January 4, 2006

2006

I think I am still buzzing from yesterday's coffee. That cannot be healthy.

But I'm also bouncing-of-the-walls excited about what can be accomplished in 2006. Since getting settled in the new place, I have been working at least 80, 90, maybe 100 hours per week on a high-priority project in another area. In another month or so, I hope to have something spectacular to give back to the Interweb that has been so good to me. Ahhh... the Interweb.

When I started this blog in early 2005, it was because I felt there was a gaping void in comparison shopping coverage. Now, luckily, much of my would-cover comparison industry news is posted by Brian. Plus, many of my would-think Internet insights are posted by Greg, and a helluva lot of my would-rant contrarian viewpoints are kicked around at Threadwatch. Nice.

So as we start the new year, I feel more free to ignore popular topics, focus on niche topics, and explore them in more detail. For the last half of '05, I found myself researching other areas of vertical search at least as much as comparison shopping. In 2006, I want to cut through the Web 2.0 haze, and do heavy-duty vertical search comparisons where none have been done.

Even within comparison shopping, that still leaves a ton of topics. A lot of comparison shopping activity is still under the radar.

Then there are the new ideas, the big ideas. Crikey, on the way to Tokyo, I had an idea, or maybe it was an airfood-induced hallucination, that I honestly feel could rock comparison shopping. Add it to several other ideas that have been brewing this year, and I'm thinking game-changing, tip-the-tables kinda stuff. The kinda stuff that makes me want to surround myself with as much technical talent as humanly possible.

David Beach says, "everything we've been using and doing up until now is bogus compared to what will be" and he is so money.

Recently, someone ask me, if one of the major comparison shoppping engines offered you a position on the content side, would you take it. Now, when I started this site, it was to identify niche product portal opportunities. Then, after starting the blog, I got swept into the general-purpose comparison shopping engine world, but I still thought my primarly role would be filling gaps in the product portals. Now, after a year of blogging about the majors, and after doing as much product portal research as anyone, I must re-evaluate the end-game scenario between the majors and in niches...

Thus far, in many areas, the major comparison engines have not been able to touch the niche product portals. That is, the majors have been growing, but the niches have been growing, too, and the middle tier has not significantly encroached on the lower tier. But could that change in '06? The strategists at the technology-stacked CSE's must be giddy about the possibilties.

At least, I hope so. I had a lot of crappy comparison shopping experiences this holiday season.

So back to the earlier question, yeah, I might be able to see myself working with a general comparison shopping engine, if any of them need a Sean on the content side, and there is a philosophical agreement on the need for experimentation. I've still got a lot of things planned outside of comparison shopping, but I would like to see some of my ideas, my babies, find a good home.

But not for at least another month or so. I still have work to do in vertical searchland. In the meantime, Brian will do a great job of keeping the industry covered in 2006. I'll make time to cover topics not on his list. Maybe we'll even see new comparison shopping bloggers. Wouldn't that be cool? General search bloggers, defect to the verticals!

p.s. - in case anyone is curious, I just Googled some info on the lethal levels of caffeine...

2006 (3)
Posted by Sean O'Rourke on January 4, 2006 at 12:28 PM
Archived at OrganizedShopping.com

Comments

Posted by Joe Lazarus at January 4, 2006 1:26 PM

Posted by Brian Smith at January 5, 2006 3:06 AM

Posted by Sean O'Rourke at January 5, 2006 9:23 AM