Google is one of the dominant forces online, dwarfing all other search engines. Even with the creation of Bing, Google remains supreme, and it would take much more than a single entity to topple the giant. But is Google’s market share slipping?
According to ComScore, Google’s US search percentage slipped from 65.1 in March to 64.4 in April, while Yahoo’s share rose to 17.7% up 0.8% and Bing’s 11.8% up 0.1%. Although these statistics are rather small, this doesn’t mean they are irrelevant. If Bing and Yahoo! (more commonly known as “BingHoo”) rolled out their blended engine it would command 29.5%. A big slice of the online search pie.
Even though the battle of the titans has been waging for years, it shows no sign of slowing down or stopping. NineMSN has release a streamlined search homepage for mobile users. There has been a noticeable move to make Bing dominant in this new site, being only 1 click away.
These moves haven’t gone unnoticed by Google, which is still leading in new ideas and innovative technologies. Google Goggles, for example, are very cool.
Google has also recently released a new interface design for its homepage, though this has been greeted with mixed responses from netizens. I even expressed the normal “huh – what the…” when I got to work in the morning. After watching a good ol’ Google video I now understand that Google is trying to make it easier to find more relevant and recent information.
The list of differences between the search engines could be debated forever – if only they released the search algorithms! One of the more interesting facts is in the difference in short tail keywords. Bing will give the most relevant search results as well as categories. Google will tally millions of searches, and give the best results from other users data.
Although the battle is long and fierce, there is little information to show that Google is significantly slipping. The benefits from a user’s perspective are advantageous that the battle wages on. The biggest and best weapons and innovations are created at the time of need. I am looking forward to seeing the changes from both engines, and I am sure you are too.
Google TV - this should be an interesting turn for the search giant. Many have attempted this platform, and many have failed. But none so far have been as forward-thinking and as user friendly as Google. So, what do we know so far?
Google TV is basically an operating system that is plugged into or built into a normal TV. You can then search the internet for what you want to watch, and Google TV displays it, and plays it for you. What are the advantages of this? Well… Who wants to sit around a 15inch LCD monitor when you have a 42inch with surround sound and a comfy lounge chair? I know what I would do.
The newest press release states that Google TV be built into new Sony TVs. As a senior Google executive stated, Google TV is open standard and other TV manufacturers are already at work developing new Google TV based products.
It is thought that the other manufacturers might include LG, Panasonic and Samsung. What is so good about this? Sony will not dominate the market, and charge what they want. This means that you could see a price war, and cheap Google TV coming to Australia in 2011.
Sony will be releasing the first Google TV units in the USA by the end of 2010, but due to geographical restraints and country regulations the first release to an international market will be pushed back till 2011, or perhaps later.
But with most boundary-pushing products, the first release is generally buggy, and at times it is advantageous to wait for the technology to catch up with the idea.
This is a very exciting time as the Internet and domestic products become more and more integrated. As far as the future holds, the sky is the limit.
The whisper going around the Tech Giant playground at the moment is that Bing might potentially take over from Google as the default search provider in the Safari browser in the new iPhone operating system. This rumour has been floating around for while but as the release of the new iPhone OS draws nearer then it might be a good time to look at the implications for SEO and its benefactors.
Currently, Google is estimated to spend around $100 million per year for the privilege. It’s anyone’s guess as to the price Microsoft would pay for the opportunity. Here we see two competing search entities go head to head for a very lucrative deal that would certainly pay massive dividends to the victor. But what does it mean for the little guy? If every iPhone user in the world was converted to using Bing then how much impact would that have on the importance of ranking in Bing’s mobile search? A massive one I’d say. If Bing pulls this deal off then we will be facing a large change in the market share Bing have currently in mobile search.
At this stage I don’t believe there is a need to reassess your online marketing strategy. The rumours are just that, rumours; however it does pay to be aware. Microsoft is denying everything. Google might not be interested in staying in bed with Apple considering they are bigger competitors in the mobile arena now with Google Android. Either way, keep your ears out as any battle between giants can get interesting. Even more interesting is the fact that such an alliance between Microsoft and Apple could prove to be a decisive strike against Google.
Many of us use Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin, and many of us also look for job opportunities online. Sites like Mycareer and Seek have a huge database of client’s and would be thought of by myself and many others as the number 1 place to look for a new job.
What the large majority of the online population don’t do, is left field of the norm, but quite possibly could become more and more effective and used. This idea isn’t creating a website, or a twitter post for potential employers to see. It’s creating an Adwords campaign targeting the employers directors.
Alec Brownstein, a copywriter, has created a brilliant way to capitalise on the ego of creative directors. Alec created 5 Ad word campaigns for 5 potential employers.
