A search on http://search.aol.com will generally display results as follows:

"Recommended Sites" are listed first. These appear to be Web sites or resources that have a partnership or affiliation with AOL. They are also "Editor's choice" sites. Very often, these links may not even appear in your search results.

Beneath the "Recommended Sites" section, you'll find "Matching Categories." These Open Directory categories (http://www.dmoz.org) relate to the keyword or keyword phrase that were used. Up to five are listed. Some less popular keywords or phrases may not have any matching categories.

The bulk of the page generally consists of "Matching Sites." AOL considers these Web sites relevant to the keyword(s) searched on. Some Web marketers have been confused by these results; the sites appear to come from the Open Directory, yet they don't match Open Directory results when searches are compared at the two sites.

A search on the exact phrase "pervasive myth among" which appears on our home page (http://www.webposition.com), returns just two matches on AOL as well as a link to Web Articles. Clicking "Web Articles" generates hundreds of results from Inktomi (i.e. HotBot).

We are listed in the Open Directory, however the phrase "pervasive myth among" does NOT appear in our site's Open Directory summary description (located in their database). That's why the same search in Open Directory returns no matches. AOL appears to take all sites in the Open Directory catalog, and then spider many of the Web site's internal pages in order to index the full content of each page.

What does this mean?

AOL has attempted to "marry" two very different search technologies:

1. Directory listing technology (similar to Yahoo and Open Directory)

2. Full page indexing (similar to AltaVista, HotBot, or Infoseek.)

What should your AOL strategy be? First, get your Web site listed in Open Directory. It is imperative that this procedure is done correctly. If you've purchased WebPosition Gold (http://www.webposition.com), be sure to follow the tips located on the Directory Submission button in the Submitter module. These suggestions will help you maximize the effectiveness of your Open Directory listing.

Once you're in Open Directory, AOL will spider your site. Pages that are linked to and from your home page (or page listed in the Open Directory) will be indexed. Therefore, make sure you have visible or hidden links to your doorway pages from your home page in order for AOL to find them. Or, optimize existing pages on your site so they are appealing to AOL. A discussion on adding invisible links can be found at:

http://www.webposition.com/hiddenlinks.htm

Use the WebPosition Page Critic to optimize your page since AOL indexes your pages based on content. Having the proper number of keywords in the right places will make a huge difference in your rankings.

AOL might give you some added relevance if you place a keyword in the summary description that you submit to Open Directory, however, this has not been proven. For people to find you in Open Directory itself, the keywords MUST appear in the description or title submitted. Yahoo works in a similar manner. Very importantly, be sure to choose your keywords carefully by following the advice located at:

http://www.marketposition.com/keywordgenerator.htm

Since you can't submit to AOL directly, how often does AOL refresh its Web site listings? I'm not sure yet. Perhaps some of you can send me your observations. Re-submitting your site to Open Directory will not help, nor would I recommend it. Most major engines refresh the existing content in their database every four to eight weeks. Therefore, do your home work in setting up pages for AOL, then exercise patience.

For very specific searches, you may see a link to "Web Articles" following the "Matching Sites" listings. Clicking this link will display results from Inktomi. If you skip the first ten DirectHit matches, these will often be similar to HotBot's results.

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