Any time Google introduces a new service, or even announces its plans to do so, a familiar echo is heard by Internet users and industry experts across the globe: “Google is taking over the world.”

Of course very few people actually think Google is trying to control the world, but it seems very clear that they have plans to expand their business into virtually every market on the Internet (and then some!).

To track how this all happened, let’s go back 12 years ago to when Google first incorporated in September, 1998.  What Google did to become so successful was simply create a superior algorithm that could capture significantly more relevant search results than any other search engine on the market.  By 2000, just two years later, Google became the largest search engine in the world with over one billion pages indexed.  But the company didn’t stop there.  Within another two years, Google developed Google Images, Froogle (now called Google Product Search), Google News, and most notably AdWords, Google’s innovative self-service advertising program that soon became its primary source of revenue through its Pay-Per-Click pricing system.

Since then, Google has continued to relentlessly expand its offerings of Internet-based services and products.  Some more notable ones include Google Maps, Google Earth, Google Videos (in 2006, Google acquired YouTube), Gmail (the third most popular e-mail service on the web), Google Finance, Google Calendar, Google Docs, Google Analytics (one of the best tools used in Search Engine Marketing and online advertising), Google Chrome (their web browser), and the Android operating system for mobile devices.  In addition to their big push in the smartphone market recently, Google has discussed major plans to introduce an ultra-high speed broadband service, which can go up to 100 times faster than regular broadband. 

Even more intriguing, however, are Google’s frequent attempts at entering the social networking market with products such as Google Buzz, Google Wave, and Orkut.  While none of these have been too successful, rumors have started that Google plans to introduce a new product which will finally compete with the social networking colossal, Facebook.  Although this social networking site, referred to as “Google Me,” is just a rumor for now, the thought of Google becoming a major player in that market is astonishing.  While Facebook currently has a dominant share of the social networking market, it wouldn’t be the first time Google prevailed over impossible odds to overtake the industry leader (see Yahoo! Search Engine).  Google’s ability to thrive with so many products and services results from the simple fact that they consistently develop technology that’s innovative, user-friendly, and advantageous.

How advantageous, you ask?  Think about the last time you looked through the Yellow Pages to find a business.  Can’t remember?  That’s because more and more people are using the Internet for their directory and information needs.  Why wouldn’t you?  It’s easy, fast, and accurate.  And according comScore, Google has an approximate 65% share of the search engine market, making it the crème de la crème of the information industry.

So bottom line, is Google really taking over the world?  Highly doubtful.  While it seems to have cemented its position as the world’s best search engine, it’s still miles behind its competitors in most of its other offerings.  Yahoo! Mail dominates Gmail, in terms of users.  Google Buzz can’t touch Facebook, MySpace, or Twitter in popularity.  And while Google Docs and Google Chrome are becoming more widely used every day, most businesses have yet to switch away from Microsoft Office or Internet Explorer.

Though when it comes to the world of Search Engine Marketing and Pay-Per-Click Advertising, it’s pretty safe to say Google has already taken over.