UK search marketing survey goes live
Online publisher E-consultancy in conjunction with search agency Neutralize (**) are conducting follow up research to last year’s widely read 2007 UK Search Engine Marketing Benchmark Report, which contained a comprehensive analysis of the UK Search environment.
This year’s research will cover online marketing budgets and the effectiveness of search marketing, as well as looking at the use of social media. Those taking part in this year’s survey will receive a free copy of the ensuing 2008 UK Search Engine Marketing Benchmark Report.
Lotte Mahon, marketing manager at Neutralize (**), said in a press release issued this morning, “We are really looking forward to working with E-consultancy on the 2008 report. Last year’s results offered a unique insight into UK Search Engine Marketing and the report received a wealth of positive feedback. We are aiming for an increase in respondents this year so I would urge everyone involved in the industry to give us their valuable opinions!”
The online survey, which is open to both advertisers and agencies, will be live until Thursday, March 6, 2008. Those wishing to complete the survey should go to http://tinyurl.com/3al59r.
More than 700 digital marketers responded to last year’s survey, including just under 400 client-side search marketers and more than 250 agencies.
Highlights from last year’s report included:
• Just under half of respondents (48%) said that their companies carried out paid search exclusively in-house. Some 57% of companies were doing SEO exclusively in-house.
• On average, company respondents said that they spent 32% of their total marketing budget on online marketing. On average, they spent a third of their online marketing budget on Search.
• Overall, respondents said that SEO was more important than PPC in terms of impact on brand.
• Google was viewed as the best search engine across a range of criteria. However, half of respondents believed that Google had an unhealthy dominance of the UK search marketplace.
• According to company respondents, lack of internal resource was the biggest problem preventing success for both Paid Search and SEO (natural search).
Go to http://www.e-consultancy.com/publications/search-engine-marketing-report-2007/ for more details about last year’s report.