Yahoo News :: Yahoo Service Combines Blogging, Social Networking

The News

“Yahoo on Tuesday confirmed that it will start beta testing a new community service this month that will let users share blogs, photos, music and other content with their friends.

The ‘invitation-only’ beta test for the new service, called Yahoo 360, is scheduled to start March 29, said Paul Brody, senior director of community products at Yahoo Inc., based in Sunnyvale, Calif.”

Read more at PCMag.com.

My Own Wild Speculation and Theories

Until last July, I really thought that Yahoo was down for the count in the search engine war. Boy, am I happy that I was wrong…

Yahoo first got the jump on Google where blogs are concerned, with its RSS Headline module. When it went mainstream with this feature, it gave millions of online business owners the opportunity for more exposure directly from Yahoo, though the feeds currently only number in the hundreds of thousands, as most people have no idea how much this can increase their traffic and affect the bottom line of their businesses.

Now, with the addition on in-house blogs, they’ll have features unmatched by Google or MSN. I’ve pretty much given up on my hope that Google will come out with a catalog of RSS Feeds that is as functional and easy-to-use as Yahoo, and Yahoo will have a lot of work to do if its really looking to compete with Blogger, which Google owns.

However, the one thing to take away from this is that having a blog is not an option any longer. If you want good search engine results, to get closer to your audience, to develop trust and make more sales, it’s essential.