Web searching outstrips internet growth
Written 14.02.06 by: Jonathan Briggs
Internet Retailer reports that December Internet searches grew 55% over year earlier level with Google continuing to drive the lion's share of all searches with 48.8%.
The article points out that this massive growth in searching is not simply linked to a growth in the overall population of web users (which grew by only 3% last year) but reflects a real change in the way people use the Intenet.
Businesses cannot afford to ignore this change in behaviour. If a customer uses Google to find a product or store, it is essential that their site is easily found.
Of course a quick look at search results for many common products shows how poorly this is understood by many web design companies. Indeed some sites are so poorly designed and optimised that it a surprise they are found at all for any terms except the brand name.
We have been seen the dominance of searching by looking at our client logs over the last few years. We have changed our designs and optimised these sites and seen revenues rise along with traffic. We are also exploring pay-per-click advertising with many of our clients both as a compliment to organic search and as additional intelligence into visitor needs.
Over the next year, and particularly with the launch of new versions of Internet Explorer and Windows, it will be interesting to see how MSN Search grows in comparison with Google. Yahoo! Search too is likely to be a major competitor. We watch with interest.