Knowledge is the Foundation To Success  

Most businesses begin advertising online with Google AdWords because it provides a straightforward way to use  pay-per-click (PPC) advertising to attract more potential customers to their website. According to a new report by ZenithOptimedia, 44% of global online advertisers choose to advertise on Google as opposed to only 4% on MSN and  8.3% on Yahoo!  However, I have a feeling that this dynamic might be changing in the not-so-distant future.

On December 4, 2011, Microsoft hit the tech community with an exciting announcement that Xbox Live will now support voice searches on the MSN/Yahoo search engine www.Bing.com.  Consumers who own an Xbox 360 have recently seen a software update for their gaming console.  Additionally, those who also enjoy the Microsoft Kinect accessory will now be able to take advantage of the Kinect voice recognition capabilities to perform spoken searches on Bing through their Xbox 360 console.  According to Microsoft, this new feature is the next step in the evolution of television and entertainment.  They are hoping to be the frontrunners of this new era of entertainment by bringing games, movies, television shows, music, sports and the internet together in one place.

So what does this mean for the 87.7% of global online advertisers who are NOT advertising on Bing?  It means that they might want to think about allocating some of their PPC budget to Bing.  Migrating Google AdWords accounts to the MSN/Yahoo! platform can be a tricky task because the platforms tend to not play nicely together.  There are many nuances that make straight Google to Bing migration difficult for people who don’t do it regularly.  So, if this is something you are interested in doing with your AdWords campaigns, please consult a professional before you attempt it yourself.

It will be interesting to see how this Bing voice search functionality will evolve.  I am excited to see whether Bing will allow advertisers to build voice search PPC campaigns or whether voice search data can be analyzed separate for traditional type and click data.  There are so many possibilities and so much potential for this new functionality.  I can’t wait to see what the future brings.  Only time will tell – so stay tuned!

Increasing speculation suggests that Microsoft will overhaul its search engine strategy this week and unveil “Bing” as an all new search engine. Various sources confirm that Microsoft already registered several variations of this URL in other countries, including “bing.com.au”, “bing.co.nz” and “bing.co.uk.” Furthermore, in March, Microsoft trademarked the term Bing, which is near the time many also think they purchased the Bing.com domain, but that purchase has not yet been confirmed.

Katherine Egbert, an analyst at Jefferies & Company, says that Microsoft is planning an advertising blitz to publicize its search efforts, stating, ”Microsoft is set to spend $80 million to $100 million to advertise ‘Bing’… The budget for the ad campaign suggests that Microsoft plans to go head-to-head with the Google brand.” They need to do something if they actually intend to compete with Google, which commands about 70% of all search queries, while Microsoft currently serves less than 9% of searches, a number that has been shrinking. However, advertising alone cannot ensure success, as learned by those behind Cuil, the last new search engine to receive significant media and advertising exposure. Unfortunately for everyone involved, users decided it was not so cuil after all.

Is Yahoo on Microsoft’s Agenda? 

Several sources indicate that just last week Microsoft registered a limited liability company (LLC) in Delaware, a move that often precedes acquisitions or joint ventures. Microsoft also raised $3.75 billion in its first-ever debt offering this month. Coincidence? “The timing of the registration and recent debt raise indicate to us that it might be more likely Microsoft uses the LLC to force a partnership or to boost the amount of traffic flowing through its search engine,” wrote Katherine Egbert in a note released Tuesday.

The newly registered LLC could be the precursor to a Yahoo! deal. Just yesterday, when questioned about a possible Microsoft alliance, Yahoo CEO Carol Bartz confirmed ongoing Microsoft-Yahoo talks and stated, “if there’s boatloads of money, and there’s the right technology, and the information we would have to have, then yeah… it’s that simple.” Of course, there is also speculation that Microsoft is interested in various other potential acquisitions as well.

So what does Bing promise to bring? Well, that remains to be seen. In the meantime, we’ll see if Microsoft can first push Bing.com’s traffic past that received by bingo.com or even bingcrosby.com, each currently receiving considerably more traffic than Microsoft’s new proposed venture (view stats). To date, Microsoft’s search platforms failed to achieve wide public appeal, with Google basically controlling the market. Microsoft is desperately trying to challenge Google’s dominance. Is Bing the answer? And will Yahoo somehow be part of it? Internet history and the search marketing landscape continues to evolve and develop before our very eyes.

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Yahoo chose its new CEO, Silicon Valley veteran Carol Bartz (view Carol’s resume at Autodesk.com). Yahoo lured Bartz, 60, from Autodesk Inc., which specializes in making design software for architects and engineers. Bartz was CEO from 1992 through 2006, when she became executive chairman. Autodesk is just about half the size of Yahoo, with approximately 7,000 employees worldwide.

Bartz is also on the board of directors for Cisco Systems Inc. with Jerry Yang and is also a member of the Intel Corp. board with Yahoo President Susan Decker, who also interviewed for the CEO position. In fact, Yahoo announced that Decker will resign after a transitional period. Wow, guess she’s angry.

Chairman Roy Bostock said Bartz “is the exact combination of seasoned technology executive and savvy leader that the board was looking for, and we are thrilled to have attracted such a world-class talent to Yahoo. She is admired in the Valley as well as on Wall Street for her deep management expertise, strong customer orientation, excellent people skills, and firm understanding of the challenges facing our industry.”

Bostock added that the board “thanks Sue (Decker) for her service as President, the important contributions she has made to Yahoo’s development in a variety of roles over the past 8 1/2 years, and her willingness to work with Carol Bartz to ensure a smooth transition. We respect her decision to move on to other challenges and wish her only the best.”

Bartz’s appointment already sparked renewed speculation of negotiations with Microsoft, who continues to proclaim they are very interested in Yahoo’s search division. Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, who tried and failed to buy Yahoo last year, publicly said in the past few weeks that a search deal with Yahoo should be made when there is a management transition at both companies. Microsoft late last year hired a former Yahoo search executive to lead its Internet business.

Microsoft is feverishly working to prevent Google from getting 100% of all online search queries. If Google continues to gain market share as they have in the past, it won’t be much longer until they are there! Recent data from HitWise indicates that Google has once again increased their market share in the month of December.

At this point, one must wonder if Microsoft or Yahoo has a shot at competing with Google, together or on their own. Of course, at one point, AOL basically controlled the entire online population, so things certainly do change, and fast.

Investors did not react much to this news yesterday, but many discouraged Yahoo investors have likely already thrown in the towel at this point. Yahoo announces earnings on January 27th, so we’ll see if they have anything to say about Microsoft by then. It will also be interesting to see how PPC advertising is weathering the economic storm.

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