Marketers looking to boost
consumer awareness for products and services, as well as create a negative impact on the competition's brands, might want to consider a paid search campaign, according to a study released Thursday by
Google and OTX.
Representatives from the two companies presented a Webinar on "The Brand Value of Search." Julie Cannova, EVP at OTX, explained ways that paid search can increase
site traffic and key metrics for brands. "Paid search can also be a branding vehicle," said Cynthia Goodrich, senior marketing manager, travel, Google.
Google and OTX explored how search impacts
branding across five product categories: air, car rental, cruise, hotel and online travel agency. About 6,000 responses were collected during the research conducted in the U.S. between Jan. 22 and
Feb. 7.
Although the research looked at categories related to the travel industry, Cannova noted that the theme would likely transfer to other industries as well.
The research found that
paid search increases awareness and brand recall, and also impacts behavioral brand metrics, according to Cannova. "When brands appear in paid search positions the likelihood that consumers will
remember that brand from the page they saw also increases," she said. "The brand's ability to stand out is affected."
While dramatic increases occurred across all paid positions, the positions
that experienced the greatest lift were "top sponsors" and "top sponsors first organic." An interesting byproduct of the increase in awareness from paid search is the impact on awareness for other
brands. Across all the categories, paid search decreased consumer awareness of other brands that appeared in the search engine results query. Not only did it help the paid search brand stand out, but
it gave a competitive advantage by capturing the majority of consumer mindshare.
Paid search also keeps the brand in the forefront of the consumer's mind. So, Google and OTX examined the metrics
that make people change behavior or brands. The research found that consumers tend to click more frequently on ads that promised provide information, rather than just price. Specific spaces within the
paid search listing do too. "Top sponsors and top sponsors plus first organic is the combination most likely to motivate an increase in brand favorability," Cannova said.