The State of Search

A look at the changing natural search landscape and a new

metric for measuring marketers’ search presence in the
engines.

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A 360i White Paper

November 2009

© 360i LLC

NEW YORK | ATLANTA | CHICAGO | DETROIT | SAN FRANCISCO | LONDON | info@360i.com | 888.360.9630

© 2009 360i LLC. All Rights Reserved

Integrated Solutions. Measurable Results.

The State of Search

Contents
Executive Summary.....................................................3
Key Findings .......................................................................3
About PageShareSM ......................................................4
PageShare Defined................................................................4
Why is PageShare Important? ...................................................4
Calculating PageShare ...........................................................5
PageShare Values .................................................................5
Top 100 Advertisers Audit .............................................7
Methodology .......................................................................7
Detailed Findings .................................................................8
Recommendations .................................................... 12
Appendix ............................................................... 13
Approximate PageShare for Top 100 Advertisers .................... 13
Select Social Sites: Advertiser Owned vs. Non-owned ............. 15
About 360i ...................................................................... 18

NEW YORK | ATLANTA | CHICAGO | DETROIT | SAN FRANCISCO | LONDON | info@360i.com | 888.360.9630

© 2009 360i LLC. All Rights Reserved

 Integrated Solutions. Measurable Results.

Executive Summary
The online landscape is rapidly changing, offering an increasing number of
opportunities for brands to gain real estate in search, yet also presenting new
challenges for SEO strategy. This report uncovers the key trends shaping the
future of SEO and quantifies how marketers can assess the success of their
brand’s presence on the engines today.

Specifically, this report reveals:

 A new method for monitoring brand visibility on the search engines –

360i’s proprietary PageShareSM metric

 The prevalence of universal search and social media results types for
both brand and non-brand keyword terms

 A brand SEO audit for each of the Top 100 Advertisers in the United
States as determined by their approximate PageShare on Google

KEY FINDINGS
Universal search listings appear more frequently for non-brand terms.
P A G E S H A R E

 A weighted value  Universal search results composed 8% of all natural search results
analyzed for the 1,000 brand keywords measured in this study.
assigned to a marketer's
presence for a set of  57% of the results for non-brand keywords showcased universal
keyword terms in the first
search types.
three pages of the search
engines.
Social media has a small, but influential presence within natural search, and
these types of results are expected to grow significantly in 2010.
 Social media results appeared for 7% of all natural search results
analyzed for both the brand and non-brand keywords measured in
this study.
 77% of YouTube, Twitter and Facebook listings that appeared on
Google for brand searches were controlled by a party other than the
marketer.

PageShare values vary widely based on industry, keyword type and more.
 Across the brand terms measured for the Top 100 Advertisers list,
marketers with many digital destinations faired best.

© 2009 360i LLC. All Rights Reserved | Executive Summary 3

 Integrated Solutions. Measurable Results.

About PageShare
PAGESHARE DEFINED
PageShare is a weighted value assigned to a marketer's presence for a set of
keyword terms in the search engines. It is calculated by analyzing the number
of text listings occupied by a marketer across the first three search engine
results pages (SERPs) for a respective keyword or keyword set and then
assigning a weight to each of the marketer's listings based on their rank.

Marketers who attain many brand-owned digital destinations on the Web –

whether company domains such as www.brand.com or marketer-controlled
social media URLs, such as twitter.com/brand – will have higher PageShare. A
large number of digital destinations in a brand's portfolio is critical for
maximizing PageShare opportunity.

WHY IS PAGESHARE IMPORTANT?

PageShare helps transform search engine rankings into a straightforward
"shelf space" metric so that marketers know their share of visibility for a given
term or set of terms. It is a critical component to any marketer's digital
strategy and overall presence in the search engines.

