Searching is no longer synonymous with “googling.” What used to be a trendy term has now become a mark of being uncool, often associated with older generations. If you still use it, you might be seen as a “boomer.” Nowadays, people don’t “google” anymore. They search on social media platforms. Just ask Generation Z.
Chinese youth no longer ask Baidu. According to Chinese publication Huxiu, young people in China have shifted their approach to seeking information, increasingly moving away from search engine giants like Baidu. For example, if young Chinese want to fix a plug, they turn to Xiaohongshu, the country’s version of Instagram. For restaurant recommendations, they prefer Douyin, which is the specific version of TikTok for mainland China and Hong Kong. Lastly, when it comes to analyzing documents, they skip Google, Gemini, and ChatGPT and instead use Kimi, a chatbot developed by Moonshot AI, an Alibaba-backed startup.
Image: eMarketer
Traditional search engines are becoming obsolete. China’s Generation Z has made it clear that social media platforms are taking the lead. The old-style hyperlinked list of search results is fading away. Instead, visual content, particularly short videos, reigns supreme.
This trend is also evident around the world. According to the eMarketer chart above, which is based on data from consultancy GWI Core, young people are increasingly turning to social media platforms as their primary search engines. In 2016, 41% of Generation Z reported using these sites for this purpose. By 2023, that percentage had increased to 51%, indicating a significant upward trend.
Many reasons for this shift. Data suggests that social media platforms help users find the information they want more quickly. Additionally, they perceive these results as more relevant, visually appealing, and entertaining. In contrast, Generation Z views traditional search engines as slow and uninteresting.
Using Google on mobile devices can be cumbersome. Huxiu highlights another possible reason for Gen Z’s preference for social media platforms. The outlet says they’re designed specifically for mobile use, whereas Google and its interface have faced increasing criticism for being less user-friendly.
A search for places to visit in China’s Lantian region is very different on Baidu (left) and Xiaohongshu (right). The text results include ads, while the visual results are more eye-catching and include useful information.
Advertising. Many young people complain about the lack of useful information displayed in Baidu search results on mobile screens. Ads often push relevant results out of quick reach, a problem Baidu shares with Google. While traditional search engines have more space on desktop PCs or laptops, they’re less effective in providing immediate information.
When googling used to be popular. The new search trend may surprise older generations. The Oxford English Dictionary officially recognized “google” as a verb in June 2006, while similar terms are also used in other languages. For years, Google held an imperial dominance in the search market. Although it still maintains the largest market share among search engines, its main competitors are no longer other search engines like Bing, Yahoo, and DuckDuckGo. Instead, it has to go face-to-face with social media platforms.
TikTok, can you recommend a good restaurant? Recent studies offer some insights into this new search trend among Generation Z. In a Bernstein Research report obtained by Fortune, analyst Mark Shmulik said, “Younger audiences are ‘searching,’ not ‘Googling.’ And they increasingly head to social media like TikTok for restaurant recommendations, directly to scaled aggregators like Amazon for retail, and Generative AI search like ChatGPT to get their homework done.”
Google’s no longer the go-to source for information. A survey conducted in April 2024 by Forbes Advisor and company Talker Research, which included 2,000 participants in the U.S., revealed that 45% of Gen Z respondents prefer using platforms like TikTok and Instagram for their searches instead of Google. This percentage drops to 35% for millennials, 20% for Gen X, and just 10% for boomers. “It’s second nature for [Gen Z] to go direct to the source,” Shmulik said.
Google’s dominance is being challenged. Google’s future might be at risk as more users turn to alternatives like ChatGPT and other chatbots to get answers to their questions. In fact, questions that used to be answered primarily through Google are now increasingly being addressed on social media platforms, including TikTok, Instagram, and Xiaoshongshu.
Image | Joshua Fernandez
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