Google is so widely used as a search engine that many consumers talk of $$Googling$$ a product or service when they mean they$$re going to do some Internet research. But as dominant as Google may be in some countries$$it handles two out of every three online searches in the United States, for instance$$it does face competition, both locally and globally. Still, because of Google$$s firmly entrenched position, other search engines have to start by stirring consumers to recognize a problem with their current search engine.

One of the most aggressive of Google$$s search competitors is Bing, introduced by parent company Microsoft in $2009.$ Within months, Bing had arranged to become the official search engine of Yahoo!, one of the web$$s original search sites. Thanks to this deal, Bing improved its market share. however, Bing holds only a tiny share of the search market $($approximately $5$ percent$),$ whereas Google still controls more than $80$ percent of the global search market.

To increase brand awareness, to put itself in the consideration set, and bring consumers to its search site, Bing runs ads on TV and in movie theaters to promote itself as a $$decision engine.$$ The messages, delivered with a dash of humor, suggest that consumers can avoid information overload and find just what they need by searching on Bing, whether they$$re looking for how$-$to videos, holiday gift ideas, airline flights, or movie showtimes.

For its part, Google is pouring on the warm feelings in its ads to engage consumers emotionally and retain their loyalty. Ads portray Google as the place to search for long$-$lost friends, for example, among other search stories with affective appeal. In essence, Google is reminding consumers: $$Remember how it felt when you did those successful searches through our site? Use Google when you$$re searching for something you care about, whether it$$s videos, images, news, maps, or more.$$

Google also wants to be sure that mobile users continue to choose its search site when using their phones to locate information about goods and services. Currently, Google is responsible for more than $90$ percent of U$.$S$.$ mobile searches. However, that may change as many search sites gear up in earnest for this fast$-$growing segment.

Other search engines have captured considerable market share outside the United States by optimizing their searches and the look of their sites and results to meet local needs and preferences. Baidu, for example, is the market leader in Chinese$-$language searches, and Yandex is the leader in Russian$-$language searches.

In addition, various niche search sites want consumers to choose them for specialized searches. Findmypast.com, used to search for names of ancestors, is marketed through mentions on genealogy blogs and websites. Wolfram Alpha calls itself a $$computational knowledge engine$$ that can help users search for data about mathematics, statistics, engineering, units and measures, and more. Glacier Resource Innovation Group searches academic resource collections available online. findsounds.com enables consumers to locate and listen to sound effects posted on the web. No matter what kind of search consumers want to conduct online, there$$s a site to help them locate exactly what they want.

CASE QUESTIONS

$1.$ Why is achieving a significant level of brand familiarity especially important for Google$$s competitors?

$2.$ What are the search sites doing to increase consumers$$ motivation, ability, and opportunity to process external information?

$3.$ Are consumers likely to search by brand or search by attribute when comparing search sites? Which process is likely to favor the specialized search sites?

$4.$ Given the role of prototypicality in recall of search engine brands, what do you think niche search sites should do to get into the consideration set?