Earlier in the week, Consumer Reports was critical of search engines for not clearly disclosing the difference between search results and ads. Yesterday, Harris Interactive released a study that found that a majority of internet users don’t know the difference between natural search results and paid results.
56% of internet users don’t know the difference between natural search results and paid results. More Google users (54%) recognize ads than Yahoo and MSN users.
The study also found that 51% of online adults use search engines for shopping, which is no big surprise. Online users are not necessarily loyal to one search engine, and people search to compare prices.
My analysis: These findings illustrate why a majority of most marketing budgets go to paid search. Since people are searching to compare prices, online retailers have more control over what is shown in the search results when they pay for placement. Natural search algorithms are always changing and therefore unreliable for making sure you’re site is near the top of the list. Additionally, natural search results are unreliable when it comes to the content of the listing.
