Home » 2007 » June » Ask.com, Asking for trouble?
Ask.com, Asking for trouble?
"The internet's information has fallen into the hands of one company." Rarely do we see an expertly executed viral or guerrilla marketing campaign. But Ask.com through planning and execution has begun the latter stages of their advertising campaign in the hopes that some of the 75% of Google's users will use Ask instead. Using a new algorithm combined with a brilliant ad campaign, it's beginning to appear Ask is the only competitor that has a chance against Google. Ask has been beefing up its search engine in preparation for their last stand. Using a newly developed search algorithm known as "Edison" and also the integration of Ask3D and Ask X into one package is proving to be far more intuitive, convenient and relative than Google's universal search.
" It's a next generation algorithm that ... synthesizes modernized versions of Teoma and DirectHit technologies ... It's much more complicated than ... just counting clicks ... The technologies we have ... go way beyond that ... taking a deeper look at communities and calculating the authorities in those communities. We ... [are] looking into the universe of user behavior, and what that could tell us, and the social fabric of the Web itself, and what that tells us. "
Ask did several things that were very smart here. For one Ask played on the recent string of trust, information and privacy issues in the media, especially relating to famed search giant Google. Creating an emotional social response by blaming Google for the death of the beloved mascot Jeeves; any user fond of the former ask will continue their loyalty. Then Ask.com attempted to renew its image an appeal to youth via viral marketing. This included an anti-Google campaign involving literature, stickers, posters, buttons, and many other forms of media.
Ask has also reached out in every way imaginable. A slew of TV ads and product placements in addition to all of the paper and internet media shows Ask still has some tricks up its sleeve. While some of the commercials are more confusing than funny, the basic goal is accomplished which is to gain attention. Like Hollywood says "there's no such thing as bad publicity".
Another recent controversy of Ask's chosen advertising methods was the quote "Don't be a droid use a different source of information." When searching for "Google" in Ask.com's search engine. This quote along with an illustration of a man on puppet strings and Ask.com's anti Google website, which was later taken down due to complaints. Many people have complained about Ask's aggressive campaign, claiming that it goes too far. Some consider that while competition is healthy there is a clear boundary between playfulness and aggressiveness and that attack oriented advertising sends out a bad message. Whether or not Ask will gain new users as a direct result of their advertising is unknown however only time will tell if this strategy was fantastic or a flop. Search Engine Optimization is a rapidly changing world.
About The Author
Utah Web Services is Utah's leading web development firm.
Previously on SearchEngineChannel
- Adwords Management: Should you outsource it, or do it yourself?
- Is a Number One Position the SEO Holy Grail!
- Death Rattle Of Black Hat SEO
- Priceless search engine marketing tips
- Must my website be noticed?
- Anchor Text Optimisation Guide
- Will You Still Respect Me in the Morning? SEO Ethics Defined
- Google's Universal Search and the Impact on SEO
- How to use social news to your advantage
- Has Your Website Been Google Slapped?