Since search engine result pages can be equated to virtual shelf space, the
more shelf space a marketer occupies with their listings, the more likely a
consumer will engage with their brand or products. When a consumer types in
a keyword – especially a brand keyword – they are conveying explicit intent
and interest in attaining information about a marketer's brand. Marketers who
analyze their PageShare and take steps to improve it will be best equipped to
capitalize on consumer interest in their brand, products or industry.

In addition, as social and consumer-generated media become more prevalent

and search-friendly, marketers who employ an aggressive PageShare strategy
for their brand terms can help prevent unwanted content and links from
appearing within the first pages of the search engines. Services such as digital
word of mouth and well-executed social media strategies can further serve to
increase the volume of positive buzz and user-generated content (UGC)
appearing in the search results for a brand.

© 2009 360i LLC. All Rights Reserved | About PageShare 4

 Integrated Solutions. Measurable Results.

It is possible for a brand to have relatively low PageShare but a strong natural
search presence if there are many positive listings from social media sites
ranking in the first three pages that are not controlled by the brand (i.e. UGC).
However, brands can gain even more visibility, traffic and authority if their
own links (which are calculated in PageShare) appear in those results pages.

CALCULATING PAGESHARE
PageShare can be calculated for one keyword or multiple keyword terms and
benchmarks for brand and non-brand terms vary widely. Given the difference
in the competition for brand versus non-brand terms, marketers should
calculate their PageShare against a predefined set of related keywords (i.e.
brand terms or a specific set of product terms) rather than attempting to
calculate a single score for all keywords in their SEO strategy. Brand terms
should be calculated separately from non-brand terms since what constitutes a
competitive PageShare score will vary depending on the keyword type.

Figure 1. PageShare for brand terms and non-brand terms should be calculated independently.

Only text-based results owned by the marketer are included in the calculation
of PageShare.

PAGESHARE VALUES
It is important to note that 100% PageShare is highly unlikely. This would
require brand-owned digital destinations to rank in every position (1-30) on
the first three pages of Google, Bing and Yahoo! for each keyword measured.
This kind of dominance is highly improbable for brand terms and close to – if
not impossible – for non-brand terms.

The following scorecard is helpful when assessing the relative strength of a

marketer's PageShare for brand terms only. The competition surrounding

© 2009 360i LLC. All Rights Reserved | About PageShare 5

 Integrated Solutions. Measurable Results.

non-brand terms varies widely by industry and so there is no standard

scorecard for these keywords that is applicable to all brands and industries.

PageShare Scorecard for Brand Terms

Rating PageShare
EXCELLENT 80-100%

GREAT 40-80%

GOOD 30-40%

OK 20-30%

POOR 0-20%

© 2009 360i LLC. All Rights Reserved | About PageShare 6

 Integrated Solutions. Measurable Results.

Top 100 Advertisers Audit

For this report, the rankings for ten brand terms for each of the top 100 US
advertisers were analyzed to assess the relative strengths and weaknesses of
these leading advertisers in capitalizing on natural search shelf space for their
brands. The report also examines the frequency of universal search results -
enhanced listings such as videos and news- and social media listings -links to
social destinations such as Twitter and Facebook- for the 1,000 brand
keywords measured in this study.

METHODOLOGY
360i calculated the approximate brand PageShare as of June 2009 for the Top
100 Advertisers in the United States (Source: Advertising Age). For each
advertiser, we measured results and rankings for their ten most frequently
searched brand terms, identified using Google's Search Keyword tool1, and
reviewed the text-based results appearing across the first three pages on
Google. We also recorded the number of listings that were social media sites2
or universal search results3 in an effort to quantify the frequency of these
types of listings in the current brand search landscape.

Universal search results are not counted in PageShare. For this report, text-
based social media listings, with the exception of YouTube, Twitter and
Facebook pages controlled by the brand, were not counted toward each
individual advertiser’s brand PageShare.

For this reason, the PageShare audit among the Top 100 Advertisers is
an approximation.

A complete PageShare analysis can be performed when a brand provides a full

list of domains and social media pages under their control.

