It Never Hurts to Ask
Posted by goodmind on May 24th, 2007
Allen Stern at CenterNetworks recently posted a few unsolicited strategic pointers for Ask.com. We feel it is a pretty sufficient set of tips for any search engine looking to compete with Google, an opinion which may have something to do with our own similar process for identifying tactics to drive use. At any rate, Stern’s recommendations include;
- Push hard to get site publishers to integrate the Ask engine, even offering cash for the swap. I would certainly change some of my sites to use Ask if they came calling. This is the way to begin the movement, not with stupid billboards.
- Look at the data and privacy issues Google is facing and attempt to leverage those
- Focus on owning categories… I have played a bit with their Kids search and I like it. This is an area Google does not have. Why not attempt to own this market?
- Work with bloggers in the tech sector, invite them to visit and learn more about Ask and spread the word. Don’t be afraid of the negative reviews. Remember people like the "Google Feeling". I don’t see Ask trying to create a "feeling".
- Use the Ask local tool and create local parties that can demo the Ask suite of tools. Remember it’s about a feeling. No one cares about the results.
With regards to point three, we have always seen the need for a comprehensive and trustworthy search engine dedicated to medical and health related queries. Ask.com has been around for what seems like an internet eternity, and thus commands enough trust to render them the best candidate to “own” the hypochondriac market.
Most of Stern’s strategic suggestions are product oriented, but it is still worthwhile to reflect on marketing tactics as well. Ask.com’s current campaign to become the most loveable search engine is so smart it’s stupid. Unless you so happen to be an internet nerd (hi) the ubiquitous “____ hates the algorithm” statements beg the question “what does an algorithm have to do with a search engine?”
Ask.com hopes enough people ask this through their service to quantify a $100 million advertising campaign. However, these “clever” viral marketing tactics are a bit outdated for the space in question. Positioning any web based business as the “alternative” cult brand is probably not enough. Instead, you have to first tailor your product to the outcomes, your customers are seeking.
In any case, the underground iconoclast internet user is hardly an under-represented market segment, and quickly becoming more myth than reality.
UPDATE
Speaking of outcomes, combining trust and privacy with the main ideas in points two and three might be an even more powerful position.
As if on cue, Geek News Central called Google’s acquisition today of FeedBurner “pure evil,” sounding the privacy alarm. Google, which as a result of the purchase, now has access to any and all of your RSS feed subscriptions. This may be pushing their "machine" into uncomfortable territory for many of us.
Thus, Ask.com could create a new category and position itself as the search engine for people who appreciate keeping their innermost curiosities and proclivities verifiably private. We’re a little wary of Google’s tracking ability ourselves, but anyone who subscribes to a certain social media blog has nothing to be ashamed of…
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