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• Only 70 Percent of Canadian Searches Are Successful

Only 70 Percent of Canadian Searches Are Successful

Canadians must repeat searches to find relevant results

New York, N.Y., Aug. 18, 2009 - Hitwise^®, an Experian company, announced today that only 70 percent of Canadian searches are successful. Nearly one-third (30 percent) of Canadian Internet searches are not successful, forcing Canadians to re-search to find relevant results, according to the Hitwise Canada Search Report released today.

An average of 70 percent of searches in Canada were "successful" in the 12 weeks ending June 27, 2009 (average of all search engines). A successful search is defined as one where the consumer leaves the search engine after performing a search. This means that 30 percent of searchers were forced to conduct a fresh search - no doubt partially motivated by searches that failed to return a useful result.

"Search engines have an obvious opportunity to improve relevancy of Canadian search results," said Heather Dougherty, director of research for Hitwise. "Marketers also can use paid search engine listings to ensure that the relevant Web site is at the top of the search engine results page."

Hitwise analysis of success rates for various search terms indicates that the problem may originate from international results, particularly U.S. results, appearing in the search engine information. Searches for brand terms are particularly prone to a have a higher success rate with the word "Canada" included in the search, especially for US companies that include Canada in promotional efforts.

For example, for the search term "wedding dresses" the success rate is 84 percent, while searches for "wedding dresses Canada" enjoy a success rate of 100 percent.

Searches for brand terms are more likely to have a higher success rate with the word "Canada" included in the search:

• The success rate for searches for "walmart" was 88.83 percent, while for "walmart Canada" it was 92.54 percent
• The success rate for searches for "home depot" was 84.25 percent, while for "home depot Canada" it was 92.33 percent

This analysis is from the Hitwise Canada Search Report. Request a copy.

About Hitwise
Hitwise, an Experian company, is the leading online competitive intelligence service.

Hitwise gives marketers a competitive advantage by providing daily insights on how 25 million Internet users around the world interact with more than 1 million Web sites. This external view helps companies grow and protect their businesses by identifying threats and opportunities as they develop. Hitwise has more than 1,500 clients across numerous sectors, including financial services, media, travel and retail.

Hitwise, an Experian company (FTS:EXPN), www.experianplc.com, operates in the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Singapore and Canada. More information about Hitwise is available at www.hitwise.com.

For up-to-date analysis of online trends, please visit the Hitwise research blog at www.ilovedata.com and the Hitwise Data Center at www.hitwise.com/datacenter.

About Experian
Experian^® is the leading global information services company, providing data and analytical tools to clients in more than 65 countries. The company helps businesses to manage credit risk, prevent fraud, target marketing offers and automate decision making. Experian also helps individuals to manage their credit relationships and protect against identity theft.

Experian plc is listed on the London Stock Exchange (EXPN) and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 index. Total revenue for the year ended March 31, 2009, was $3.9 billion. Experian employs approximately 15,000 people in 40 countries and has its corporate headquarters in Dublin, Ireland, with operational headquarters in Nottingham, UK; Costa Mesa, California; and São Paulo, Brazil. 

For more information, visit http://www.experianplc.com.

Experian and the marks used herein are service marks or registered trademarks of Experian Information Solutions, Inc.

Other product and company names mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.