The Dominance of Google Mobile’s Paid Search Clicks

Google still holds the crown in paid search advertising. The new 2016 Digital Marketing Report by Merkle revealed that the search giant currently leads the industry, and it’s mainly due to the continuous growth in mobile usage.

According to the report, Google still dominates paid search clicks in the first quarter (Q1) of 2016, with smartphone clicks reaching 39%, up from 33% during Q4 2015. Cost per click (CPC) fell 6%. More than half of Google’s paid search clicks came from mobile.

Wondering how that happened? Well, Google is smart enough to show more ads at the top of mobile search results during the third quarter of 2015. This move has doubled the rate of mobile click growth. That’s how it happened.

Here are other interesting numbers from the report:

• Google Shopping Ads (PLAs) increased by 41% and text ads rose 13% in terms of paid search.
• Search ad spend across Bing Ads and Yahoo’s Gemini fell 10%; CPC increased by 4% and clicks slipped 14%
• Mobile PLAs’ ad spend grew by 193% and clicks reached 162%, while CPC got a 12% boost.
• Tablet visits consistently declines mainly due to consumers opting for smartphones or larger screens (desktop).

The Reason Behind Bing Ads and Gemini’s Poor Performance

The poor results generated across Yahoo’s Gemini and Bing Ads platforms was possibly due to the potential sale of all or part of Yahoo’s business. Gemini was originally launched as a mobile platform, but more than half of its clicks in Q1 2016 were on desktop.

Google’s Search Partners Enjoying the Benefits

Clicks from search partners had 6% share of the total PLA click growth, with a whopping 545% increase year over year. These include Google image search and third party retail sites.

Evidence of Continued Growth and Dominance

The graph shows that in Q1, Google generated 95% of all paid search clicks that came from smartphones. Bing Ads held just 3%, while Gemini got only 1% of the total mobile paid search clicks.

What Does It Mean for Businesses?

With Google staying ahead of the competition, more business owners are reviewing their digital marketing campaigns and initiatives. It would be better if you allot a bigger budget on mobile paid ads and business listing ads, which are providing the best results these days.

More people are using their smartphones to search online, which is why making your website responsive is more important than ever. Paid ads optimized for mobile search get more clicks, therefore driving increased traffic to websites. More visits mean more chances of increasing conversion rates and sales.

Where to Get Help

RefractROI, the premier Denver search engine marketing company, is highly capable of turning your vision into reality. We specialize in paid search or PPC advertising, among other services. Together, we’ll design a campaign that will deliver the best results for your business.
Are you excited to know how else this growth in Google mobile paid search clicks can benefit your brand? Contact us today so we can talk about your goals and lay a solid plan for your success online.