1
Brand keywords with highest average monthly search volume
2
A list of 110 popular social media domains as identified by 360i
3
Local, video, images, news, blogs and select product listings

© 2009 360i LLC. All Rights Reserved | Top 100 Advertisers Audit 7
 Integrated Solutions. Measurable Results.

DETAILED FINDINGS

Universal search listings appear more often for non-brand terms.

Universal search results are natural search listings that include visual content
such as maps, images, video and more, as opposed to simply a text-based
link. These search results composed 8% of all natural search results analyzed
for the 1,000 brand keywords measured in this study.

TEXT VS. UNIVERSAL LISTINGS FOR BRAND KEYWORDS

© 360i

To compare the frequency of universal search results for non-brand keywords,

360i analyzed 50,000 non-brand terms across a variety of industries and
product categories and found that 57% of the results on the first three pages
of Google displayed universal search results.

TEXT VS. UNIVERSAL LISTINGS FOR NON-BRAND KEYWORDS

© 360i

© 2009 360i LLC. All Rights Reserved | Top 100 Advertisers Audit 8
 Integrated Solutions. Measurable Results.

Social media has a small, but influential presence within search

results.
Social media search results are text listings on a search results page that lead
to social media sites such as blogs, user-generated content, wikis, video
sharing sites, social networks and more. Social media results appeared for 7%
of all natural search results analyzed for both the brand and non-brand
keywords measured in this study. The prevalence of social media did not vary
based on keyword type.

SOCIAL VS. NON-SOCIAL LISTINGS FOR

BRAND & NON-BRAND KEYWORDS

© 360i

Taking a closer look at the YouTube, Twitter and Facebook listings that
appeared in search results for the brand keywords measured, only 23% were
under the control of the brands themselves. A full 77% of YouTube, Twitter
and Facebook listings that appeared for brand searches were controlled by a
party other than the marketer4.

4
See Appendix for detailed list of advertiser owned vs. non-owned pages on YouTube, Facebook & Twitter appearing in
search results for each brand.

© 2009 360i LLC. All Rights Reserved | Top 100 Advertisers Audit 9
 Integrated Solutions. Measurable Results.

SHARE OF YOUTUBE, FACEBOOK & TWITTER LISTINGS

© 360i

Consumers often exert significant control over social and universal results
types – such as on Wikipedia, YouTube, blogs and more. While user-generated
content about a brand is not inherently negative, marketers who are conscious
of the results appearing in searches for their brand are better armed to protect
themselves from unwanted or potentially unflattering user-generated results,
as well as to uncover opportunities for enhancing their relationships with
consumers and online influencers.

PageShare approximations vary widely across the Top 100.

Approximate PageShare - excluding universal search results and social listings
other than YouTube, Facebook and Twitter - varies widely across the Top 100
Advertisers list5.

Strongest PageShare
 AT&T, Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft and Citigroup lead the pack with
PageShare of 70% and higher.

 Of the four leaders, AT&T and Hewlett-Packard crown the list. A closer
look reveals that these technology brands have a large number of
product and brand domains, which they are able to leverage for higher
PageShare.

5
See Appendix for a complete list of the Top 100 Advertisers and their PageShare scores.

© 2009 360i LLC. All Rights Reserved | Top 100 Advertisers Audit 10
 Integrated Solutions. Measurable Results.

Figure 2. AT&T has many well-optimized product domains, giving them a high brand
PageShare
© 360i

 While a high number of product domains may drive shelf space and
increase PageShare, it does not necessarily present the best variety of
listings to reach consumers seeking both information and/or
engagement. Social media and universal search results provide
opportunities for deeper engagement between consumers and brands.
Marketers that maintain high PageShare, yet have limited social media
or universal search listings, should seek to increase their universal and
social listings on the first pages of the engines. Doing so will help drive
deeper engagement with their brands.

