The search engine market is led worldwide by the big player Google with a constant 90% share. However, a number of alternative search engines are emerging that do not want to let the giant get away without competition. In addition to Google, Bing, Yahoo!, YANDEX, and Baidu are the most notable representatives of the search engine market. In this blog post, however, we want to take a look at the alternative search engines that make up just under 2% of the market in the "Other" category. Vegan products, ingredients, and social fundraising are some of the goals that alternative search engines pursue.
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Alternative search engines in the ranking
For most people, Googling has become synonymous with finding information in the vastness of the World Wide Web. This term does not seem fair to the countless alternative search engines that abound on the internet. When we are not Googling, but searching for a specific product online, the alternatives prove to be valuable and necessary.
Privacy has become a sensitive issue on the internet. Those who do not want to disclose their data to third parties prefer to search with DuckDuckGo or Startpage. The ecological footprint left by the processing of vast amounts of data and the commercialization of the Internet is also becoming increasingly important to many users. As a result, a number of alternative search engines have established themselves that are characterized by their support for a green lifestyle.
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No. 1 Codecheck
helps you decipher cryptic descriptions of ingredients. Whether it's food or cosmetic products, CodeCheck reveals unwanted ingredients. By scanning the barcode with the CodeCheck app, you can find out whether your cosmetics contain critical ingredients such as parabens, silicones, palm oil, or microplastics.
The food check is particularly suitable for vegans, vegetarians, or people who suffer from food intolerances. But even for those who want to avoid unnecessary additives, too much sugar, or fat, it's worth scanning with the app. The alternative search engine not only lists unwanted ingredients, but also rates each product according to a traffic light system. The app also allows you to customize your settings so that the rating system can be tailored to your own needs.
The perfect platform for green products
For companies that focus on green products, the CodeCheck app can be a real asset. Products can be entered independently and then released for review by CodeCheck. User reviews are also invaluable for product providers. Positive reviews increase the popularity of the product, and FAQs are taken directly from the community. Negative feedback can also be immediately incorporated into the process and acted upon.
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No. 2 VeggieSearch
VeggieSearch is the place to go for sustainable and vegan products. The operators of this alternative search engine place great importance on animal welfare, organic, fair trade, and plastic-free products. Through collaboration with numerous online shops, products are filtered according to selected criteria and listed on VeggieSearch. However, the platform not only offers a simple search function, but also blog posts with exciting information about the vegan lifestyle. You can find lots of recipes, test reports, and interesting facts about sustainable options on the blog .
Green Eldorado for sustainable online shops
VeggieSearch clearly focuses on sustainable lifestyles. Vegan and green online shops not only have the opportunity to generate new customers through a ranking in the alternative search engine, but also find the ideal persona fit. After all, who uses a search engine called "Veggie Search"? Vegans and those who are committed to sustainable options, of course.
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No. 3 TreeDay.net
"There is always a more sustainable option—you just have to know where to find it!"
TreeDay.net is considered the green counterpart to Yellow Pages. This sustainable business directory is the perfect place to find restaurants, hotels, grocery stores, fashion shops, hairdressers, bike shops, and much more in your area. The alternative search engine for green products has developed the first index for sustainability. With the TREEDAY INDEX, you can see at a glance how sustainable a company is. Companies are rated on a scale from 0 to 100.
TreeDay also offers the opportunity to measure your own sustainability. By saving CO2, your environmentally friendly actions are directly converted into TreedCoins. These can be redeemed in the form of vouchers for sustainable products or services from TreeDay partners.
The Green Yellow Pages Business Directory
Visiting a foreign city and have no idea where the nearest organic market is? TreeDay.Net offers the perfect solution for finding sustainable shops nearby. Not only supermarkets, but also fashion stores, drugstores, hairdressers, and many more are listed in the sustainable business directory. The traffic light rating system tells you immediately whether you can shop with a clear conscience and discover new products.
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No. 4 Ecosia.org
At Ecosia is a charity search engine. The alternative search engine from Berlin uses its advertising revenue to plant trees. Transparency is high on the list of priorities for search engine operators. That's why they publish their financial report and show users exactly where the proceeds from the ad content have gone. The search results and necessary search ads are provided by the Yahoo search engine. Ecosia's servers run on 100% renewable energy, and with every tree planted, approximately 1 kg of CO2 is removed from the atmosphere. That's what we call CO2 neutral!
Ecosia also scores highly in terms of data security. Unlike the big player Google, the alternative search engine does not create user profiles of its users. No data is sold to advertisers, and every search query is anonymized within a week.
Charity cause, carbon neutral, and more privacy
The alternative search engine Ecosia seems to offer everything you could possibly want when searching the internet today. Every search equates to a good deed for people and nature. And as if that weren't enough, you're also doing something good for yourself and your privacy. If that's not motivation enough, the countdown of trees already planted under the Ecosia search bar is sure to help. Happy searching and planting!
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No. 5 Gexsi.com
The alternative search engine Gexsi.com is a digital platform for social investments. Each search query generates a small amount of money, which adds up to a considerable sum. Every two weeks, Gexsi supports a different social project. When you open the search box of the alternative search engine, the project for which donations are currently being collected is presented. Gexsi wants to support young social startups and work together to make the world a better place.
Search with purpose!
Each of us uses a search engine (most likely Google) several times a day. However, there are a number of alternatives that also allow you to show your social commitment. Gexsi.com shows that searching the internet does not have to exclude charity.
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Sustainability is the new sale
From our technologized world, humans look back on nature and wish they had caused less damage to it. Sustainability has become the buzzword of the 21st century. Alternative search engines have made it their mission to bring technology and nature back into harmony and to play an important role in reducing humanity's ecological footprint.
Sustainability is also an effect of a fully integrated content marketing strategy. The ranking in alternative search engines is therefore sustainable in two ways. On the one hand, high-quality content constantly generates organic visitors. On the other hand, searches via Gexsi, Ecosia, TreeDay, VeggieSearch, or CodeCheck are already marked with a green star thanks to Good Cause.
Sustainable search engines: hit or miss? What do you think?
