Why would one need such stealthiness, aka Incognito? …

by Ana on February 22, 2011 · 58 comments

in

Comment posted on Search Engine Ranking Tip: How to Search Google Incognito by Dennis Edell@ Direct SalesMark

Why would one need such stealthiness, aka Incognito?

Dennis Edell@ Direct SalesMark also commented

  • Honestly no, not really. I do not now nor plan to use Chrome, like ever. I was more curious then anything.

    *Again* sounds a bit off, refresh my memory?

Recent comments by Dennis Edell@ Direct SalesMark

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{ 58 comments }

Sheila Atwood from landing pages best practices February 25, 2011 at 1:38 pm

Ana,

I just had to come back and tell you how helpful this was. I have been testing the search terms I have been going for and this give me a true picture. I am winning on some and others I am not. Now I can work on those I am not.
Sheila Atwood@landing pages best practices´s last blog ..How About a Chocolate Donut A Danish- MaybeMy ComLuv Profile

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Kai Druhl from Internet Marketing Coaching February 24, 2011 at 10:02 am

Hello Ana, I just checked this out: 1=search regular without pws=0, 2=search regular with pws=0, 3 search incognito without pws=0. 1 gives the same results as 3, obviously based on my past browsing history. Only 2 appears to ignore my past browsing. What do you find? Am I missing something here?
Kai Druhl@Internet Marketing Coaching´s last blog ..Internet Basics – A Short Introduction To How The Internet WorksMy ComLuv Profile

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Elle Billias February 24, 2011 at 5:55 am

That is SOOOOO cool!! I never knew about incognito, I spend half my time logging in and out of my Google account so they don’t skew my search results!! You just save me a heap of time!
Elle Billias´s last blog ..Social Monkee- Build Your MLM Business Blog With 25 FREE Backlinks Every Day!My ComLuv Profile

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Tom from website design in Rock Hill, SC February 24, 2011 at 12:40 am

While Chrome is probably the best browser to use for this because you can have one window showing personalized results and open a new incognito window that doesn’t show personalized results, the other major browsers do have “private browsing” options.

For checking the ranking positions of my sites, I use the Rank Checker Firefox plugin from seobook.com which will show you your rankings in Google, Yahoo, and Bing for a list of keywords. You can save your list and even export the results as a CSV file if you want to keep a record.

Reply

Ana February 24, 2011 at 10:00 am

I do like Rank Checker; I only wish someone would come up with a tool that tells YOU what pages are ranking for what keywords, instead of us trying to see if we ranked for a particular keyword.

Makes sense?

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Kerry from SEO Tips February 24, 2011 at 3:10 pm

Ana, do you use Google Webmaster Tools? They provide you with a report that shows the impressions your site gets for different search queries.

I find the data very helpful,as the report gives you info on the “impressions” that keywords from your site are getting in searches.

Here’s an example: You may see that a search for the keyword “traffic generation” resulted in an impression for your site at #100 in the search results. The report will also give you the clickthrough rate for the impressions.

Note: The data is not presented in real time, however it is extremely valuable to know what keywords are making impressions and where they are in the SERPS.

You will discover keywords and keyword phrases that you aren’t even targeting…but they are appearing in searches.

You can take this data and optimize the keywords and move them up into the traffic. Best of all it’s a free service! Give it a try.
Kerry@SEO Tips´s last blog ..Google Webmaster Tools — Valuable SEO Info For YouMy ComLuv Profile

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Alex from Jocuri February 23, 2011 at 2:14 pm

I think you can obtain the same effect by using a high anonymity proxy or having two browsers.
One that you use frequently and one that has cookies, internet history, cache etc disable so that google can’t collect or store any kind of data in it, thus with one browser you can surf the net while with the other you can check google results :) (and of course do some other things too).
Alex@Jocuri´s last blog ..HockeyMy ComLuv Profile

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Don from Internet Marketing Tools February 23, 2011 at 12:46 pm

Cool; I knew about the extra code but not the ‘incognito’ function in chrome (maybe I should use it more over firefox :p). Will give it a go.
Don@Internet Marketing Tools´s last blog ..Plug your link leaks!My ComLuv Profile

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Ana February 24, 2011 at 9:57 am

I still prefer Firefox, but only out of habit. I think Chrome has great functionality.

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Dennis Edell from Direct SalesMark February 23, 2011 at 11:30 am

Why would one need such stealthiness, aka Incognito?
Dennis Edell@ Direct SalesMark´s last blog ..The Scrolling Homepage- A Sticky Tactic You Haven’t Heard…My ComLuv Profile

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Alex from Jocuri February 23, 2011 at 2:12 pm

To see the correct results from search engines. You can try searching for a certain keyword while google personalizes your results and then use a proxy or use Ana’s technique and do the same query, you will see different results.

