blog

Mobile Search Statistics 2010: Google's Estimated Share Near 100%

posted by: Kim  /  01 August 2010

With Internet browsing devices continually becoming smaller, more portable, faster and easier to use it comes as no surprise that mobile search is on the up, and it will undoubtedly continue to rise as technologies improve further still.

What also fails to surprise is Google's domination of the mobile search market - However, with figures currently suggesting an almost 100% market share Google seem to be going further than just dominating.

Google, unlike Yahoo!, Bing and the other search engines included here, actually have a higher market share in mobile search than web search, whereas Yahoo! and Bing have a significantly larger market share in web search when compared to their mobile search figures.

Google have a firm belief in mobile search as the future - Erich Schmidt, Google CEO, said in a recent Q&A session "Fast forward 5-10 years. The answer should always be mobile first." - With Google's share of the mobile search market currently at 98.29% they seem to be making all the right moves to secure their future in a 'mobile first' society.

Search Engine Marketing Review

posted by: Admin  /  12 April 2010

As we know, the business of the Internet is a constantly evolving arena where big advantages reward those who stay in touch with the latest trends.  In this blog post I take a brief look at the state of online marketing, the trends we’ve seen of late, and take a look at the results of a recent survey which give us an insight into what to expect in 2010.

The search engine marketing industry in North America alone was worth around $14.6B in 2009, 8% higher than 2008.  The worldwide recession made 2009 a particularly slow year for the first three quarters, but a significant upturn in quarter 4 has continued into 2010, leading market analysts to estimate 14% growth in 2010 at around $16.6B.

Companies continue to move money from IT and other marketing activities into search engine marketing, and social media now plays a significant supporting role in most online marketing strategies.  The results are pretty much as expected.

• Google dominates, with 97% of companies paying to advertise on Google AdWords.
• On average, companies expect to spend 43% more on SEO in 2010 than they did in 2009.
• Social media marketing budgets are still modest compared to search engine optimization and paid search.
• The number of companies who engage in search engine optimization (90%) has remained steady since 2007, while the proportion of companies carrying out paid search marketing (now 81%) has increased from 78% in 2009 and 70% in 2008.
• Three quarters of companies are using Facebook (74%) and Twitter (73%) to promote their brands or companies.

The statistics above are taken from a worldwide survey of nearly 1,500 agencies and marketers from over 65 countries, but what does all this tell us about likely trends for 2010?

Well quite a lot, but I think the most prominent points to come out of this survey are:

The number one challenge facing search marketers this year is being able to accurately measure their ROI (Return On Investment). 

Whilst this seems like a fairly obvious point to make, it’s worth noting that online marketing will continue to drive future budget decisions, making quality of statistical information a key factor in a businesses overall marketing strategy.  The survey saw:

• 42% of respondents citing return on investment as their biggest challenge for SEO,
• 43%  citing ROI as the biggest challenge for paid marketing,
• a massive 63% seeing this as the key issue with Social Media Marketing
  

Social Media Marketing will continue to compliment search engine optimisation and paid web advertising campaigns. 

An increase in investment in Social Media Marketing is envisaged in 2010.  Whilst this may seem pretty obvious, it wasn’t as recently as 18 months ago.  Twitter for example, has come from being a non-consideration to one of the most prominent social marketing platforms in that time, with 73% of companies and 80% of agencies using it for brand marketing.

Other findings include:

• The number of companies who engage in SEO remains the same as 2009 (90%)
• More than 50% of companies have noted an increase in keyword costs used in paid marketing
• Agencies have seen the print advertising sector as even more heavily hit, with 69% of respondents noticing a shift of budget from newspaper and magazine advertising, to online marketing.

If you’re looking for more from your Search Engine Marketing plan, give Fivesite a call on 01234 292200.

Mobile Marketing - Shouldn’t YOU be doing it?

posted by: Andy  /  15 January 2010

It doesn't take a genius to know that the mobile phone market is among the fastest growing and largest overall global markets today. So why aren't more companies making the most of this with their marketing campaigns?

The following should give you an understanding of its importance, and the many ways it can be utilised.

Why is mobile marketing so important?

Generally, mobile marketing can be both a cheap and effective marketing method, whilst also retaining a great degree of flexibility. Furthermore, the reach that it allows marketers to have is enormous as there are currently more wireless mobile devices than televisions and computers combined. Mobiles therefore offer a level of opportunity never seen before by any other medium and are used by most major demographics, making it an extremely appealing marketing channel.

Let's break this down with a little market research:

Reach
There are over 15m mobile media users in the UK.

Acceptance
Mobile penetration in the UK is now approaching 125%, meaning many phone users have multiple SIMs or devices.

High response rates
Forrester Research says that SMS campaigns regularly get response rates of 5% to 25%.

Targeting
Mobile phones offer an inherently intimate medium. It facilitates highly targeted, one-to-one communication with lots of potential for personalisation and up-selling.

Wireless Web
28.3% of European mobile subscribers have 3G devices, and Web traffic from mobiles is already estimated to be growing 8 times faster than web traffic from UK PCs.

Applications and Smartphones
Both are on a meteoric rise, especially in developing countries where standard internet access (through a PC) is often non-existent.

Human Behaviour
Changes in the way mobile phones are being used, brings mobile marketing to centre stage. Devices such as the iPhone, Google's Android phones and Windows Mobile smartphones mean its now easier than ever to send and receive email and access the web 'on the move'. Statistics indicate that total 3G penetration has increased by 36% year on year, with the sales of smartphones increasing exponentially in the past 2 years.

So how do they go about doing it?

The entry of big brands to the mobile market support future growth and help to increase growth rate. So what options are available to businesses looking to take advantage of this? Here's a shortlist of the options; some you already know about, others you may not:

• Short Messaging Services (SMS) and Multimedia Messaging Services (MMS)
• Bluetooth, Wireless and Infrared marketing
• Mobile search marketing
• Mobile display advertising
• Mobile video advertising
• Mobile Applications
• QR-codes

If you're looking to take advantage of the opportunities that marketing to mobile device can offer, please call us for a free consultation on 01234 292222.