Can't get Google to return country specific results

[Technique]

I'm from the UK and all my regional settings on the (Windows 7) PC show as UK. All that i know of at least.

 

Whether i use FireFox (default & preferred) or Chrome or whatever i frequently get American based results for things. If i'm looking in to something that is regarding currency, the first results are all American based which is useless to me. If i shop for an item then the suggested items at the top are in GBP but for example if i look in to investments then the opening results are American based, talking about 401k plans which are no good to me at all.

 

My homepage is google.co.uk but this doesn't seem to matter.

 

If i use this search term then i find the following as a result:

 

https://www.google.co.uk/webhp?tbs=ctr:countryUK|countryGB&cr=countryUK|countryGB

however if i use that as my default homepage then whenever i open FireFox i get 2 tabs that open as nothing which then need shutting down and is pretty annoying.

 

In a google search, if i click on "Tools" i don't seem to be able to select from a specific country like some can ... i only get the options of "Any Time" - where i can select the timeframe the results came from or "All Results" (which drops down to verbatim).

 

I actually use the quick search for my searches in the top right of firefox but this appears to be google.com, still like i said, when i use google.co.uk from the actual page it doesn't seem to make a difference.

 

Any ideas?

 

[goretsky Supervisor]

Hello,

Does it make a difference is you change your home page to: https://www.google.com/?gl=uk?

 

Regards,

 

Aryeh Goretsky

[Technique]

Thanks for the reply gorestsky but seemingly not.

[+BudMan MVC]

they changed this years ago

https://www.theverge.com/2017/10/27/16561848/google-search-always-local-results-ignores-domain

 

[Technique]

19 hours ago, BudMan said:

they changed this years ago

https://www.theverge.com/2017/10/27/16561848/google-search-always-local-results-ignores-domain

 

A quote from your link...

 

Quote

Google said that it’ll now deliver search results relevant to your current location no matter which domain you visit. So if you’re in New York and visit google.ru, you’ll still get results relevant to New York City.

Absolute nonsense. I'm in the UK, it shows i'm in the UK at the bottom of my Google searches, yet it still brings up Americanised results.

 

 

As i said at the top, i was searching for "set & forget investing" and the first results thrown up were about "401k plans". It confirms i'm in the UK at the bottom of my search so why on earth a 401k plan is even remotely relevant to me i have no idea.

[+BudMan MVC]

Have to ask google 😉  But going to come down to how the site does their SEO, etc..  Does the site also have PPP plans in the link, isn't pretty much the same in the UK as a 401k or IRA here in the us..

[Brandon H Supervisor]

could it be a paid/sponsored result?

[+BudMan MVC]

Not sure why anyone think that setting a region would make it impossible for stuff to get listed that is not in region, etc.  Do most of the sites adhere to your region settings?  If so then its working!

[jnelsoninjax]

Here is a random idea: how about not using Google to search? Try Duckduckgo.com or bing.com and see if you get the results you are looking for. Another completely off the wall suggestion, but have you tried changing your DNS server? It is possible (not sure how much, but...) that your ISP filters traffic through a VPN, or an ISP specific DNS server and it may just happen to be located in the US. Try switching to Google's DNS, or OpenDNS and see if your results are the same. Also another way you might be able to tell is to use a VPN set to the US and then search Google and see if you get the same results, and of course you could connected to a UK VPN server and try it as well (I feel that with what @Steven P. suggested about an SEO scam would be fairly easy to prove/disprove with the use of a VPN)

Edited April 8, 2020 by jnelsoninjax
More insight

[Steven P. Administrators]

I think you're just the victim of targeted SEO spam.

 

When I do a search for "car wheels" at the very top all the results are for Dutch shops, but on  page 1 I quickly see a result that is in the USA too, I mean what relevance does that have for me, only that they sell car wheels! 😛 

 

top of page

 

bit further down: TSW Alloy Wheels (company out of the USA)

 

 

This is more likely for products like you say, but what about if you typed in something like domino's pizza, I am guessing you will get localized results at the top?

[Steven P. Administrators]

25 minutes ago, Steven P. said:

This is more likely for products like you say, but what about if you typed in something like domino's pizza, I am guessing you will get localized results at the top?

aaaand just now on Facebook:

 

 creepy or coincidence?

[jnelsoninjax]

13 minutes ago, Steven P. said:

aaaand just now on Facebook:

 

 creepy or coincidence?

They knew you were craving Domino's!

[Technique]

Steven - sort of yes, sort of no. Wheels are wheels. So long as they're the right size and the bolt holes are in the right location for your vehicle (or i imagine you'd then just use a spacer of some sort) then the wheels will fit your car whether they're from your country or America or wherever.

