Everyone knows that Google is the 800-pound gorilla amongst search engines, so much so that you’ll hear “google” being used as a verb in casual conversation. But even with Google’s search dominance there is still a significant portion of search activity happening on other engines.

According to Hitwise’s April 2008 search share numbers (see chart) Google has a firm grasp on the majority of search traffic with just over two-thirds of all searches being conducted on Google. However, their 67.9% share of searches also means that there are still 32.1% of searches happening somewhere else. From a search engine marketing standpoint this just means that it’s important to diversify your search engine marketing efforts across search engines.

At a minimum, at least target Google and Yahoo, combined they cover 88.18% of searches, and also cover a wider range of demographics since each engine tends to attract a different type of user. One other note, even though MSN and Ask.com have relatively low numbers, there still make be great ROI in targeting those engines, especially since many of your competitors will be ignoring them.

How unfair is this….
A prospective customer visits your website for the first time.
They notice that the site’s design feels a bit dated.
They notice that the website looks ’small’ on their monitor.
They notice that the copyright at the bottom of the page reads 2006.
And they recall that the last site they were on … your competitor … just seemed more professional.
Now, they’ve never met you.
They don’t know the high quality work that you provide.
They don’t know that your value is the best around.
They only know that your website left them feeling flat. Uninspired.
It’s not fair.
But it’s the way the world is working these days.
Your website truly is the hub for all of your marketing efforts.
Start there.

Where should my blog reside?
Most every time Stone sets up a client blog this question arises.
Should it be placed within the corporate website?
Should it be distanced from the corporate site?
Should it have its own look?
Domain name?
Should I use a service? Or software?
All good questions.

While action of most any sort is going to be more valuable than paralysis of analysis, the answers to these questions can most easily be answered by the business objectives associated with blogging in the first place.

A blog is one of the simplest ways to get fresh relevant content on a website and – from a search engine ranking perspective – having the blog reside within the same domain name and server can have a positive effect on SEO.

Many believe that a blog within a corporate site becomes a corporate blog … and, by definition, less edgy / interesting / genuine than a freestanding blog. The established corporate culture and reputation will affect the likelihood of that impression.

As far as using a blog service v. software, the services were originally setup to make it easy for everyone and anyone to blog. If you maintain a corporate site, it’s a safe bet to move forward with one of the open source blog software packages. Some of the popular blog packages have morphed into mini CMS platforms, complete with a list of 3rd party components. But all of them will include the expected list of features.

So when deciding where your blog should be located, ask yourself:
1. Are we doing this to improve search engine rankings? (within the site)
2. Are we doing this to position the organization as a thought leader? (within the site) Or are we doing this to position an individual or group as a thought leader? (separate location, design, name)
3. Are we doing this because top management won’t redesign the site and it’s fallen woefully behind the times? (whatever’s fastest)