Google - Similar Pages

[Ryan Ward]

I have never been able to figure this out. What are they using to come up with this?

Out of the 1st 10 sites for atlanta real estate, mine is the only one that does not show any similar pages.

All others show between 28 and 31 similar pages.

What purpose is this tool for and what does it mean that I do not have any similar pages?

Can it be used for a future predictor?

Is it god or bad that I don't show any similar pages?

[Michael Paul Eau Claire]

maybe it means all your competitors just copy and paste their content from each other, but you write your own!



sorry I can't be more helpful...

[VRI]

Historically it's pretty much defined a link pattern, or in at least as much as I have seen, but I haven't looked in a good bit.

[webmaster]

I second that the only logical connection I could find was linking

[Ryan Ward]

From Googleguide:

How does Google find similar pages?

By finding other sites listed on pages that link to the specified page. Let’s see how Google chooses sites similar to Google Guide. I use the related: search operator, which returns the same results as the Similar pages link....Google automatically selected these sites by considering many factors including the popularity of the pages containing links to Google Guide, the positions, sizes, and proximities of other links to the Google Guide link.


Googleguide is not affiliated with google, but it seems reasonable.


Doesn't sound good for me

Maybe it is because my site is new and similar sites haven't been updated in a while.

[Ryan Ward]

I take back my fear - this is from Google I have made the important part bold:

When you click on the "Similar Pages" link for a search result, Google automatically scouts the web for pages that are related to this result.
The Similar Pages feature can be used for many purposes. If you like a particular site's content, but wish it had more to say, Similar Pages can find sites with similar content with which you may be unfamiliar. If you are looking for product information, Similar Pages can find competitive information so you can make direct comparisons. If you are interested in researching a particular field, Similar Pages can help you find a large number of resources very quickly, without having to worry about selecting the right keywords.
The more specialized a page is, the fewer results Google will be able to find for you. For example, Similar Pages may not be able to find related pages for your personal home page if it does not have enough information to authoritatively associate other pages with yours. Also, if companies use multiple URLs for their pages (such as company.com and www.company.com), Similar Pages may have little information on one URL, but lots on the other. In general, however, Similar Pages works well for the majority of web pages.

Can you say.....unique content!!!

Either that or I am waaaaaaaay of on what a real estate website is supposed to say

Interesting tool. I will have to see if there are any nuggets to gleam on competitors.

[Ryan Ward]

An even more clear explanation is this (extremely simplified);

EX:

REW links to me.

I will see someone who is linking to REW in similar pages results.

It is one step farther out from a backlink.

So, you can potentially see if you are linked to a link farm AND you can see who else is....

[VRI]

So, it's still about the links eh?

[ColoradoHomeHelper]

So, it's still about the links eh?

[Ryan Ward]

That's what Google says.