WebProNews

The launch of Bing has, according to report after report, worked near-wonders for Microsoft.  Now, it looks like Yahoo's going to take a shot at reproducing those effects with a significant (though not name-altering) makeover effort of its own.

Do you think of Yahoo as a second-rate Google?  Or perhaps as the company that refused several reasonable acquisition offers?  Kara Swisher wrote late yesterday evening, "Yahoo is working on a massive plan to overhaul its brand in order to repair a damaged public image and focus consumers on what defines Yahoo."

To this end, Yahoo's chief marketing officer, Elisa Steele, has apparently hired Landor Associates.  Landor is a brand consulting firm that's worked with impressive entities like Alfa Romeo, De Beers, Research in Motion, and even the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, so it should have a lot to offer.

One thing that remains unknown, though, is just how much money Yahoo's contributing to this effort.  Microsoft put around $100 million behind Bing, after all.

 Another mystery is what sort of direction the brand overhaul might take . . . when asked last month about "the one thing that you would like consumers to instantly associate with the Yahoo! brand and the products you create," the best one-word answer Carol Bartz could provide was "relevance."

And finally, there have been no hints as to what sort of timeframe Yahoo's execs have in mind for the overhaul.  So stay tuned and hold tight.