Is type-in dying or already dead?

[jasdon11]

As parking pages improve, both visually and in the quality of the links therein - I find myself using Google less and direct nav more.

There has always been talk of landers being 'boring' or 'lacking content' - but just look at Google - visually stimulating, no - content, no, just links links links...

The links on a ppc lander may all be paid for, but generally they lead to quality websites. The same cannot always be said for SE results - how many times do you need to hit the back button to find what you want when using the free links on Google?

 

[typist]

But what is the value of this document when you see so absurd numbers?
For example: "two third of users come from direct navigation"
I call this a STUPID LIE and it's take readers for IDIOTS!

I also find this particular figure contra-intuitive, and I am sceptical until I see the actual data, yet calling it a lie seems harsh unless you know more than I do (admittedly, any data set can be massaged to support whatever conclusion your political agenda dictates: there are lies, damn lies, and statistics...)

If you have been running internet services you know/notice very well that most of the traffic come from search engines.

Yes, for small and medium scale traditional internet services, your statement may be true. Now think about google.com - I don't doubt they receive a significant percentage pf their traffic from type-in.

The same is also true for typical parked direct navigation domains, which have not been previously developed, and thus have no or few backlinks (and sometimes even get blacklisted by search engines (due to alleged "lack of content"). Example: sex.com

My little research outlines that average search type in is at best 1.5% of search popularity.
This percentage is only for the shortest dot com generic domains.
When the term is longer the percentage quickly fall down.

Again, this may by true for your sites, but my own data confirms that it is not true for a typical parked page like sex.com (the same, with modifications, goes for well-known branded tm sites too - eg. bmw.com )

I am wondering why nobody denounce this big lie about the importance of direct navigation compared to search engine traffic.

because it is actually not so far from the truth?

 

[petrosc]

Thanks Typist,

But what is the value of this document when you see so absurd numbers?
For example: "two third of users come from direct navigation"
I call this a STUPID LIE and it's take readers for IDIOTS!

...

Why are you loosing your temper FrancoisS? When they say 2/3 of the users use direct navigation, this does not mean that they don't use search engines as well. I, for example, use direct navigation for 80% of my web destinations and I consider myself to belong in the category of the two thirds, as described above, and I do not find this statement nor stupid, or hard to believe.

 

[melmunch]

After reading it again, I don't think they were saying that 2/3 of searches were direct navigation, but rather 2/3 of the people who are online have done so at least once, which would qualify them as having "used direct nav search"

 

[GAMEFINEST]

type ins will live forever

 

[Biggie]

type ins will live forever

true, as long as there is a "keyboard" to type on... there will be type-ins!

here's a thought from "out the box".

we must be able to chart our destinations, and this involves interaction with machine. either we type in the address bar or we use SE. still at this point, it remains our choice!

choice is important now because SE's want to provide your choices.

should they have control over all "browser address bar" destinations, then....

for instance...

if I type "dnforum.com" in the address bar of IE, now it takes me straight to the website.
however, when your choices are provided for you...

type the same in address bar and go to page like Google with links to sites that contain the keyword "dnforum" or related keywords.

so then it would all be considered "link" traffic?

until that happens, mute point ....imo

however I could see that actually happening as Microsoft and Google are battling hard to be the providers of your choices.