| UK Internet Traffic to Newspaper Websites Reaches New High |
Whatever the fate of old-fashioned 'hard copy' newspapers in the age of the Internet and free newspapers on public transport, one thing is certain: their online properties are thriving. UK Internet traffic to newspaper websites has grown by 50% over the last two years, and it reached its highest ever level for the week ending 26 January 2008.
Despite competition from online and broadcasting rivals, UK Internet visits to the websites of print newspapers have been gradually increasing for the last two years. The week ending 26 January 2008 was a busy news week, and as a result, 1.48% of all UK Internet visits went to websites within the Hitwise News & Media - Print industry. With stock markets tumbling around the globe, UK Internet searches for 'ftse' increased by 223%, while searches for 'financial news' doubled. Traffic to the Financial Times website increased by 18%, making it the sixth most visited News & Media - Print website in the UK that week. The UK's leading business newspaper has now doubled its market share of UK Internet visits since changing its online subscription model in November 2007.
The most visited newspaper website in the UK for the week ending 26 January 2008 was The Daily Mail, which achieved a market share of 4.97% of UK Internet visits to News & Media - Print websites. It was joined in the top 5 by The Sun (4.47%), Times Online (4.31%), Guardian Unlimited (3.30%), and The Telegraph. Of these, The Sun saw the biggest increase in traffic, thanks in part to the hosting of a video that showed pop star Amy Winehouse allegedly taking illegal drugs. Newspaper websites are hosting an increasing amount of video, which is helping pull users with high speed Internet connections (i.e. nearly everyone in the UK) to their websites.
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| How Important were Final Christmas Order and Delivery Dates? |
One of the biggest challenges that online retailers face is delivering goods, particularly during the busy Christmas period. As the chart below illustrates, the number of search terms containing the word 'delivery' increases in the run up to Christmas, this year peaking in the week ending 22 December. For these last 4 weeks before Christmas, a third of people searching for 'delivery' went to eBay UK, the largest online retailer in the UK. Indeed, the auction site received traffic from no fewer than 348 separate search terms containing the word 'delivery' during those 4 weeks.
This year a lot of retailers were taking orders up until December 21 or 22, which poses the question: does a later delivery date help boost traffic to a website in the last week before Christmas?
To read the full article, click here. To download a copy of the Hitwise UK Post Christmas 2007 Report, click here.
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| Most Visited Business & Finance Websites for the Mosaic Group 'Symbols of Success' |
The table below is based on those websites that have the greatest proportion of traffic from Symbols of Success for the 4 weeks ending 2/2/2008.
To view the new Lifestyle Group Report on Symbols of Success, Hitwise clients should click here.
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| 1. |
Hamptons International |
www.hamptons.co.uk |
43.66% |
| 2. |
Holiday Property Bond |
www.hpb.co.uk |
42.83% |
| 3. |
Bestinvest |
www.bestinvest.co.uk |
42.34% |
| 4. |
Investors Chronicle Online |
www.investorschronicle.co.uk |
37.74% |
| 5. |
Bank of America |
www.bankofamerica.com |
37.71% |
| 6. |
Investegate |
www.investegate.co.uk |
36.70% |
| 7. |
British Airline Pilots Association |
www.balpa.org |
36.56% |
| 8. |
eFinancialCareers UK |
www.efinancialcareers.co.uk |
34.65% |
| 9. |
Hargreaves Lansdown |
www.h-l.co.uk |
33.34% |
| 10. |
City Wire |
www.citywire.co.uk |
33.19% |
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| Moonpig.com - www.moonpig.com |
Position for week ending 12 January 2008: 4 (Shopping & Classifieds - Flowers & Gifts)
Position for week ending 2 February 2008: 1 (Shopping & Classifieds - Flowers & Gifts)
Positions jumped: 3
UK Internet visits to moonpig.com tripled over the three weeks from 12 January 2008 to 2 February 2008 and the website went to number one in the Hitwise Flowers & Gifts industry. In the run-up to Valentine's Day, the online card delivery company experienced its highest ever level of UK Internet traffic for the week ending 2 February 2008.
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| Evaluating Potential Affiliates Using the Hitwise New and Returning Visitors Tool |
By using Hitwise New and Returning Visitors data you can make decisions on partnerships and advertising by evaluating the number of new potential consumers a website sends to your website, as well as evaluating which websites to place advertising on to capture a steady stream of returning visitors for your target demographic.
In the example of Bebo.com we see that of all the visits to the website over the week ending 26 January 2008, 96% of visits were from returning visitors and only 4% were new.
Hitwise clients who would like to discuss this application further, please contact Hitwise
Customer Support, or visit Hitwise University and
review the New & Returning Visitors FAQ.
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| Visits to HMRC Website Peak as Tax Deadline Looms |
According to Hitwise UK, visits to the HM Revenue and Customs website (www.hmrc.gov.uk) were 16% higher during the week ending 2 February 2008 than the same week in 2007. Searches for "tax return" and "self assessment" started much later this year with searches increasing from 29 December 2007 compared to 9 December 2006.
Download the Hitwise Widget to bring the latest online trends to your desktop!
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