AgentWebRanking 2.5

This month I'll be taking a look at another rank checking program, AgentWebRanking (AWR) 2.5. I heard about this program in late 2001 while it was in beta testing and trial. I've been following the progress, trying out each new beta version, so that I could review it as soon as it was released out of its beta versions. It was finally released on April 22, 2002.

Developed and distributed by Advanced Analysis Derivatives Software, AgentWebRanking 2.5 is available in two versions: Lite and Pro. The Lite version, according to the AWR web site, is "recommended for personal homepages and low-budget sites." The Pro version is "recommended for Search Engine Consultants, WebAgencies, and Webmasters managing large commercial or business sites." First, I'll take a look at the Pro version, which you can try for free for 30 days. Then I'll discuss what's missing in the free Lite version.

AgentWebRanking 2.5 Pro
I won't go into detail about how to set up AWR since its set up is similar to most other ranking software: enter the URL, keywords and search engines, select your report parameters and you're done.

It supports all of the major search engines: All the Web, AltaVista, AOL, Excite, Google, Hotbot, Looksmart, Lycos, MSN, Netscape, Open Directory Project, Overture, Teoma, Webcrawler, Wisenut and Yahoo. AWR is the one of the first I have seen to include Teoma and Wisenut, which I, for one, am glad to see.

AWR also supports search engines from Canada, United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Denmark, Norway and several other countries. Be aware that most of the international search engines supported are the country specific search engines of the major search engines, such as Yahoo IT, AltaVista IT, etc, but there are a few truly international engines, such as Voila, Fireball, Anzwers, etc. It also supports Espotting, Europe's Overture. AWR also supports various foreign language searches, which will be useful to international optimizers.

AWR allows you to repress any mentioning of AWR on your reports, and also allows you to dress your report up with your logo. The logo display is different from that in WebPosition Gold in that AWR pulls your logo from your site, while WPG pulls it from your hard drive. It's not a significant difference, but it is one less graphic you need to e-mail or upload with your reports.

One feature not found in any of the other ranking programs I have tried is the ability to add dated comments to the AWR profile. This is a useful little feature as it allows you to keep short notes with each profile without having to store them in another program such as a spreadsheet or text editor.

The report produced by AWR is very concise and to the point, much like the report generated by RankMeter. Like, WPG, it allows you to compare previous rankings with the current ones. However, where each WPG report is a separate page, AWR combines the various reports, hiding the different "pages" using Dynamic HTML. While this report format is interesting and it does make it a little easier to upload or send via e-mail, it's not something that's really all that special given the technology now available on the Internet. However, the one feature that optimizers, especially those catering to non-English speaking clients, will find very welcome is that the report can be generated in a variety of foreign languages, including German, French, Spanish, Italian and several more.

AWR comes with a fully functional internal browser, although the Lite version does not allow you to save the web environment. Included with the browser are some bookmarks to useful resources such as jimtools.com, keyworddensity.com and several others. However, if you are like me, you have many similar resources already bookmarked in your browser of choice and will find that the internal browser is a little used addition.

The search engine library for both versions is occasionally updated upon program start up from the Search Engine Resource Center hosted on AWR's server. The amount of time it takes to update and install the search engine library depends upon how large the update is and your Internet connection speed, but it usually doesn't take too long. There's no need to remember to check for updates, or to manually install the updates, as they are done automatically. All of the search engines available in the Pro version are also available in the Lite version.

Both versions emulate a browser during rank checking, which is important but hardly unique to AWR.

AgentWebRanking 2.5 Lite Omissions
So what is left out of the Lite Version? I downloaded the Lite version for comparison to the Pro version for this review. As stated in the onsite documentation, I found that the Lite version lacks the ability to open and save profiles and reports that you create. This is a serious omission and makes this version virtually useless even for the market that the company is targeting with this version. Other features left out of the Lite version include online chat and e-mail support, customizable reports (although it does appear that you are able to customize the reports some), the ability to export results to a spreadsheet, performance reports and the ability to compare results from previous reports (although it does appear the you can view the performance reports and compare current results with previous results). Some of these omissions are not critical to gathering your rankings, but several severely limit the usefulness of this version of software.

