Study: Search spend, engagement up

New data indicates search marketing isn't going anywhere. In fact, thanks to improvements in search targeting, researchers expect to see the overall search spend continue to grow.

by Kristina Knight

Marin Software has released the Q1 2018 Digital Benchmark Report and among the more interesting findings is this: Europe is fueling an increased search spend worldwide. The search spend is up about 11% globally. Higher CPCs are driving the increase in spend; healthcare (26% increase) and automotive (21% increase) are leading the search spend categories.

Another reason for the increase is that search is returning better leads. Marin's data shows that click-thru rates (CTRs) for search have increased 25% YoY; this, they believe, is due to better targeting options which is leading to increased relevancy.

"We're looking forward to tracking search and social spend as regulations like GDPR go into effect," said Wes MacLaggan, SVP of Marketing at Marin Software, "particularly given that the Eurozone led search spend growth in Q1. Also, with data privacy in the hot seat and changes like Facebook's News Feed algorithm already contributing to the shift towards a consumer-centric landscape, 2018 will be a year to watch closely."

Another big change for search: dynamic ads. Marin's research shows Facebook Dynamic Ads increased 37% YoY.

Mobile is becoming a bigger piece of the search puzzle, now accounting for about 40% of the search spend, but mobile CPCs are significantly lower than desktop.

The full Marin report can be accessed here.

Tags: advertising, advertising spend, advertising trends, Marin Software, search ads, search marketing, search marketing trends