From a search marketer’s perspective this is great news. Yahoo! has been a lame duck for a few years now and Microsoft can potentially pump some air back into an otherwise lifeless site. Microsoft has typically delivered such small numbers that measuring performance rarely went beyond educated guesses due to lack of statistical relevance. The big question is, will this merger have what it takes to defeat Goliath? With initial numbers from Bing not as great as expected, the immediate boost will increase their market share significantly however, the problem that lies ahead is conversion. How can this partnership convert the other ~70% of people who religiously use Google to give Yahoo! or Bing another try and, more importantly, to make these users stick. Personally I have not used Bing since the week it launched, but that is only a focus group of 1. I stopped, not because I didn’t like it, but because it is very difficult to change old habits. Microsoft does have experience creatively incorporating search into their homepage, msn.com, and now they have another portal to try and do the same, however that will require these two to learn how to play in the same sandbox.

It seems like just yesterday that Microsoft was coming out from under Yahoo!’s wing and launching their own search platform. My how the tides have turned.

MSN should know better than anyone that it is extremely difficult to change the searching behaviors of Americans. In a country where cell phone internet usage is just beginning to catch on, Bing has a difficult task of proving that they provide consumers with better answers than Google, the engine that defined search. It’s going to take more than just a flashy interface to prove this, it’s going to take better content.

Birds Eye vs Google’s Street Map: Edge Birds Eye.

This was a difficult one, however the edge goes to Birds Eye because I have yet to find a location not available, while Google’s Street Map has many gaps, limiting us to just the archaic satellite view. Everyday more and more locations are being added by Google, so unless Bing has something up its sleeve they may quickly lose their edge.

Google Local vs Bing Local: Edge Google.

Both engines allow me to find a thai restaurant near my office, however Bing opens a new window when I click. Because of this annoyance Google wins. If it was just a new tab, this battle would have been closer. Bing’s partnership with Yelp to provide a detailed review does add great value, however the overall navigation is a bit clunky. If they add a partnership with OpenTable to book a reservation I may be convinced to change my mind.

Google vs Bing: Edge Google

The real battle lies in the content. Bouncing around both Bing and Google, performing various searches across categories ranging from health to travel, Google just has better results. Bing has a clear partnership with MayoClinic, as they are the first result on every health search performed. This seems a bit forced. Not saying that Mayo is not a great site and it does offer great content, but it blurs the line between paid and natural, which is a battle that can give consumers a bad taste. As for the other results it was close. The “Related Searches” on Bing has proven to be a great feature and has helped reduce the bounce rates of websites, according to Coremetrics. Getting searchers closer to the content they want makes for a satisfying user experience, something Google learned before MSN even handled their own search results.

The American public is picky and smarter now, ironically, thanks to Google. Simply spending more money on advertising is no longer enough to convince consumers, as it was before Google. I am pulling for Bing and hope that they can make a run at Google and really hope that June 4th was not their moment in the sun. This battle is far from over, and both will undoubtedly continue to improve and refine their results, however first impressions mean a lot and I just hope that users haven’t already given up on Bing.