This is critical for anyone who wants to promote a website, because he needs to see what almost everybody sees and not the results tailored after the data google collected from him.
Alex@Jocuri´s last blog ..HockeyMy ComLuv Profile

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Ana February 24, 2011 at 9:56 am

Dennis… Don’t tell me you didn’t actually read the post… again! :)
Ana´s last blog ..Search Engine Ranking Tip- How to Search Google IncognitoMy ComLuv Profile

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Dennis Edell from Direct SalesMark February 24, 2011 at 9:51 pm

Honestly no, not really. I do not now nor plan to use Chrome, like ever. I was more curious then anything.

*Again* sounds a bit off, refresh my memory?
Dennis Edell@ Direct SalesMark´s last blog ..New Year! New Theme!! New Plans!!! Oh My!!!!My ComLuv Profile

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Adrienne February 23, 2011 at 8:36 am

Hi Ana,

Great tips!!! You’ve got my mind going as to where you come up with these tips! I do searches myself and visit other blogs but you really do share some pretty cool tips. Thank you so much for that and for continuing to bring us such great information.

Adrienne
Adrienne´s last blog ..How to Build an Affiliate Marketing Business From ScratchMy ComLuv Profile

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Kesha from small business website design February 23, 2011 at 8:20 am

Thanks Ana for this tip! I surely was one of those people who thought all I had to do was turn log out of my Google account. This is a true gem! On to use it now :-)
Kesha @ small business website design´s last blog ..Marketing Your Website If Search Engines Didn’t ExistMy ComLuv Profile

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Oliver Tausend February 23, 2011 at 7:19 am

Hi Ana,

I always wonder where you dig out these tips - thanks for sharing. It makes sense to search incognito.

Take care

Oliver
Oliver Tausend´s last blog ..Think And Grow Rich – The Devil’s Workshop Pt 2My ComLuv Profile

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Pippa from seo for small business February 23, 2011 at 6:51 am

Thanks Ana,
I was signing out and making sure that my location was uk (as most of my clients work within a specific area in the Uk) always good to find others ways to see the real results, rather than what Google thinks we want.
cheers
Pippa@seo for small business´s last blog ..Who Are You Writing ForMy ComLuv Profile

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Ana February 24, 2011 at 9:55 am

Of course, just signing out doesn’t work well.

You are welcome, Pippa!
Ana´s last blog ..Anyone Should Blog 3 Types of Blogs and 3 Ways to Handle ThemMy ComLuv Profile

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Frank South February 23, 2011 at 6:39 am

Curious - Does IE’s “In Private” does the same thing as Chrome’s “Incognito?”

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Ana February 23, 2011 at 6:56 am

Don’t use IE; have no idea. :)

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Edwin February 23, 2011 at 5:42 am

Wow cool tutorial, thanks Ana. I didnt know that Google personalized totally makes searches bias, now I know better. Thanks for the code
Edwin´s last blog ..Giveaway- 5 Amazon Gift-CardMy ComLuv Profile

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Ana February 23, 2011 at 6:29 am

You are welcome, Edwin!

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Lisa from start a blog February 22, 2011 at 10:03 pm

“STILL DON’T LIKE ME? AHHH…”

BRILLIANT Ana!! :) Also, this is epic Google info here..of which I had no clue! UH, der.

Thanks for always bringin’ it Ana
Lisa@start a blog´s last blog ..Top 5 Reasons I Will Unfollow YouMy ComLuv Profile

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Ana February 22, 2011 at 10:50 pm

Thanks, Lisa - as you can tell, I am making it up as I go. :)

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Sheila Atwood from www.newbielifeline.com February 22, 2011 at 1:52 pm

Ana,

I love how this works. It makes my search real and not just what I want to see. I will be playing around with this one and doing a good search of the terms I have been going for.

I like your new banners too. Very pleasant. They look more like “your recommendations” than a regular banner link.
Sheila Atwood@www.newbielifeline.com´s last blog ..You Have 3 Seconds To Tell Me Who You Are Or I Am Gone Baby GoneMy ComLuv Profile

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Ana February 22, 2011 at 10:49 pm

Thanks, Sheila.

Banner blindness is definitely an issue; hoped to solve it with these new banners. :)
Ana´s last blog ..How Two Days Without Internet Made Me Stumble Upon a Great IdeaMy ComLuv Profile

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Kerry from Articles February 22, 2011 at 1:27 pm

Ana, thanks for tip about changing the search location. Your post reminded me of a website that I found a while back on Google search. I recommend that you check it our for lots of advanced search tips that you may find useful. (or just bookmark it and then forget about it completely until someone writes a blog posting about it…like I did.)
Here’s the link: http://www.googleguide.com/
Kerry@Articles´s last blog ..Are You Optimizing You Author’s Bio BoxMy ComLuv Profile

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Ana February 22, 2011 at 10:48 pm

You are right, Kerry - I opened the tool, decided I didn’t have the time right there and then and now it’s just sitting opened, begging me “read me, read me!”….

