Searching for the right tool to “search” what you want from the Internet? You might think that search was already over long time ago. Sorry that I have gotten you all confused over this busines of searching. You can’t blame me really. Blame those search engines.
Yes, it’s a new search engine online and yes, it’s from a familiar name. Welcome, Bing.com from Microsoft! Other than visual appeal, it’s a bit tough to tell the difference from Google.com. I did a test by entering the same text on both websites. Great, the results are different. Different algorithm must be in use. The question is, why another?
From the business point of view (purely Microsoft’s), it makes sense to have what everyone is having. With Microsoft’s marketing muscle, it won’t find it difficult to create some revenue from online advertising from this portal (oh yes, the magic word that we used to relate it with Yahoo or AOL, just like search with Yahoo, Excite and Lycos etc). Not ony that, it also helps to weaken Google command on the price. It’s direct retaliation from Microsoft after Google crossed the boundaries by creating its own web browser and operating systems (so far limited to handheld devices). Well, that’s not all to it. It also represents an attack on the sinking Yahoo and whatever there remains.
Of course, it won’t be straightforward victory. The portals are built around communities or loyal customers. They won’t be gone in a day or even a few years. As Microsoft should already know, search engines are now more than just what they do. They themselves are a brand. Customers remember the logo and vaguely what the search engine actually excels in. As Google pampers its users with more freebies and convenience, its users stay closer with it. This is why Yahoo is still a force these days. It’s really about value creation. At the end of the day, I ,as a user, don’t truly bother who gives me a better search result. So long as I can find what I am looking for. I am a satisfied customer and a repeated one too.
In a market where brands are important, one should focus on differentiation. Yes, Google is unique indeed. Now that it’s a big boy. It can perform and create challenges that a few can match. So, it’s essential for each to target a specific market segment. Wikipedia.org is a good example. It helps to search for specific term or words too. It is more just than a list of results. It’s educational and encourages more collaboration and sharing from the larger group out there. Another example is wolframalpha.com (don’t ask me what it means). Try typing names of 3 companies (max is 4) of the same industry and voila! You can see an executive summary of current prices, fundamentals, price history and performance etc. You can even download the report in pdf (but limited information). Though it’s not as comprehensive as Google, it stands out for what it does best. It’s still in its infancy and I expect more from this tool.
To sum it up, the Internet works much like the TV or media. Whatever tool or program that receives the most airtime from its users or viewers will always command a better price for the advertisements. It’s also unlikely that all viewers will switch channel at one time. There might be trends that they follow. So, it’s back to the same, old theory of “the best wins it all”. Even so, there will still be viewers for news program or sports, discovery, science and on on. The program may forget the mass and still survive (that’s why there are so many magazine titles around the world) these days. Though users like to have choices, they would stick to what they like most. As such, it doesn’t matter how many search engines are out there. Unless there is an outstanding one, I would be less likely to change that bookmark or search toolbar of mine.
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