June 3rd marked the release of Bing, Microsoft's already popular search engine - possibly Google's greatest rival to date. Defining BING as a 'decision engine' rather than a search engine Microsoft claims it will help clients make faster, more informed decisions. Effectively BING does boast a number of exciting new features; Deep Links allows the user to gain more insight on a website's resources while Quick Preview provides a 'peek' in individual search results via a hover window, providing a clearer view of the site's relevancy.
Microsoft also identified and acted on 5 key scenarios in which people are prone to surf the web for assistance: Shopping, Travel, Local Business, Health and General Information. Bing is equipped to identify particular searches which fall under any of these categories and instantly provide links to relevant reviews, price comparisons or technical information depending on the search in question. Within only a couple of months Bing has already collected an impressive number of followers, confirming Microsoft's claims of increased ease of use, efficient search results and quick decision making. So is this really time for Google to make a run?
An early case study (source: Catalyst Group) revealed however, that while users confirmed Bing's superior search engine experience, they are reluctant to switch from their primary search engine. With a number of search engines that disappeared over the years, Google has had plenty of time to foster a loyal user base which adds up to millions of searches everyday.
Ultimately many Google users feel that although Bing's features are very well targeted it will be considered a reserve. It seems that at least for now, Microsoft's efforts are still very far away from denting Google's reputation. Nonetheless if you haven't done so already - visit www.bing.com and see for yourself!