And so the saga of unread page continues…

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Elena February 22, 2011 at 12:29 pm

Ahaha “incognito”…incredible google. I use Google alerts and I see how much clutter people throw into the internet…Sure it is quite difficult to be on top rankings with all this (example: people writing stupid articles just to talk about the keywords they choose). Hugs!
Elena´s last blog ..Fiori di Bach e oli essenziali per i nostri amici cani e gatti!My ComLuv Profile

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Ana February 22, 2011 at 12:43 pm

That’s why I stopped using G Alerts, Elena - drove me nuts!
Ana´s last blog ..How to Track and Manage Your Traffic Generation EffortsMy ComLuv Profile

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Tim from Internet Income Rant February 22, 2011 at 12:25 pm

I totally agree but the thing is how long are they gonna track me till they get the name of my girlfriend and the last time I saw her plus the maiden name of my mum!
‘internet income rant signing off…’

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Ana February 22, 2011 at 12:41 pm

Stop using internet? :)

I think our choices are quite limited here, Tim.
Ana´s last blog ..Sunday Coffee with Ana- Quit Blogging Now or Forever Hold Your PeaceMy ComLuv Profile

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Jeff Yablon February 22, 2011 at 12:14 pm

NICE, Ana!

That’s all, nice. And that &pws=0 trick . . . sometimes I really am amazed by the stuff others know!

Jeff Yablon
President & CEO

Jeff Yablon´s last blog ..When “The Only Bad Press Is No Press” Marketing Becomes EasyMy ComLuv Profile

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Ana February 22, 2011 at 12:40 pm

It’s good to know what others know. :) And now, Jeff, you are in the know.

Sorry, couldn’t resist…

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A. Tatum Jr February 22, 2011 at 10:50 am

Nice tip. This is the kind of stuff I love. Effect, but simple. I just ran across something similar with my post last week. Check out my latest post and you will see how this search engine doesn’t track your habits or save your data. You can also proxy results.
A. Tatum Jr´s last blog ..Are Your Search Results ProtectedMy ComLuv Profile

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Ana February 22, 2011 at 12:35 pm

Will check it out!

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Mavis Nong from Attraction Marketing February 22, 2011 at 9:23 am

Great search engine ranking tips you’re sharing here, Ana.

I only started using the “incognito” option recently and it works like a charm.

I know most people think that by simply logging off your Google account will do the trick, well it doesn’t.

All the best,
Mavis

P.S. Love the changes on your blog. The new banners are beautiful! :)
Mavis Nong @ Attraction Marketing´s last blog ..How to Rise Above The Noise and Bring More Traffic to Your BlogMy ComLuv Profile

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Ana February 22, 2011 at 12:35 pm

Thanks, Mavis - I got some great feedback from my readers and no working on ti slowly, but truly. :)
Ana´s last blog ..How Two Days Without Internet Made Me Stumble Upon a Great IdeaMy ComLuv Profile

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Ian Belanger from Network Marketing Success February 22, 2011 at 8:38 am

Hey Ana,

Awesome tips, I had no idea about this until you opened my eyes. Thanks for sharing these great tips.

Btw, Who made those great banner ads for you :) jk

Ian
Ian Belanger@Network Marketing Success´s last blog ..What Is MLM Network Marketing- The Ability To Pay It Forward In My Humble OpinionMy ComLuv Profile

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Ana February 22, 2011 at 12:33 pm

:) You are welcome, Ian - and THANK YOU! Do you think they are a bit large though; should I scale them down?
Ana´s last blog ..How Two Days Without Internet Made Me Stumble Upon a Great IdeaMy ComLuv Profile

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Ian Belanger from Network Marketing Success February 22, 2011 at 12:44 pm

You are very welcome also Ana,

Maybe a little big, What do other people think? I would ask everyone’s opinion.

They do draw attention being big though. If you need me to re-size them just let me know.

