On my way to the D conference today, one of the main events is alleged to be the launch of “Bing,” Microsoft’s new search engine. I’ve been playing with it a bit, more on that later. Meanwhile, Microsoft plans a big marketing push, here’s the news in Ad Age:
People with knowledge of the planned push said the ads won’t go after Google, or Yahoo for that matter, by name. Instead, they’ll focus on planting the idea that today’s search engines don’t work as well as consumers previously thought by asking them whether search (aka Google) really solves their problems. That, Microsoft is hoping, will give consumers a reason to consider switching search engines, which, of course, is one of Bing’s biggest challenges.
Instead, they’ll focus on planting the idea that today’s search engines don’t work as well as consumers previously thought by asking them whether search (aka Google) really solves their problems
Whether or not Bing really solves customers’ problems, either, is secondary to the fact that this pitch is completely correct. Search engines really don’t work as well as we think, and don’t really go a long way in helping us solve our problems.
The biggest challenge is to get users to realize that they’ve gradually lowered their expectations over the years, and have been conditioned by the existing search engines to only ask a certain type of question, and only ask it in a certain way. Users have adapted themselves to existing search engines, more than search engines have adapted to users, and no longer ask the more difficult questions that they used to, before they became familiar with the current state of search.
Oh, users still have those difficult questions. They just subconsciously know to avoid trying to answer them using today’s “90% solved” 😉 search engines.
So no matter if Bing succeeds or fails, I welcome their effort to change perceptions.
Maybe this marketing campaign will shake up the search engine market metrics, which are so obsolete as to be useless now.
The idea that Google controls 65-75% of the search market is completely ridiculous.
Bing is a great thing to be tried. If this search promises different perspective of search engine, them it really worth a try. The good thing on the existence of a new market provider in search engine, is the increase of the competitiveness of Search Engine in the industry. As long as fair competition is observe, these giant engines (Google,Yahoo,Bing) will strive to be more competitive to battle search engine supremacy. And the beneficiaries? -the users.
I think it will be cool to have this.
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http://www.geekpolice.net/
While I am not a Microsoftie, I am neither a Googler. Both companies display arrogance towards the consumer, the former company with indifference to users’ plight with software bugs and patches, the latter with the scope of their offerings. They both like to talk out of both sides of their mouth. The difference, of course, is that one company has earned the scorn of techies, while the other has become the new darling of the tech world. But beneath that nerdy exterior lies just another evil company. Which is ironically, the reason I welcome improved search. A monopoly is a monopoly, whether Windows or Office or Google Search and YouTube and search ads.
Bing is so cluttered, we built an easy to use Bing using Bing API.
http://www.stringy.com/bing.html