Smartlogic Semaphore

The trouble with search: too many results, not enough context

You tap the keywords into the search box, you hit ‘go’, the search results come back. Then your heart sinks – there are five pages of results, and you can tell that there’s nothing on the first page that’s relevant.

This is the problem with search – too many results, search engines that don’t understand keywords or their context, and not enough awareness of how people approach the search process.

We know that people search differently at different times. You use different approaches to search for a specific document or fact, to do a broad trawl for raw material, or to get a feel for how a topic fits together.

A taxonomy-based approach to search – the idea of semantic middleware

Semaphore is what many people call semantic middleware because it puts a sophisticated semantic model (a taxonomy being one such type) between the search interface and the content that’s searched. So when you search, Semaphore can put keywords into context, and give you search-navigation features that fit the type of search you’re doing.

Making the search-navigation experience fit the way you search

Semaphore-enabled sites guide you through the find process and ‘reveal’ content using human-friendly features that suit different kinds of discovery. These features include faceted navigation, disambiguation, broader-than and narrower-than searches, and old fashioned I-didn’t-know-that moments when you get interesting results that you weren’t expecting.

Sounds weird? All will become clear if you see our demo.

Effective search saves time and makes money

More accurate, and relevant, search results save time and money for the business. As well as less wasted time, Semaphore can automate repetitive information-gathering tasks (see our business-information portal page).

And a better search-navigation experience can make you money by getting the right clients to the right products.