Pricing
The Lite version is free for unlimited use. Upon download you are allowed to use the Pro version for 30 days free of charge, at which time you must pay a $500 annual licensing fee to continue using the Pro version or it will cease to operate. Please note that this is not a one-time purchase price. You must pay the licensing fee each year in order to continue using the Pro version.

How Does AgentWebRanking Stack Up?
As I mentioned previously, I've been following the beta progress of AWR for about six months in anticipation of a public release. I really like the program, especially for generating initial ranking reports as part of the comprehensive site analysis I perform for all prospective clients. Although similar in features to RankMeter, I especially liked the fact that I can customize the report with my logo, e-mail address and URL as well as some client information, as another way to put my company in front of prospective clients during the site analysis and selling stage. It's quick to setup and easy to use, with a clear and concise report. So what's not to like about AgentWebRanking 2.5?

First, and most importantly, the price is much too expensive. Simply put, you can get RankMeter, which offers many of the same features as AWR for a $60 annual licensing fee. Or spend a few bucks more than RankMeter and get WebPosition Gold and all of its additional features, yet still spend less than a one-year license for AWR.

Second, this misinformation is presented on the AWR website: "Some search engines (Google and Northernlight are the most picky) have been known to ban sites that are using ranking software… Unlike others ranking software, AgentWebRanking users are not concerned by this problem because the software works like if the user was manually searching the net. AgentWebRanking is the only ranking software to be 100% Browser repliquant."

The first statement in the above quote is outright false. Google states in its Webmaster's resources that it does not ban your site if you perform automated queries against its database (see http://www.google.com/webmasters/facts.html). Google will only block you from using Google if you perform automated queries, and from personal experience, only if you do so excessively. And Northern Light is no longer a public search engine.

I find it hard to believe that the second statement in the above quote is completely true: that AgentWebRanking is the "only ranking software" to imitate a browser 100%. I think it is highly probable that AWR's competitors also emulate browser searches. However, in my opinion, imitating browser searches is only half of the solution. The other half is imitating a manual search query. Ranking software perform queries and scan pages for results much faster than a person can, and that is likely the tell-tale sign of an automated query. AWR is not alone in performing queries and scans faster than a human can. Most if not all ranking software is guilty of that.

Finally, if you don't pay the annual licensing fee, you are left with software that is almost useless. While you can perform queries in all the supported search engines and generate reports, you cannot save them and, therefore, have to recreate your search query every time you wish to run a report. I'd rather have seen AWR Lite with a smaller search engine library that allows you to save profiles and reports.

Recommendation
I liked the program throughout the beta test, and I like the public release as well, but the $500 annual licensing fee is excessive. With the ability to save profiles and reports stripped out of the Lite version, the free version is virtually useless because it requires that profiles be rebuilt each time you use the program. Even though it's free, there are better uses for your time.

It's unfortunate, but as much as I like AWR and want to recommend it, I cannot. At $500 per year for the license to use the Pro version, it's too expensive. There are rank checking programs that have the same or more features and tools that cost much less and are just as good, if not better. I cannot recommend spending the time to download and install the free Lite version either. It's critical limitations will hamper the efforts of those people striving for better rankings for low-budget sites and personal web sites by requiring them to rebuild profiles each time the wish to check site rankings. Order AgentWebRanking here.

[Editor's Note: Remember that using software to send automated queries to Google violates its terms of service. While it is entirely up to you how to use this software, we strongly suggest that you refrain from using this software to automatically query Google's database. Using this software to query Google could result in Google blocking your IP address or even banning your site.]

***About Bill Gentry: Bill Gentry has been a professional Web designer since 1999 and a Search Engine Optimization and Online Marketing specialist with Look Sharp Designs since February 2000. Earning a Bachelor's of Science in Geology and a Master's of Business Administration in addition to his employment as an Aircraft Armament Systems Specialist for 10 years contributed to his attention to detail.

Review may not be reprinted without permission of Look Sharp Designs. To request permission for reprinting rights, please contact Look Sharp Designs.

