Who Uses Bing and Should I Advertise There? - MCM

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April 6, 2018 Fern Rogers

Who Uses Bing and Should I Advertise There?

Google is by far the most popular search engine and is where you will find the largest volume of searches in the UK. Many people think that nobody really uses anything else, but people do actually use Bing and you could be missing out on search traffic.

If you are looking for international search volume then Bing actually garners a larger percentage of searches in other countries such as the US. According to recent studies in 2019, almost half of the US population use Bing, with around 36% of the US using Bing exclusively. In this blog, we’ll talk you through why Google is dominant in searches and who actually uses Bing so that you can make the most out of it.

Bing vs Google: What’s the difference?

Google has become the most dominant search tool today – but this hasn’t always been the case in online searches. Google wasn’t even the first search engine and many others, such as Yahoo and Ask Jeeves, came way before it was even launched. So how has Google become so popular and why do people prefer to use it over other search engines like Bing?

Well, a lot of this comes down to the search tools available to marketers and how easy Google makes it to optimise websites. Keywords and other SEO tactics are much easier to optimise for and the same methods don’t really apply to Bing. This ultimately means that marketers can get their websites in front of people easier and searchers get the results they are looking for.

Do People Still Use Bing?

People are still using Bing as a search engine in the UK, with around 12.26% of searches coming from Bing. It is also worth noting this number increases to 36% exclusively using Bing in the US. A study by the Regional Sales Director at Microsoft shows that the demographic for Bing audiences is quite focused. The study suggests that Bing has a largely older audience that is generally wealthier, which might have something to do with Bing being the default browser for Microsoft. Some interesting figures from the study include:

  • Searches on Bing lead to a higher spend by almost 25% more
  • 1/3 of all Bing Ads are shown to audiences with an income of over $100,000
  • There were more than 55 million retail related searches on Bing that weren’t on Google
  • People searching on Bing are most likely to be at least 35, with most between 55-64

How Do I Make the Most of Bing?

You should consider using paid adverts on Bing if your target audience meets the above criteria. You can reach a large audience and also reach a particular target audience that might be more likely to actually purchase your products. Using Google AdWords allows you to target a huge audience but it might prove expensive if they are not the right target audience. There are just as many features with Bing Ads as AdWords and you can even set demographic targeting so that you can focus your efforts even more.

Although there isn’t a massive search volume with Bing, you will find that you might actually have a much more targeted audience that is more likely to convert. Bing can definitely be worth experimenting with if you have the right audience and you will be reaching people you wouldn’t have found on Google. If you are unsure about how to start with Bing Ads then get in touch with us and we can help you through the process.