His ad read:
“Hey, [creative director's name]: Goooogling [sic] yourself is a lot of fun. Hiring me is fun, too”
Did it work?
You bet it did. Alec received interviews for 4 of the 5 targeted companies, and received 2 job offers, and is now working for Y&R New York.
So the next time you are looking for a job, think outside the box, it might just work!!
Google released a major update to its homepage earlier this month, introducing an array of features aimed at enhancing search efficiency while maintaining the simplicity and usability that its vast global user base associates with the Google experience.
Now when someone enters a query on Google, the left-hand side of the results page contains a panel of links such as News, Maps, Books, Images and Blogs to further filter the main results to the search intent of that user.
To compensate for the clutter factor, Google has reduced the visual weight of its own logo, lightening the colours and removing the embossed shadow effect on the letters.
A move like this is always bound up with risk. One the one hand, Google could be commended for recognising that, even though they are currently the best at what they do, there is always room for improvement. On the other, why try to fix something that clearly isn’t broken?
Initial reactions have been mixed. Within the E-Web office, some enjoy the new additions as forward-thinking and solutions-oriented, while others cannot think of “old Google” without a pang of nostalgia.
Personally I have found the absence of the option to click ‘Pages from Australia’ on the homepage to be a hindrance. Having to wait for the results page to load before being able to refine my search to Australian sites is not in keeping with the efficiency I’ve come to expect from Google.
At E-Web we are curious about further feedback on Google’s attempt to strike a workable balance between its trademark innovation and the comfortable familiarity that users have with its layout. Does the new design work for you, or was Google better how it was before?
Watch out Amazon and Apple, Google has announced they will be launching an online e-bookstore in June/July, ‘Edition’, and plan to have 500,000 titles to launch.
In 2006 Google started to invite publishers to the idea, however until now with the current advances in web browser technology has this plan ever been feasible.
How will it work for users?
Any internet connected device that has a web browser like the IPad, Smartphone or personal computer,will be able to have access to the e-books. Unlike Amazon’s Kindle e-book reader, users will not be tied to using a certain application to view their purchases. Once the book has been purchased, users will then be able to also view their book offline.
How will it work for publishers?
Google says this avenue will help publisher’s derive more revenue from their works online, as well as being able to sell from their direct website. Publishers will receive 63% of the gross sales, with Google keeping the remaining 37%. Online retailers, such as Independent bookstore will also be able to take part by paying Google a fee, with 45% going to the publisher.
What is still currently unknown is Google’s pricing scheme as well as if Australian web users will be able to purchase these books.
Newly added and improved left-hand navigation for Google search has been released and according to Marissa Mayer, Google’s VP of Search Products and User Experience,
Quote:
“We’ve added contextually relevant, left-hand navigation to the page. This new side panel highlights the most relevant search tools and refinements for your query. Over the past three years, we’ve launched Universal Search, the Search Options panel and Google Squared, and it’s those three technologies that power the left-hand panel.”
These things in more detail:
1. Universal Search – is an option that scours all search results (including images, videos and maps) and integrates them into the main results. For example, if you just wanted to see the newest blog post about a keyword, you can switch it to a particular result.
2. Search options panel - was a tool introduced last year but allows you to grab the latest result for any result you are searching for. This tool can be very useful for market research or product research, especially if there is a new product launch, you can find out who else is blogging about it and if there isn’t anyone else blogging about it, your post may be the first in the search results (providing that your page is properly optimised as well).
3. Google squared – is a Google lab tool that helps you find and compare related terms or concepts. Again this is a good tool for market research as it may provide a list of related terms that are horizontally and vertically relevant.
Check out the video below for a full explanation of the changes.
The roll out begins today throughout the US and then globally across 37 languages.
E-Web CEO Gary Ng and Head of Sales Jeff Yang were invited to attend The Internet Show, held 13th-14th of April in Melbourne.
This is the first time the globally popular expo, dedicated to optimising online business, has been held in Melbourne. Prior locations have included Singapore, New York, Abu Dhabi, Johannesburg, Chicago and Sydney.
The focus of the expo was firmly on educating all businesses, regardless of size, on the best and most cost-effective techniques for growing their online presence. 40 informational seminars were held over the two day event, on topics such as social media marketing, digital advertising, site structuring, e-commerce systems, content management, and web hosting.
The event was hosted by Australian success story Melbourne IT, and sponsored by Google, which delivered fantastic presentations on the benefits of using AdWords to generate online business and branding in Australia and worldwide.
Gary and Jeff had a great time taking in all the latest industry developments, and came back excited and eager to apply what they learned to E-Web’s ongoing mission to be the leader in providing businesses in Australia with the best strategies for online success.
