3 replies to this topic

[websage]

WebIntercept and behavioral-based Search Survey

Nielsen//NetRatings WebIntercept Responses from the Search Engine Survey*
Question: "What is the purpose of today's search?"

Response % Selecting Response
For research 38%
For entertainment or personal interests 31%
To find out more about something you heard by "word of mouth" 15%
For business 14%
To comparison shop 11%
To make a purchase 10%
To look for news 10%
To find a phone number or address 7%
For personal finance information or to get investing tips and news 6%
To look up an unfamiliar word 3%
Other 14%

* Please note that respondents could select multiple responses
therefore percentages do not equal 100.

Source Nielsen//NetRatings, WebIntercept

[SearchRank]

Only 10% search to make a purchase but along with that, how many of the following end up making a purchase of some sort?

For research 38%
To find out more about something you heard by "word of mouth" 15%
For business 14%
To comparison shop 11%
Other 14%

I always conduct research before making a purchase and therefore could fall into any one of the brackets above. In fact, I would have to do one of the things mentioned above before I made a purchase and then I would not have to "search" to make the purchase because by that time, I have the site bookmarked or remembered.

Therefore if someone were to interpret this as, "Maybe I should worry about my search engine positioning because only 10% of people who search buy stuff," that would be an inaccurate assumption IMO!

[websage]

And of course brand building can be an outcome of SEO campaign. So, I agree, that survey is a bit too narrow -- it does not necessarily address multiple informational sites which do not aim to sell directly.

[awall19]

I do not think those stats are probably real accurate. How often do you participate in surveys? After a while you get tired of thinking and tired of saying yes. Most of those categories overlap. People do not like to think when they are giving away free information about them. I would say all of those #s should be slightly higher, at least in my eyes.