Weakest PageShare
 Coty (JAB Investments), Hyundai Motor Co. and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
(MGM) hold the weakest PageShare at 30% or less. These brands,
especially MGM with their rich online content, could raise their
PageShare significantly with a structured SEO strategy utilizing social
listings and other digital destinations.

© 2009 360i LLC. All Rights Reserved | Top 100 Advertisers Audit 11
 Integrated Solutions. Measurable Results.

Recommendations
Here are a few ways to leverage the changing search landscape and maximize
PageShare for your brand:

 Do an inventory check against your brand’s portfolio of owned domains

and subdomains. This will help you architect a strategy to maximize
brand exposure in the engines.

 Take stock of the social media destinations you actively manage right
now. For sites not currently in your portfolio, claim the most relevant
URL, alias or destination address for your brand as soon as possible, for
example:

 http://www.twitter.com/360i
 http://www.facebook.com/360iagency

 www.linkedin.com/companies/360i
Set up the basic profile settings even if you are not ready to actively
participate in the conversation as part of your social media strategy. If
you do participate, think of ways to influence SEO. Plenty of interplay
exists.
Finally, register and claim misspellings, abbreviations and variations of
the brand, products or trademarked addresses in your portfolio.

 Cross-link owned domains and social media destinations. This creates a

search ecosystem that will allow PageRank, domain history and strength
to permeate. Implement a decisive strategy in which you help the
engines understand the complex relationship between your primary
domain and your range of digital destinations. Connect the dots to
maximize PageShare potential.

 Monitor the impact of universal search. Take note of how the addition of
video, news, local and image result types influence the SERPs of
keywords associated with your brand. Universal search can appear for
both brand and non-brand keyword terms, serving as a valuable
opportunity to increase shelf space on the engines.

© 2009 360i LLC. All Rights Reserved | Recommendations 12

 Integrated Solutions. Measurable Results.

Appendix
APPROXIMATE PAGESHARE FOR TOP 100 ADVERTISERS

Rank Advertiser Score Rank Advertiser Score

1 AT&T 80% 29 Sprint Nextel Corp. 58%
2 Hewlett-Packard 77% 30 General Mills 58%
3 Microsoft Corp. 70% 31 Wyeth 58%
4 Citigroup 70% 32 JP Morgan Chase & Co. 58%
5 Time Warner 69% 33 HomeDepot 58%
6 Nestle 69% State Farm Mutual Auto
34 Insurance 57%
7 Sanofi-Aventis 68%
35 Pepsi Co 57%
8 Bayer 68%
36 Apple 56%
9 Campbell Soup Co. 68%
37 Yum Brands 56%
10 Walt Disney Co. 66%
38 Honda Motor Co. 56%
11 Allstate Corp. 66%
39 Clorox Co. 55%
12 Kohl's Corp. 65%
40 Coca-Cola Co. 55%
13 Verizon Communications 65%
41 U.S. Government 55%
14 Novartis 65%
42 L'Oreal 54%
15 Dell 64%
43 Walgreens Co. 54%
16 Kroger Co. 64%
44 IBM Corp. 54%
17 Kellogg Co. 64%
45 Reckitt Benckiser 54%
18 Glaxo Smith Kline 64%
46 General Electric Co. 54%
19 eBay 63%
47 Wendy's International 54%
20 Capital One Financial Corp. 63%
48 safeway 54%
21 Sony Corp. 63%
49 SC Johnson 53%
22 Boehringer Ingelheim 62%
50 Alltel Corp. 52%
23 Deutsche Telekom 62%
51 Johnson & Johnson 52%
24 Merck & Co. 60%
52 Viacom 52%
25 ConAgra Foods 60%
53 Nike 52%
26 Gap Inc. 60%
54 Schering-Plough 51%
27 Ford Motor Co. 60%
55 News Corp. 51%
28 Procter & Gamble Co. 58%

© 2009 360i LLC. All Rights Reserved | Appendix 13

Integrated Solutions. Measurable Results.

