Exploring competitive gaps to create a "Turkish" local search engine

Abstract

Purpose- In today’s world, organizations, brands and even countries compete in an information-rich global market in which the main competitive factor is technology. One of the business models that came with the development of technology is an Internet portal including several features such as search engines. Within this context, the present study aims to explore the gaps that can create competitive advantages for a new local search engine in Turkey that will be established in the global marketplace and to determine how to position a local search engine brand in today’s information market. Methodology- To carry out this study, 20 people who use both Google and Yandex were interviewed in accordance with the Zaltman Metaphor Elicitation Technique (ZMET) steps. 20 collages were prepared for each participant based on the pictures collected by them to represent the brands’ image in their minds; these collages were interpreted by the researchers using the universal metaphors proposed by Professor Zaltman.  Findings- The collages and the interviews were discussed in line with the following metaphors: container, resource, control, balance and connection. The research findings help us to understand the images about Google and Yandex embedded in users’ minds. According to the participants, Google has a good and simple design, so the user does not have to spend time learning about the portal to use it. Another important point is international recognition. People trust Internet portals that are internationally accepted as valid. The ability to translate to different languages may help an Internet portal be considered more international and gain a larger market share worldwide. In addition, it is important to provide a lot of resources, for doing so helps searches be more credible. A good and successful Internet portal should focus on privacy. Users want to feel safe, especially on the Internet, so a good protection system would gain users’ trust. Conclusion- The original contribution of this research is that people who use these search engines not only see them as search engines but also perceive them as an intelligent friend, a tempting home or even a universe full of information. According to the research findings, Turkey would be able to create a competitive advantage by investing in a local Internet portal rather than focusing only on search engines.