Business Coaching

When it comes to search engines, do you use the reliable standby Google, the newer Bing, or any of the other search engines out there (Yahoo!, Ask Jeeves, etc)?

Here’s something interesting that may sway some die-hard Google users to start using Bing: On New Year’s Eve, Times Square was evacuated when the bomb squad was called to investigate a suspicious van. Don’t worry – it was nothing. But what was interesting was what the two search engines turned up as people in the city were scrambling about for information.

Search engines pull up all sorts of websites depending on keywords, including results from Twitter and Facebook. Simply typing the generic “Times Square” into Google turned up news results that were two days old about New Year’s Eve events and preparations for the upcoming festivities. When typed into Bing, however, yielded real-time headlines from various news outlets like ABC and CNN, thus giving the scrambling Internet searchers information they were looking for.

Now, this isn’t to discredit Google at all. In fact, Google was showing real-time results, too..theirs were just hidden. Google’s real-time updates page under “show options” and then “updates” with any search, had all the good stuff; headlines, tweets, everything that described what was going on in real-time was on that page.

If Google just moved its real-time results to its main search page instead of hidden on another page, it’d not only be better for Google, but it’d be great for search engine users: less frustration because they find what they’re looking for.

Use this Google/Bing example to think in terms of your own business…is there anything that your company could improve upon and beat competitors to?

The New York Times published an interesting article today. It highlighted Brad Sugars and how he helped Cancer Schmancer raise money solely through a Facebook application.

The article focused on other charities using social media to increase their donations, such as Twitter, blogs and YouTube.

Earlier this year, Facebook Causes recognized Sugars as an All-Star Contributor for raising about $8,000 for Cancer Schmancer. On Thursday, November 12, the New York Times recognized him as well, and applauded his use of social media to give to a good cause.

The age of social media has given people everywhere power to raise awareness and market just about anything; journalists, presidential candidate campaigners and corporate marketers have taken to Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter to promote what they’re working on. Now nonprofit groups are using those same sites to recruit volunteers, spread awareness and solicit donations.

On his 38th birthday this year, Sugars installed a Causes application, and as a birthday gift to him, asked each of his $3,000 friends to make a donation of at least $38, which he would match. By matching each donation, Sugars managed to raise $7,690 for Cancer Schmancer.

It’s an interesting article. Check it out here, or at www.nytimes.com.