Google is one of the most well-known technology companies in the world. The span of Google’s services encompasses a variety of Internet-related services, including a search engine, online advertising technologies, software, and hardware. Larry Page and Sergey Brin founded the company in 1998 (O’Connell). As of 2020, Sundar Pichai is Google’s chief executive officer (O’Connell). Due to its rapid growth, the enterprise has developed a chain of innovative products beyond a search engine. Google Ads, Gmail, Google Slides, Google Meets, Youtube, Waze, and Google Maps are among the digital products that Google oversees (O’Connell). In short, the company’s services range from language translation and podcast hosting to navigation and video sharing. Although Google has a highly diversified target audience, the search engine has restricted access in some areas, including Cuba, Crimea, Iran, North Korea, etc. (Bhattacharya). Almost 60% of total Internet searches are facilitated by Google, which means that the company’s marketing strategy is not bound to a specific demographic (Bhattacharya). Therefore, the target audience for Google’s products and services is broad.
As for the specifics, there are certain characteristics that help to differentiate Google users. Firstly, the most engaged users of the company’s services are men under the age of 35 (Bhattacharya). The majority of Google’s customers are from an upper-middle-class background (Bhattacharya). According to the data about the company’s target audience, Google users value customization and online privacy (Bhattacharya). Identifying the estimated demographic and psychographic of the business’ customer base is crucial in order to generate the most effective marketing strategies.
In addition to identifying the target audience, it is important to determine Google’s strengths to gain an in-depth understanding of the company’s marketing and pricing techniques. The biggest advantage Google has is its market share in online searches and Android software. It was previously mentioned that more than 60% of Internet users find information through Google. Due to this ‘monopoly’ in the highly prosperous digital industry, Google enjoys rapid growth and has an ability to further diversify its products, attracting even more customers. Another strength of the company is the culture of innovation fostered around its engineers and managers. As a result, Google’s organizational structure is highly adaptable, while its R&D departments remain dynamic enough to create original and profitable products.
Lastly, Google has one of the most valuable brands in the world. According to USA Today, it should not be surprising since “the world’s biggest video platform, YouTube, the world’s most widely adopted smartphone software, Android, and one of the world’s largest distributors of advertising, DoubleClick, are all owned by Google” (Fronlich and Sauter). Brand recognition allows the company to spend less on advertising and promotion and focus on meeting loyal users’ expectations instead.
Despite being one of the most recognizable and influential companies worldwide, Google still has a number of strong competitors. Google’s top rivals include Facebook, Microsoft, Amazon, and Yahoo. Mark Zucherberg founded Facebook in his university dorm room. As of 2020, the site is the biggest social media platform in the world, which means that it is a huge competitor of Google in regards to digital advertising (Fronlich and Sauter). Microsoft includes an integrated search engine called Bing, which remains a direct rival to Google. Bing is now the second most used search engine in the world (Frohlich and Sauter). Amazon is also one of the threats to Google’s dominance since it is often used as a search engine. Moreover, Amazon has made impressive progress in cloud computing and artificial intelligence integration (Frohlich and Sauter). Yahoo competes with Google as a search engine, an email host, and a news media. In addition, Google has numerous lesser-known competitors, including Verizon (a telecommunications enterprise), Alibaba (a Chinese e-commerce giant), and AOL (one of the pioneers of Internet searching). All of these companies pose a threat to Google’s growth and global expansion.
The analysis of the competition shows it is crucial for the company to generate effective strategies in order to stand out on the market and attract its target customers. The first strategy that is essential for understanding Google’s marketing is open access. Google is free for all, so it does not cost anything for a consumer to give the search engine a try (Pratap). The company offers a variety of user-friendly, innovative, and engaging services for free, which attracts billions of users worldwide. The next strategy is the culture of conversation created by the Google team. The company fosters an interactive, communicative environment through SEO and SEM frameworks (Pratap). Google has given itself a human face by introducing Googlers, including John Mueller and Gary Illyes. This way, the company taps into a specific aspect of human existence by allowing Internet users to feel a sense of community and belonging.
Another strategy used by Google is capitalizing on the high quality of its products/services. Creating a high-quality product has been a priority for Page and Brin from the beginning (Pratap). As a result, by focusing on the highest possible quality, they secured Google’s place as the most prominent authority figure on the market. In turn, the company became a trendsetter within the digital industry by making authoritative statements regarding new features or addressing possible improvements (Pratap). Even though this marketing technique requires some long-term planning, the results are impressive since customers themselves recognize Google’s authority and easily put their trust in its products.
Another important factor to consider is Google’s treatment of its employees. Workers are the best spokespersons for the company and its ethics. That is why Google executives invest a lot of time and money to ensure that the internal stakeholders of the company (its workers) are satisfied and have the most positive impressions about their work (Pratap). Although it is not necessarily a marketing technique, Google has generated a lot of media promotion due to its excellent HR policies and an employee-friendly working environment.
Based on all the information provided above, it is easy to form a conclusion regarding Google’s marketing mix. The company creates a wide array of products (P), including web-based services, desktop and mobile applications, and operating software. The following BCG matrix demonstrates market share levels and market growth levels of Google’s products. According to this model, Youtube, Android OS, Gmail, and Gmail have the highest market share and growth.
As for the place (P), since Google’s products are so diverse, the company uses both online and offline promotional channels. When it comes to the price (P), Google utilizes freemium, market-based, value0based, and penetration pricing techniques. Google’s brand recognition allows it to spend little on promotion (P). However, the company occasionally promotes its new services using a mix of online ads, TV commercials, and offline PR-events.
Works Cited
Bhattacharya, Madhushree. “Find Target Market of Google Inc.” Management Learning, 2016, pp. 1-9, Web.
Fronlich, Thomas C., and Michael B Sauter. “What are the World’s Most Valuable Brands? Tech Companies like Apple, Google and Amazon.” USA Today, 2018, Web.
O’Connell, Brian. “History of Google: How It Began and What’s Happening Beyond 2019.” The Street, 2018, Web.
Pratap, Abhijeet. “Innovative Marketing Strategy of Google: A Case Study.” Notesmatic, 2017, Web.