Apple and Walmart made the biggest gains in search engine visibility in 2021 as brick-and-mortar retailers invested in SEO to boost their online presence, a new study by Searchmetrics has found.
The annual list of “winners” in organic searches highlighted an interesting trend – only brands with physical stores as well as online sites featured in the top 10 list.
That trend is a departure from the 2020 list that featured three online-only marketplaces, in the form of Amazon, eBay and Etsy.
Searchmetrics CMO, Lillian Haase, believes the absence of e-commerce only brands was driven by consumer habits, as many were looking to make more click-and-collect and buy-in-store purchases amid an easing of Covid restrictions.
She added: “During the pandemic, the brick-and-mortar retailers invested significantly in improving their web presence, product range and their purchase, delivery and collection processes.”
By investing in SEO services, these retailers fought back against online marketplaces and are now reaping the rewards, with greater visibility in search engine rankings.
It is perhaps no surprise to see Apple top the list with the biggest increase in “absolute” search visibility, which amounted to a figure of more than 1m.
However, it did not have the biggest percentage increase, as that honour went to Nordstrom, which enjoyed a 183% boost in visibility last year.
Other brands that saw a big percentage uptick include Ikea (+48%), Costco (+34%), Target (+33%) and Best Buy (+47%).
Haase also noted that while Instagram didn’t crack the top 10, it had an “unprecedented” rise as more retailers used the social media platform to showcase products.
In contrast, Pinterest fell “out of favour” in Google searches and was one of the biggest losers overall.
