Last week, we discussed how to best use Google’s new real-time search as part of your Internet marketing plan. But of course, there’s another major search engine out there that no Internet marketing plan should ignore: Bing.
Ok, you may be wondering the point of trying to optimize your Internet marketing plan for Bing’s real-time search. After all, doesn’t Bing just have a fraction of Google’s market share? And didn’t Bing actually lose market share in December? Certainly. But it’s worth remembering that both Google’s and Bing’s real-time search services are relatively new. That means you can expect both to change dramatically as each company refines their real-time search service. By studying Bing, you position yourself to become more well-versed in the ins and outs of real-time search. Even if you’re not interested in optimizing for Bing, the opportunity to study another major real-time search engine is one that no Internet marketer should pass up.
So what makes Bing’s real-time search different from Google? For one, Bing’s current real-time search results only draws from Twitter, whereas Google’s draws from the latest blog posts and news stories, along with the tweets. Another thing that sets Bing apart is that it has a unique URL for real-time Twitter search, whereas Google’s real-time search appears directly on the regular search results page.
So why should that matter to your Internet marketing plan? One key difference is that Google offers real-time results for a limited number of popular keyword phrases, while Bing offers a larger number of results for popular keyword phrases for real-time search results. That means optimizing real-time search for Bing as a part of an effective Internet marketing plan could be easier.
Google also offers a wider range of search refinement options. It’s easy to find instant real-time results, results from the past week, or results from the past year. Bing? Not so much. Right now, Bing’s real-time search only offers “Most Recent” and “Best Match” advanced search options. The difference between those seems to be that “Best Match” options are recent tweets that offer more value, whereas “Most Recent” search results simply deliver the latest tweets that contain those particular keywords.
When it comes to real-time search, Bing made a big splash by beating Google out of the gate. But Google’s quick implementation of powerful, comprehensive real-time search went a long way to securing Google as the search industry leader. It will be interesting, then, to see if Bing modifies its real-time search soon. Those who want to execute the very best Internet marketing plan should keep an eye on what real-time search services Bing comes up with next.
