Estimate the number of Google searches conducted in the Philippines on an average day. Walk me through your thinking.

Situation

In a previous role at an advertising startup, our team needed to size the online market for a new client pitch. I was asked to quickly estimate the number of daily online shoppers in Metro Manila to justify the ad budget.

Task

I had to produce a reasonable estimate in under ten minutes, using only publicly available data and logical assumptions, to help the client see the opportunity.

Action

I started by noting the Philippine population is roughly 110 million. I estimated about 70% are internet users, based on past reports, giving around 77 million. I then assumed 80% of internet users use Google regularly, so about 62 million. I further estimated that the average user performs 3-5 searches per day, giving a range of 186 million to 310 million daily searches. To verify, I considered that not all searches are equal; some are navigational. I adjusted downward to account for inactive users, settling on approximately 200-250 million searches per day. I presented this with clear assumptions so the client could adjust based on their own data.

Result

The client was impressed by the structured logic and approved a pilot campaign with a budget slightly higher than originally planned, citing confidence in the market sizing.