Friday, 09, May 2008 12:00
Europeans made almost 25 billion searches during March alone, a new report has revealed.
Analysis prepared by comScore has shown that more than 221 million individuals used search portals that month, each making an average of 111 queries.
Furthermore, the majority of searches were made through Google, the report revealed.
Jack Flanagan, executive vice-president of comScore, said that within eastern Europe, a number of local search portals had gained an increased following.
However, he acknowledged: "With nearly 80 percent of all searches conducted in March, Google is far and away the leading search property in Europe."
The proliferation of search engines could be behind the rising number of companies increasing the amount they spend on marketing through the portals and increasing their visibility.
A recent report carried out by E-consultancy and search marketing firm Neutralize found that one in six companies it questioned spend a minimum of £50,000 a year on optimising their websites for search engines.
It revealed that nine per cent of businesses spend in excess of £1 million a year on paid search tactics.