Rank Advertiser Score Rank Advertiser Score

56 Wells Fargo & Co. 51% 79 Diageo (guiness) 45%
57 Washington Mutual 50% 80 Estee Lauder CDS. 44%
58 Pfizer 50% 81 McDonald's Corp. 44%
59 Visa 50% 82 Molson Coors Brewing Co. 42%
60 Eli Lilly & Co. 50% 83 Target Corp. 42%
61 Bank of America Corp. 49% 84 Progressive 41%
62 Doctor's Associates (Subway) 49% 85 General Motors Corp. 41%
63 Best Buy 49% 86 Astra Zeneca 41%
64 Lowe's Corp. 49% 87 IAC/lnterActive Corp 41%
65 Energizer Holdings 49% 88 Sears Holdings Corp. 40%
66 Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. 48% 89 MasterCard 39%
67 DirecTV Group 48% 90 Burger King Holdings 39%
68 Philips Electronics 48% 91 Comcast Corp. 39%
69 American Express Co. 48% 92 Toyota Motor Corp. 38%
70 Unilever 48% 93 Mars Inc. 36%
71 J.C.Penney Co. 47% 94 Berkshire Hathaway 35%
72 Wal-Mart Stores 47% FMR Corp.(Fidelity
95 Investments) 35%
73 Macy's 47%
96 Nissan Motor Co. 31%
74 SAB Miller 47%
97 Hyundai Motor Co. 30%
75 Anheuser-Busch Corp 46%
98 Coty (JAB Investments) 28%
76 Chrysler 46%
99 Circuit City Stores 26%
77 Mattel 46%
100 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer 19%
78 Kraft Foods 45%

© 2009 360i LLC. All Rights Reserved | Appendix 14

Integrated Solutions. Measurable Results.

FACEBOOK, TWITTER & YOUTUBE:

ADVERTISER OWNED VS. NON-OWNED LISTINGS
This chart reveals the total number of Facebook, Twitter and YouTube listings that appeared within
the search results analyzed for the Top 100 Advertisers on the first three pages of Google. These
listings are broken out by those owned by the marketer versus those under the control of a party
other than the marketer. The table is sorted by the total number of social listings appearing in the
SERPs.

PageShare Non-
Rank Advertiser Advertiser
Among Owned Owned Total
Top 100 Advertiser Listings Listings Listings
90 Burger King Holdings 2 15 17
42 L'Oreal 0 15 15
52 Viacom 0 14 14
40 Coca-Cola Co. 6 8 14
41 U.S. Government 1 10 11
81 McDonald's Corp. 0 10 10
51 Johnson & Johnson 6 4 10
20 Capital One Financial Corp. 0 9 9
80 Estee Lauder CDS. 0 9 9
23 Deutsche Telekom 3 6 9
94 Berkshire Hathaway 0 8 8
82 Molson Coors Brewing Co. 1 7 8
38 Honda Motor Co. 1 7 8
74 SAB Miller 2 6 8
30 General Mills 6 2 8
91 Comcast Corp. 0 7 7
92 Toyota Motor Corp. 0 7 7
70 Unilever 1 6 7
32 JP Morgan Chase & Co. 1 6 7
100 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer 3 4 7
13 Verizon Communications 3 4 7
53 Nike 5 2 7
73 Macy's 0 6 6
36 Apple 1 5 6
95 FMR Corp.(Fidelity Investments) 0 5 5
78 Kraft Foods 0 5 5
97 Hyundai Motor Co. 0 5 5
56 Wells Fargo & Co. 1 4 5
96 Nissan Motor Co. 1 4 5
© 2009 360i LLC. All Rights Reserved | Appendix 15
Integrated Solutions. Measurable Results.

