Understanding your brand's position relative to competitors is crucial for success. Share of search has emerged as a powerful metric that provides valuable insights into brand health, market position, and potential future performance. This comprehensive guide explores the concept of share of search, its importance, and how businesses can leverage it to drive growth and outperform competitors.

What is Share of Search?

Share of search is the proportion of organic search queries made for your brand compared to all searches made for similar brands in your industry. It's a search engine-focused approach to understanding how your brand stacks up against the competition, using search volume as a key metric for comparison.

While share of search might seem primarily relevant to marketing teams, its implications extend far beyond, offering valuable insights for various business departments.

Share of Search vs. Market Share and Share of Voice

It's important to distinguish share of search from other related metrics:

Market Share

While market share focuses on the proportion of sales or revenue, share of search examines search volume. Share of search data is often more readily available and can provide real-time insights into brand performance.

Share of Voice

This metric measures a business' proportion of media spend. Like market share, accurate data on advertising spend is often difficult to obtain, making share of search a more accessible alternative.

The Importance of Share of Search

1. Sales Prediction - Share of search has shown a strong correlation with market share and sales performance. A study by MyTelescope found an average correlation of 83% between share of search and share of market across countries, categories, and languages. This high correlation extends to sales as well, making share of search a valuable predictive tool.
2. Marketing and PR Effectiveness - Share of search can serve as an indicator of overall marketing and PR effectiveness. For example, agency AIP discovered that brand awareness significantly increased along with share of search when running TV advertisements. Even after campaigns ended, share of search remained 15% to 20% higher year-on-year, demonstrating increased brand salience over time.
3. SEO Performance Indicator - Share of search provides insights into the success of search engine optimization (SEO) efforts. As brand recognition and reputation often drive SEO campaigns, tracking share of search helps monitor progress in these areas. Improved online visibility can lead to increased revenue potential.
4. Conversion Rate Improvement - Branded search traffic typically has a higher conversion rate than non-branded searches. By focusing on share of search as a metric and using it to measure marketing and outreach efforts, businesses can improve brand recall and recognition, potentially boosting organic search traffic and conversion rates.

Calculating Share of Search

Google Trends offers a free, accessible way to calculate share of search:

1. Gather search data for your brand and top 5 competitors using Google Trends.
2. Analyze both search terms and topics for a comprehensive view.
3. Calculate your share of search using the formula: (Your brand's search volume / Total search volume for all brands) x 100
4. Compare results over time to track progress and campaign impact.

Leveraging Share of Search Data

Once you've collected share of search data, there are several ways to use this information strategically:

1. Refine Marketing Strategies: Replicate successful outreach campaigns that boosted search volumes.
2. Enhance Business Forecasting: Combine search volume data with market share information to improve predictions of future business returns.
3. Product Development: Examine search results for relevant topics to inform product line expansions or service offerings that align with new customer expectations.
4. Customer Insight: Understand customer queries better and ensure you're providing answers. For example, are customers comparing your products to competitors, or seeking usage instructions?
5. Competitive Analysis: Identify emerging competitors or shifting market trends based on changes in share of search over time.

Caveats and Limitations

While share of search is a powerful metric, it's important to consider its limitations:

1. Search Result Precision: Brands with common names or those that have become generic terms for a product category may face challenges in obtaining accurate results.
2. Search Behavior Variations: Some brands, particularly well-established ones, may not be searched as frequently because customers go directly to their websites.
3. Intent vs. Volume: High search volume doesn't always equate to purchase intent. Past ownership or brand familiarity may drive searches without indicating current interest in buying.
4. Tool Limitations: Relying solely on tools like Google Trends may not provide a complete picture. The data is often relative rather than absolute, and may not capture the full complexity of search behavior across all platforms.

Future of Share of Search

As digital landscapes evolve, so too will the application and importance of share of search:

1. AI and Machine Learning: Advanced algorithms will enhance the accuracy of share of search calculations and predictions.
2. Multi-Platform Integration: Share of search metrics will likely expand beyond traditional search engines to include social media platforms, voice search, and other emerging technologies.
3. Real-Time Insights: Improvements in data processing will allow for more immediate, actionable share of search insights.
4. Personalization: Share of search data may become more granular, offering insights into specific customer segments or geographic regions.

Share of search represents a powerful tool for businesses seeking to understand their market position, predict future performance, and drive growth. By leveraging this metric effectively, companies can gain valuable insights into brand health, marketing effectiveness, and customer behavior.

However, it's crucial to remember that share of search should be one part of a comprehensive analytics strategy. Combining this metric with other data points, such as customer feedback, sales figures, and market trends, will provide a more holistic view of your business's performance and potential.

As the digital landscape continues to evolve, those businesses that can effectively harness share of search data will be well-positioned to make informed decisions, adapt to changing market conditions, and outperform their competitors. By putting this powerful metric at the heart of your business intelligence efforts, you can unlock new opportunities for growth and success in an increasingly competitive marketplace.