It’s been a while since I wrote something of substance and since I’m on a plane back from the shop.org conference . . . might as well try to tackle this idea that’s been bounced around in my head for about a month . . .

I believe browse is making a comeback. While search has grabbed the headlines for past 4 years, browse is surely but silently gaining grounds on search as a navigation tool, information retrieval methodology, as well as viable business model. Browse’ importance is often under appreciated because while most of us “do it,” we are often not aware of our actions. We know when we are “searching” on the web because we are actively interacting with a search engine. Browsing, on the other hand, is by definition a “passive” activity from the perspective of the server processing & logic as well as “open” because there is no definite third party that is creating the experience for us – we are the drivers of our own destiny/click stream across multiple websites. . .

So what exactly is the difference between search and browse?

Search is a targeted way to retrieve information. Users enter a query (most likely a keyword) and a set of results are returned. Example include Google, Froogle, Yahoo Search, and eBay’s search box. . . pretty simple, I think everyone understands this. . .

Browse, however, is a link to link navigation through the web. Despite its missing place in the popular web terminology as the foil to search, “browse” has been around much longer (in the short history of the web) than search. For one, Netscape and IE are called “browsers” for a reason. It’s a tool that let users navigate through the hyperlinking structures of the web, one page at a time, sequentially.

There are several reasons browse is making a come back.

-Social Networking. Before the rise of social networking and social web services, the hyperlink structures on the web were mostly determined by corporations which linked to each other. As a result, personal relevancy of these link structures was little to none. Big giant corporations (or even small corporations) determined the “adjacency” of the webpages for you. However, as the personal web arose, link to link structures between web pages became highly personalized. Social networking applications created link structures which were highly personalized (between you and your friends, and FOAF for example). As a result, to “find” content which appealed to you no longer required a search engine with its shot gun approach to information retrieval. Certainly by following links in MySpace the contents are highly relevant to you either in lifestyle, topic, or simply relationship closeness. One of the most amazing stats I saw in the last few months was that Myspace has overtook Google in pageviews.

- Blogs. Perhaps simply an extension of social networking web sites or even really the same thing, blogs has forever changed the inter-site link structure of the internet. Blogrolls, permalinks, and trackbacks allowed users to go from link to link, discoverying content that perfectly balances serendipity and relevancy. Hornik at VentureBlog as a great post on this experience and its relevancy.

- Replication of offline experience. Barry Diller spoke extensively on this subject during his keynote (although more specifically on e-tailing). Essentially, as a big believer in brands, he doesn’t believe the search experience creates a “natural” analogy to the offline browsing experience. To his point, while search allows a much more targeted experience (and is desirable and useful for what it is) it does nothing to truly capture the intangibles of “why people shop/explore,” “how people feel about shopping, travel, and exploration.” Search does nothing to create experiential existence in the offline world via context, design, and serendipity, and creativity. In many ways, he argues that websites are simply “utilities” and not brands. He doesn’t know what the future is but he believes we are only at the beginnings of enabling such an experience. I would argue that “browse” as a foil to search is a better starting point for creating such an experience.

- Behavioral ad targeting. The reason search has became such a big deal was because search traffic was highly monetizable compared to regular site traffic. Before search advertising came along, the online advertising industry was struggling with low click through rates on CPM banner ads. The travails of Doubleclick versus Google was an perfect contrast in the relative success of the two models. However, as behavioral ad targeting became a mature, operational, and almost as “profitable” as search advertising; “browse” traffic is now becoming more valuable than ever (but probably will never be as valuable as search page views). The high valuation of thefacebook.com and Myspace is a direct result of the recognition of that fact by venture capitalists and investment banker.

So while the world frets over search and its various incarnations (product, vertical, social blah blah) . . . someone should take a look at the alternate reality of the browse economy and realize that as much money is being and will be made (and lost) in it as the search economy. Being the contrarian, I believe getting into “browse” now would be like getting into “search” 3 years ago. The runway is is much longer for improving the browse experience of the Internet than there is for search. (flock? not even quite sure what it is but sounds interesting)