New Search lost your biz??

This is excellent advice, Cristalle. For those using Firefox, there is also a plug-in to the SL Search
http://mycroft.mozdev.org/download.html?name=secondlife+search

(Thanks to Wildefire for the link)

What I don't know is how long it takes for changes to appear in the Search, that may take some experiementation.

Seing the same 90%+ drop you are. Started a couple days after the new client went live...doing brisk sales and then the new search client goes main viewer....and it dried up nearly instantly. I did a test search on my main keyword (won't mention, not going to abuse the forum by advertising) and I do not show up anymore....but strangely, a bunch of totally unrelated places that are 'keyword loading' every term they can find that actually carry NO items of related to this keyword/genre/niche (I looked, clubs, bars, clothing stores, etc) BUT DO have huge traffic numbers are now the top 20+ results of my search. And the same places show up in MANY different searches.

Yes, this is SUCH an improvement, both for the buyer and the seller....NOT! I am paid on my land tier for a bit over 2 months....but at this rate, I won't be able to make tier ever again. I did more business with a half dozen items and NO classifieds when I first opened my store than I am now. Starting to question whether the work of creating new items is actually WORTH it anymore....

I was told it takes 24 hours for the changes to take place and I know this is true as my last classified ad lasted a day longer than it was paid for exactly

/142/fc/226678/5.html

I did a test with 20 people

when using All tab and the any category feature we all got different results. my business showed up differently or not at all for some. I was not able to even find my self under any thing but my classified add. Then we discovered that if you leave the search term "hot tub" in and hit refresh/search you get different results each time. My places listing finally showed up after 6 refreshes.

This would indicate that I am not getting listed but 1/6 of what I should be I only sell hot tubs my objects for sale and search are 90% named "hot tub XXX" and my parcel is named Animated Super Hot Tub Mall.

3 using the same test group
When doing a new "all" search and the "classified" category filter search, the results do seem to be very related to the search term and they remain consistent through out the group of testers even when clicking refresh/search repeatedly.

The really bad part is that my 16k a week ad appears first YAY!! for me and rightly so. I do after all have the largest hot tub mall I have seen areound.

The problem is for me and Linden Labs my competitor simply copied my Classified ad word for word including the miss spellings and she now appears #2 using a 50L ad rite below me.

She does offer many hot tubs just like my mall so if I were searching I would be happy the 2 biggest hot tub malls with the biggest selection showed up. in that order.

However as a content provider that has been paying over 16k a week to advertise for over a year, I am not happy that some one can copy my 16k ad pay 50L and show up rite next to me #1 and #2

I suggest the listing for new "all" search and the "classified" category filter search.. be listed in order of relavence as it seems to b now, and then cost. lets face it some day this may be a "pay-per-click" or or "pay-per-TP" situation. Regaudless no one will pay for an ad that appears next to one that cost 1000% less and is a duplicate of your key words.

Vendar what you haven't told me is if the number of teleports is down from what you usually get. If the number of teleports/map/profile views is about the same rate, but people aren't buying there is a difference. It means that you are being found at the same rate, but something else is wrong. It could be that the something else is your ethically challenged competitor, who just got a huge leg up on the rest of your competition showing up in the #2 slot.

I did a search for hot tub / hot tubs and found you #1 in classifieds each time, and on the first page of any category. I am not so sure visibility is the problem, although I'll check back in a while to see if the results differ any.

I still say it is too early to blame new search. You need to document occurrences over more time, particularly the number of teleports/map/profile views.

I document every TP to my land at the forced landing zone
I document the TP clicks and profile views form my classified ads
and I have been selling the same thin and only one thing all along with steady sales
I have been to many of my compettators to s if there is a new line of vastly superior products suddenly available the answer is no

I have been having the same traffic for many months with expected drops when no one can get lindens, when pay pal is messed up , when the login in server goes down and so on these are normal waves in the normal flow of visitors..

the day the BETA went Live my TPs dropped way off then went way up and as mentioned I began a indepth testing of the new search feature.

I have now determined I show up in the All at random rates and this would makes since as my test showed that people get different results.

the link to the thread "would you pay 50L....." let me see that the new all search with the classified categories chosen returns consistent results for relevance the all search with the "any" categories filter selected returns random order results for every user and for the same user if repeatedly clicked

does this help??

this new search is killing us. i own most of the land the store is on so the person who is actually creating and selling the items do not have them shown on the search because I own the land killing our business.
This has to be hurting mall businesses also since they do not own the land.
I entered the exact name for my store word for word and it does not show up in search.
I would think the only results of this search would be my store not 5 plus pages of stuff that has nothing to do with the original search.

This needs to be fixed. I think with this new search we took two steps backwards. Not improving at all

I disagree. Business is getting better for me now (though I'm certainly not getting rich). I am a small business owner who owns the store land in a group. My business partner and I list our land in search, list our items for sale, and people come and buy things. I like some aspects of the new search as a shopper, as well. If there are specific items I am searching for, I can see not only who sells them, but how much they cost before I even teleport there.

There was a bug very recently with new search where the box to list an item in search kept coming unchecked whenever a copy of the item was purchased. This was recently fixed. Your merchants may be unaware of this problem and think their items are listed in search when they are not.

Could it be as simple as it is Christmas season and people are Spending in the RL and not in SL??

