Australian search advertising should total $869.7 million in 2008, making it the fastest growing segment in the local digital media advertising industry, according to the Australia Search Advertising Market 2008-2012 report released today by Frost & Sullivan.

Keyword sponsorships continue to lead demand accounting for 51% of total revenue ($443 million), followed by online directories ($264 million) and contextual searches ($163 million).

The study identifies that 75% of advertisers are now spending more than 10% of their total media budget on search related activities. This compares with 65% 12 months ago.

However, the key benefits of search advertising, including increased leads, conversions/sales and high return on investment, were all down on last year’s results. A total of 59% of brands that used search ads said it resulted in increased leads, down from 66% last year, while 44% said it increased conversions/leads compared to 49% last year. Only 25% of the advertisers surveyed said search advertising achieved a high return on investment, down from 31% last year.

Frost and Sullivan suggests advertisers will turn to search ads in the economic downturn because of its cost effectiveness.

Tags: Australia, Frost & Sullivan, online advertising, search advertising

Posted on Friday, November 28th, 2008 at 3:13 pm under Australia, Marketing, Technology, e-marketing.

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