Microsoft SearchPerks: Latest attempt to gain share

Microsoft's latest effort to get people to use its search service is SearchPerks, which gives people points for using the search engine that can later be redeemed for prizes.

Users who agree to download a small program to track their usage get one "ticket" for every Live Search query, up to 25 per day. The program runs through April, at which point users can "cash in" the tickets that they get and trade them in for prizes or donate them to a charity.

It's the latest in a series of financial incentive-related projects from Redmond, joining such efforts as Live Search Club, Search and Give, and Live Search Cashback, a program Microsoft introduced in May.

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The latest project however also requires users to use Microsoft's browser (Internet Explorer 6.0 or higher) as well as a Windows PC. Microsoft said those latter restrictions are not necessarily permanent.

Microsoft said: "At this time, SearchPerks is a limited promotion, though we remain open to expending availability of the promotion to different browsers and operating systems based on consumer interest."

Microsoft has struggled to make inroads on Google in overall share. According to figures recently released by ComScore, Google increased its share of the US search market in August - it's at 63 per cent - while Yahoo! and Microsoft both slipped a bit, to 19.6 per cent and 8.3 per cent respectively.

In an interview, Live Search senior director Frederick Savoye said the new business models are just one part of a three-prong strategy that includes continued improvements in core search as well as in vertical search.

Microsoft has seen mixed results with its incentive programs. Live Search Club, for example, gave Microsoft an initial boost, but its gains appear to be directly tied to its level of incentives. With Live Search Cashback, Microsoft said it has seen some advertisers boost their Live Search spend. eBay, in particular, is spending 50 per cent more on Live Search thanks to Cashback, which Microsoft says offers significantly higher conversion rates than traditional search.

On the broader goal of boosting Microsoft's share of the commercial search business, Savoye said, Cashback has yet to make a meaningful shift in share. "We haven't seen it move significantly yet," Savoye said.

People can sign up for SearchPerks through the end of the year, or until Microsoft reaches its target of 250,000 participants. Rewards can be earned through April, though Microsoft may decide to extend or expand the program.

In pilot testing, Microsoft said it saw those in the program perform three times the number of searches they had been doing. Savoye noted that in the airline industry, for example, loyalty programs have become a standard part of doing business.

"Over the long-term these programs have changed people's behaviour," Savoye said.

Original article: Microsoft still paying people to search from CNET News.com