For many years, Google has dominated the search engine category and has thus served as the predominant search engine for billions of internet users. Several other big names in search – including those who existed before Google – have attempted to replicate its success but as of yet, no one entity has succeeded in doing so. The main question then becomes, “Why is Google number one in the search category?”. For those who have pondered how Google has managed to become the predominant search utility throughout the world, the answers are relatively simple and explained in the following article.

Simplicity

Around the turn of the century, there were some big names in the search market that rarely get referenced today: Lycos, Excite, Altavista and Infoseek are just a few of the former glorious tools that we used to find information in the olden days. One thing you may remember about these websites is that they were often laden with graphics, advertisements and other sorts of information that distracted many from the main task. Google – upon its launch – made a simple, sleek design work with technology to provide just as good results as its competitors. The simplicity combined with performance helped Google launch its service and begin to take on the competition.

Service Integration

With a solid search platform upon which to build, Google proceeded to offer various services over time that gave users more and more reasons to come back and use the search engine. Adding a few services at first, Google slowly persuaded users to begin using its services – like Maps, Translate, Gmail and Spreadsheets. Over time, a more diverse line-up of services was added, with the more recent integration of all Google services into one uniform account. This makes Google highly desirable to many; from the homepage, you can access virtually any service or utility that you may need for surfing the web, checking email or doing business.

Targeted Advertisements

While this aspect of its dominance did not convince users to search for particulars on Google, the platform that Google unveiled (Adwords) several years ago allowed it to actually earn significant revenue. This act gave Google the ability to venture into new and exciting areas, helping it grasp its dominance and hang on throughout thick and thin – despite the ever-changing market over the past five years or so. As of today, Google earns hundreds of billions of dollars each year and the vast majority of it still comes from advertisement revenue. If you are curious about their current Google ranking, use Pingler’s Multiple Keyword Search Engine Position Tool to see how your site stacks up.

Open Source Concepts

Perhaps the biggest, most recent solidification of the Google Empire came when it developed, released and distributed (for free) the Android mobile operating system. As of now, over half of all smartphones use Android technology, with Google operating as the prime search component. Without making such a large move into the mobile search market, Google may have fallen behind over time. Nevertheless, Google anticipated the shift and planned accordingly. As long as Google continues this approach, there is no end in sight to what it can do in the future.