 

On the other hand a 401k plan and the workings of one are absolutely useless to me. As far as i know they're only an American thing and totally irrelevant to me unlike for example a SIPP or a LISA or a S&S ISA. #

 

Brandon - no it's no ad thing. https://twocents.lifehacker.com/how-to-build-an-easy-beginner-set-and-forget-investm-1686878594

There you go, that was one of the first results. Talk of dollars and 401k. I didn't even have to go scrolling for that result.

 

I did try Yahoo but 1) i don't like Yahoo and 2) i got the same problem. I like Google and Google 'should' be able to return what i want.

 

Don't forget - i said the link in the OP returns the correct results, so it IS possible, just that if i use that link on startup then it also opens an additional 2 tabs which need closing ... which is annoying. If FireFox just opened and used that link with no additional tabs it'd be problem solved.

 

 

[goretsky Supervisor]

Hello,

Did you check for the presence of VPNs, or foreign (American?) DNS servers, as @jnelsoninjax mentioned?

 

Regards,

 

Aryeh Goretsky

 

[Technique]

3 hours ago, goretsky said:

Hello,

Did you check for the presence of VPNs, or foreign (American?) DNS servers, as @jnelsoninjax mentioned?

 

Regards,

 

Aryeh Goretsky

 

To be honest, no. Simply because i don't know how to.

 

If it's something i (or someone with access to this machine) would have had to have set up then i can say there's nothing there. AFAIK VPNs are pay for services which i wont do, so i don't have one. I've heard of DNS before in the context of restricting content (such as filtering out 18+ material on a family PC) but i have nothing like that set up on my PC.

 

 

[dipsylalapo Supervisor]

Out of curiosity, what are you searching for?

 

We can may be do a few tests and compare results 

[jasondefaoite]

15 hours ago, Technique said:

Google 'should' be able to return what i want.

Google might not see it that way. They return you what they want.

[Technique]

10 minutes ago, dipsylalapo said:

Out of curiosity, what are you searching for?

 

We can may be do a few tests and compare results 

As above ... "set and forget investing" was the search term i used, minus the quotation marks.

 

Now i'm not saying that each and every single result that was returned was an American website, it wasn't. What i'm saying is that some of the top returned results were American whereas if i use the URL i quoted (that generates 2 additional tabs on startup) i get UK results, not American ones ..... but i get those annoying 2 tabs.

[dipsylalapo Supervisor]

9 minutes ago, Technique said:

As above ... "set and forget investing" was the search term i used, minus the quotation marks.

 

Now i'm not saying that each and every single result that was returned was an American website, it wasn't. What i'm saying is that some of the top returned results were American whereas if i use the URL i quoted (that generates 2 additional tabs on startup) i get UK results, not American ones ..... but i get those annoying 2 tabs.

Sorry missed that detail

 

So also based in the UK and I found the same as you. I'll be honest, I don't know much about how Google does its magic, but it could be that "set and forget investing" is generic enough that it doesn't matter where in the world you are, the rules/tips are the same.

 

Looking through the first 5 or so results, the advice and content was fairly generic.

 

Are you expecting something in particular (that's UK relevant) or seeing stuff that's too US focused that you don't like?

 

The second result has reference to 401K but most of the other advice on there was fairly generic, even referencing companies (Vanguard and Fidelity) who operate in the UK

[Peresvet]

12 minutes ago, Technique said:

As above ... "set and forget investing" was the search term i used, minus the quotation marks.

Doesn't hurt to add "UK" or "in the UK" in your search field if you're still not satisfied.

 

Alternatively, you can try Advanced Google Search or familiarize yourself with Google Search Operators.

[Technique]

47 minutes ago, dipsylalapo said:

Sorry missed that detail

 

So also based in the UK and I found the same as you. I'll be honest, I don't know much about how Google does its magic, but it could be that "set and forget investing" is generic enough that it doesn't matter where in the world you are, the rules/tips are the same.

 

Looking through the first 5 or so results, the advice and content was fairly generic.

 

Are you expecting something in particular (that's UK relevant) or seeing stuff that's too US focused that you don't like?

 

The second result has reference to 401K but most of the other advice on there was fairly generic, even referencing companies (Vanguard and Fidelity) who operate in the UK

It's not just the whole set and forget investing thing, i've had it before numerous times, it's just that it's happened recently with that term.

 

But yes, when i see American results and i'm wanting to know about say UK platforms and the like it's correct that i don't like it, i just click off the page. I appreciate that with investing it's a topic that can be pretty generic. I suppose i could invest in VLS 80 for example just like someone in America could. I'm just really getting in to investing so i wonder if that'd be the case with the heavy UK weighting in the VLS range but maybe we're getting off topic with that.