Generic v branded: search term study gives surprising results

The findings challenge a widely held belief that most consumers begin the product search process by using a generic search term (e.g. "plasma TV") and then later refine their search activity to product-specific terms.

In actual fact, says the Overture sponsored study, while 85% of searchers do indeed conduct additional searches later in the shopping process, the majority of consumers continue to use the same search term type (either generic or branded) with which they began the search process.

Since 83% of consumers start their search process with a generic term and only a relatively small percentage later search using a product-specific term, on-line retailers or manufacturers that invest solely in product-specific keywords will miss more than 80% of consumer electronics or computer (CE/C) searchers.

The study, carried out by marketing consultancy comScore Networks, analysed the timing of search engine usage and the role of different search term categories in the shopping process among internet users who conducted a CE/C search at one of the top 25 search engines in the first three months of this year.

It found that generic product search terms accounted for more than 70% of total search volume, while trade marked retailer terms such as "Best Buy" or "Gateway.com" accounted for 20% and specific product terms, such as "Canon digital camcorder," accounted for 10%.

The study also found that while generic terms accounted for the majority of purchase conversion (61%), branded terms (either retailer or product terms) were approximately 30% more likely to result in an on-line purchase.

"It's critical that retailers consider generic search terms as an important part of their keyword strategy," said James Lamberti, vice president of comScore Networks. "Marketers focused solely on specific product terms known to convert directly will fail to address the vast majority of consumers in the buy cycle."

comScore also found that generic search terms are likely to have influenced even those consumers who converted to purchase after conducting a retailer trade mark search. Fully 84% of these buyers searched using a generic term earlier in the buying cycle, reinforcing the importance of reaching consumers early in the search process when they are defining their consideration set.

"This research supports the theory that all types of terms play an important role in influencing the consumer's purchase decision," said Diane Rinaldo, director of strategic alliances at Yahoo! subsidiary Overture. "With this new knowledge, marketers take a major step toward better understanding the full impact of their search advertising campaigns."

Among the other findings, the study revealed that 25% of searchers ultimately purchased a CE/C product and that an estimated 92% of these purchases occurred off-line. Among the 8% of post-search purchases that were made on-line, the vast majority occurred in subsequent user sessions, and not directly after a search click-through.

The study, which tracked on-line buying behaviour for 90 days following a CE/C search, found that only 15% of on-line purchases following a CE/C search occurred in the same user session as the search itself, with 85% of conversions occurring in a latent (or non-search) session. Additionally, nearly 40% of all purchases occurred five to 12 weeks after the initial CE/C search was conducted.

"These findings reinforce the importance of considering the latent impact of search engine usage when evaluating search engine marketing investments," said Lamberti. "Search cannot be thought of as solely a direct response marketing tool, especially in highly considered product categories where search activity can precede a purchase by as much as 60 to 90 days."