Eyetracking Shows Web Audience Ignores Ads

More evidence of the importance of ranking in the "natural" or "organic" results! We continually talk in class about how searchers ignore ads. Here is some hard evidence on the point.

In the study cited in this article, the focus was on banner ads, and with some discussion of "annoying" ads and how people respond to them. The posting shows the results of some eyetracking studies. These are tests that are done by having subjects open web pages, then having machines follow their eye movements to see what parts of the page they actually look at. In the three sharts shown, it is clear that people don't even look at the ads sections of the pages!

This is entirely consistent with my observations of my own experience when browsing the web. I can assure you that I could not even tell you what the ads on the page referred to in most cases. They are just not a part of my "scan pattern" on a page!

All studies that I have seen of searcher behavior have always reinforced this point. With this kind of information in hand, one wonders how paid ads ever contribute anything to the success of a site!

Optimizing your site properly so that the search engines present you in their unpaid listings is still the best investment of your marketing efforts! Not only will you get better results for your efforts, but the results don't stop when you stop paying for them!!

'Click Fraud' Threatens Foundation of Web Ads - washingtonpost.com

"From her home surrounded by cornfields in Dow City, Iowa, Jackie Park spends hours each day on her computer, earning half a penny every time she clicks on an Internet advertisement."

With a lead-in like this, it is easy to understand why search engines might have trouble dealing with click fraud. The woman described above earns about $300 per year for clicking around the web on sites that her "handlers" direct her to.

There does not seem to be any way for a search engine to determine that the clicks coming from this computer are fraudulent. The only recourse they have is to examine the impact on the sites that are being defrauded to see any patterns that do not make sense. But that raises a different question. How do you determine that an increase in clicks is legitimate or fraudulent?

The advertisers are looking for an increase in clicks as a payoff for their ads. Getting clicks is an indication that the ads are working. Of course, what they really want is sales, not clicks. But how do you determine that the reason you are not selling is because the clicks are fraudulent rather than the fact that your landing page is not effectively selling your product?

As always, we continue to emphasize the benefits of creating an effective web site that will rank well in the organic listings. Spend your resources where they will give you the maximum payoff over the long term at the least cost to your business!

Why search is so hot today,

An article in Searchenginewatch reports from the Search Engine Strategies conference, February 27-March 2, 2006, New York, NY.

Searchers want more control over the information that they will base their opinions and purchasing decisions on. The Internet serves this preference with search engines. As the presenters at the conference made their point:

Searchonomics: Search Statistics Made Fun:
"1. Consumer skepticism and resistance to advertising. According to Insight Express, 'consumer trust in advertising has plunged 41% over the past three years' and only '10% of consumers say they 'trust' ads today.'
2. In the varied world of today's media, the consumer is increasingly in control. A 2005 study by Yankelovich showed that almost 70% of consumers were actively looking for ways to block, opt-out, or eliminate advertising."

The speakers went on to describe how advertisers are spending their money on Internet advertising, but this represents a real disconnect with waht is happening on the web. Note the following quote from the presentation:

"A 2004 Enquiro study found that B2B users had a 63% preference for organic. Interestingly, according to a 2005 MarketingSherpa report, "organic SEO gets a higher conversion rate than does sponsored search." The conclusion? "Advertisers should be spending more time, effort, and money towards improving their natural search results," said Ramsey."

The question this raises is, "Why do advertisers insist on spending their money so ineffectively?" One can only speculate. My personal reflection on this question is that there is a familiarity with advertising that is driving part of this phenomenon, whereas the dynamics of organic search are unfamiliar to marketing personnel. People will stick with what is comfortable to them even though all indications are that another approach would be more effective. In addition, advertising through a system like PPC (Pay Per Click) lends itself to statistical reporting and analysis in ways that organic search promotion does not.

Good organic results promotion is a more amorphous process. A PPC ad can be measured more precisely than the impact of good site development and promotion, which has a more holistic nature to it. I find this encouraging because it means that there will continue to be opportunities for those of us who are willing to put in the effort to focus on organic results. We will still be able to compete against the larger organizations with their bigger budgets.

Paid Search not the way to go! - says eMarketer

"Paid search spending is up more than 40%, overshadowing all other forms of Internet advertising and marketing. Yet if you take a close look at the actions and attitudes of search users the people who monetize search with their clicks you may find that paid search ads are not the most effective way for you to advertise online."

This research study comes to a conclusion that we have seen echoed in many other studies that we have viewed on line and presented in Internet Marketing class.

We have seen information showing different demographic profiles for the major search engines that can be useful to marketers who are targeting particular markets.

Studies have indicated that trust in a web site or vendor can be a more important factor in a buying decision than price.

Searchers prefer natural listings over sponsored listings by a rate of 60-70% (although other studies have indicated that most searchers don't know the difference!) Different studies have shown us that searchers tend to see what is presented on the upper left side of the page more than any other page content. This finding could have something to do with the preference for natural listings, since sponsored ads tend to be placed on the right.

People more and more use the Internet to research purchases they are considering, sometimes far in advance of the actual purchase. In addition, many of those purchases occur "off-line", that is, the buyer will go to a store to complete the purchase after they have done the research on the Internet. It takes good marketing on your site to make these people convert on-line, where the site owner will get the direct benefit!

The lesson is that marketing on the Internet is a complex business that requires persistence and attention to detail in order to succeed. There is still no free lunch!

Organic Search Still Dominates!

In a report cited in Searchday newsletter, Enquiro reports that organic searches still dominate the generation of commercial leads. The study involved eye scanning of searchers as they reviewed their search results, and found that searchers prefer, by a large margin, the results that appear in the upper left corner of the results page.

This study reinforces the concept that organic listings remain extremely important to marketers regardless of how much they might spend on Pay Per Click marketing!

We discuss these and other factors relevant to search engine marketing in our regular Wednesday evening clinics at the University of Houston Small business Development Center. Sessions are free to all comers!