What the heck is Universal Search Anyway?

On May 16th, Google announced the release of Universal Search. As the story goes, back in 2001 - CEO Eric Schmidt asked for a brainstorm of a few "splashy" ideas in search. Marrissa Mayer created a few mock ups - one of which was the prototype for Universal Search. ' It was a sample search results page for Britney Spears that, in addition to web results, also had news, images, and groups results right on the same page. Now that concept has morphed into a pretty dynamic SERP with an interesting value proposition for users. A few examples from Google include -these query terms : steve jobs , darth vader , nosferatu .

While Universal Search is interesting, it's certainly not a new concept. According to Dan Dodge, Alta vista introduced a similar concept over Ten years ago (1997) - integrating multi-media search results as part of regular text search results. Very similar to what Google is today calling Universal Search. At the time, AltaVista returned regular Algo results along with photos, videos, audio, and news. After a brief trial period the idea was scrapped because it didn't quite catch on with users.

At the time, users seemed to prefer Algo Results (10 Blue Links), and may have felt that the other features were "noise" or unnecessary distractions. When presented with all these results they consistently clicked on the text results and ignored the photos, videos, audio. They sometimes clicked on the News results. The users wanted deeper, faster, more relevant text results.

I'm going to hypothesize that - users preferred to keep the User Experience for Portals and Search Engines different. One thing Universal Search definitely does - is present a portal like look and feel. Also, performance was definitely an issue back in the 90's - and Universal Search would have severely impacted page load times.

Microsoft and Yahoo already offer a similar value proposition. Microsoft has Imagine Live Search which is a new experimental search engine from Windows Live. Ask has Ask X, and Yahoo has it's Alpha offering. All of these SERPs offer a mixture of results all on the same page.

Will "Universal Search" become popular with users? How will Search Engines make money with this SERP - I don't see any prominent sponsored links? What will be the criteria for ranking vertical search features vs. algo weblinks on SERPs.

We'll just have to wait and see...............

Jobs and Gates Go 1:1

Bill Gates and Steve Jobs talk about the tech world, what the future holds—and their rivalry. Nobody knew quite what to expect when, Gates and Jobs hooked up to do a joint interview at the recent All Things Digital Conference. What transpired makes for pleasant reading - especially for anyone who has followed the path's of these two great pioneers.

One thing that really intrigued me is the flow of their conversation - you could almost imagine Gates finishing off Steve Jobs sentences - and vice-versa. Truth be told, they probably have more in common than most of their peers and colleagues. Great stuff - worth reading.


Cheers......

Spotlight China: Move Over Google - Here Comes Baidu

Already - China has over 100 million Internet Users and this is just the begginning. There's no question that Chinese Internet users will soon be the largest block of online users world wide. Over 87% of the Chinese Internet audience uses search. And given Internet search’s dominance of monetization and audience rankings globally, the competition for the top spot in the Chinese search market is pretty intense.

Baidu, Google, Yahoo, Sohu and Sina are battling each other to be the leading provider of search in China. Currently the two largest search players, Baidu and Google, account for almost 90% of the searches (source: CNNIC Search Survey, 2006).

More than 3 out of every 4 Internet searchers in China use multiple search engines Therein lies one of the more interesting dynamics of this market: Baidu and Google clearly lead the field in all aspects of search, through the variety of searches they offer and the quality of their results. Sohu features more prominently in MP3 and video search, compared to its lagging ranking in web search. Yahoo, on the other hand, has been struggling with its local partnering strategy - as it failed to take advantage of large acquisitions locally, including 3721 and the much publicized Ali Baba. Indeed Yahoo's brand seems weaker in China compared to Google’s and other local players.

Baidu is currently enjoying virtually double the market share in all types of search over Google. A 2006 Study by CNNIC cites other reasons for Baidu attracting a large user base, including Baidu’s well-liked Bulletin Boards and its responsiveness. Baidu also benefits from its wildly popular MP3 search, which takes users directly to downloadable music. This could be a major headache for Baidu in the future if China decides to tighten its enforcement of IP laws, with respect to illegal music.

Sohu, Sina and Yahoo all draw significant numbers of users to their search sites through their popular free email offerings, but that’s still not enough to help them break into the upper echelon of search - currently occupied by Baidu and Google. In terms of brand awareness, Baidu once again stands out with 87% - while Google and Yahoo trail with 64% and 39% respectively (source: CNNIC Search Survey, 2006).

