The Algorithm is On The Move

Ignorance is bliss.

If you get great search results, you don’t care why or how you got them.

But for more than 80% of searches, there can be more than one right answer. And even when there is one right answer, there’s more than one way of getting you there, understanding those results, or getting ideas for alternative searches. For these searches, the editorial voice of your search engine matters. Search isn’t the commodity it may, at times, seem to be.

In search, this voice is manifested in the form of an “algorithm,” a strange, funny, and--for most people--wholly unfamiliar term.

Many of you who read this blog already know what an algorithm is, and how it separates good searches from the better ones. But your friends probably don’t. Thanks to the work of the Ask marketing team and our new ad agency, Crispin Porter + Bogusky, however, that’s about to change.

You might know CPB for their superfun and standout ad campaigns for Volkswagen and Burger King (including my favorite, the Subservient Chicken viral).We've been working with them to create a campaign that champions "The Algorithm" and how it brings good search to life--from plain old “ten blue links” to popular, algorithm-driven features such as Smart Answers and Zoom related search.

No, the campaign won’t go into detail about how an algorithm actually works. We don’t want to make people’s heads explode. We just want them to know there’s something in there--think Intel Inside, Verizon’s Network, Dodge’s Hemi…heck, even VW’s Fahrvergnugen--that’s different and working to make search better for you.

You may have heard about our recent outdoor ads, which kicked off the campaign with some teaser billboards about the Algorithm. Soon, you'll start seeing our new TV spots in a
whole lot of places, from major networks to cable, from morning to prime time to late night.

So ready or not world, here comes the Algorithm, soon to take its rightful place as a household word, once and for all.

--Greg Ott
VP, Marketing
Ask.com