An excerpt from a recent Search Engine Land blog post -

"But if there’s one thing I’ve discovered in watching our online behaviors, it’s that we’re truly creatures of habit. If search goes down the road John Battelle is envisioning, how do we find what we’re looking for? If search becomes an engine powering thousand or millions of little, very focused apps that can benefit from a focused interface and structured data, how do we pick the right app for the right intent?" (From an exchange between Gord Hotchkiss and John Battelle.)

Judging from today's numbers, Google is still the undisputed king of search - check out Google's market share in your country. When we look for a product or service, our first impulse is to Google it. But this is all changing. We can find products and service on a variety of platforms, including Facebook, social media specific search engines, and targeted online directory sites. We can access search tools on a variety of platforms as well - computers, iPhones, Windows and Palm smartphones, and televisions. 

Many businesses consolidate as they grow, but the search industry seems to be running in reverse, fragmenting as it grows. Users have more options than ever for finding information. Search marketers have more options than ever for paid and organic search strategies. 

This is good news for users and a challenge for search marketers. From the user perspective, I can use any type of device and access any type of application I fancy to find information. My behavior is changing rapidly. A year ago I was going to Google 100% of the time. Six months ago I hit Bing 20% of the time. Today I continue to do that and poke around Facebook search 5% of the time.

What are the implications for search marketers? How do you connect with a moving target?