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Archive for the ‘Microsoft’ Category
Google, Yahoo, or Bing? Take the Blind Search Test.
Amanda Moshier | August 10th, 2009
If you’ve been paying attention to the Internet world lately, it has likely come to your attention that there is a new player in the search game called Bing and the Microsoft and Yahoo deal which has been discussed ad-nauseum since Microsoft offered Yahoo $45 billion in early 2008 has finally come to a close. What does it all mean? It is going to take time to sort it all out. Whatever the effects of the merger, the effects it has on user experience and advertisers are most significant, and much can be said in that regard. As resident PPC expert and VP of Client Relations, Mike Block, says in his recent blog, Tues News: 8/4 (Big Deals Edition): Anyone who has spoken to me about my opinions regarding the Big Three (Google, Yahoo and Microsoft) in search knows that I rank the user experience with Google at the top, Yahoo as a distant second and Microsoft as an even more distant third. When Bing came out and made some noise, it was my opinion that Bing would be nothing more than an expensive flash in the pan unless Microsoft could make the user experience better for the advertiser through its adCenter product. As it stands, the stubborn folks over at Microsoft still make bulk changes very difficult to perform, offer a poor quality account editor that is incompatible with Apple computers and employ customer service representatives that have always seemed overworked at best and poorly trained at worst. Block’s Continue reading…
Tags: Bing, blind search test, Google, international search results, Microsoft/Yahoo merger, Yahoo!
Posted in Google, Internet News, Microsoft, Yahoo! | 9 Comments
Will Bing Give Google A Run For Its Money?
Amanda Moshier | July 27th, 2009
Did anyone expect Bing to have an impact? The question is becoming moot as studies show Bing users are more likely than Google users to click on an ad. The new question is how and to what extent. According to a study done by online advertising network Chitika, who analyzed 32 million ad impressions across a network of 50,000 websites, users of Microsoft’s new search engine may be more receptive to advertisements, based on a 1.5% click-through rate for Bing compared to. 97% for Google and 1.24% for Yahoo. The ‘why’ behind Chitika’s findings can be speculated at length, although it seems a bit early in the game to come to any real conclusion. It has been nearly 2 months since Bing’s official June 3rd launch, and heavy promotion to the tune of 100 million ad dollars is likely to have made an impact in driving users to the site. As many have said, it makes sense a user clicking on an ad directing them to Bing is likely to click on an ad within Bing, but this is hardly conclusive evidence and making any sweeping generalizations about Bing users is premature. Nonetheless, the findings of Chitika’s study are interesting, and help flesh out the argument that Microsoft may have a real shot at stealing some of the paid search market from Google. Looking at ComScore’s June 2009 search engine rankings report, it is clear Bing’s .04% increase in market share in June puts nary a dent in Google’s 65%, Continue reading…
I Have Interests Volume 1: Typography
Jeff Pickett | January 9th, 2009
Not long ago, my little sister asked me if American Apparel and Crate & Barrel were “the same company.” She was hesitant and skeptical as she asked, but confused that both stores shared a nearly identical design aesthetic. I interpreted the question in a much broader context: my sister was having her first brush with the rich and fascinating world of typography. In 2007, the ubiquitous Helvetica typeface celebrated it’s 50th birthday. Those who would consider this trivial probably missed the exhibit held at New York’s Museum of Modern Art, the documentary “Helvetica” by Gary Hustwit, or the numerous books on this “official typeface of the 20th century.” Moreover, those who find it silly that museums, writers, and movie directors would spend time showcasing a “font” probably aren’t as observant as my little sister. (Aside from American Apparel and Crate & Barrel) Perhaps you’ve heard of: Microsoft, Panasonic, BMW, Jeep, Toyota, American Airlines, Lufthansa Airlines, 3M, McDonald’s, Target, Energizer, Mobil, Arco, Shell, Texaco, and on and on and on… If you aren’t big on corporations, maybe you’ve heard of music groups like The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, or The Ramones; all of whom have used Helvetica over the years. The introduction to any typography text will probably explain how different typefaces can evoke different emotions and moods from readers to achieve very powerful branding effects. Many graphic designers feel that a typeface can be one of the most powerful forms of propaganda at their disposal. How perplexing, then, that so Continue reading…