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AgentWebRanking 2.5 This month I'll be taking a look at another rank checking program, AgentWebRanking (AWR) 2.5. I heard about this program in late 2001 while it was in beta testing and trial. I've been following the progress, trying out each new beta version, so that I could review it as soon as it was released out of its beta versions. It was finally released on April 22, 2002. Developed and distributed by Advanced Analysis Derivatives Software, AgentWebRanking 2.5 is available in two versions: Lite and Pro. The Lite version, according to the AWR web site, is "recommended for personal homepages and low-budget sites." The Pro version is "recommended for Search Engine Consultants, WebAgencies, and Webmasters managing large commercial or business sites." First, I'll take a look at the Pro version, which you can try for free for 30 days. Then I'll discuss what's missing in the free Lite version. AgentWebRanking 2.5 Pro I won't go into detail about how to set up AWR since its set up is similar to most other ranking software: enter the URL, keywords and search engines, select your report parameters and you're done. It supports all of the major search engines: All the Web, AltaVista, AOL, Excite, Google, Hotbot, Looksmart, Lycos, MSN, Netscape, Open Directory Project, Overture, Teoma, Webcrawler, Wisenut and Yahoo. AWR is the one of the first I have seen to include Teoma and Wisenut, which I, for one, am glad to see. AWR also supports search engines from Canada, United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Denmark, Norway and several other countries. Be aware that most of the international search engines supported are the country specific search engines of the major search engines, such as Yahoo IT, AltaVista IT, etc, but there are a few truly international engines, such as Voila, Fireball, Anzwers, etc. It also supports Espotting, Europe's Overture. AWR also supports various foreign language searches, which will be useful to international optimizers. AWR allows you to repress any mentioning of AWR on your reports, and also allows you to dress your report up with your logo. The logo display is different from that in WebPosition Gold in that AWR pulls your logo from your site, while WPG pulls it from your hard drive. It's not a significant difference, but it is one less graphic you need to e-mail or upload with your reports. One feature not found in any of the other ranking programs I have tried is the ability to add dated comments to the AWR profile. This is a useful little feature as it allows you to keep short notes with each profile without having to store them in another program such as a spreadsheet or text editor. The report produced by AWR is very concise and to the point, much like the report generated by RankMeter. Like, WPG, it allows you to compare previous rankings with the current ones. However, where each WPG report is a separate page, AWR combines the various reports, hiding the different "pages" using Dynamic HTML. While this report format is interesting and it does make it a little easier to upload or send via e-mail, it's not something that's really all that special given the technology now available on the Internet. However, the one feature that optimizers, especially those catering to non-English speaking clients, will find very welcome is that the report can be generated in a variety of foreign languages, including German, French, Spanish, Italian and several more. AWR comes with a fully functional internal browser, although the Lite version does not allow you to save the web environment. Included with the browser are some bookmarks to useful resources such as jimtools.com, keyworddensity.com and several others. However, if you are like me, you have many similar resources already bookmarked in your browser of choice and will find that the internal browser is a little used addition. The search engine library for both versions is occasionally updated upon program start up from the Search Engine Resource Center hosted on AWR's server. The amount of time it takes to update and install the search engine library depends upon how large the update is and your Internet connection speed, but it usually doesn't take too long. There's no need to remember to check for updates, or to manually install the updates, as they are done automatically. All of the search engines available in the Pro version are also available in the Lite version. Both versions emulate a browser during rank checking, which is important but hardly unique to AWR. AgentWebRanking 2.5 Lite Omissions So what is left out of the Lite Version? I downloaded the Lite version for comparison to the Pro version for this review. As stated in the onsite documentation, I found that the Lite version lacks the ability to open and save profiles and reports that you create. This is a serious omission and makes this version virtually useless even for the market that the company is targeting with this version. Other features left out of the Lite version include online chat and e-mail support, customizable reports (although it does appear that you are able to customize the reports some), the ability to export results to a spreadsheet, performance reports and the ability to compare results from previous reports (although it does appear the you can view the performance reports and compare current results with previous results). Some of these omissions are not critical to gathering your rankings, but several severely limit the usefulness of this version of