Economic value of search: Impact of internet technologies

We can confidently say there is not a single day pass by without searching the internet....it means millions..billions...even trillions of search happening around the world but the economic value of search is unknown. The search finds the information that boosts the productivity, finds solution to new problems or finds new problems...makes the life easier.

McKinsey did the study in the five countries - Brazil, France, Germany, India, and the United States 
on the following nine activities that are sources of search value:

• Better matching: Search helps customers, individuals, and organizations find information that is more relevant to their needs. 
• Time saved: Search accelerates the process of finding information, which in turn can streamline processes such as decision making and purchasing. 
• Raised awareness: Search helps all manner of people and organizations raise awareness about themselves and their offerings, in addition to the value of raised awareness from an advertiser’s perspective that has been the focus of most studies.
• Price transparency: This is similar to “better matching” in that it helps users find the information they need, but here, the focus is on getting the best price. 
• Long-tail offerings: These are niche items that relatively few customers might want. With the help of search, consumers can seek out such offerings, which now have greater profit potential for suppliers. 
• People matching: This again entails the matching of information but this time focusing on people, be it for social or work purposes. 
• Problem solving: Search tools facilitate all manner of problem solving, be it how to build a chair, identify whether the plant your one-year-old has just swallowed is poisonous, or advance scientific research. 
• New business models: New companies and business models are springing up to take advantage of search. Without search, many recently developed business models would not exist. Price comparison sites are a case in point. 
• Entertainment: Given the quantity of digital music and video available, search creates value by helping to navigate content. For a generation of teenagers who pass on TV to watch videos on YouTube instead, search has also enabled a completely different mode of entertainment.

Economic value:


The study can be found at:

http://www.mckinsey.com/~/media/mckinsey/dotcom/client_service/High%20Tech/PDFs/Impact_of_Internet_technologies_search_final2.aspx