copyright © 2008 cms watch | all rights reserved the 2008 enterprise search marketplace internet...

Copyright © 2008 CMS Watch | All Rights Reserved

The 2008 Enterprise Search MarketplaceInternet World UK | London | April, 2008

Theresa [email protected]

Copyright © 2007 CMS Watch | www.cmswatch.com Differentiating Search Products 2

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The Search Marketplace


About CMS Watch

Industry-leading, scalable solution for the enterprise, fully customizable for your needs, with robust API, Web Services support, and lowest TCO in its class, blah, blah, blah…

How does it work? How much does it really cost? What’s wrong with it? Who are their real competitors? Do their consultants know my industry? Will my co-workers actually use it?

“Markets are Conversations” -- Cluetrain Manifesto


Current trends in search: “Information Access Platform”

• As search sector changes, distinctions among different “flavors” of search technology, features, and functions become more difficult to make

• ES vendors make “search” seem passé – now want to present a holistic picture of information access

• Underlying search and retrieval technology has not changed much, but usability has improved for the sake of better access


Search fundamentals are more important than ever

The current state of search….

Search is

NOT

dead!


Categorizing Vendors• Complex natural-language searches

• People type one or two words. Period.• Search as a Service

• Can’t support enterprise search sufficiently, or compete with the likes of simple appliances

• Search as a one-step process• Trends continue towards “berrypicking,” “wayfinding,” and

search-to-browse interfaces

What’s really dead?


“Findability” is often a circuitous path


Categorizing Vendors• Platform

• Autonomy, FAST Search & Transfer

• Infrastructure• IBM, Microsoft, Oracle, SAP

• Specialized• dtSearch, Endeca, Exalead, Convera, Funnelback,

Recommind, Vivisimo

• Basic• Coveo, ISYS, Mondosoft

• Turnkey appliances• Google, Thunderstone, Omniture / Visual Sciences

Note: many of these vendors have recently expanded or are expanding their UK presence

Categorizing search vendors


Overhaul Refresh Turbulence

Maintenance Balance Shifting

Stasis Continuity RestructuringPro

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Enterprise Search 2008 Vendor Risk Profile

Vendor Evolution

Slow Normal Rapid

Oracle

Microsoft / FAST

IBM

ISYS

Google

SAP Autonomy

Open Text

LuceneCoveo

Vivisimo

dtSearch

Mondosoft

Exalead

Thunderstone

Endeca

Omniture / VisualSciences

FunnelbackRecommind


The Big 4

For searching in Microsoft-based environments

• Coveo Tries to out-search SharePoint search. Specialized relevance and ranking, summarization, concept extraction.

• Mondosoft MondoSearchSearch, automatic categorization, advanced analytics. Tight integration with MS server products. But….company is bankrupt.

• dtSearchFast indexing and response, excellent MOSS integration, support for distributed searching. OEM’d by many other vendors.

Microsoft-centric vendors


The Big 4

The big boys…or girls, if you like!....of the enterprise search space.

• AutonomyBuilt a mixed reputation on hard-core statistical data-crunching methodology and automated pattern recognition. Acquired prime competitor Verity, known more for natural language analysis

• FAST Focus on speed and scalability against large, dynamic web repositories, foraying into desktop search and BI; recently acquired by Microsoft

• EndecaPopularized “guided navigation,” works best with highly structured data repositories

Traditional majors


The Big 4

"Plug-and-play" boxes are increasingly popular, and while they remain best-suited for Web search, that’s changing.

• GoogleImpeccable brand compensates for less mature technology, which lags behind other vendors’ ability to customize and tune

• ThunderstoneStronger technology compensates for weaker brand; customization and tuning capabilities are stronger than Google’s

Turnkey appliances


The Big 4

Industry-specific vendors for search-intensive environments

• ISYSStrong in law, government and legal environments; focus on analytics and desktop search

• FunnelbackAustralian vendor (owned by the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization) with interesting “Fluster” technology, which relies on combining a restrictive query and a broad query, processing the intersecting results

Public sector-oriented


Presentation: Googlesque


Control


Influencing Ranking


Specifying Authority


I’ve Got the Power!


Mashups


• New search technology is often promoted as a panacea to myriad access problems • But it may not be the way to solve the problem

• Talk to your stakeholders, peers, and constituents first to determine the problems and opportunities

• Then, map those challenges to specific functionality that will solve it

What’s my problem, exactly?


The Importance of Scenarios


Typical Search Scenarios• Domains

• Desktop search• Departmental search• Website search• Hybrid internet search

• Business or Functional Objectives• E-discovery• Customer / Self-service• Executive dashboard• Multi-repository search• E-commerce search• Sci/Tech/Medical• Legal

But it’s not just the tool you choose, it’s how you use it….


Categorizing Vendors

• Before you pick a technology• Invest in content cleanup• Develop a metadata strategy• Structure content where you can• Categorize and enrich your information• Get to know your searchers, what they’re searching for

and how they search for it

All of this matters more than the technology you choose!

What should you do?


[email protected]

Contact InfoThank you!

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copyright © 2008 cms watch | all rights reserved the 2008 enterprise search marketplace internet...

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