NEW YORK, NY--(Marketwire - Feb 14, 2013) - According to search engine expert and online marketing enthusiast Rich Gorman, Bing is once again making headlines -- and, perhaps unsurprisingly, Bill Gates is the man responsible. According to a report filed by Search Engine Land, Gates recently drew the attention of search zealots when he made some positive comments about Bing, even heralding it as a superior product to Google. Though Gates' critical role with Microsoft may seem to render his remarks a non-story, the truth is that Gates has not worked full-time for Microsoft in four years. His time is largely spent working with his Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and his recent pro-Bing comments mark a rare foray into search engine politics. Gates' remarks have caught the attention of Gorman, who has weighed in with a press statement of his own.

"The story here is not that Bill Gates said something positive about Bing -- because, of course, when is Bill Gates ever going to say anything negative about Microsoft?" asks Gorman in his press statement. "The real story is that, in many respects, Gates is right: Bing is a better product, and more people would recognize it were it not for the long-standing ubiquity of the Google brand."

The comment from Gates came during an "Ask Me Anything" session at Reddit. One site user sarcastically inquired as to whether Gates actually used Bing over Google -- prompting an earnest and straightforward answer from the Microsoft founder, who declared that Bing is "seriously... the better product at this point." Gates went on to encourage his interlocutor to "take the challenge," undoubtedly a reference to the ongoing Bing it On campaign.

Gorman puts this into context. "For months now, Bing has been running its brilliant Bing it On challenge, which is sort of the search engine equivalent of a blind taste test," he says. "Many users have taken the challenge and found that they actually prefer the results delivered by Bing."

Indeed, Bing itself claims that a third of all Google users who have taken the Bing it On challenge have opted to begin using Bing with greater frequency. According to Gorman, weighing the pros of one search engine over another, simply in terms of search results, is tricky business. "Most of today's online users are sufficiently search engine savvy that they are going to be able to find the information they need on either search engine -- and frankly, the algorithms are similar enough that any attempt to compare, except on a micro-level, would probably prove fruitless."

Gorman goes on to say that, despite this caveat, he agrees with Gates' assessment. "We have all known Google as the #1 search engine, for so long now, that to suggest it might be subservient to Bing seems like blasphemy," he remarks. "The truth is that Bing is the better product, and certainly the more innovative technology."

Gorman says that a big part of what makes Bing superior is its social media integration. "Bing has succeeded where Google, even with its Google+ features, has come up a little bit short -- and that is in providing users with a personalized, socially-informed set of search results that are accessible to everyone," he affirms. Gorman points to Bing's "Social Sidebar" and its integrative use of Facebook and Twitter data as two of the search engine's major selling points.

Gorman continues by noting that Bing has also bested Google in bringing its various search features to mobile and tablet users. "The bottom line is that Google will probably always be the dominant search engine, because it is the default option on so many devices, and because the term 'Google' has effectively become shorthand for 'online search,'" Gorman concludes. "Bing offers the superior user experience, though -- something that more and more search engine users are coming to realize."

ABOUT:

Rich Gorman is a leader in the digital marketing sphere, and is known for his groundbreaking work in direct response marketing -- work that is on display at his popular Direct Response marketing blog. At the blog, Gorman gives away thousands of dollars in trade secrets and insider information, day in and day out. Moreover, he is a technology pundit and a social media enthusiast. Gorman frequently opines and makes predictions on matters related to social networking, search engines, online commerce, and more.