eCommerce giant leads the pack, but strong presence from travel businesses
London: Amazon.co.uk was the leading UK retailer in paid search advertising over the course of the last year according to new rankings released by the Kantar Media company AdGooroo.
The study – which ranked the top 20 UK paid search advertisers based on Google.co.uk desktop text ad clicks on the top 50,000 keywords between January and December 2016 – revealed that amazon.co.uk generated almost 35 million clicks, over 8.5 million more than the next advertiser in the ranking.
The second biggest retailer in the list was travel site booking.com which generated 26.3 million clicks over the course of the year, followed closely by mobile phone network giffgaff.com with 25.9 million.
The top 20 ranking features five travel brands, including onthebeach.co.uk, Trivago, Expedia and Airbnb, but they are joined by companies across a range of sectors. Online takeaway service Just Eat featured highly in the ranking, with 21.4 million clicks. Telecoms companies, including giffgaff and BT, and fashion retailers such as ASOS and JD Sports also feature prominently within the top 20, along with price comparison site Moneysupermarket.com. The ranking also features two advertisers from the online bookmaking sector, William Hill and Paddy Power.
Some of the top keywords in the UK during 2016 based Google.co.uk desktop text ad spend include ‘car insurance’, ‘payday loans’, ‘casinos’, ‘travel insurance’ and ‘hotels’.
Eric Marcy, Chief Revenue Officer at AdGooroo, commented, “Our findings not only reveal the top paid search advertisers in the UK but also mirror the most popular industry sectors in the UK market: retail, travel and financial services. In particular, the presence of so many travel brands at the top of the ranking highlights a particularly competitive market for companies in this sector.”
Top UK paid search advertisers by clicks in 2016:
| Top UK paid search advertisers by desktop ad clicks
Based on Google.co.uk Desktop Text Ad Clicks on 50,000 Top Keywords, Jan-Dec 2016 |
|
| Advertiser | Clicks |
| amazon.co.uk | 34,900,000 |
| booking.com | 26,300,000 |
| giffgaff.com | 25,900,000 |
| just-eat.co.uk | 21,400,000 |
| asos.com | 18,700,000 |
| moneysupermarket.com | 16,400,000 |
| onthebeach.co.uk | 15,200,000 |
| williamhill.com | 15,200,000 |
| bt.com | 15,100,000 |
| jdsports.co.uk | 15,000,000 |
| sky.com | 14,800,000 |
| paddypower.com | 14,600,000 |
| trivago.co.uk | 14,600,000 |
| expedia.co.uk | 13,300,000 |
| virginmedia.com | 12,600,000 |
| boots.com | 12,500,000 |
| johnlewis.com | 12,500,000 |
| airbnb.co.uk | 12,200,000 |
| gocompare.com | 11,600,000 |
| asda.com | 11,100,000 |
Methodology
AdGooroo measures paid search activity on more than 2.5 billion search engine results pages across more than 50 countries and 14 search engines. Our proprietary algorithms and methodologies utilize the search data we collect in conjunction with machine learning and advanced statistical modeling to accurately estimate in-market results at the keyword, ad and advertiser level.
The results of this report are based on a measurement of text ad clicks on the top 50,000 branded and non-branded keywords on Google.co.uk desktop between January and December 2016. Advertisers may be sponsoring additional keywords during this period that, if measured, would alter the findings of this report.
About AdGooroo
AdGooroo is a Kantar Media company and global leader in Search Marketing Intelligence that helps the world’s best known brands and their agencies achieve a competitive advantage in the search marketplace. Founded in 2004, more than 4,000 search marketing professionals trust AdGooroo for reliable, actionable insights to uncover their top competitors’ paid and organic search strategies and improve their own campaign performance. Offering a complete picture of the search marketing landscape, AdGooroo enables clients to view current and historical data—including spend estimates, performance statistics, keywords and ad creative—for virtually any advertiser’s text ad and product listing ad campaigns across desktop/tablet and mobile search in more than 50 countries.
Visit www.adgooroo.com for more information.
About Kantar Media
Kantar Media is a global leader in media intelligence, providing clients with the data they need to make informed decisions on all aspects of media measurement, monitoring and selection. Part of Kantar, the data investment management arm of WPP, Kantar Media provides the most comprehensive and accurate intelligence on media consumption, performance and value.
For further information, please visit us at www.kantarmedia.com