Tags: 3m, American Airlines, American Apparel, arco, art direction, baskerville, bmw, comic sans, Crate & Barrel, energizer, font, font tattoo, garamond, gary hustwit, Graphic Design, Helvetica, helvetica font, helvetica tattoo, helvetica typeface, impact font, jeep, Lufthansa, mcdonald's, Microsoft, mobil, moma, panasonic, pepsi, rosewood, rosewood font, sans-serif, serif, shell, target, texaco, the beatles, the ramones, the rolling stones, toyota, typeface, typeface tattoo, typesetting, typography, typography tattoo
Posted in Blogging, Business, Editorial, Google, Internet News, Microsoft, Random!, Yahoo! | 10 Comments
Why you should join LinkedIn today
Amanda Moshier | November 10th, 2008
The MySpace/Fox deal of 2005 took some users by surprise, but MySpace’s 580 billion dollar payday was instrumental in quantifying your identity and setting a price tag on your virtual identity. Three years later, LinkedIn has taken that valuation to heart. Although you may have missed the news amidst the excitement of the last two weeks, the social network boasting over 30 million professionals and a user base that represents every company on the Fortune 500 list unveiled its new and presumably fruitful business model: social surveys. How social networks make money (for now) Ever since sites like Facebook and MySpace became the relative norm, social networks have been trying to make money in a variety of ways – from market research to advertising, the longterm value of which has been hotly debated, due to the thinking that people don’t login to Facebook to shop. While recent reports show that mentality may be changing, the value of advertising on one social media site alone is predicted to decline as the web continues moving towards an open platform. LinkedIn’s social survey model Capitalizing on its influential user base of professionals and building upon its already successful advertising model, LinkedIn recently launched “social surveys” as a new B2B product selling user opinions to companies looking for demographic samples. The value of LinkedIn’s user base is the granular level at which they can be targeted – based on affiliations, age, hobbies, income, industry, skills, and more. Hopes are high, and the reason behind Continue reading…
Tags: advertising model, LinkedIn, monetization, social networking, social surveys
Posted in Business, Internet News, Microsoft, Wpromote, Yahoo! | 3 Comments
Microsoft Going Stallone on Yahoo
Michael Block | July 7th, 2008
If the Yahoo/Microsoft saga followed the storyline of the classic movie “Over the Top,” this latest move by Microsoft would be most analogous to the moment when Stallone switches his grip, puts on his “Rambo” face, lets out a boorish groan and turns the tide on the poor sap on the other side of the arm wrestling table. At this moment in “Over the Top,” the audience remembers that Lincoln Hawk isn’t just a down-on-his-luck big rig driver, he’s Sylvester freakin’ Stallone! We’re talking about the man that took on Mr. T and Hulk Hogan in a single movie, the guy who single-handedly blew up half of the US military. At this moment, we all know that Stallone isn’t going to lose and that the new big rig and, for some weird reason, custody of his estranged son, would be his very shortly. Just when you counted him out, he flips the script and reminds you why it was foolish to ever doubt him. In this scenario, Steve Ballmer and Carl Icahn represent Stallone. In this scenario, it looks like Jerry Yang and Yahoo’s Board of Directors represent the guy who entered an arm wrestling match that they never stood a chance of winning. Yang has insisted time and time again that the Yahoo/Microsoft deal was dead. Each time he did so, flurries of articles followed confirming this notion. Sure, Yang and Co. still had a lot of work to do, but it seemed that they would be moving on Continue reading…
Anything You Can Do, Icahn Do Better
Michael Block | June 9th, 2008
Amid the ongoing tumult in the saga of the potential buyout of Yahoo by Microsoft, Carl Icahn has done his best to make sure that his opinions do not go unnoticed. The multi-billion dollar man who has made it his business to seemingly bully struggling companies into succeeding –all while making a hefty profit for himself in the process–has made Yahoo his most recent and most newsworthy project to date. What still remains uncertain is whether Icahn’s efforts are helping or hurting not only a potential merger between the two behemoths but also the general welfare of Yahoo, of which Icahn owns 4.3% in stock. Since purchasing his stake, Icahn has vocally undermined current CEO Jerry Yang, criticized the handling of the Microsoft buyout offer and generally disagreed with the direction that Yahoo has been taking as a company in a series of bilious open letters to the Yahoo board of directors. What is clear is that Icahn wants one thing: to make money on his investment in Yahoo. What is also clear is that he believes that the only way that this can be accomplished is with either a sale to Microsoft or with a complete change in the current administration at Yahoo. The former is the route that Icahn would most like to take, however, the latter is an option at which the staunch Icahn is unlikely to balk. What is unclear is the efficacy of Icahn’s campaign. His attitude has more than ruffled Yang’s feathers and the Continue reading…
