Nine Ways to Fix Intranet Search

Search is often the greatest source of frustration on intranets. Irrelevant results, hard to read results pages and ‘untitled document’ entries plague many intranet searches. With the size and scope of most intranets, search is a key tool used by staff to find information. While the expectation is that it should be quick and easy to find information on the intranet, this is often not the case. Beyond generating staff frustration, these problems can reduce trust and confidence in the search tool.

Robertson, James. Step Two (2006). Articles>Web Design>Intranets>Search

Search Should Work Like Magic

Thanks to Google, intranet users expect to be able to type in a word (or two) and find the page they are looking for, preferably in the first few results. This is not an unreasonable expectation. At the most fundamental level, search on an intranet is supposed to make it quick and easy for staff to find things, thereby saving them time and improving their productivity. This can be distilled down to a very simple concept: search should work like magic. As much as is possible, search should always give staff the information they need, somewhere in the first few results.

Robertson, James. Step Two (2006). Articles>Web Design>Intranets>Search

What to Include in Intranet Search Results

Intranet search often fails to meet the needs or expectations of users, with confusing and complex results provided for even the simplest searches.

Robertson, James. Step Two (2005). Articles>Web Design>Intranets>Search