Jeff dalton's Profile

The popularity of similar knowledge search products in Taiwan, Korea, China and Japan are already making an impact on people searching the web in those countries. We are starting to see a shift in search technology from a world dominated by algorithms and machines exclusively to search results made better through people.

Quoting a 2005 Kelsey Group report, Geoff tells us that "55% of Internet users use search engines to find info about local firms. The estimated spending on local search was only $162 million. In 2009, it's estimated to be $3,380 million. Since close to 70% of small businesses don't have websites, they can't currently do paid online advertising. Therefore, local search will need some development before it can really take off. Geoff sees the advancement of Pay Per Call and the creation of more rich information such as maps and satellite pictures as key factors for local search because they will help people better evaluate businesses.

They told me that industry researchers are seeing somewhere between a five to 15% productivity gain when someone goes from one monitor to two.