Company ground through the rumor mill, comes out okay

Ask.com is, as you know, a search engine. They’re not as popular as Google, but they’ve done some interesting things with search technology and helping people to refine their searches. Check out an example of Ask search results on a search for James J. Hill. Note especially the left-hand column, where one can narrow, expand, or find related info. Also the images, encyclopedia entries, news, and blog links along the right-hand column. 

Back at the end of February, I saw an article at Silicon Alley Insider describing how Ask was going to abandon their search technology, called Teoma, and just bolt the Ask logo over a Google search engine. It sounded crazy, so of course I wanted to post about it – but it fell off my radar.

Then the other day, an AP article appeared discussing recent cuts at Ask. This article said that Ask was abandoning its efforts to compete with Google, and was instead going to focus attention on helping married women in the southern and Midwestern states find information on recipes, hobbies, and health. Crazier still! I totally have to blog about this, I thought. But didn’t.

Then yesterday, I saw this well-reasoned and completely sensical article featuring quotes from an Ask.com spokesperson. Directly from the horse’s mouth: Ask is not getting rid of its Teoma search engine in favor of Google, and the idea that Ask is “going to become a women’s site is just plain wrong.” They are focusing on their core group of users, and they’re trying to understand how these users use their product, but that’s not crazy.

In fact, that seems like a pretty good strategy.

So through the awesome power of blog procrastination, what started off as a “WTF?” post turned into a little note about how every business would probably benefit by following Ask’s lead and paying closer attention to their core customers.

Who are your core customers? Are you paying attention to them?