Google is still the preferred search engine for users, but Yahoo (Nasdaq: YHOO - news) and Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT - news) are gaining ground, according to a new report.
After interviewing 2,000 Internet users, market research firm Keynote Systems has found that Google still ranks as the king of the search engine industry, even though actual search results returned by the five top search engines are very similar.
The five search sites examined were Google, Lycos, Yahoo, Ask Jeeves (Nasdaq: ASKJ - news), and Microsoft MSN. In terms of overall usage, Ask Jeeves won the fourth place spot, with Lycos coming in fifth.
"When we did the study six months ago, we were surprised by how strong Google was," said Bonny Brown, Keynote director of research. "Now they're still number one, but they're about where they were before, whereas Yahoo and MSN have made gains."
Coming Up Fast
In its findings, Keynote reported that Yahoo and MSN have improved their performance levels since the last study, which came out in May 2004.
Since then, Yahoo has boosted the number of users who say they would consider the site as their primary search engine by 20 percent, and MSN has upped its figure by 30 percent.
The two companies experienced the highest improvement in Keynote's future usage index, which measures the likelihood of consumers to use a search site as their primary tool.
In that index, 81 percent of Yahoo users and 61 percent of MSN users stated they would return in the future.
Google maintains the top position in the future usage index, but Keynote noted that its overall standing did not improve.
Possible Future Fixes
For companies that want to gain more traction in the search engine market, Keynote's results also point out what users do not like when looking for information.
For example, one in four users complained that the local results were not what they wanted or were not ranked appropriately.
In general, though, the study's results showed that there is overall improvement in how search technology is being tweaked for users.
"Over the past year, the major search engines have made great strides to improve their services, and users have noticed," Chris Sherman, editor of Search Engine Watch, says in a statement.
But loyalty is still fragmented, and that should encourage search companies to improve the quality of the user experience, he added.
Written by: Elizabeth Millard, http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/nf/tc_nf/byline/29737/13989113/SIG=10r33ca9a/*http://www.newsfactor.com
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
3 comments:
Top MSN Position was actually the information I was looking for when I found your blog. MSN, Yahoo Catching Up to Google is certainly a great topic sal_cervantes... Are you interested in trading links between our sites?
Hi sal_cervantes, I have been searching high and low for the latest information on First IN AOL when I ended up here looking at this MSN, Yahoo Catching Up to Google post. Although this isn't exactly what I am out looking for, it has certainly turned out to be well worth my time in visiting.
Hi sal_cervantes, I’m out searching the web for the latest
and greatest information on addaware and found your
great site. Although this post wasn’t specifically
what I was looking for it definitely got my interest
and attention. I see now why I found your interesting
blog when I was looking for addaware related
information and I’m grateful I found your site even
though its not a perfect match. Great Post, thanks
for your informative site, Here’s my favorite quote
for you - "The real danger is not that computers
will begin to think like men, but that men will begin
to think like computers. " - Sydney J. Harris
Post a Comment