Google SERPs Using JavaScript to Track Clicks
Posted: May 26th, 2009
It’s a well-known fact that Google tracks click-throughs from its search engine result pages (SERPs) to the webpages listed there, and it seems that they have recently changed the way they track these clicks. Until recently, listings in the SERPs would use the simple URL redirects of “google.com/url?q=referral” to determine where traffic is coming from, but these links don’t appear anymore.
Instead, it looks like Google is now using JavaScript for click tracking. While the links on the SERPs themselves don’t initially have referrer data attached to the strings, Google is adding this information via JavaScript to the client (searcher) side, prior to submitting the GET request. This is illustrated by simply right-clicking on a listing when browsing with Firefox.
Using SEP as an Example
For example, when googling “search engine panel” and hovering your mouse cursor over the title, the status bar displays:
http://www.searchenginepanel.com
However, if you right-click the title, the status bar changes due to the JavaScript and indicates that link would have been
http://www.google.ca/url?sa=t&source=web&ct=res&cd=1&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.searchenginepanel.com%2F&ei=dEkcStu7GJeUMbbtgJ0P&usg=AFQjCNF0Zr2cXPC0u8ERGvImJfqPBcDLyQ&sig2=2ZisPOVloHBWHATy00-WiQ
Why The Change?
Why would Google implement such a change? After all, some users do not have JavaScript enabled (albeit a small percentage of them), meaning that less referrer data would be obtained.
Well, in addition to the obvious web analytics applications for gathering such information, I believe that the search powerhouse also puts a strong emphasis on accuracy. It’s a principal factor for its dominance over other search engines, and there is a belief that clicks within the natural search results play a role in ranking.
This isn’t that much of a stretch, as click-throughs already play a role in AdWords quality scores and paid search results.
Does this means Google adds more things to our browsers?
No, they aren’t, although you would have to have JavaScript enabled for the this tracking to work. Many automated bots don’t work with JavaScript, so maybe this is a way for Google to curb some organic click fraud – if there’s such a thing.
Is it just Google making the change or are some of the other larger search engines implementing this change too? Just curious