring Stage Stem Taxi Team Test Thistle Tile tripod Velvet walker western whisky Wilderness Wish Witness

Position 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3

Word December Decimal Deodorant Description Desert Dessert device Dimple Distributor dog Dolphin Donald Double dragon Drake Drawbridge drawer Dredger

Position 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Word Pumpkin Pvc Pyjama Quart Quarter Quartz Quicksand Rabbi Rabbi Rabbit Radish Rain Rainbow Rat ratchet Ravioli Receipt Rectangle

Position 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Word Digger Digital Dinner Doubt Dream Drop Dungeon East Education Elbow Elephant Elizabeth End Engine Environment Ex-husband Farmer Feast

Position 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2

Word Wonder Word Advice base Beam Bedroom Ben Bite boots bus Cap Car channel Close core Cover Creator Cycle

Position 3 3 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4

Word Dressing Drink Driver Drug Ear economy Eel eight Ellipse Employer Engineer envelope Error Ethiopia Exclamation Existence extension Eyelash

Position 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Word Regret Report Rest Retailer Reward Rhythm Rice road Robyn Rocket Rod Romania Rose Rule Russia Sail Sailor Salary

Position 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Word Feeling festival Flame Flock Flower Fly Fold food Footnote Freckle Freya Friction Friday Frog Frost Gander Gazelle Gearshift

Position 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2

Word Dad Ease Fact Forest Ghost Hallway hammer Health Icon kestrel laptop leon Mailbox Name Open Phil Plasterboard Police

Position 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4

Word Fahrenheit Fairies Fang Father-inlaw Feather February Felony Female Fertilizer Fiber Fiberglass Fiction Fir fish Fisherman Flesh flip-flop Flute

Position 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Word Sampan Sand sandwich sauce sausage Saxophone Scale Scarecrow Scent Scorpio scotch Screwdriver Seagull Seal Servant Shadow Shark sheep

Position 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Word Giraffe glass globe Glue Goggles Gong Good-bye Gore-tex Grade Graphic greek Grey Gum Handle Hardhat Hayley Head Heart

Position 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2

Word Postbox Quit Reading record Request School Seashore Street string Theory Transport Walk Warm Watch wine wire Act Answer

Position 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 5 5

Word Force Forgery Fork Fortnight Fowl Foxglove Freighter fruit garlic garnish Gasoline gastronomy Gauge Geology Geranium German Girdle Gladiolus

Position 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Word Shoemaker Shoulder Shrine Siamese Side Skin Slipper slipper Slope Smell Snowboarding socket Soil Soprano South africa Soybean spaghetti Spain

Position 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Word Helicopter Hip History Hobbies Hood Hovercraft Hydrant Icicle Index Inventory Jason Joke Judo Jumbo jumper Key Kick klaxon

Position 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2

Word Baker Card case Caterpillar Decrease Driving Exchange Exhaust Font frame Gym Jet Jonny Map monitor Passenger tube Cinema

Position 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 6

Word glaze gloves Goal Goa goat Goose grape Grass Grasshopper Gray greek Group Guilty Guitar Gun Gymnast Hair Haircut

Position 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Word Spear Sphere Sphynx Spruce Squirrel state Statement Step-daughter Step-mother Stew Stock Stomach Stopsign stream Sudan Summer Sundial Sunflower

Position 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Word ladel Lan Link Lion Lipstick Lisa Loss Margin Mark Market Mechanic meteor Milkshake Mind Minibus Moat Mother Nail

Position 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2

Word Dryer football Fragrance hills jeans Loan Matt Music Paint Poppy Radiator radiator station tap Tights View zoo Babies

Position 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 7

Word Half-sister Hall ham Hamburger Hard hat harp Harry Hawk Helen Helium Helmet Hemp Heron Herring Himalayan Hole Holly Horse

Position 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Word Support Surfboard Surname Sushi Sweater Swing Sycamore Syrup Syrup System Tachometer Tail Tailor Tandoori Tank Taurus Tea Television

Position 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Word Node Octave Octopus Olive Outrigger Owner Ox page Pail Panda Paperback Parade Pear pencil Peony Person Person Ping

Position 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2

Word Bed Burst Calendar Delivery Frame Freezer Insulation Rail tablecloth Tent Baby coach hamper Replace sideboard timer Mail News

Position 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 9 9 9 9 9 9 11 13

Word Hose Humidity Hyacinth Hygienic ice-age Ikebana

Position 1 1 1 1 1 1

Word temperature Tempo thigh Thing Thumb Thunderstorm

Position 1 1 1 1 1 1

Word Popcorn Pot Printer Puma Question Quotation

Position 2 2 2 2 2 2

Word trainers National Sweets wardrobe Phone Flight

Position 13 14 14 14 18 22

Summary
There’s been a lot of questions in blogs for ages wondering why Google loves Wikipedia so much and why it is so dominant in Google and how dominant it actually is. Everything we search for in Google seems to have Wikipedia on at least page one.

Description
Wikipedia is a vast site with millions of pages and thousands of editors offering unique vital content on multitudes of subject matters. But should Wikipedia be the de-facto resource for pretty much all subjects? Surely some pages are riding on the back of other quality pages or perhaps lazy references to the site from businesses and bloggers across the internet. Google obviously loves Wikipedia and still ranks it despite there being next to zero content on some of the pages.

Tags: Crowdsourcing, Google, Intelligent Positioning Blog, Knowledge, user-generated content, Wikipedia

Posted by Luis Enrique Morales

Feb 19, 2012 05:27 am GMT Viewed 1433 times

Author: Sam Silverwood-Cope Source

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