Should your SEO strategy include Yahoo and Bing?

What is SEO, by the way? You are surely going to get somewhat different answers to this simple query from each person you ask as they are mostly based on experiences gained by each of them in regard to good old search engine optimization. Also, since there are so many facets of search, while the rules themselves are subjected to so frequent changes, too in this regard that the whole affair often turns into a difficult to maneuver digital quagmire. Nevertheless, some aspects of SEO have remained unchanged for as long as we can remember, and so a quality website will always have significantly better chance of performing in the search process as compared to weaker ones.

And now, no more gobbledygook, because it is time now to delve deeper into the present topic..  Incidentally, whenever you think of the term ‘search engine’ the only company that rings a bell in your inner mind is Google! And rightly so, because with around 6 billion searches everyday and more than 2 trillion searchers (based on 2013 figures) Google literally lords over all search activities on our lonely planet. So much so, that Google search is now being called ‘google it’!

But what has gone wrong with the other sites, such as Yahoo and Bing? They have not yet Gone with the Wind, so far as information goes. It’s nothing but a psychological issue, my friend. When you are habituated to drink a particular brand of Scotch, you wouldn’t bother to try another brand, regardless of its price or other factors. The same has happened to most SEO people. Being fully satisfied with Google’s performance in search related issues, they often wonder whether they should spend (or waste) their valuable time on Yahoo or Bing. Nevertheless, you need to optimize for Yahoo and Bing for your own benefit.

Don’t Put All Your Eggs in One Basket

Remember the old adage, ‘don’t put all your eggs in one basket because once hit, the whole lot will perish’. Follow the same principle for search, too. Suppose you have used all of your SEO efforts to optimize for Google only and are happy to find that you are on the first or second page of results. Now, let’s see what happens when Google abruptly changes the algorithm (quite a common procedure for Google) and as a result your site gets penalized and your fate becomes no better than that of the Malaysian Jet that disappeared from the face of the earth. But what would have happened if you had spent a part of your time optimizing for Yahoo and Bing, reaching similar heights? People using alternative search engines could easily find you, thus serving your purpose. As for the stats, Google had around 67% of Internet Search Engine Market share in 2013, while Yahoo and Bing together came close to 29%.Incidentally, having a thorough idea about the demographics of Yahoo and Bing users is vital to developing an effective SEO strategy for these two search engines. If you can identify the faces behind the searches on Google, Yahoo and Bing, it would not be difficult for you to create an SEO strategy, literally tailor-made for your business.

Optimizing for Yahoo and Bing vis-à-vis Google

If you have made up your mind that you will spend a bit of time on optimizing for Yahoo and Bing, I may give you a good news that says “Yahoo search is powered by Bing”. This in other words means that you are supposed to optimize for one only instead of two. Also that Bing and Google’s algorithm have a lot of similarity. What’s more, optimizing URLs and domain names for keywords and having a large number of quality dofollow backlinks are equally are as much important for Yahoo and Bing as for Google.However, there are dissimilarities galore so far as these three are concerned. Here are some instances for better elucidation.

Website Forms

While Google focuses on fresher, more business-oriented or popular websites in its results, Bing is mostly in favor of older websites with more official domain names that include .edu, .gov, etc. What does all this mean? Well, that Google is quick to offer up socially relevant sites, whereas Bing is more likely to provide factually relevant information.

Flash Media

While Google has a hard time figuring out what to do about Flash media, Bing does a great job of indexing it and offers extra credit for sites that use it.

Local

Local searches on Google and Bing do not necessarily give similar results. In fact, Google mostly sways in favor of bigger, more established companies; Bing’s attention is more attuned to smaller fries. If you need an explanation, here it is. When you search for local business on Bing, it takes for granted that you want to go for smaller, near-at-hand establishments. Google, on the other hand tries to give you only the most credible and well-known units.

Social

One of the things that set Bing apart from Google the most is its approach to search by integrating social media. When searching on Bing, if a Facebook friend has recommended or rated the company or product mentioned in the search, the user can see it right away. Google hasn’t quite been able to integrate social media into their searches as well as Bing.

Bottom Line

When you think of SEO strategy, do not think only in terms of Google or Bing or any other search engine for that matter – rather think in terms of your visitors. Maybe, you are a Google fan all along, but some of your visitors could have more reliance on Yahoo or Bing. So, once again, I may remind you not to keep all your eggs in one basket – apart from Google, your SEO strategy should also include Yahoo and Bing.