Google Adwords positions 1 & 4 Show increased CTR

So a recent study made by Adobe Media Optimiser finds that the Paid Google SERPs (Search Engine Result Page) may be more beneficial to retailers who down bid their CPC and aim for position 3 or 4 as opposed to number 1 and 2 paid place.

Google recently removed their right-hand sidebar that contained paid results and replaced this with an additional paid result at the top of their search results and another three at the bottom of the page which appears after organic results. Since this sidebar was removed their analysis has shown that CPCs (Cost Per Click) dropped while CTRs (Click Through Rate) increased. Adobe's findings were published in their April 2016 Advertising Report, which analysed three months of anonymous data retrieved from search advertising. Adobe undertook the report to measure the impact of Google's decision to remove the right-hand ads.

The study shows that these changes have affected smaller advertisers than the majors, this is because smaller advertisers rely more on what we call low-volume keywords. Due to the recent changes by Google, the smaller advertisers have found they're got to increase their CPC and pay more to reach the top position. The smaller advertisers have also reported roughly a 10% reduction in clicks for less expensive keywords that appear in lower results.

The report shows us that CPC rose for position one and two by around 7% while costs fell for 3rd and 4th paid position by 8-10%. This shows us that advertisers are bidding significantly higher on the first two paid positions while paid position three and four are showing better CTRs.

As we compare the click through rates for the fourth paid position it rose by 18% while CTR for first and third grew by 13% and 2% respectively. The CTR for the second paid position didn't show any signs of moving at all.

Adobe concluded that the 3-month study of CPCs for paid position one and three were an indication that consumers responded well to Google removing the right paid ads bar.

If you require any help with Google Adwords Management, please contact us.