How does this relate to the search marketer? Ah well that’s the story for our readers isn’t it. Well, we’ve got that too. They also ranked the top 10 web site by parent company and top 10 web sites by brand as well as the time spent per person combined in both home and work. This is where the tale really is told.
In the parent site category, Microsoft rules the roost with over 111 million in unique audience spending 2 hours 13 minutes. Time Warner (AOL) gets just over 103 million users spending 5 hours 16 minutes. Yahoo is next with 101.521 million at 3 hours and 39 minutes. Google was a distant fourth, both in terms of audience and time per person at almost 82 million but averaging a measly 47 minutes. Ebay was lacked the audience coming at just under 58 million but made up the difference in time spent at 2 hours, 7 and half minutes.
Rounding out this list was the U.S. government, with about 55 million users at 27 minutes. Then IAC at almost 46 millin users and 20 minutes. Amazon with just over 43 million users and 25 minutes. Finishing the list were RealNetworks 37 million users and just under an hour and Viacom with 36.6 millin and 1 hour, 11 minutes.
The other side covering the top 10 brands had Yahoo at the top with over 101 million at 3 hours, 39 minutes. Microsoft was next at 95. 6 million and 46 minutes. Then comes MSN with 92 million and 1 hour 53 minutes. Once again, Google in a distant fourth with 80.4 million and averaging 46 minutes.
AOL didn’t have quite the same numbers at 75.7 million but the ones they have hang around for a whopping 6 and a half hours. Then was eBay at just over 55 million but users hang around for just over 2 hours. Next came MapQuest at about 39 million at 13 minutes and Amazon at 37.6 million and 22 and half minutes. Rounding out the list came Real at 36.4 million and just under an hour and then the Weather Channel at 31.2 million and 33 minutes.
To quantify:
Example: The data indicates that 36.6 million home and work Internet
users visited at least one of the Viacom International-owned sites or launched a Viacom International-owned application during the month, and each person spent, on average, a total of 1 hour, 11 minutes and 2 seconds at one or more of their sites or applications.
A parent company is defined as a consolidation of multiple domains and URLs owned by a single entity. A brand is defined as a consolidation of multiple domains and URLs that has a consistent collection of branded content. Reach is a measure of the unduplicated audience that visits a property. The data is expressed as the percentage of the total universe of Internet users who logged onto the Internet at least once during the reporting period.
Folks should keep in mind this doesn’t reflect some of the new additions seen in recent weeks by companies. For example, Google’s new IM tool can’t really be figured into this yet. The statistics in a year should present a clearer picture of the situation.
The only drawback Google will have is that Yahoo, AOL and MSN have had their IM programs out for years now and Google has some ground to make up. They also offer a lot of other services Google doesn’t and some feel Google shouldn’t be put in the same category as them in many cases but for purposes of marketing research and then into marketing/advertising, Google’s got some catching up to do.
Something else to consider as well is AOL’s recent overhaul of their business. While AOL has lost a number of subscribers, they are still an aggressive, strong portal and their users stay with them for extraordinary amounts of time, over 6 times longer than with Google and twice as long as the nearest competitor. That has appeal to advertisers.
John Stith is a staff writer for Murdok covering technology and business.