PageShare Non-
Rank Advertiser Advertiser
Among Owned Owned Total
Top 100 Advertiser Listings Listings Listings
17 Kellogg Co. 1 4 5
27 Ford Motor Co. 1 4 5
55 News Corp. 2 3 5
72 Wal-Mart Stores 2 3 5
35 Pepsi Co 2 3 5
37 Yum Brands 5 0 5
86 Astra Zeneca 0 4 4
61 Bank of America Corp. 0 4 4
60 Eli Lilly & Co. 0 4 4
66 Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. 0 4 4
2 Hewlett-Packard 1 3 4
83 Target Corp. 2 2 4
19 eBay 2 2 4
44 IBM Corp. 2 2 4
15 Dell 2 2 4
11 Allstate Corp. 2 2 4
22 Boehringer Ingelheim 3 1 4
34 State Farm Mutual Auto Insurance 3 1 4
18 Glaxo Smith Kline 4 0 4
79 Diageo (guiness) 0 3 3
87 IAC/lnterActive Corp 0 3 3
93 Mars Inc. 0 3 3
98 Coty (JAB Investments) 0 3 3
57 Washington Mutual 0 3 3
62 Doctor's Associates (Subway) 0 3 3
75 Anheuser-Busch Corp 0 3 3
54 Schering-Plough 0 3 3
28 Procter & Gamble Co. 0 3 3
69 American Express Co. 0 3 3
63 Best Buy 0 3 3
29 Sprint Nextel Corp. 0 3 3
25 ConAgra Foods 1 2 3
64 Lowe's Corp. 1 2 3
69 Nestle 1 2 3
33 HomeDepot 3 0 3
45 Reckitt Benckiser 0 2 2
49 SC Johnson 0 2 2
47 Wendy's International 0 2 2
© 2009 360i LLC. All Rights Reserved | Appendix 16
Integrated Solutions. Measurable Results.

PageShare Non-
Rank Advertiser Advertiser
Among Owned Owned Total
Top 100 Advertiser Listings Listings Listings
9 Campbell Soup Co. 0 2 2
8 Bayer 0 2 2
89 MasterCard 0 2 2
16 Kroger Co. 0 2 2
1 AT&T 0 2 2
68 Citigroup 0 2 2
68 Philips Electronics 1 1 2
21 Sony Corp. 2 0 2
88 Sears Holdings Corp. 2 0 2
77 Mattel 0 1 1
99 Circuit City Stores 0 1 1
3 Microsoft Corp. 0 1 1
65 Energizer Holdings 0 1 1
10 Walt Disney Co. 0 1 1
76 Chrysler 0 1 1
71 J.C.Penney Co. 1 0 1
85 General Motors Corp. 1 0 1
39 Clorox Co. 1 0 1
7 Sanofi-Aventis 1 0 1
58 Pfizer 1 0 1
67 DirecTV Group 1 0 1
50 Alltel Corp. 0 0 0
26 Gap Inc. 0 0 0
46 General Electric Co. 0 0 0
12 Kohl's Corp. 0 0 0
24 Merck & Co. 0 0 0
14 Novartis 0 0 0
84 Progressive 0 0 0
48 Safeway 0 0 0
5 Time Warner 0 0 0
59 Visa 0 0 0
43 Walgreens Co. 0 0 0
31 Wyeth 0 0 0

© 2009 360i LLC. All Rights Reserved | Appendix 17

Integrated Solutions. Measurable Results.

ABOUT 360I
360i is an employee-owned digital marketing agency that
drives results for Fortune 500 marketers through insights,
ideas and technologies. 360i helps its clients think Find 360i at:
differently about their online presence and evolve their
strategies to take advantage of the new world of
marketing communications – one where brands and
consumers engage in interactive and multi-directional twitter.com/360i
conversations. Current clients include H&R Block, MTV
Networks, NBC Universal, and Office Depot, among
others.
facebook.com/360iagency
360i is a division of Innovation Interactive, a digital
marketing services company. For more information,
please visit http://blog.360i.com/.
blog.360i.com

© 2009 360i LLC. All Rights Reserved | Appendix 18