Word is that Yahoo is restructuring its labs unit and looks to lay off potentially thousands of employees. This comes to light as Yahoo’s top search guru Prabhakar Raghavan decided to bid adieu to the struggling search engine and take on the highly coveted position as a Googler. No doubt that Yahoo is less than thrilled to see its head of search leaving the sinking ship but they have wished him well in his future endeavours.

Raghavan’s role at Google is still unclear but Googlers are speculating that he may be heading Google’s research sector, which is quite a coup for Google considering that not only is Raghavan a highly experienced head of search but he is also a consulting professor of Computer Science at the prestigious Stanford University. It’s a pity Yahoo lost such a brilliant mind but Google are continuing to scale the heights of SEO so it stands to reason they would attract the finest minds in computer science.

As the Search Marketing Expo (SMX West) after parties draw to a close and Google Panda 3.3 is released, we ask ourselves, ”what now?” SEO is constantly evolving; twisting and crawling its way around our online space, in our online face. How do we, as the Optimisers, maintain fluidity?

SMX bills itself as The World’s Leading Search Engine Marketing Conference” so you’d expect something interesting to come out of it, wouldn’t you? We’ve put together a few highlights from the conference, conveniently intertwined with the Google Panda update, in what has been quite an eventful week for SEO.

Google Panda 3.3 was just made public and Google seems to be cultivating some sort of Panda sanctuary judging by the constant additions. For many folks this will mean absolutely nothing. Why? Two words. 1. Quality. 2. Content. It’s essential to champion the plight of the Panda by keeping content fresh. If anything, the roll out of Google Panda 3.3 should serve as a reminder that well-executed, accessible, engaging content is what separates SEO specialists from moonlighters.

The latest development from Google is melting hearts as it encourages Internet users to answer the question: What Do You Love?

Google’s latest offering takes the form of a universal, amalgamated search tool titled What Do You Love? Visitors to the www.wdyl.com site type in one of their favourite interests, and WDYL returns several streams of content related to the topic. The content is drawn from Google’s entire spectrum of search tools, including Google Image Search, Google Maps, Google News, Google Trends, Google Books and YouTube. In this way, users are presented with a comprehensive, all-encompassing results page presenting them with a variety of ways to explore their favourite topics further online.

Google recently announced a new service that is now available to all Google account holders. “Me on the Web” is supposedly a product aimed at assisting all Google users with the ability to more easily control their online reputation on the web via an easy to use interface that gives one the ability to receive alerts whenever their name or profile of some sort is mentioned. But in a recent post by Danny Sullivan, Danny reveals some interesting insights into what he thinks Google’s real motivation behind Me on the Web is.

Let’s start by taking a look at Me on the Web:

Now, the more tech savvy amongst us will be screaming out “what about Google alerts?” and the truth is, they have a point; Me on the Web is very much like Google alerts, but is far more accessible and easy to use. Below is a screenshot of the interface that comes with Me on the Web and the numerous options and filters that are available:

Market share is a clear indicator of how well a search engine performs, and affects the overall revenue the company can generate through advertising. Bing has made some strides since its launch in the attempt to challenge the mighty Google and their dominance in the search market – but over the past 2 years Bing has not shown much in terms of market share increases to become a viable competitor to Google – until perhaps now. How do the big players attempt to gain search market share? Buy it…

Google has been known for striking deals with manufacturers such as Dell and Acer to include preloaded Google toolbars, resulting in the use of the Google toolbar in software applications like Adobe Flash, FireFox and their own mobile OS, Android, which has gained mobile market share incredibly with the adoption in the market.

When exactly was it that Microsoft dropped so swiftly from cultural relevance? Let your mind wander back to the glory days of Windows 95, when Microsoft’s business practices consisted of releasing an OS update every few months and sitting back in their suede leather chairs as they counted the money pouring in. Today it’s a different story for the mighty Microsoft. Bill Gates is a figurehead now, with Steve Ballmer headlining as the face of Microsoft. The Xbox 360 is now their second largest selling product (after their operating systems) and the world no longer talks about Windows as if it gave birth to their second child. So where and how did it all fall apart?

If you follow the heated rivalry between the world’s leading search engines, you’ll know that Microsoft Bing has been marketed as a “decision engine”, taking shots at rivals like Google with a series of comical advertisements highlighting the threat of “Search Overload Syndrome”.

Pretty amusing, but Google marketing professionals will agree that the latest dispute between Google and Microsoft Bing is no laughing matter. The industry has been abuzz since Matt Cutts and Amit Singhal accused Bing of lifting code from Google and copying their rival’s search results.

It must be said that Yahoo search has never been quite as popular or as glamorous as Google; in fact I find comparing Yahoo and Google brings to mind a typical “teen movie” scenario where the shy, mousy girl with braces feels she can never compete with the pretty, spoiled cheerleader who seems to get all the attention. Of course the turning point usually comes when the mousy girl gets a confidence-boosting makeover, and the recent Yahoo search enhancements may be a step towards the search engine’s very own “Cinderella story”.

Recent Google search updates, from the rollout of Instant to the updated AdWords interface, have been causing a stir in many a SEO agency in recent weeks. With Google at the forefront of search innovation, it’s not surprising that rival engine Yahoo has started devising some strategic search enhancements as well.