Thanks Ana and have a great day!
Ian Belanger@Network Marketing Success´s last blog ..7 Characteristics of an Online Entrepreneur LeaderMy ComLuv Profile

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Lisa from start a blog February 22, 2011 at 1:08 pm

On the contrary Ana, I think they are perfect. Not too obtrusive and quite eye catching. Kudos Ian! :)
Lisa@start a blog´s last blog ..Can We Talk-Keyword Research &amp Rainbow PoopMy ComLuv Profile

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Ian Belanger from Network Marketing Success February 22, 2011 at 1:11 pm

Thanks Lisa!
Ian Belanger@Network Marketing Success´s last blog ..Part 2 Teambuilding Call Script Answering Questions That You Might Not Want To AnswerMy ComLuv Profile

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Thomas February 22, 2011 at 8:01 am

Great tip Ana. Hate when Goggle think they know what I want ;-)
Thank you for sharing those tips.
Thomas´s last blog ..Make quick screenshots with Snipping tool in Windows 7My ComLuv Profile

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Ana February 22, 2011 at 12:32 pm

I know; I turned Google Instant off in an instant. :)

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John February 22, 2011 at 7:14 am

Hey Ana,

It’s definitely important to turn off personalized search when you want to find out your true rankings. I appreciate the two tips you have shared with me because I knew nothing about them.

When I want to find out where I really am in the search engines I just go to tools and click on clear recent history. That usually does the trick, but sometimes I don’t want to clear all my history so I will try out both the methods you’ve listed here see how well I like them. Thanks for sharing your tips and advice on this topic.
John´s last blog ..3 Household Items You Can Use To Remove Moles Naturally – Save Money and Get Clear Skin FastMy ComLuv Profile

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Ana February 22, 2011 at 12:31 pm

I am with you, John - I do like to keep history intact; makes my life easier in many cases.
Ana´s last blog ..Why All Your Make Money Blogging Efforts Will Fail Without ThisMy ComLuv Profile

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Lou Barba from informationhighwaycardandgiftshop.com February 22, 2011 at 6:55 am

Hi Ana,

Awww…and here I thought I made it to the first page.:( I guess I’ve still got a lot of hard work left for that distinction. I noticed on Chrome that if you clear your cookies, it does the same thing.

Lou
Lou Barba@informationhighwaycardandgiftshop.com´s last blog ..A New Value of PieMy ComLuv Profile

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Ana February 22, 2011 at 12:28 pm

I know, Lou… those personalized searches: can’t live with them, can’t leave without them. :)
Ana´s last blog ..How To Write Titles With TeethMy ComLuv Profile

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Linda from talktherapybiz.com February 22, 2011 at 6:44 am

Wow-another thing to add to the tech-toolbox. Although I’m undyingly grateful to those Google guys for drastically simplifying my life the past decade, they don’t need to know the toilet paper I use.

TY for the code, Ana and welcome back from your ski vacation:)
Linda @talktherapybiz.com´s last blog ..How Getting Fired on Porn Night Solidified My Business PlanMy ComLuv Profile

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Ana February 22, 2011 at 12:24 pm

:) Thanks, Linda!

Although if I am out shopping for toilet paper and forget which brand I like best, all I need to do is Google it. :)
Ana´s last blog ..Got Traffic So WhatMy ComLuv Profile

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Andreas from Online Advertising February 22, 2011 at 6:38 am

SEO companies should eliminate web history because when they optimize a website for certain keywords, test searches and analyze competitors, then google may show results in favour of that website to them, while for others different results would appear.

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Ana February 22, 2011 at 12:23 pm

Either way you look at it, there are downsides, Andreas.

At least these searches are a good start.

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Robert Dempsey February 22, 2011 at 6:35 am

Being in Thailand I need to go even further with this. I use a Firefox plugin called Google Global that will show me results specific to the US and other countries. I notice it adds in the code you mention automagically, so I’m covered!

Yay tools! I’m excited. And yes I’m alive!
Robert Dempsey´s last blog ..Niche Site Strategy For Online DominationMy ComLuv Profile

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Ana February 22, 2011 at 12:22 pm

Good to know, Robert - sometimes I do need to do a search in a different country.

By the way, I use Market Samurai for this types of searches and it also automatically adds the code.
Ana´s last blog ..Sunday Coffee with Ana- Start Engaging Others or No SEO Will HelpMy ComLuv Profile

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Robert Dempsey February 22, 2011 at 5:38 pm

Very cool never noticed that. Thanks.
Robert Dempsey´s last blog ..Slice And Dice Your Metrics With Advanced SegmentsMy ComLuv Profile

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Tim from Internet Income Rant February 22, 2011 at 5:22 am

Thanks for that tip…I want to degress….
Sometimes these machines think they know too much about us. Off course Google is a machine and how the hell do they think they can track us…they track our behaviour and think they can determine what we’ll do or search…absurd isn’t it?

Well, let’s see how the search engine evolve and thanks Ana for giving me a way to GAME THE SEARCH ENGINE!

Reply

Ana February 22, 2011 at 12:20 pm

You are welcome, Tim. I confess sometimes their “tracking” can serve it’s purposes, but come on…

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