Why do sponsored (paid) search results appear mixed in with organic (algorithmic) search results?
Another obvious difference of Snap from the rest of the herd is our simplification of search results by the creation of ONE search results list (paid listings are still labeled “sponsored”). At Snap we integrate both algorithmic and paid listings because we think both types of results can be relevant for a particular search. If you’re looking to buy a laptop computer, then it’s highly likely that sponsored listings are going to be very relevant for your search. If you want to learn what’s in the Fifth Amendment of our Constitution, then it’s likely that organic listings are going to provide the best results. Our proprietary ranking algorithms sort both types of listings in the order most likely to achieve user satisfaction. How? By using a combination of analytical techniques that accurately relate the relevance of a number of factors including post-click behavior, conversion ratings, text analysis, link analysis and others. So while on the surface it might seem counter-intuitive or ev
