SWOT analysis of Google (2019)

Company: Google (a subsidiary of Alphabet Inc.)
CEO: Sundar Pichai
Year founded: 1998
Headquarter: Mountain View, USA
Number of Employees (2018): 98,771
Public or Private: Public
Ticker Symbol: GOOGL(Class A) and GOOG(Class C)
Market Cap (2018): $839.82 Billion
Annual Revenue (Dec 2018): $136.22 Billion
Profit |Net income (Dec 2018): $30.74 Billion

Products & Services: Android Auto | Android messages | Android OS | Calendar | Cardboard | Chrome | Chrome Web Store | Chromebook | Chromecast | Forms | GBoard | Gmail | Finance | Earth | Google Cast | Google Classroom | Google Cloud | Google Pay | Google Play Google Store | Google Street View | Google Wifi | Google for Education | Google + | Hangouts Waze | Wear OS by Google | Youtube

Competitors: Microsoft | AOL | Facebook | Baidu | Ali Baba Group | Ask | Apple| Amazon | Yahoo | Verizon | Samsung

Fun Fact:Did you know Google was originally named BackRub?

An Overview of Google

Google was founded in 1998 by Larry Page and Serge Brin in California, USA. The duo formed a massive technology company as a research project while at Stanford University. Since then, the company evolved exponentially and became a tech giant in the mainstream media. As of October 2, 2015, Sundar Pichai is the CEO of Google.

The global search engine has revolutionized the digital world. It has made life easier. All it takes to gather information now is a click of the mouse. Google has continued to demonstrate evolutionary strides with its game-changing operations.

It has completely transformed the global economy. Corporations, customers, consumers and just about anyone can now easily access business information anytime and anywhere.

Google SWOT Analysis Report

Google’s Strengths

1. King of the Online Search: Google is the undisputed king of the online search engine department. It processes nearly 2% of world queries.
2. Vast Market share: Currently, Google has over 28% of the market share of desktop searches worldwide.
3. Unbeatable: Till Now, No competitor has come close to challenging its position let alone reaching its market shares in search engine.
4. Biggest Traffic Generator: Every month, this powerful brand produces more than 1.2 billion hits. It is the biggest traffic generator and has a clear advantage over its competitors such as Bing, Yahoo, Baidu.
5. High Revenue: The huge revenue (2017) of 65 billion dollars that Google has garnered through multiple partnerships with different sites has ensured its growth.
6. Adaptability: Google’s has successfully adapted mobile and Android technologies, giving it potential to compete directly with Apple’s iPhone.

Google’s Weaknesses

1. Privacy policies: Google has been slammed by many experts for its excessive reliance on privacy, especially when it comes to hiding information about algorithms. The company has since taken steps to address the allegations.
2. Excessive Advertisement: Google’s overdependence on advertising has increased speculations regarding the company’s future. The company made 86 % of total revenuefrom its advertisement related projects. Experts suggest that a potential change in revenue would damage the company significantly.
3. Boycott of Google and Youtube by Major Advertisers: Major brands boycotted against Google and Youtube when they discovered that their ads were running alongside extremist, hate-filled content. It has negatively affected Google’s image. The companies that boycotted against the search engine and video platform included Johnson & Johnson, AT&T, and Verizon in the U.S, L’Oreal, HSBC, RBS, the BBC, the Guardian newspaper, British retailer Marks & Spencer, Lloyd’s of London in U.K, and Audi, Havas, Tesco, Volkswagen, Sainsbury. In addition to these brands, even the British government boycotted.

Google’s Opportunities

1. Wearable Market: In Nov 2019, Google has acquired Fitbit for $ 2.1 Billion to compete with Apple and Samsung in the lucrative and growing wearable (smartwatch and fitness band) market.
2. Android OS: The most substantial opportunity for Google is its noticeable efforts in the Android Operating System provision. This has strengthened its prospects to directly compete with Apple iOS.
3. Google Glasses and Google Play: Google is prepared to market its newly introduced Google Glasses and Google Play. It can boost Google’s progress and development.
4. Cloud computing: With its storage and cloud solutions, cloud computing can play a vital role in Google’s marketing enterprise. In January 2018, Google introduced a new digital store, which offers cloud-based software to all organizations. In line to this, the company collaborated with MobileIron, Inc., to integrate its cloud Orbitera commerce platform with MobileIron’s app distribution, security, and analytics capabilities.
5. Non- Ad Business Model: Google needs to undertake a diversification process and aim to build a non- Ad Business Model accordingly. It needs to pursue adaptability by committing itself to more commercial transactions. It will ensure sustainable revenue.

Google’s Threats

1. Decline in market shares: According to data gathered from emarketer, Google’s US digital ad revenue is expected to see a decline in market shares. It was 38.8% (2017), 37.2% (2018). This is because of the growing competition from Facebook, Amazon, Instagram and Snapchat for ads market share.
2. Gender Bias: A Google memo published by its employer James Damore highlighting its diversity policy has sparked a strong debate regarding the issue of gender bias and free speech in the company.
3. Alteration of Information: Google has received considerable criticism over its alleged collaboration with China over a censored search engine project (Dragonfly).
4. Antitrust Controversies: Google has been involved in antitrust controversies for years by both US and EU lawmakers. The EU antitrust regulators imposed a 5 billion Euro finewhich Google has sought to challenge.
5. Censorship Policy: Google has not managed to protect itself from backlash over its censorship policy. Many whistleblowers have begun leaking formation over its political, ideological leanings.
6. Competitors: The primary threat that Google faces is from its competitors Facebook and Amazon. The two competitors are slowly catching up with Google. Their new features and increasing popularity can take the spotlight away from Google.

Conclusion

The SWOT analysis of Google shows the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats of the biggest online search engine. The popularity of Google allows it to enjoy huge profits.

The search engine keeps on growing every year and keeps on improving its technology. If Google addresses its weaknesses and threats, no other competitor can outperform or even match this company.