April 18th, 2006

How searchers use engines

Most people using a search engine expect to find what they are looking for on the first page of results according to a study released last week, The iProspect Search Engine User Behavior Study, and available to the public (see below). At most, people will go through three pages of results before giving up it found.

It also found that a third of users believed companies in the first page of results were top brands.

The study surveyed 2,369 people from a US online consumer panel.

It found 62% of those surveyed clicked on a result on the first page, up from 48% in 2002.

Some 90% of consumers clicked on a link in the first three pages, up from 81% in 2002.

These findings emphasize the importance of appearing on the first few pages of search results, whether in natural or sponsored listings.

Importantly, 82% of search engine users re-launch an unsuccessful search using the same search engine used initially, adding more keywords to their query. Just 68% stayed with the same engine in 2002.

This suggests searchers are not only loyal, they’re increasingly using lengthier queries. For search marketers, this means if you’re not targeting both simple keywords as well as lengthier keyword-rich phrases you’re likely missing out on a lot of traffic.

The study also found that 36% of searchers believe that companies whose websites are returned at the top of the search results are the top companies in their field. Slightly more (39%) felt neutral on this question. At the other end of the spectrum, just 25% said that top search engine rankings had nothing to do with market or brand leadership.

A full copy of the iProspect Search Engine User Behavior Study can be downloaded.

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