Searchmetrics Q4 2019 Study Reveals Retail Websites Are Failing to Satisfy Informational Searches for Consumer Electronics
Bestbuy.com is the most visible[1] website in Google’s (Google.com) page one results when people search for consumer electronics topics such as computers, laptops, video and mobile phones according to a new Searchmetrics study. Second and third are Amazon.com and Walmart.com. For searches related to mobile phones, t-mobile.com is the most visible on page one, followed by bestbuy.com.
However, nearly half (48.9%) of searches on these topics are from consumers wanting information and background rather than an intention to make an immediate purchase. And many retailers’ websites may not be providing information that satisfies informational queries such as this.
The Searchmetrics study analyzed Google’s US search results for 1,000 keywords related to consumer electronics topics.
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Which websites are winning market share on Google page one for consumer electronics related searches?
- Bestbuy.com (27.8%)
- Amazon.com (13.0%)
- Walmart.com (8.3%)
- Newegg.com (6.0%)
- CNN.com (5.2%)
- Costco.com (4.4%)
- Staples.com (3.8%)
- Bhphotovideo.com (3.6%)
Which websites are winning market share on Google page one for mobile phone related searches?
- T-mobile.com (28%)
- bestbuy.com (13%)
- amazon.com (11%)
- gearbest.com (10.5%)
- att.com (10%)
“The top retail sites are estimated to average around 66% transactional traffic compared with only 34% traffic from informational searches. It can be important for ecommerce focused sites to attract ‘top of the funnel’ informational traffic from people who may be searching for background information ahead of making a purchase decision,” said Tyson Stockton, Director of Services, Searchmetrics. “Creating informative content to address these types of queries should be an important part of retailers’ content marketing strategies. This content can be targeted towards expanding existing category pages or through related topics in editorial sections of the site.”
The report also suggests that retailers who sell consumer electronics should target Videos, Images, Google Shopping ads and other features or widgets (known collectively as SERP features) that Google regularly integrates directly into its page one search results. For example, 60% of mobile search results for consumer electronics include Images boxes on page one and 76% include Videos.
According to the analysis, Amazon.com is the website most likely to appear in Images boxes and also the website that places the most Google Shopping Ads for consumer electronics searches (appearing in 45% of all Images boxes and 46% of all Google Shopping boxes).
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How often do different SERP features appear for consumer electronics searches?
| SERP Feature | Mobile | Desktop | |||
| Videos | 76% | 41% | |||
| Images | 60% | 62% | |||
| Related Questions | 88% | 89% | |||
| Google Shopping Ads | 63% | 64% | |||
| AMP | 97% | N/A |
Among other prominent SERP features is the Related Questions box, which appears on page one for more than 80% of consumer electronics searches on mobile and desktop. These are the ‘People Also Ask’ suggestions, which are related to the main search topic (each suggestion includes a drop-down button which reveals more information displayed in a Featured Snippet-like box when clicked). If retailers do not make it into the traditional organic results, Related Questions provide another way to get onto page one.
AMP (accelerated mobile pages) show up for 97% of mobile search results on consumer electronics related topics. AMP is a Google-backed system that lets websites create faster loading pages, initially introduced to help news and media sites create a user-friendly mobile experience. AMP can be displayed in a variety of ways including in News Carousels and other designated spaces in search results.
“Interestingly, while AMP was originally created for media sites, we noticed that some consumer electronics retailers in our study, most notably newegg.com, also using AMP pages. These pages can be used for editorial and news related pages that came be featured in the AMP carousel[2] as well as a way to improve page speed,” said Tyson Stockton.
The SERP features are an important opportunity for retailers to increase their visibility on page one. They usually stand out prominently on the results page which means they can attract more traffic explains Stockton:
“Websites can use a variety of tactics to help get their pages listed within SERP features, ranging from hosting and tagging relevant images and videos in order to increase the chances of appearing in Images and Videos boxes, to creating relevant content and marking it up in the correct way to get picked in the Related Questions suggestions. And with the large number of Google Shopping ads being shown for these searches, appearing in additional SERP elements will help gaining presence on Google’s first page.”
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