'Sensis good enough to rival Google, Yahoo'
Sydney Morning Herald
July 12, 2004
Sensis.com.au is an internet search engine that allows users to find information on the web and also access information within the normally confined boundaries of other websites including; www.yellowpages.com.au and www.citysearch.com.au.
Sensis can offer this exclusive information because it is a subsidiary of Telstra, who owns, among others, the Yellowpages, the Whitepages, citysearch.com.au and whereis.com. Where other search engines such as Google or Yahoo do not have access to the massive database of the Yellow pages, Sensis can offer a very local and specific search for its users.
The existence of Sensis also offers a further incentive for businesses to advertise in the Yellow pages as it allows another avenue on which customers can find information about their business. This, along with a traditional search engine strategy of having businesses pay for their websites to appear higher in searches gave Telstra a financial incentive to create a search engine that, with it's local advantage, may be "good enough to rival Google, Yahoo".
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Sensis offers its users three main advantages over its competitors, who are mainly global search engines that are supported by paid advertisements. Sensis is similar to Google and Yahoo in that it offers a search of the global internet and, like Sensis, these search engines offer an Advanced search which allows users to narrow down their search by selecting options such as:
A specific language the website must be in
A specific file format
Indicating a source or specific URL
Adding various 'search terms' such as: with the exact phrase or: with all the words.
The first advantage Sensis has over...