The rate of ad clicks from sponsored and non-sponsored links was reported in a recent study (PDF) conducted by researchers from Penn State and the Queensland University of Technology. The study looked at the rate of ad click-through on meta-search engine Dogpile.com.
More than seven million interactions were studied from hundreds of thousands of users to analyze the click-through patterns on both sponsored and non-sponsored links. The study looked specifically at the rate of clicks where sponsored and non-sponsored ads are presented together to investigate what effect it had on consumer behavior.
The results? The clickthrough rate on an ad when it was supported by an organic listing was only 15 percent. The study also found that "35 percent of queries" did not result in any ad clicks at all.
Findings from the study, which was published in a recent issue of the International Journal of Internet Marketing and Advertising, question the validity of other reports stating that ad clickthrough rates are around the 30 percent mark. It also suggests that most consumers are distrustful of the ads. However, the findings provide a benefit to advertisers.