Paid Placement in Search Engines
In the below poll we didn't make any distinction between AdWords & organic SEO investments. If we did I am not sure how it would have impacted the voting.
How do you feel about people paying for placement in search engines?
Nearly 2 in 3 people dislike money manipulating search results.
| response | All (1201) |
|---|---|
| I think it is deceptive | 65.4% (+3.3 / -3.5) |
| It is good if it is relevant | 34.6% (+3.5 / -3.3) |
Women tend to dislike it slightly more than men.
| answer | Men (813) | Women (388) |
|---|---|---|
| I think it is deceptive | 63.6% (+3.6 / -3.8) | 67.2% (+5.4 / -5.9) |
| It is good if it is relevant | 36.4% (+3.8 / -3.6) | 32.8% (+5.9 / -5.4) |
Older people tend to think money influencing search is manipulative, as do younger people who have not had their idealism beaten out of them by the harshness of the world. However the people in the 25 to 34 range who grew up with the web tend to like paid search far more than other groups do.
| response | 18-24 year-olds (350) | 25-34 year-olds (266) | 35-44 year-olds (164) | 45-54 year-olds (194) | 55-64 year-olds (148) | 65+ year-olds (80) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I think it is deceptive | 61.3% (+5.0 / -5.2) | 47.9% (+6.6 / -6.6) | 63.8% (+7.0 / -7.7) | 72.5% (+5.8 / -6.7) | 72.8% (+6.9 / -8.1) | 70.6% (+9.9 / -12.3) |
| It is good if it is relevant | 38.7% (+5.2 / -5.0) | 52.1% (+6.6 / -6.6) | 36.2% (+7.7 / -7.0) | 27.5% (+6.7 / -5.8) | 27.2% (+8.1 / -6.9) | 29.4% (+12.3 / -9.9) |
People in the south tend to dislike money influencing search than any other region & people out west are more accepting of it. Perhaps the audience from California is more likely to understand how search impacts the local economy?
| answer | The US Midwest (267) | The US Northeast (333) | The US South (355) | The US West (246) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I think it is deceptive | 64.3% (+6.9 / -7.5) | 66.4% (+5.9 / -6.4) | 69.5% (+5.6 / -6.2) | 59.8% (+7.4 / -7.8) |
| It is good if it is relevant | 35.7% (+7.5 / -6.9) | 33.6% (+6.4 / -5.9) | 30.5% (+6.2 / -5.6) | 40.2% (+7.8 / -7.4) |
Rural people dislike money influencing search more than urban people do.
| response | Urban areas (620) | Rural areas (109) | Suburban areas (460) |
|---|---|---|---|
| I think it is deceptive | 63.2% (+4.4 / -4.6) | 70.9% (+8.9 / -10.8) | 65.3% (+4.9 / -5.2) |
| It is good if it is relevant | 36.8% (+4.6 / -4.4) | 29.1% (+10.8 / -8.9) | 34.7% (+5.2 / -4.9) |
Income has essentially no impact on the perception of the influence of money in search (though there was insufficient data at the upper end of the income range).
| response | People earning $0-24K (135) | People earning $25-49K (675) | People earning $50-74K (307) | People earning $75-99K (71) | People earning $100-149K | People earning $150K+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I think it is deceptive | 65.1% (+7.4 / -8.2) | 65.8% (+4.3 / -4.6) | 65.4% (+6.1 / -6.7) | 66.5% (+9.2 / -10.7) | Insufficient data | Insufficient data |
| It is good if it is relevant | 34.9% (+8.2 / -7.4) | 34.2% (+4.6 / -4.3) | 34.6% (+6.7 / -6.1) | 33.5% (+10.7 / -9.2) | Insufficient data | Insufficient data |
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