I've recently started a new business featuring relatively mainstream products, so it's hard for me to say whether the new search/classified system is working for me or not at my level. I will say this:
- The classified listing does show up in the new Classified tab
- The classified does show up in the old 'All' tab
- The classified listing does NOT show up in the NEW All tab (or if it does, it does not show up in the first five pages, and since search is NOT showing pages beyond the first five despite listing more than that, this is sort of a bust IMO)
- The keyword DOES pull up the classified listing from my profile in the NEW all tab.

To date I have had minimal TPs from that one $350L ad. Most of my visits, I can only surmise are a) flybys (it's old mainland, close to roads) b) traffic from external advertising c) word of mouth.

On the other hand, my other business has seen little change, or perhaps a slight improvement. With this specific business, I am currently only advertising with classifieds (no external ads). The key difference, i think is that this other business deals in niche products and has few competitors. As such, i'm not sure if i can really present this second business as a good sample for discussion, except to say that people who are dealing in niche products and are using the right keywords are probably not going to see a huge difference.

Vendar
I totaly agree with you with respect to TP's dropping on the day the new search went live. I have tracked daily traffic, and it's camper free, for 9 months and the day search went live it dropped to it's current level which is a significant reduction.
I've posetd on this on a number of occasions, supllied feedback on the new search, varied keywords etc... I have now diverted my main weekly advertising budget, which is 1,000's, to sources other than LL Search.

I see most every one in here that has had a dip in their sales is relating it to sl search. I personally (this is just me) would relate it to real life economy. This whole year real life sales has been on the skids for many businesses. I believe that it has to do with the interest rate and the housing market coming pretty close to falling apart. Thank goodness it didnt.

This month has had a major turn around however in my business and it is not a Christmas related business. I believe it is going to be a slow climb back up probably with a few more dips on the way. I believe when rl economy is a mess that it must most definitely affect sl too.

Happy Holidays all and a safe New Year to you!!!

The new search stinks. When you don't even show up at all because it goes only up to 5 pages, it doesn't work.

That is bad. Question though, is it only on the beta grid or on the main grid too. I dont remember seeing it at all on the main grid but then I havent been doing a lot of searching lately.

I don't know from sales, but as a consumer, I can tell you that I've had to have several goes in Search to find a lot of places, even if I know the store, vendor, or product name.

It is on the main grid and there is a JIRA for it. By all accounts it is a 'Known Issue' with the Google search module purchased by LL. Why, you have to ask, if this is true did they adopt a 'broken' search and hurt their content creators?

I used to get 2-4 unique buying customers per day, which I felt was pretty good for a start-up company. In the past week, I've had maybe 3 sales.

It's pretty depressing and I'm growing more concerned daily.

The new 'search' has nothing to do with sales going down or up. If they want to find you, they will, search or not. There are different ways of doing so. Besides, the old search still exists.

Sell better items at better prices.

Sell new items instead of the same old stuff you had two years ago.

Sell other items besides torn jeans and t-shirts.

Try answering customers when they call on you for the items they've purchased. Instead of making excuses you didn't receive their IM's cause you were capped.

Not all shop owners get capped yet, it seems this is the one excuse you'll most definitely hear.

Many shop owners don't give a damn long as they got your money in their pockets. Hence, you can't get a peep out of them once you've paid them.

Stop worrying what people do with the items they've purchased from you. Once you sell them they're no longer yours so get over it. Some vendors think what they sell still belongs to them simply because they made it.

Trying different methods like having sales, being there when you're called and learning to appreciating your customers makes a huge difference. This doean't apply to all vendors as a few actually know how to run a business, it's all the others who think they know but don't.

Let me add this. I'm in no way shape or form endorsing the new search. I myself don't like it and I'm even hoping the new lightwind is optional as I won't even load it as I don't like it myself. Too many problems everytime you download something new. So it's not about me backing up their creations. It's maybe about why some businesses are failing.

/me cancels the plans to open Ray's Torn Jeans and Ramones T-shirts Emporium.

Oh! Well, that explains it all, doesn't it? We are all crappy people!

Why didn't that occur to me?

And that cutting off at five pages - well, that's just what we DESERVE, isn't it.

coco

You already have a job, Ray. You're the forums mod.

Yes, we know it's you.

That was your last post here. Consider yourself banned. At least until you cheer the f#@* up.

Awww, Ray, don't be so thinned skinned. You're being too overly sensitive and over what? Being called the forum mod? Is that a bad thing? But, I see you can dish it but you can't take it. If you can't take it then don't come at me with wise cracks.

Where's your holiday spirit of cheer and happiness and goodwill towards men and all that crazy good stuff? Have some of that pie they're always dishing out in here.


Besides, if I'm banned how you going to know when I "cheer the f#@* up?"

I don't think you're crappy. Just one dog's opinion.

Perhaps some people have had bad experiences with some merchants recently. Ricardo's tips are good ones to keep in mind, though. Bad customer service in some places might discourage people from going shopping at new places, if they expect that the store owners don't care about anything but getting their money. And some people probably do get tired of going places and seeing the same stuff at the same high prices everywhere. I imagine there are still enough new residents, though, that one wouldn't need to keep changing up the product line too frequently. Cheap is good, though. I think a lot of people are reluctant to put big money into SL right now, between all the platform instability and the US economy taking a dive. And, of course, with people trying to figure out if the new search will ultimately help them or hurt them.

I think the new search is very bad for business.

Fortunately I never buyed land and now I canceled my classified ads which were active for over 1/2 year because they don't work any longer.

Yes, it is frustrating and I feel with everyone who can't cancel SL from day-to-day.

Merry Christmas and a happy new year! (maybe I log in again next year - but now I do something pleasant)