As Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq: MSFT) and Yahoo Inc. (Nasdaq: YHOO) near the expected regulatory approval of their deal for Bing to power all Yahoo searches, Bing will become a far more important player in the search business -- one that no search marketer can safely ignore. Bing will have close to 30 percent market share, so it’s the rare marketer that can afford to ignore nearly one third of all customers.
So, search marketers won’t be able to ignore Bing, but Google (Nasdaq: GOOG) might be able to do so. Why do I say that? Because Google has its eyes on bigger ideas than a new search competitor -- because it already has the search game won.
Let’s look at the ways that Bing, or any new search engine, can go after Google:
Better data. If Bing can get more content indexed than Google, it can deliver better search results. This was the big game a few years ago, when each search engine pumped up the numbers of documents stored in its search index, trumpeting the numbers for all to see. Bing is making attempts in this arena. It signed a deal with Twitter to get access to all tweets, only to see Google sign a similar deal just days later. Now it is negotiating with Rupert Murdoch to pay for exclusive search access to his content, in a deal some wags are calling "paid exclusion."
Could it work? Possibly, but it’s hard to bet against Google on this one. It’s difficult to see how Microsoft’s access could become so much better that it materially affects search results. If Google is missing a Wall Street Journal story, you can always read another news story. A whole set of premium content providers would need to defect to make any difference here, and even then, all commerce searches would be unaffected.
Better relevance. This seems like the winning play, right? Wrong. In several blind tests over the years, Google has lost the relevance game to search engines like Ask.com and Yahoo, so even if Bing produces more relevant results, will anyone notice? Probably not. Bing needs a stunning breakthrough -- they just signed a deal with Wolfram Alpha to try to get one. But Google has "Google Squared," which might turn out to be even better.
When you look at how much investment Google can make in improving its search engine, can you realistically bet on anyone else coming up with a breakthrough so extraordinary that it becomes the obvious choice over Google for searchers -- one that is as plain as the nose on your face?
It says here that it’s not going to happen. Bing won’t unseat Google by building a better search engine, and neither will anyone else. Google has this game won, because it’s awfully hard to get someone to switch just because you do more of whatever they are already satisfied with.
So, if Google isn’t thinking much about Bing, what is Google working on? Personalization, where Google will have more data about you then anyone else; and mobile, where it is changing the game with an open platform, with free turn-by-turn directions in Google Maps, and possibly with its own ad-supported VOIP phone.
Can Bing compete with these initiatives? Not likely.
What is Google worried about? Not a better search engine, but a better advertising solution. They stay awake wondering if Facebook or Twitter will learn to monetize: Could people start asking their friends questions instead of searching? Could mobile phone carriers control the ads on their phones? Could a handset maker (Apple or Nokia)?
So, if you’re a search marketer, watch the news and see if the Yahoo-Bing deal is approved by U.S. and European regulators. If it is, you’ll want to pay close attention to your Bing search results and buy into Bing’s paid search ads. But you’ll do it because 30 percent of any market is important, not because Bing is about to upend Google. It’s not.
— Mike Moran, author of Do It Wrong Quickly, is a speaker and consultant on Internet marketing.
I know you said that Google does not care about Bing, but with all of the reports saying that Apple is looking to abandon Google due to conflicting interest in the mobile market, should Google be worry about mobile device manufactures making their own search sites? For example, Apple does have the capital and the ability to enter the internet search market and (like they have done before) take away a larger share from their competitors. I think you will see Google being more aggressive in mobile market than the search market. I believe that Google is betting on mobile devices will be the first thing consumer will grab to search for things instead of going to a computer.
That seems to be Bing's point of view, if you believe the article Paul just posted below. Bing is waiting for that disruption. My question is whether it is a disruption within search that is coming, or a disruption OF search. Bing is poised for only the former...
Excellent article, Paul. The examples were what fascinated me. I am sure that Bing incorporates all these kinds of techniques, also, but you'd have to think that doing so keeps them even with Google rather than gaining ground.
For the most part, I agree. Unless someone comes up with a revolutionary change in improving online searches, it is unlikely that Bing (or anyone else) can make any significant inroads over the next few years. Everyone Googles the answer, no one Bings or Yahoos the info....so, that there is a tough nut to crack.
Searching will get easier and it will get better. Google will lead the way along a path of evolutionary improvement and then, at some point, we'll see a disruptive player step up. Who and what that is...well, if I knew the answer to that question, I'd probably have a few extra pennies in my pocket.
My sentiments exactly. I tried to do this when I had just installed IE8 with Bing as the default search engine, and I didn't even last a week. Had to switch back to Google in a flash.
In countries where Google is not the dominant search engine (eg South Korea), the incumbent search giant relies on a certain amount of "network effect" to maintain its lead. That is, users are tracked and due to the large number of users, search results can be improved because most people are generally looking for similar things. Without the network effect of a large number of users, it's hard to break a dominant search engine's lead.
Microsoft (and anyone else aiming for Google) needs to attack from a different angle. Yahoo maintains is strength due to its collection of useful services like Yahoo News, Yahoo Mail, Answers, Games, etc, etc. MSFT needs to leverage services like these (but not just me-too services that are just like these)... and offer unique services that will drive user loyalty. But MSFT is losing out to Google's philosophy of giving away useful free services -- and it needs to better target the younger audience who may not yet be trained to type G-O-O-G-L-E by reflex just yet....
You're right, of course, mhhfive, but it's just a much better headline, isn't it? Google of course does care about Bing, but they care about other competitors so much more. You're right than Microsoft needs to change the game to be bigger than search and no matter how good a job they have done with Bing, I agree with you that they have not done that. I am one of the folks that thought Live Search was a really good search engine, so making Bing even better won't win them recognition from a market that is already happy with "good enough."
Google has more than just Bing to worry about, but Bing is no lightweight. MSFT's strategy of trying to redefine the battle as "not about search" is a good one, but they didn't quite hit the mark with a "decision engine" as their service. MSFT needs to come up with more useful tools so that it doesn't seem like a me-too search engine with slightly different bells&whistles.
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