Current Issue Summary
Dec 2020 (Vol. 60, Issue 4):

Click-Through Behavior across Devices in Paid Search Advertising: Why Users Favor Top Paid Search Ads and Are Sensitive to Ad Position Change
As the use of mobile devices becomes increasingly prevalent in search-engine activity, digital advertisers need a better understanding of cross-device, click-through behaviors. Chongyu Lu (Pace University) and Rex Yuxing Du (C. T. Bauer College of Business – University of Houston) asked: How do these behaviors differ when it comes to tablets, desktops and smartphones, and how can they inform paid search advertising campaigns? Building on earlier research, the study assessed consumers’ tendency to click on a top paid search advertisement using different devices, and whether position change caused any alteration in click-through behavior. Moreover,  it examined differences in the way users behave when encountering ads on different devices.

Professors Lu and Du looked at Google AdWords data from 13 paid search advertisers. Among their findings: On average, compared to desktop users, smartphone users were more likely to click on top paid search ads, and they were more sensitive to ad position change for unbranded searches. These are searches that do not focus on a particular brand name.

Takeaways include:

• When it came to branded searches (in which the brand name is the focal point of the search), the researchers found no difference in click-through activity and sensitivity to ad position change.
• Tablet users were similar to smartphone users in terms of click-through behavior.
• Overall, advertisers should develop device-specific adjustments when it comes to paid search advertisement campaigns.

Read the full article here.