Furthermore, more than 50% of Baidu’s users are under 23 years old. Since 80% of people under 24 years old use the Internet in China, compared to a much lower ratio for older age groups, Baidu’s momentum is bound to continue. Maybe it’s for this reason, and lack of further explosive growth opportunity at home, that Baidu decided to launch its first international search in Japan last week.

While Google’s perception has improved considerably among Internet users in China, its refusal to offer its Gmail and Blogger services locally (due to privacy concerns) will probably slow its efforts to boost its user base. However Google continues to invest in the Chinese Internet market, with a minority stake in P2P player Xunlei - which is aimed at the local online video market. This move might have other benefits for Google, as Xunlei doesn’t support Baidu downloads for instance.

Among all the players, the one to watch is Tencent. Given its dominance in IM and success in entering new markets such as casual games, mobile chat and virtual goods - it has the value proposition to make a decent entry into the Chinese search market. The Chinese search market is bound to hold a few surprises in the next year or two, as most Chinese Internet users claim that factors such as duplication of results, freshness and quality of the way results are ranked, could use further improvement.

Speaking of improvement, Google apparently needs to pay more attention to the quality of its image search, as it returns virtually no images for the Chinese name of former president Deng Xiaoping. Baidu, on the other hand, could be leveraging its new Japanese office to offer a better service to its users searching for adult terms like “sex”. Baidu apparently returns only 3 results for “sex” in its Chinese site, whereas its new Japanese site returns 107,000 images for the same search term.

The Search Landscape in China is certainly worth watching..........

Can Anything Slow The Google Juggernaut?

The term juggernaut is used to describe any literal or metaphorical force regarded as unstoppable that will crush all in its path. Even more descriptive: any large, overpowering, destructive force or object, as war, a giant battleship, or a powerful football team.

Seems to me that a lot of people are going to great pains to define Google and explain their Mission/Vision. Growing up - I would always get into the odd argument with my elder sister. The defining moment of the conflict would always come when she say "I know you better than you know yourself". To which I would often reply - how can you possibly know me when i'm still trying to figure things out for myself?

Don't bother trying to define Google's Mission and Vision - don't even try to decipher their reasons for doing anything. How can you - when Google itself is still trying to figure things out? Heck - even the "do no evil" mantra has evolved quite a bit since we first heard it.......

That said, i'll define Google as the closest thing we have to a Juggernaut - in Online Space. A starting point for 400 million Internet users and the No. 1 gateway to the Net's vast commercial potential. With more data on what people are searching for, Google can serve up the most targeted and relevant advertisements alongside the results, drawing more clicks, more cash, more users—you get the idea. Consumers love Google's simplicity and results. At last count – the Search Engine which is clearly re-defining the advertising world, controls 56% of Global Internet Searches – and counting. No wonder eager advertisers shoveled some $10.6 billion into Google's coffers last year, up an astonishing 73% from 2005. If you can believe it, Google's $144 billion market value tops that of Time Warner , Viacom, CBS, ad agency giant Publicis Groupe and the New York Times Co. Combined.

Think about all that information on people’s buying habits – that alone could be worth Billions some day. Certainly – not everything Google does is successful. The whole Adwords for radio, print, and television concept - is yet to get off the ground.

As the Juggernaut continues to destroy business models – in advertising, publishing and just about everywhere else, there’s a growing fear that Google may be becoming too powerful. Recently, NBC Universal and News Corp announced big plans for a rival to Gootube, and I think we all know what that means – since UGC is clearly not the biggest driver of YouTube’s popularity.Viacom is took things a step further by suing Google for a headline-grabbing $1 billion, charging YouTube with willfully infringing on copyrights by allowing users to upload clips of The Colbert Report, South Park, and other TV shows. A couple of weeks earlier, Copiepress, a group representing Belgian and German newspapers, won a copyright case that could sharply limit Google's usefulness if it sets a precedent.Even some of Google's advertising customers complain that the company sometimes appears cavalier about their concerns.

That's partly because of the very technology on which it's built. Its search-ad business runs on a pointedly opaque set of complex mathematical formulas that give high placement to ads based not simply on which marketers pay the most but on how many people click on them and other factors. That prods advertisers to create better ads and more relevant Web pages to which the ads send them. But such a system leaves everyone to guess which ads work best and how much to pay for top placement, and the ranking can change without warning. I think that’s one of the key reasons why online advertisers worldwide are banging their heads against their monitors at this very moment.

