Bing vs. Google

Bing, Microsoft’s new search engine debuted June 1st with lots of fanfare. I decided to give it a try as I’ve been pretty pleased with the improvements Microsoft has been making, especially with their Small Business and Live products. I gave the old ‘Live’ search a try many times and was usually disappointed. I would type in the same search terms in the Live box and then in the Google search box and Google gave me what I was looking for. Not so with Live.

So how’s Bing done in taking away marketshare the past 3 weeks? According to an article by Ziff Davis’ Nicholas Kolakowski, Microsoft has overtaken Yahoo as the number 2 search engine and marketshare points have increased by 3 to 16.7% in the last week. People are checking it out. I’ll be watching the numbers with interest.

Aesthetically, the Bing home page is much prettier than Google’s starkness. Each day presents with a new and impressive photo, but that’s not one of the metrics we’ll look at. Let’s start with the best feature of Bing (IMHO):

Preview and Search

With Bing, type your search terms in the box and when the results are returned, hover your mouse over one of the results. Over to the right, you’ll see a vertical line with a small orange dot in the middle. Roll your mouse over to it and a preview of the site will appear without you having to leave the search page. I like this feature as it will quickly eliminate what you don’t want. Nice time and effort saver.

Bing has an added feature to present upon performing a search that Google doesn’t have. Type in your search term and in addition to the results cascading down the page, Bing also presents a separate list over to the left side of the screen. This list presents you with related searches that may be of interest. I like that. The graphic also shows that Bing shows you recent search history.

Image Search

Bing surpasses Google in this area. Click on ‘Image’ to be taken to an image search and type in your term and you’ll see rows of images without the clutter. By this I mean only images are displayed on the page – no text identifiers on each picture – much less distracting. Just hover your mouse over any image and that information will appear for you. But wait, there’s more!

Along the left, you can choose to filter your results by size, layout, color, style and people. Click the ‘+’ to expand and make your choice on how to sort and navigate through your choices. This can be handy when looking for a certain type, style, color or size of graphic.

Shopping & Local

Bing has a free rewards program you can sign up for with your Windows Live ID. Then, simply use Bing when you do your shopping comparison and you’ll be shown the cash back you earn by shopping at stores like Tiger Direct, New Egg, Home Depot and even Sears. We’re talking from 1-7% back on your purchases!

Bing already knew my location and when I typed in ‘traffic’ it gave me the Oklahoma City traffic conditions and a map. Not so with Google. I got traffic in LA and the east coast.

Extras

Over at the top and right of your screen, there’s an ‘extras’ drop down. Select ‘Webmaster Tools’ and you’ll be able to enter in your various websites and let Microsoft run some tools. You will have to verify your site by putting some code on your website page.

Conclusion

I’ve got my home page set to be Bing right now and so far, I’m pretty happy with search results, the preview, the images and the shopping. Please leave your comments and impressions.

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