software. Pricing The Lite version is free for unlimited use. Upon download you are allowed to use the Pro version for 30 days free of charge, at which time you must pay a $500 annual licensing fee to continue using the Pro version or it will cease to operate. Please note that this is not a one-time purchase price. You must pay the licensing fee each year in order to continue using the Pro version. How Does AgentWebRanking Stack Up? As I mentioned previously, I've been following the beta progress of AWR for about six months in anticipation of a public release. I really like the program, especially for generating initial ranking reports as part of the comprehensive site analysis I perform for all prospective clients. Although similar in features to RankMeter, I especially liked the fact that I can customize the report with my logo, e-mail address and URL as well as some client information, as another way to put my company in front of prospective clients during the site analysis and selling stage. It's quick to setup and easy to use, with a clear and concise report. So what's not to like about AgentWebRanking 2.5? First, and most importantly, the price is much too expensive. Simply put, you can get RankMeter, which offers many of the same features as AWR for a $60 annual licensing fee. Or spend a few bucks more than RankMeter and get WebPosition Gold and all of its additional features, yet still spend less than a one-year license for AWR. Second, this misinformation is presented on the AWR website: "Some search engines (Google and Northernlight are the most picky) have been known to ban sites that are using ranking software… Unlike others ranking software, AgentWebRanking users are not concerned by this problem because the software works like if the user was manually searching the net. AgentWebRanking is the only ranking software to be 100% Browser repliquant." The first statement in the above quote is outright false. Google states in its Webmaster's resources that it does not ban your site if you perform automated queries against its database (see http://www.google.com/webmasters/facts.html). Google will only block you from using Google if you perform automated queries, and from personal experience, only if you do so excessively. And Northern Light is no longer a public search engine. I find it hard to believe that the second statement in the above quote is completely true: that AgentWebRanking is the "only ranking software" to imitate a browser 100%. I think it is highly probable that AWR's competitors also emulate browser searches. However, in my opinion, imitating browser searches is only half of the solution. The other half is imitating a manual search query. Ranking software perform queries and scan pages for results much faster than a person can, and that is likely the tell-tale sign of an automated query. AWR is not alone in performing queries and scans faster than a human can. Most if not all ranking software is guilty of that. Finally, if you don't pay the annual licensing fee, you are left with software that is almost useless. While you can perform queries in all the supported search engines and generate reports, you cannot save them and, therefore, have to recreate your search query every time you wish to run a report. I'd rather have seen AWR Lite with a smaller search engine library that allows you to save profiles and reports. Recommendation I liked the program throughout the beta test, and I like the public release as well, but the $500 annual licensing fee is excessive. With the ability to save profiles and reports stripped out of the Lite version, the free version is virtually useless because it requires that profiles be rebuilt each time you use the program. Even though it's free, there are better uses for your time. It's unfortunate, but as much as I like AWR and want to recommend it, I cannot. At $500 per year for the license to use the Pro version, it's too expensive. There are rank checking programs that have the same or more features and tools that cost much less and are just as good, if not better. I cannot recommend spending the time to download and install the free Lite version either. It's critical limitations will hamper the efforts of those people striving for better rankings for low-budget sites and personal web sites by requiring them to rebuild profiles each time the wish to check site rankings. Order AgentWebRanking here. [Editor's Note: Remember that using software to send automated queries to Google violates its terms of service. While it is entirely up to you how to use this software, we strongly suggest that you refrain from using this software to automatically query Google's database. Using this software to query Google could result in Google blocking your IP address or even banning your site.] ***About Bill Gentry: Bill Gentry has been a professional Web designer since 1999 and a Search Engine Optimization and Online Marketing specialist with Look Sharp Designs since February 2000. Earning a Bachelor's of Science in Geology and a Master's of Business Administration in addition to his employment as an Aircraft Armament Systems Specialist for 10 years contributed to his attention to detail. Review may not be reprinted without permission of Look Sharp Designs. To request permission for reprinting rights, please contact Look Sharp Designs.	Guarantees Privacy Policy Terms of Use Get targeted global traffic with SEO Copyright © 2002 Look Sharp Designs. All rights reserved.

AgentWebRanking 2.5

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