Apart from further developing his network with leading industry professionals, Gary made his mark on the event by destroying the competition in Saturday’s Nintendo Wii balloon darts contest.
Many attendees tried their hand at the darts game – including Jeff, who came second – but it was E-Web’s own CEO who scored the maximum number of points and took the vaulted $20 prize. Proving that he is generous as well as accurate, Gary donated his hard-won prize money to buy runner-up Jeff breakfast the following day!
Sound familiar? These days, it seems that at least one out of every five people you know is intermittently repeating a variation of that phrase.
Then comes the invariable followup: “But I don’t know which one I should get.”
Indeed. Considering that a smartphone – succinctly defined by Wikipedia as “a miniature computer with phone capability” – is what most of us want these days, the opportunity for indecision increases exponentially.
Making a commitment to a phone in today’s consumer climate is a big deal, in terms of both money and time. For a start, expect a respectable modern unit to set you back at least $500, and up to and beyond $1500. The smartphone itself can come cheaper or even free, but only if you’re willing to sign yourself into a one or two-year contract.
Another significant deterrent to upgrading phones is the average Australian consumer’s lack of comprehension about what each smartphone brand and model actually provides in terms of features, usability and service.
This is why people can talk about how they need to get a new phone, for months or even years at a time, before actually taking the plunge. Consumers are traditionally wary of selecting one product because it means they lose the features and benefits of all the others. Especially if they’re unclear about what exactly those features and benefits are.
And there are so many variables to consider when it comes to choosing a smartphone, it’s unsurprising that a lot of people prefer to put the decision off rather than risk making the wrong one.
With this in mind, we at E-Web have undertaken to publish a series of posts designed to demystify the most popular smartphones currently available. Rest assured, you will not need to be technically minded to understand them, or even to have held a smartphone before.
Quick Overview of the Major Players
The graph below, by research company Canalys, displays North American consumer statistics for smartphones. We refer to these statistics because they are more accessible and frequently updated than those for Australia, as well as providing a generally accurate indication of what trends the Australian mobile market will take.
Significantly, the table divides the smartphone market by the “OS vendor”, not by the vendor of the smartphone hardware itself. OS is short for operating system, which is used as an interface between a hardware device and the software that runs on it. A good example Microsoft Windows, which manages software programs on computers made by hardware companies such as Toshiba and Dell.
As the Canalys graph above shows, the three dominant smartphone operating systems on the market are:
1. The BlackBerry series of smartphones, produced by Canadian company Research In Motion (RIM). BlackBerries can only use the RIM operating system, called the BlackBerry OS.
2. The iPhone phones, which are made by Apple. Like RIM, Apple equips its iPhones with their own exclusive operating system, called the iPhone OS.
3. The Android series. Unlike the iPhone and BlackBerry, the name Android refers to the smartphone’s OS, not its hardware manufacturer. Various companies, including HTC, Samsung and Motorola, produce smartphones which are designed specifically to use the Android OS, which was developed by search engine giant Google. They are known collectively as Android phones.
There are other contenders of course, but these are the three favourites we will be focusing on. Be sure to check back for part two of the smartphone series, where we put the spotlight on the latest and greatest incarnations of what was the first smartphone brand to gain widespread popularity – the RIM BlackBerry.
Google has officially annouced that website owners can now access more detailed data in Webmaster Tools. Previously it only reported on average positions which your website appeared in search results. Now Google has added information on the number of impressions and also clickthrough rates. Clickthrough rates stand for the number of times that web users click through to your website from a search result query. The best thing about this feature is that it also provides you with the actual URLs that displayed for that associated keyword.
What could this mean for your business?
The most obvious implications of this are that you can use this new tool to:
1. You can clearly see and track where you are ranking for particular terms. If it’s below average for a position, then you know you have a problem.
2. You can monitor the best landing pages for your SEO and focus on improving the click through rate by providing a more relevant description. This can be combined with the data in Google Analytics, so that improvements can be made to the page and in turn improve conversions.
3. Compare clickthrough rates for natural terms compared to different paid search / Adwords terms to help determine the relative effectiveness of copy and terms.
4. Based on clickthrough rates, seasonal demands and trends for products/services can be monitored and anticipated. This is effective for brand/navigational searches where you are ranked at the top of the search results.
5. Marketing campaign effectiveness can be measured – monitoring variation occurances through time.
6. We can more effectively review overall SEO effectiveness from the headlines and descriptions of impressions (amount of users seeing your listing) against clickthrough rates – the amount of people actually clicking into your website.
What other insights would you like to see from this data?
