Google accounted for 91.75% of UK searches in December
Google Sites accounted for 91.75% of all searches conducted in the UK in December 2011, up by 0.67% since November 2011, according to Experian Hitwise’s latest Search Engine and Social Analysis.
Google was the only search engine that grew over the period, with Microsoft and Yahoo! Sites both falling by more than a quarter of a per cent.
James Murray, market research analyst at Experian Hitwis, said: “Google was the standout performer in search and particularly during the hectic Christmas shopping period. We saw record levels of Internet traffic at Christmas with 2.18 billion visits going to online retailers in December, a year-on-year increase of 4.8 per cent. Retailers were relying more on search traffic in 2011, with 43 per cent of all visits coming from a search engine, and for every ten visits to retailers from search, nine were from Google during this critical period.
“Getting the right blend of traffic from search, social, affiliates and other traffic sources is essential, but with search being so dominant at these key times, it is more important than ever for marketers to optimise paid and organic search campaigns.”
Year-on-year, Google was up 0.42%, second to Ask sites, which were up 0.44%. Microsoft sites were up 0.15%, while Yahoo! sites were down by -0.88%.