September 15, 2016
Google is the Daddy of all search engines with over two thirds of all searches being carried out on Google. Of course there are others. The main second string are Bing, Yahoo, DuckDuckGo, Ask.com and Baidu. But they are small in comparison.
Size Matters
You cannot argue with the dominance of Google in the world of search. It is the biggest search engine in the world by far, and is often cited as the best.
Millions of websites rely on Google for traffic. Changes to Google’s search ranking system to improve the quality of search results can lead to seismic changes in how businesses carry out their digital marketing the world over.
People focus their efforts on Google because its numbers speak for themselves. Web users choose Google, so websites choose to focus on ranking highly on the site.
A Victim of its own Success?
Unfortunately, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to rank on popular search terms.
SEO specialists are continually seeking better ways to optimize ranking for clients, using less popular key words, or local SEO for example. But ultimately, if you want to rank highly for your chosen search term, it is a long term investment.
Google, of course, isn’t in business to help businesses improve their sales, they earn their money from being the most useful search engine to users.
A Niche Approach
In the context of such high level of competition for popular search terms on Google, could there be some merit in targeting the less popular search engine?
It all depends on the numbers. If you are in a competitive marketplace, perhaps a high ranking for a popular search term on a smaller site could bring in better (and quicker) results compared to targeting less popular keywords on Google.
This niche approach has regularly being used to sell products and services, why not digital marketing and search?
Google is King
Search is a numbers game and when it comes to search engines, Google is way ahead of its competitors. But it’s becoming increasingly difficult to rank for popular search terms. There is an alternative strategy however, target more popular search terms on less popular search engines.
The proof of the strategy is in the outcome of course, but the choice is yours.
