Search Engines around the World – Countries where you don’t just “Google it”

Search Engines around the World – Countries where you don’t just “Google it”

17 March 2022 |

SEM and SEO

Suppose you spend most of your time browsing the internet from Australia; you are probably getting most of your information from Google, which has 92% search engine market share. However, Google only contributes 52% of the total searches in Russia, 33% in South Korea, and a humble 2.5% in China. To reach users in these countries, advertisers need to look into local search engines that reflect international user behaviour such as Baidu (China), Yandex (Russia), or Naver (South Korea). 

 

Made by locals, for locals

The localised nature of Yandex, Naver, & Baidu has set them apart from Google & other international names. 

 

Yandex: Nearly 9 out of 10 Yandex visits are coming from inside Russia. The engine was tailored to the Russian language and highly geo-dependent, with search results varying based on users’ locality. 

 

Baidu: Besides its compatibility with search queries in different Chinese & Latin alphabets, Baidu also owns intricate cross-lingual language processing models that process over 2 billion voice searches each month. It provides exclusive access to substantial Chinese informational resources, including services like missing person search & patent search, that are not accessible from other English-based search engines.


Naver: Naver presents itself as a “culture and lifestyle-oriented” search engine, used by more than 80% of Koreans in their 20s. Built in the local language, Naver has a significant advantage in identifying accurate & relevant Korean keywords from search queries. The platform caters to Koreans’ search behaviours by offering highly intuitive results pages with direct access to various services and content categories. The platform has even dedicated a search portal for kids, called Junior Naver.

 

More than just search engines

Yandex: If Google expands its roots mainly in the digital & technology world, Yandex gathers its followers from other real-life touchpoints like food delivery & taxi services. Users come to Yandex for a wide range of digital services, from navigation, entertainment (music and games), to utilities such as contactless payment services.

 

Naver: Naver offers a wide range of integrations such as maps, music streaming, digital payments, shopping, travel bookings, translators and even real estate brokerage. Although this inclusion provides users with seamless browsing experiences when tackling daily life matters, it also reveals a weak point in providing information for more professional purposes.

 

Baidu: Sharing the most similarities in diversification strategy, Baidu resembles Google in various products & services, from smart devices and AI-based assistants to maps and data storage services. While AI applications across industries are one of Baidu’s most prominent focus areas, they also invest heavily in the automotive and healthcare sectors.

Get in touch with your ADMATICian today for more information on reaching potential users across different search engines.