What search engines are doing to capture your attention; and how it benefits you
What activity do you engage in the most online? For many the answer is along the lines of “I use search engines to find info on topics that interest me”. Since Google is the most trafficked web entity today, it’s easy to see how search is a big part of Internet users’ experiences.
As of late, Microsoft’s Bing has been amping up the competition with Google, especially after Bing and Yahoo have officially joined forces. This shift in market share, albeit only slight, has brought Bing’s percentage of US usage to 13.9% compared to Yahoo’s 13.1%.
So what does Google do with Bing gaining ground? Earlier this month Google unveiled Google Instant, a new feature that starts the search process even before a user finished typing his or her search query.
By doing so, Google is suggesting terms the users may be interested in, and basically making relevant predictions as to what a user is looking for within their search query.
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Does Google Instant really make a difference?
After first experiencing Google Instant, I wasn’t sure what my thoughts were. However, according to an article from Computerworld, “…testing has shown that Google instant saves the average searcher 2 to 5 seconds per search”. Efficiency is key while working in any environment and Google is striving to make search engine users’ life a bit simpler.
Furthermore, I’m not the only one who feels this way. In a recent article on a Mashable Poll, 50.84% of Mashable’s users prefer Google Instant over regular Google.
So what’s next for Google? Your guess may be as good as mine. However, Google has been acquiring social networking weapons that they may end up using with the goal of taking on social media giants like Facebook of Twitter.
The article on Google’s social networking weapons from CNN Money is worth a read. What do you think Google will come out with next? What are your thoughts on the partnership between Yahoo and Bing? I’d love to hear your answers.
