Evaluation Essay Sample on Google Company

Introduction

Google is the biggest search engine service provider in the world. A vision by Larry Page and Sergey Brin in 1998 made Google the company it is today. While at Stanford University, the founders designed an innovative technology that would assess web pages and recover the most relevant information for any given search query. Their innovation captivated their classmates who rallied together with other investors to finance the project. After their generated adequate capital from financiers, friends, and family who saw the viability of the idea, they opened their first office in a garage in Menlo Park, California.
As the firm advanced, the products and services range expanded. Nowadays, Google is not just a search engine, it is also a translator, mapping service, blog-hosting service, an email account, and other services. The company has more than 40 products and features on its web platform which spread far from its fundamental search engine, with many development packages. The firm has also advanced into numerous other nations and currently hosts more than 150 country web platform domains. It is constantly advancing and has a strong reputation as the number one search engine. In 2007, Fortune magazine named Google the best corporation to work for (Sutherland, 2012).

Although Google has advanced on a large scale, the founders have clearly managed to preserve some of the same distinct, small-firm sense they began with. Additionally, in spite of the firm's move to the Googleplex, it still appears to have maintained a corporate culture that imitates its modest beginnings. The company desires to offer fast and efficient service (Sutherland, 2012). Google also intends to make its information accessible to every individual who has access to the internet.

Google in ChinaGoogle's decision to move to China was a strong one. No major internet corporation has dominated its field in China, which by the nature of its technology market is the world's biggest internet market. Numerous professionals believed that Google would be the first internet firm to succeed in China. This American technology giant moved to China ready with funds, intellectual property, and a capacity to manage multifaceted networks as well as introverted employees (Sheehan, 2018).

Pros

Google is an Internet Giant with $22 billion in revenue. Google holds 33% of the search engine market while Baidu has a 63% stake in the same industry. Google has attained substantial market share since it officially entered the Chinese market in 2005. However, Baidu has also gained market share. The move to the Chinese market was to provide users with access to information. Google provided users with a short message illustrating whether any pages had been censored from their search outcomes. The message did not inform users about the nature of pages that had been censored; it just wanted them to know that some information had been censored. Despite censorship by the Chinese government, the company has retained Google.cn and Google.com accessible to users in the country (Lau, 2010). Google highlights Google.cn as a supplementary service, not an option for Google.com in the Chinese market. Google has indicated that Google.com in the Chinese version will remain accessible to internet users across the world.

Cons

Initially, Google invested in Baidu but later attempted to buy it outright but failed. Baidu, which was initiated in 2000, established a strong presence by providing easy links to download pirated songs and movies which was not easy for Google. Baidu argued that downloads were legal since media files were not on their computers. Eventually, Google initiated a free online music service in China, with approval from the music labels, but it never caught up with Baidu.

Just like Google, most technology firms fail to thrive in China because there is inequality in doing business. American firms are expected to operate in China through domestically owned companies, while there is an existing slow ownership structure that restricts their flexibility. Another limiting factor in the Chinese market is the favoritism of local companies and government censorship. Google managers note that frustrations are high due to constant scrutiny on Google's local search engine and attempt to control or eliminate its contents (Barboza & Stone, 2010). On the contrary, local firms usually maintain close links with the regulators which assists them to forecast new policies as the Chinese government is worried that the internet may become a platform for antigovernment dissension.

SummaryWhen Larry Page and Sergey Brin first established Google as the internet search, their objective was to offer information for people visiting the internet. They wanted their platform to be fast and most reliable. Due to its ingenuity and innovation, Google is the biggest and most lucrative internet search engine in the world. Google has over 150 domains across the world and internet users use this platform to search for information.

Google is a large firm with $22 billion in revenue. In terms of market share, Google occupies 33% while Baidu occupies 63%. In its venture into the Chinese market, Google intended to provide unrestricted access to information. The company also boasts of huge financial muscle, intellectual property, and a large team of competent developers and content writers (Sheehan, 2018).

When Google opened its offices in China in 2005, it did not enjoy the progress encountered in other areas. The company was planning to exit the Chinese market due to censorship by the government and favoritism towards the local companies. Google wanted a re-negotiation of terms and conditions if it was to remain in the Chinese market. One of the challenges that the company faces in the Chinese market is the language barrier. Most Chinese internet users prefer the local language over English. Therefore, Google has been compelled to develop content in the Chinese language.RecommendationsChinese internet market is highly competitive. Additionally, Chinese local companies are highly favored by the regulations compared to foreign internet companies. For Google to become successful in China, a few suggestions are given below;

Google can pursue mergers and acquisitions in the Chinese market by acquiring rivals such as Sohu and Sina. This will enable the firm to augment its presence in China because Sina has large internet traffic but its search engine is not as effective as Google. Google can also emphasize acquiring online gaming companies because most of the Chinese internet population is the millennial generation. This approach would provide the company with an edge over its rivals (Lau, 2010). A company like Netease is highly regarded by the young generation in China. Acquiring this firm would grant Google a major boost in the Chinese market.

Google should comprehend that 'free' is an influential strategy in the Chinese market. It is clear that free download of media files gave Baidu a huge advantage over Google. Therefore, Google should launch as many free services as possible. With a free package as an alternative, buyers and sellers will have a good reason to use Google as their most preferred site (Sutherland, 2012). A free platform for its products and services means that the firm gains thousands of users. This way, the company can generate revenue through pop-up ads on prominent sites of its web page.

The company should develop more products in the Chinese language. Google has been negatively affected by the preference for the Chinese language over English. The majority of the Chinese population prefer their local language in searching for information online. Therefore, more products designed in the local language means that Google will be able to compete with Baidu effectively. There is also a need for Google to create more customer-oriented products and services. The firm should focus on creating content that aligns itself with the Chinese people. Chinese people are known to stick to their culture regardless of western influence (Barboza & Stone, 2010). Therefore, it is important for the firm to consider designing internet products and services that reflect the culture of the Chinese people.

Google should also connect with all potential clients, whether big or small. Consumers of internet content range from large corporations to individuals. Since China has one of the largest populations in the world, having 51% of the market share will be a great achievement for Google. This will be achieved through consideration of all possible internet content consumers.

Conclusion

Google is regarded as the largest search engine service provider in the world. The firm was initiated by Larry Page and Sergey Brin in 1998. Google is also a blog-hosting service, an email account, mapping service, translator, and other services. The company has a wide range of products and services which makes it more competitive than any other firm across the world. When Google made a dec...