Google Expands Use & Display Of Related Searches

Google has announced an interesting expansion of its related search capabilities. The updates to Google’s search results will show up in a number of different ways:

Search References/Lists

When the search query suggests results that may involve a list, Google will show what it calls the “top references” for the query. This may show up for searches such as “greek philosophers,” “american authors” and — as shown below — “seattle neighborhoods.”

That display may appear anywhere on the first page of search results. But, if the user clicks on “Ballard” or one of the other names on the list, it generates a search for that person/item and the list of references moves to the top of the search results.

Artist Searches

Searches for certain well-known artists may now generate a list of related paintings/artwork. Google says these related images/links will appear at the bottom of the search results.

Entertainment Searches

Various searches related to entertainment will now show related information, too. Google says searches for TV shows and movies will show related cast members, while searches for entertainers like Tom Hanks U2 will also show new types of related lists/searches. (In my testing, I was unable to see anything new on these types of searches yet.)

Google says it’s using a “variety of signals” to develop these new lists, and the new related search display is based in part on the Google Squared technology.