It’s a union that seems to be made in Cyber Heaven: Microsoft, Twitter, and Facebook have joined together in hopes that Microsoft can give Google a run for their money with their Bing search engine.
Bing has been gaining steam in recent times. Now, users can “like,” comment, and choose for their search engine activities to be posted on Facebook and Twitter. In other words, users are able to show their friends more of what they are doing on the Internet and this gives the social networks more information about what each of their users like so that they can better target advertising. It’s a win/win for all involved.
Facebook does need such a winning situation since General Motors pulled as advertisers on the site. This amounted to a $10 million loss and a lot of questions as to whether or not the social networking giant is, in fact, the best place to for advertising to a user base that is not in a “spending money” mindset.
This could change for Facebook thanks to the new Bing Interface.
The new interface also allows Bing to utilize information gathered from social network use to alter the way search results are delivered. The integrated sidebar focuses on a person’s search queries, on the people within the social circles of the user, and what each user things of particular websites.
For instance, a user performs a search for your law firm. The “social sidebar” will show you a list of people you know or may know, combined with your typical search results. What this does is allow you to interact with individuals who have liked your Facebook page or who you have interacted with in some way. It also allows the user to ask their friends questions about the topic they are searching.
What does all of this mean for Google?
Google does have their Google+ social network. They standalone and this could play against them. Facebook has hundreds of millions of users worldwide, while Google has not opened Google+ so widely. This means that Microsoft’s new partnerships could put Google at a disadvantage. They do not work with Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and the other popular social networking websites on the Internet.
What Microsoft’s move could do is benefit the user experience and it could very well give Google a run for it, according to some analysts. Bing has been the underdog since it was first shown to the public in 2009. Being allows on the same team as the social networking giants could be exactly what Microsoft needs to show Bing to the world.
So what does this alliance mean to you?
First, we all know that Google is going to come back with a counterattack. It is going to be interesting to see what they do and how they do it. It is also going to be interesting to see if Facebook can break through the mobile advertising barrier. Approximately half of its users use its mobile application to access the site, but their advertising is limited on the mobile app. How are they going to address this? It’s just a matter of time before they do.
While all of these developments are taking place, it is important that you monitor them so that you can determine your best move when it comes to advertising your law site. The positive search experience of the new Microsoft and social networking alliance could ultimately increase your exposure and give users a more positive experience when interacting with you in the online world.
