Marketing agencies now provide a third of all Google Shopping ads, well ahead of traditional price comparison sites, according to new research.
Google’s product search and price comparison platform has changed a lot since the European Commission handed out a 2.4bn Euro fine for anti-competitive practices, with new structures, ad providers and business models now in play.
A new whitepaper from Searchmetrics looks into the state of competition around Google Shopping ads in the UK, Germany and France.
How has the competition for Google Shopping ads developed?
Traditional price and product comparison sites like idealo, PriceRunner and RedBrain, have an average market share across the UK, Germany and France of 13.8 percent. This is well below that enjoyed by marketing agencies specializing in Performance Display Advertising, who command a market share of 35.1 percent of shopping ads. All other ads come from Google, giving it an average market share in the three countries of 51.1 percent.
Which comparison shopping providers appear in the shopping boxes?
This Searchmetrics analysis of Google Shopping in 2019 also shows which external market participants appear most frequently in the shopping ad boxes in three European markets: UK, Germany and France. Frequently, the marketing agencies are facing classic comparison portals.