A few weeks ago, Udi Manber, Google’s vice president of engineering, announced the advent of Google Knol, a program meant to challenge Wikipedia, the popular user-generated encyclopedia. The idea, like Wikipedia, is to let anyone create a page of information on a specific topic, and all of those pages will be organized like an online encyclopedia. Google has not announced when Knol will launch.
Jeff Muendel, Search Analyst for Netconcepts, writes about how this upcoming feature from search giant, Google, may affect eCommerce.
Jeff reminds us that if you perform a lot of online searches, often Wikipedia will show up in page one of Google results. If Google’s new project will be poised to compete, Jeff provides a few recommendations for online retailers to make sure they keep up with (and take advantage) of this new technology when it appears.
Keep an eye out for the beginning of public access to Knol and be ready to assert yourself with regard to your area of expertise. Position yourself as an expert on a subject that is related to what you sell. Sign up with the program and carve out your niche immediately by writing an article or several articles that are neutral and honest. Use the bio section to correlate yourself with your ecommerce site. Above all, though, offer real and accurate information in the articles that makes no reference to your company.
The goal here is to get in early on an encyclopedia service that is sure to be high in Google results.
Spread the word: 
