OPINION ZONE: How Bing could beat Google in a cage fight.

August 24, 2009 | Posted by Carolyn Pikoulas
Ok, our web programmer will probably mock me for writing this article, but I wanted to find out just how in the world Microsoft thinks it could compete against Google with its new search engine, Bing. First, let me say that Bing is in no way a Google-killer. And I don't think Microsoft is egotistical enough to think it can overtake Google's users. It's not that Google or Bing are better or worse than each other. It simply comes down to personal taste.

Search - Winner: Google
As far as search results go, Google will probably be perceived as the one getting the best results for a long time (although the results are virtually the same quality).

Search Results Display - Winner: Bing
As far as interface and presentation goes -- Bing wins with much more images, easy navigation, better organization, and a "table of contents" in the left hand column to easily click on subcategories within your search. Another great feature is having your "search history" also visible in the left column.

Let's say you "Bing" John Stamos, because let's face it -- he's everything a gal wants and everything a guy wishes he could be and more. What's nice is that you can quickly find links to related items like Images, Songs (remember his rendition of "Forever" on Full House?), Interviews, Videos and Fan Clubs in the left column. Plus you get an extra 2 images of him on the top of the results compared to Google!

What's also cool is that when you roll over an item in the search results, you get a nice pop out on the right side that contains more text to show a small preview of what you'll find on that page. Google does that too, but you have to click a few more buttons to do so ("Show Options" and "More Text").

Images - tie
Although Google has many of the same options, Bing lets you click less. For example, when searching for images, Bing lets you choose illustration, photo, black & white, "just faces," etc. You can also choose how you want the images to display - large or small thumbnails, with the text either underneath the image or when you roll your mouse over it. In Google, again you have to click a few more buttons to achieve this.

Shopping - tie
In Shopping, Bing offers a cash back program with many participating retailers (learn more HERE). But I do like how Google displays the price much larger.

Videos: Winner - Bing
Bing automatically displays videos in a grid, which makes it easier to find the right one. Another cool feature is that the video will start playing automatically when you roll your mouse over it. In Google, it takes a few more clicks to achieve this (click on "Show Options," TV View, then click on each individual video in the list to watch it play).

News: Winner - Google
While searching for news within the general Web Search, Bing won on many of the searches. For example, while searching for "Governor Sanford," Google did show news results, but the top link was a days-old story. Bing's was from 8 hours ago. However, when switching to a "News" search, Google showed a news story from 13 minutes ago on the top of its list, while Bing had one from 19 hours ago. And, Google lets you find stories in a specific time period: last hour, last day, past week, even archived stories from dates specific to the search (Governor Sanford had one category from 1960-1969).

Homepage: Winner - Bing
Every day, the Bing homepage changes to feature a striking full-window photo with roll-over icons that teach you about the place featured. Of course, that's just cosmetic. And Google does change its logo from time to time to coincide with different holidays and events.

Advertising: Winner - not sure yet/need more studies
User Centric claimed that sponsored links attracted a greater amount of users' attention in search results in Bing than in Google -- 42 per cent versus 25 per cent in Google. Bing displays related searches on the left-hand side of the screen, while Google returns related searches beneath the search results towards the bottom of the page.

User Centric arrived at its findings by tracking search users' eyeballs around web pages in its labs. The eye-tracking generated color-coded heat maps on the screen, with the most intensely viewed areas shown as red - these areas held individual's attention for 4.5 seconds or longer User Centric said.

However, advertisers should still be aware that half of all users search with Google. Increasingly, though, it's looking as though a search engine really is just a search engine and that there's little to differentiate Microsoft's Bing from Google -- other than one's personal preference.