Just to illustrate the pace of search engine innovation, between breakfast and lunch today at the Web 2.0 Expo in NYC, a new social search engine launched – Sightix.

Ever felt lost in your online search for that specific something and found yourself muttering “Can I phone a friend?” but don’t want to bother them and don’t know which of your many contacts to call anyway? Sightix, a young Israeli startup exhibiting its social search and mapping platform for the first time at the Web 2.0 Expo booth 1624 at the Javits Center, aims to take the identity of the searcher and their preferences into account, by filtering search results through the user’s social graph.Simply put, it’s not WHAT you know but WHO you know. Sightix partners with Social Networking Sites (SNS) such as Facebook, Linked In and My Space to sift through the content of all the searcher’s personal and business connections, ranking the results gleaned from each user based on the strength of their connection to the searcher.

According to Ari Gottesmann, Sightix’s Co-Founder & VP for Business Development, social search will eliminate “generic search results” that may be found with popular search engines such as Google or Yahoo, “making people, rather than content, king!” He explains that if you’re looking for a restaurant, ski resort or even a lawyer, your personal tastes will differ from the rest of the searchers in cyberspace. Sightix personalization of the search provides unique results to each user. In this way, he claims that there is a greater likelihood that Sightix results will “work for you”, rather than those results produced using a general search engine. Gottesmann continues that the Sightix platform also maps the search results, helping the user to connect with someone in their extended social network.

Sightix, will also be giving the first glimpse to the public of it search operating on Shin1, the Israeli networking site used by over half a million Israeli youths as well as a number of other social networks. Shaul Levi, Sightix’s CEO, says that his company now aims to partner with other networking sites worldwide, in the hope of fulfilling  industry analysts’ and investors’ predictions of unseating the “Google Giant” as the definitive search solution for Social Networks. “We see ourselves as David in the fight against Goliath. As Israelis, we are fully aware of the biblical result of that battle…and when combined with the amazing high-tech achievements of our tiny country, we’re optimistic”.

Sightix asks, “The world is social, the web is social, your site is social, do you have a social search? “

Social Networking Sites (SNS) have a problem. How can they provide the ability to return relevant search results for their users? Google is great for searching internet pages but what about Search inside a social network? How do you rank the results?

Originally the internet was pages created by people – users were searching for the pages. Today users are searching for the social entities that created the pages and the best means of engaging them. Sightix is the next step in the evolution of search, supplying the user with relevant, focused search results based on the user’s friends and relationships (Social Graph).

Sightix is providing a unique search service specifically to Social Networking Sites which filter search results through the user’s social graph. As such, each user’s who search will receive different, individually personalized and relevant results relating to the social entity they are looking for.

1.  What is Sightix Search?

Sightix is a social search platform offered as a service for social networks that returns personalized relevant results to their users.

2.  Who is it for?

Any web2.0 site – Social Networks, Communities, Forums, Blogs, Social Platforms or any other kind of social site.

3.  Why is it good for me?

Your site contains and collect users details and users generated content for interaction and collaboration, do you leverage this content? Can anyone find anything relevant to them or to their social graph? Why should they leave your site to search for something that their friends (or friends of friends) have just uploaded to your site?

With Sightix Social Search, you would be able to empower your search capabilities with a unique ranking based on social relevancy and an interactive social map to better understand interpersonal relationships and best avenues of approach.

Current search engines do not take into account the identity of the user, therefore everyone gets the same search results. Users cannot prioritize search results in a way that information from people they know (and their friends) and rely on – will come first.

As a result, users have to rely on general popularity of information. There are no effective means to further explore the fact that someone in your social circle can help you explore the subject of your search.

The combination of an efficient search and a unique visual map will leverage the collaboration across your site and will increase page views.

Benefits for end-users:

·   Unique personalized search results.

·   Social Discovery – find people, not just pages.

·   Trust and rely on the content and references of search results – circle of trust.

·   Understanding of both the basis and strength of interpersonal relationships.

·   Dynamic visual map indicating best avenues of approach.

·  Easily showcase users interests, expertise and user generated content.

·  The capacity to organize the social graph & approach the people behind the results.

Benefits for social networks:

·  Transparent and analytical insight to the content consumed and searched on your site.

·  Unique visual search that converts search from a boring cost center to a profit center.

·  Generate 3X more page views per user.

·  Increase user generated content, making your site more interactive and sticky.

·  Increased site stickiness and traffic, engaging users more often and longer.

·  Increases collaboration and interaction amongst users.

4.  How does it work?

Our technology enhances relevancy of results through the connections and data of one’s extended social graph, thus empowering the relevancy of them for the user and creating a Circle of Trust.

5.  How do I integrate it?

You can integrate Sightix Search in just couple of minutes.

You will need to fill some contact details and copy a simple HTML code in order to integrate it in your site. To begin the integration process start here.

6.  Can I join as an end user?

Currently, Sightix Social Search is offered as a service for social networks.

If you want to take part testing our product or interested in joining our groups click here.