Google Report: Maruti Most Searched Auto Brand

Published: Tuesday, August 23, 2011, 18:27 [IST]

Google, the world's top search engine has recently released a report according to which Indian research for automotive content the most. The results of the report, named - Google India Auto Industry Report, are quite surprising considering India is still far behind Europe and the US in terms of internet connectivity.

Google's report on the auto segment is one of the fastest growing online searches with a 84 per cent growth. Most of the searches were related to car purchases. The Google report states at least 65 per cent of car buyers did an internet search before buying an automobile. While in Europe and the US 62 per cent of buyers conducted an internet search before a purchase.

Indian car buyers used google to compare car models, prices, specifications and features as well as to find out details about new models. Another notable finding in the report is that Indian car buyers were also trying to find out details about used cars too.

The most searched car brand was invariably Maruti Suzuki, which sell s more than half the cars sold in India. Maruti was followed by Hyundai, Honda, Tata Motors, General Motors, Volkswagen, Ford, Toyota and Fiat. Hero Honda was the most searched two wheeler brand in India. This also reflects the market domination of Hero Honda.. Bajaj Auto is placed second followed by Yamaha and TVS.

In terms of models searched during launches, the Google India Auto Industry Report states the most searched car model was the Maruti Suzuki Alto K10, ford Figo, the new Hyundai i10, Suzuki Kizashi and the Chevrolet Beat. The Maruti Suzuki SX4 Diesel also figures in the list.

The Google India Auto Industry Report is a clear indicator of consumer behaviour with most searches going towards budget models. The increasing penetration of internet and the availability of content from various sources has lead to Indian car and bike buyers researching a lot over the internet before making a purchase. This means car and bike manufacturers have to pull up their socks and build strong internet content to garner the interest of buyers.