Google to tell if the search result is good enough or not, tightens grip on advertisers

Google has announced that it will soon tell users if the search result they see is exactly what they were looking for or not. It will also start verifying advertisers for all its platforms.

Google says that it will continue to work on making its Search feature better and accurate. On the other hand, it will also tighten the grip on advertisers by verifying them to provide greater transparency to users with information on who is advertising to them. (REUTERS)

Google on Thursday started rolling out a feature to show a message that will let users know if the search results are not good enough.

As of now, the message will be shown to users in the US only.

Google said that it continues to make improvements to its underlying language understanding systems in Search, so even if people do not phrase something exactly as it is written online, it can still understand the words and concepts in a way that makes sure users can find a good match.

"But these systems don't always work perfectly, and sometimes, there just isn't information available on the web that matches what you typed in," Elizabeth Tucker, Google's Product Manager said in a blog post.

"Starting today in the U.S., we're rolling out a new message that lets you know when Google hasn't been able to find anything that matches your search particularly well," Tucker said.

While people will still go through the results to see for themselves if they are helpful, the message is a signal that Google probably has not found what the user was looking for.

"When possible, the feature will also provide some alternative searches as well as tips on how you could reformulate your query to better find the information you seek," Tucker said, adding that this feature should not show up too often.

Google will verify all advertisers on its platforms

To provide greater transparency and equip users with more information about who is advertising to them, Google on Thursday announced that its identity verification policy will now cover all advertisers on its platforms and the identity verification programme will "take fear years to complete.

Google currently verifies political advertisers in 30 countries in an effort to maintain election integrity.

Now, all advertisers will be required to complete a verification programme in order to buy ads on Google network. They will need to submit personal identification, business incorporation documents or other information that proves who they are and the country in which they operate.

"Beginning this summer, users will start to see disclosures that list this information about the advertiser behind the ads they see," Google said in a statement.

John Canfield, Director of Product Management, Ads Integrity at Google said that the company will start by verifying advertisers in phases in the US and continue to expand globally.

"We are working closely with our advertising partners to scale the programme while continuing to ensure we are surfacing helpful information to our users, we expect that this process will take a few years to complete," said Canfield.

This change will make it easier for users to understand who the advertiser is behind the ads they see from Google and help them make more informed decisions when using the advertising controls.

Google said the move will also help support the health of the digital advertising ecosystem by detecting bad actors and limiting their attempts to misrepresent themselves.

In 2018, the company announced a new identity verification policy for political advertisers. The policy requires all advertisers that want to run election ads on Google platforms go through a verification program to confirm their identity.

The company displays that identity in the ad unit so that users can learn more about the election ads they see on Google's platforms.

"We're committed to giving our users transparency, choice and control when it comes to the ads they see on our platforms," said Canfield.

Google already offers tools like Ad Settings which allows people to control how ads are personalized or even opt out of personalized ads altogether, as well as features like Why this ad? That helps explain why a specific ad is being shown.

"Now, we're working to bring additional transparency into the advertiser behind the ads people see," said the tech giant, adding that the goal is to make more information about the ad experience universally available and accessible.

"Broadening our verification policy is the next step in reaching that goal," it added.