Google Instant has positive impact on CTRs, ad impressions

Google Instant has had a positive impact on click-through rates and ad impressions, according to recent research by Marin Software, despite earlier concerns the fast page displays would decrease traffic.

by Helen Leggatt

Google Instant is serving up more relevant ads, according to Marin Software. This is reflected in a rise of 5.6% in click-through rates.

"Google Instant was seen as a big gamble for Google when the company announced it, but it's proved to be a positive change for the industry," said Matt Lawson, vice-president of marketing, Marin Software.

"Google has pulled off the elusive win-win-win with the release of Instant, driving increased usability for consumers and increased volume for advertisers, while managing to increase their slice of the overall search pie in the process."

When Marin Software, who manage search ad spending, compared ad impressions in the two weeks after the introduction of Google Instant with those in the two weeks prior, they found these, too, had risen - by 9.3%.

But is this rise due to the increased search results pages being displayed? Every time a search phrase is changed, Google Instant updates the results page, but the pages can be so fast-changing that searchers often don't have a chance to eyeball any ads.