Perhaps it's time to start changing Google - the verb to Google the noun

The Noun - Juggernaut: "a massive inexorable force that seems to crush everything in its way".

Welcome To "The Largest Ad-Platform On Earth"

So - the rumours were true after all. NBC Universal and News Corp. have joined forces to create a venture focused on distributing premium online video content over a network of sites estimated to reach 96% of all U.S. Internet users. How much did Google pay for Youtube again?

The goal is to create a one-stop source for consumers and advertisers seeking premium video content. Both full-length TV shows, movies and clips will be offered. In addition, consumers will be invited to manipulate the premium content to create mashups and parodies. Non-program-related user-generated content will also be accepted, but is not the focus of the enterprise said Jeff Zucker, president and CEO of NBCU.

The smartest thing about this is that they'll sell the ads and they can determine what cut to give to the partners," said David Hallerman, senior analyst with eMarketer. He said that how well they can break out of the pre-roll video model may determine the ventures ultimate success.

eMarketer predicts spending on video advertising will grow from $775 million this year to $2 billion by 2009, and $2.9 billion by 2010. And while video ad spending growth peaked this year at 89%, according to eMarketer, growth will remain above 50% through 2009, falling to 45% by 2010.

It's note worthy that - with this move, News Corp. and NBC are better positioned than YouTube to forge deals because of their existing relationships with advertisers and general interest portals alike. Whatever the case may be - the video space just got a lot more interesting...........

"Citizen Marketers" -

Jackie Huba started her presentation by commenting on MTV's atlas initiative and Time Magazine naming "You" as the Person of the year. Clearly - we have moved into an era where User Generated Content is clearly shaping perceptions about Organizations, Products, Services and notably - well known Brands. This trend has been largely facilitated by the "Democratization of Media" - cheap broadband, access to tools on your PC's- make it possible for anyone to generate/create content.

So, if I'm a brand manager for a large Global Brand UGC and Citizen Marketers in general, will certainly have an impact on how the general public views my brand. As an aspiring World Changer and Citizen Marketer - I now have a voice, vote and vocation. One great example which Jackie mentioned is Barack Obama's social network site. Apparently it has spurned plenty of UGC and Groups Clearly, "Word of Mouth" has never been more influential than it is today.

I learnt a little about how Jackie and Ben about how they define and categorize Citizen Marketers - as Firecrackers, Filters, Fanatics and Facilitators. It appears that the categorization is based on the relative intent of each user - sounds pretty subjective to me. Truth of the matter is that every Citizen Marketer can belong to any of category. Any one of us can be the provider of Negative UGC - Comcast Repairman , purpose driven UGC - such as the Surge Site. My favourite examples of Citizen Marketers are the "Netflix Expert" and the independent Mini Marketer. One key question which I often ask myself is - WHY? Why are these people doing all this stuff? What's going on with them? Jackie contends that Citizen's see UGC as a form of Productive Leisure - people are doing something they love - a hobby or casual pass time. Well, it probably starts out that way.

Okay - so here are some of my key takeaways from the session........

Any democratized forum often operates by the 1% rule. Less than 1% of the visitors actually generate and populate the content - in spite of the fact that everyone can create content and just about any one can benefit from good content. Organizations seem to favor contests as a means of interacting with Citizen Marketers. One way is through Contests. such as the Chevy Tahoe debacle or the Converse "Chuck Daly" campaign. Another way is through the "Co-Creation" concept. Recently Shakira's record lable came up with an interesting idea to promote her new single "Hips don't lie" by asking fans to send in their own video of the song. Co-creation encourages citizen participation, which helps create a viral marketing campaigns.

Learning About Citizen Marketers

This morning I am attending a Marketing session - hosted by Ben McConnell and Jackie Huba. I expect thier presentation to revolve around their recently published book - titled "Creating Word of Mouth via Influencers and Customer Evangelists". Having read a few of their blog posts, I am already intrigued about this trend. how do I become a bonafide "Customer Evangelist"?

Thinking For A Change

One of my "New Year Resolutions" was to start doing more reading. I've always aspired to motivate and encourage others - and I'm also passionate about learning. So - I bought a whole wack of books - and now I'm gradually going through them.

Thinking For A Change - By Robert Maxwell is my first book of the year. So far it's proven to be quite inspirational. I'll probably start using the WorldChanger blog as a medium for publishing my "book reviews". I'm hopeful that I can extract key learnings from each book - which may be useful to some of you World Changers out there.

Peace