In joining forces with Yahoo, Microsoft hopes to grab some of Google’s major search engine share, but it’s not the path Steve Ballmer and company should be taking.
Of course it’s the deal of a lifetime for Yahoo. As CEO Carol Bartz noted in a recent media interview with the Wall Street Journal, it’s a win-win for Yahoo across the board. Who wouldn’t want to partner with such a tech titan and “get virtually all of our search revenue at no cost because Microsoft wants to make the investment and wants to win.”
But Microsoft can avoid the antitrust review headache already being planned by congressional leaders and the Department of Justice with one simple move: make Bing so compelling that people can’t help but switch off from Google.
And what could be more compelling than giving people the opportunity to do good or help without having to fork over a buck or offer up invasive personal data.
Sounds too simple doesn’t it? But just think about it.
Most people want to do good everyday whether it’s by their family, for their friends or for their community. But money is tight and time is tight and the quest to give back, pay forward and perform random acts of kindness tend to get pushed to the back of the closet when you’re figuring out how to pay the mortgage or send your oldest to college in a few years.
Now don’t get me wrong, I love Google and what it stands for. It’s an innovative company that hit the Web with a clean open slate, offering up an easy-to-use interface, a non-invasive user approach and it delivered good results from the get-go.
Microsoft can do exactly the same, but this time expand on that approach with a tantalizing opportunity: for example, every time I use Bing, some sort of contribution is made to the “charity of the week” that week, or maybe my own favorite organization that I deem to be my “Bing” recipient. In fact, a similar option already exists with DoGreatGood (a search engine we wrote about a few weeks ago), but that doesn’t mean it can’t be improved upon.
It doesn’t have to be big bucks. Most people realize Microsoft still has to make money, as do their Bing advertisers. But heck I’m searching dozens of times a day (more than the average consumer, I admit) and knowing that each time I run a search I’m giving something back (a nickel, a dime) would be a compelling incentive for me to ditch Google or any other search site.
Just remember this: Google arrived on the Web proclaiming it would do no evil.
Microsoft has an incredible opportunity to move that proclamation one giant step ahead and and declare it will do good.
Photo courtesy of Microsoft