What can Microsoft Bing to the market?

Let's ask Google

Here's a question, if you had to choose between buying a product from a website ranked either 1st on Google search results or positioned somewhere in the obscurities of the second page, which one would you pick? I ask this (assuming that most people would choose number 1) to prove just how much trust we place in Google's opinion.

This was outlined to me earlier this week when someone told me they had used Microsoft's Bing search engine, only to later check their results on Google to make sure they matched up. I'll stick my neck on the line here and say the majority feel the same way when using rival search engines, like they have for some unknown reason, avoided the most obvious and reliable of all sources.

But at the end of the day, Google's rankings are based on a variety of parameters that don't necessarily match up with your own. It is the opinion of one company... How often do you base a decision on the opinion of one? Just type 'Tiananmen square' into Google images UK and China to see how much control the search engine has on your findings. The comparison is staggering.

So while Bing may struggle to climb Google's perch in the short term, their use of semantic technologies bodes well. It is the semantic web that offers genuine search progress. With ranking prejudice aside, the web can be scoured for information that is important to you, tailored to match your exact criteria. This is a genuine opportunity to take the wheel and drive wherever you like, rather than be dropped off right outside the chauffeur's favourite building.