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How Google is killing organic search

July 18, 2012 | Online Marketing

According to new data, the click-through rate of paid search ads on Google now even outnumber clicks on "free" organic search results listings by nearly 2:1 ratio for high-commercial intent keyword searches. Makes you wonder if it’s still worth focusing on search engine optimization.

Pay-per-click ads are slowly taking over Google's search engine results. That should come as no surprise since approximately 97% of Google's revenues are generated by its core business, search engine advertising; Google is understandably protecting and extending its revenue turf.

If you're a business that depends on organic, unpaid search results to drive traffic, you've undoubtedly seen a steady decline in visitors and sales.

"The click-through rate of paid search advertisements on Google now outnumbers 'free' organic search result listings by nearly a 2:1 ratio for high commercial intent keyword searches conducted in the U.S.," says Larry Kim, the founder and Chief Technical Officer of WordStream, a PPC technology and search engine marketing software company that just published some research on the state of Google search.

Get the full story at Inc.com

Read also "60% of Google visitors need to scroll to see high value natural search results" at Econsultancy, and "Google and sponsored search results: is there a “war on free clicks?”" at VentureBeat

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