Last week I attended the Search Engine Strategies (SES) conference in NYC. As I walked through the three-floors of the expo hall, I realized that my walk could have been in 2008, 2007, 2006 or 2005. In fact, I attended each of those years in NYC along with Chicago in 2006. What I noticed left me wondering when we might see innovation in the search engine space?

There are a large number of great minds in the space including Andy, Michael, Dosh, Kim, Muhammad, Loren, Danny’s Team, Jim, Aaron, etc. The conversations on these blogs can keep one occupied 24 hours a day with interesting discussions about organic optimization and link building. Each one of these experts along with the thousands of others in the space push the envelope each day.

Clearly the innovation is limited to what the search engines can provide. Until Google, Yahoo, Ask or a new engine allow for more, then more can’t be created. It’s like trying a code on Ms. Pac Man that isn’t programmed into the machine. Currently, we can only find better ways around the maze to save time and gain more points.

In the expo hall, some 200+ companies show off their goods. Each notices my press badge and wants to tell me about their latest service offering. Time after time, it’s the same pitch as it was last year. Google, Yahoo and Microsoft show off their products, but don’t seem to talk much about the actual search engine. Here are some thoughts using photos (view the entire set):

Microsoft pushes their advertising options, not their search products.

NY-based Hakia appeared to be the only other search engine that is relatively new and trying something innovative in the search space.

Ask had an opporunity to explain why their search is better but instead went with selling sponsored advertising.

PPC Marketing - "A New Era" - explains that never before have we been able to connect with customers for a few cents. Sure, if never before includes 2000-2007.

The most popular areas of the expo were: Google, Microsoft and Media Whiz. Media Whiz (a CN sponsor) had a huge amount of people both times I stopped by even though they were located in the farthest corner of the expo hall.

Will 2008 be the year that we see actual innovation in the search space? Not one step forward but a giant leap in how we search and the companies who innovate the new search innovations. It is quite boring to walk the SES expo halls year after year and see the same thing and hear the same pitches.

Check out the printer we used for our business cards: