Unleashing the power of Google Toolbar

[Chndru]

Given, the revamped interest on search-engines by the major internet based companies (like Yahoo, MSN), Google faces a major threat to its search-focused business. I am interested in projecting Google Toolbar as a vital cog in the Google's future projects. Owning a vital piece of real estate on the people's browser will ultimately prove how Google is perceived among the public. Until now, Google's interest is primarily on utilizing the information and organizing them. Unofficial statistics say there are 2 million Google Toolbar users. But given the threat from Yahoo, MSN and notably MS's Longhorn, in this article, I am arguing that, though primary goal of Google will be efficient digging of information, Google needs to widen its perspective.

For e.g., Google Toolbar could be efficiently transformed into a surfer-enhanced-experience-bar. Say, by including some features that enable surfers a pleasant experience. Among them, Google has now pop-up blocker. It would pay Google to expand to Spy/Ad-remover, anonymous surfing (like Anonymizer.com), child-lock (based on their safe-content search), Tab-enabled Search (like Opera), Online virus protection, Weather Updates etc.. in their Toolbar

One of the biggest challenges Google faces is from MS. MS owns a lot of real estate on people's desktop. I would be least surprised if default homepage in Longhorn’s integrated browser is search.msn.com with a big font message 'where do you want to go today?' and a search button. At least, Yahoo owns some piece of real estate on people's desktop, like Yahoo Messenger, Companion, and Mail etc. Google's users from Yahoo will be completely lost, when Yahoo decides to promote its in-house search engine rather than Google. Industry watchers claim that day is not so far away.

Average user of internet is hardly faithful. Most of the Google users will not take the pain in going to Google's homepage, if the default search engine provides satisfactory results. Yahoo has other interests in pulling users towards its sites, as it is a portal. The gap between the quality of search engine based results among major search engines is diminishing. Google has long been the benchmark in search engine performance. In these tough times, projecting Google Toolbar aggressively and incorporating more reasons for average users to download them will help Google a long way.

One of the arguments that can be put against include, Google will lose its unique perception of a search engine company. However, every company at some point of time has to widen its perspective. MS has its focus on OS, but MS will claim that Office and IE can go-together with their OS in helping computers more user friendly (and what not?). Similarly, MS also has taught us that, it is just important owing vital piece of real estate on user's desktop as is to be the first or doing well.

Potentials of search in general, have long been underestimated in the internet community. There are only there ways a user can surf the websites s/he has not known earlier.
1. Uninitiated Referrals (Links from the websites s/he knows, Ads, news articles, word of mouth, emails)
2. Initiated Referrals (search engines)
3. Random Referrals (guessing a DNS name on the address bar)
Of these search engines is one of the vital pieces through which a site can be promoted, which leads into search engines being masked as a gateway to internet, that all-in-all would want Google to capture some real-estate on user's desktop.