Why do we need a new type of search? Explore the different ways contextual search will revolutionize how we find and consume information.
For more details on the MindMeld API, click here.
TRANSCRIPT:
Hi, my name is Tim Tuttle. This is the second video in a video series I am putting together introducing our new product, which we call the MindMeld API. The MindMeld API is a brand new search platform that allows any developer to incorporate contextually driven search results and recommendations to any app, any device, any website — in minutes.
So in this video, I want to talk about why we need a new type of a search service, specifically why we need contextually driven search. Well it used to be a few years ago that if you wanted to have let users search your information. You could just slap a search box on your website and you are done. But today, the search box doesn’t cut it anymore. In fact, if you want to make it easy for people to find your content, you have to do a lot more. The reason for this is because today when people want to get information, they are not just sitting at their desk typing searches on their laptop. Instead, they are accessing your site from a variety of different devices. They are doing it not just when they are still at their desk but they could be on the go, they could be at work, they could be at home, they could be in their car. In those situations, they are not necessarily able to type a search query and so it’s necessary instead to be much smarter about how we get information, and the way that you do that is through context.
A way that you can make it much easier for people to find your information is by picking up on all the contextual clues that are now available when people are using your application, and using your site. So, what is context? Well, context is essentially anything that describes what’s happening in that person’s life. So it could be, what are the places that they have been, where are they going, are they in their car, are they at home, are they at work, are they driving, are they walking? What have they done in your application in your site. What have they read? What have they written? You know, in some cases it’s a voice application, what are the things they’ve said. That is context, and if you pay attention to that, you can do a much better job at finding the information that people want without even requiring them to type a keyword in the traditional search box.
