Search is an absolute essential to any successful intranet. And not just a search engine, an effective search engine. If its less than stellar, the search engine will become a distraction and detraction where the most common employee complaint will continue to be “I can’t find anything!”
While the key to effective search is more focused on the rules and processes (effective page titles, strong links, keywords, summaries, meta data, etc.), the supporting technology shouldn’t be overlooked.
Google is now retailing Google Mini at an entry price of $2,995 — a highly effective solution. My company (Prescient Digital Media) now uses Google Mini on a client site (http://www.HealthyOntario.com) and we’re impressed by the feature set and ability to customize results and presentation. Particularly great is Google Mini’s ability to Interpret mispelled words (which you can set and hardcode yourself) and the Advanced Search options.
Google Mini is a definite must for any organization looking at replacing their existing search capability, but don’t forget the emphasis on rules and process…
