US Search Advertising Trends inFinancial ServicesAugust 2013

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ContentsSearch Advertising Trends for Financial Services on the Yahoo! Bing Network .........................................................2 Executive Overview .................................................................................................................................................................2 More Reasons to Invest More with the Yahoo! Bing Network ........................................................................................3 Key Metrics ................................................................................................................................................................................3 Audience Behaviors ................................................................................................................................................................4 More Reach, Now ......................................................................................................................................................................6 Get the Most Out of Ad Formats ..........................................................................................................................................8 Sitelink Extensions ...................................................................................................................................................................8 Content Ads ..............................................................................................................................................................................8 Location Extensions ................................................................................................................................................................9 Long Ad Titles ..........................................................................................................................................................................9 Rich Ads in Search (RAIS) ......................................................................................................................................................9Search Traffic by Device ........................................................................................................................................................ 10Improve Ad Copy Quality ..................................................................................................................................................... 11 Auto Insurance ...................................................................................................................................................................... 12 Banks ....................................................................................................................................................................................... 13 Credit Cards ........................................................................................................................................................................... 14 Health Insurance ................................................................................................................................................................... 15 Optimize with Search Query Trends .................................................................................................................................. 16 Banking ................................................................................................................................................................................... 16 Credit Cards ........................................................................................................................................................................... 17 Financial Planning ................................................................................................................................................................ 18 Mortgage ............................................................................................................................................................................... 18 Tax ............................................................................................................................................................................................ 19

In Summary .............................................................................................................................................................................. 20

2

1 | Microsoft internal marketplace research, US, PC, Yahoo! and Bing owned and operated sites. Excludes same-advertiser brand queries. March 15, 2012, June 15, 2012, Sept 15, 2012, Dec 15, 20122 | AdGooroo Special Report, Yahoo! Bing PPC Performance Metrics: What Search Marketers Need to Know About “The Other Search Engine.” March 2013

Search Advertising Trends for Financial Services on the Yahoo! Bing Network

Executive Overview

Over the last year, Yahoo! and Microsoft have identified a growing need to examine advertiser industry categories, or verticals, at a deeper level across the Yahoo! Bing Network. We commissioned a large-scale research study to help gauge our relative strengths and opportunities, providing a foundation to refine our search offering to meet the unique needs of our advertisers.

As a result, there is a greater understanding of the unique challenges Financial Services marketers face, specifically:

• Managing an ecosystem dominated by expensive and narrow category (generic) terms.• Testing emerging search advertising trends, device and product offerings to optimize for return on investment (ROI).• Managing digital marketing strategies, tactics and editorial in an ambiguous and changing regulatory climate.

Our internal research shows the average unique queries comprising 80% of spend for Yahoo! managed accounts in Financial Services is the narrowest of all verticals at 59, while the average cost-per-click (CPC) is the highest among all verticals.1 One of the key benefits of our network when compared to Google is a significantly lower cost-per-click for Financial Services.2

To respond to the challenges posed by this ultra-competitive search advertising marketplace for Financial Services, this report aims to enhance the value of our search advertising offering by providing deeper insight to help you more effectively manage expensive and narrow category terms.

Report Highlights Supported by insights from Yahoo! and Microsoft research teams, comScore and others, this report

will help Financial Services marketers discover:

• What insights from third party reports mean for you.

• The unique benefits of the Yahoo! Bing Network.

• How leveraging key ad formats may help increase campaign performance.

• What combination(s) of words or phrases in ad copy contribute to click performance.

• What our finance audience is searching for, leading to a better understanding of consumer preference and demand trends.

3

More Reasons to Invest More with the Yahoo! Bing NetworkOver the last year, leading bid management software providers have reported improvements in clicks, spend and budget increases across the Yahoo! Bing Network.

Marin Online Advertising Report, Q4 2012, Kenshoo, March 2013, RKG Digital Marketing Report Q1 2013

“ On [the Yahoo! Bing Network], advertisers saw marked improvement in clicks. On a year-over-year basis, advertisers saw 25% higher click volumes.”

“ Bing Ads consistently delivers strong paid search return on investment and, as a result Kenshoo is seeing 35%+ YoY budget increases across the Yahoo! Bing Network.”

“ Yahoo! Bing Network spend increased 48% Y/Y as the engine continued to deliver strong impression growth on expanded keyword to query matching. Ad Clicks rose 44%.”

Given that Financial Services operates in a highly competitive marketplace, taking advantage of an opportunity to increase return on ad spend (ROAS) by maximizing resources first on Yahoo! Bing Network is recommended as a central pillar in your search advertising strategy.

Key Metrics

In March 2013, AdGooroo released a study, Yahoo! Bing PPC Performance Metrics: What Search Marketers Need to Know About “The Other Search Engine”, where they examined paid search performance on the Yahoo! Bing Network and Google AdWords across six industry verticals during the third quarter of 2012.

The study highlights some key advantages in the Financial Services vertical:

• Lower Cost Per Click. The average cost-per-click (CPC) on the Yahoo! Bing Network ($1.98) was 31% lower than on AdWords ($2.88). This is true of the vast majority of advertisers included in the study – 76% to 90% of all advertisers – experienced lower CPC on the Yahoo! Bing Network. However, this is especially favorable news for Financial Services since keyword lists are narrow and ultra-competitive; the most competitive of all verticals.3

• Cost Per Thousand Impressions. The average cost per thousand impression on the Yahoo! Bing Network ($15.26) was 85% lower than on AdWords ($101.76).4

In June 2013, Kenshoo stated:

“With high quality inventory delivering strong conversion rates, the Yahoo! Bing Network is a must-buy for marketers. The Yahoo! Bing Network spend managed through Kenshoo has increased 27% year-over-year for the past three quarters.“

In March 2013, AdGooroo stated:

“There are fewer paid search competitors vying for premium ad positions on [The Yahoo! Bing Network] than on AdWords, improving an advertiser’s chances of gaining top ad ranking. Totaling all six verticals studied, there are 56% more competitors for search marketers to contend with [on AdWords].“5

3, 4, 5 | AdGooroo Special Report, Yahoo! Bing PPC Performance Metrics: What Search Marketers Need to Know About “The Other Search Engine.” March 2013

4

We conclude from their report that the Yahoo! Bing Network is uniquely positioned to provide top ad rankings at 68% of the cost for Financial Services advertisers. Given the high CPC and narrow keyword sets for this vertical, maximizing search efforts on the Yahoo! Bing Network could help further maximize your return on search ad spend.

Audience Behaviors

For Financial Services marketers, search advertising on the Yahoo! Bing Network connects you to an audience that actively searches online for financial content6, including 21 million business and finance searchers that are not reached on Google.7

In addition to our exclusive audience of 21 million business and financial searches, comScore reports the Yahoo! Bing Network’s total share of paid clicks at 25%.8 When we take a closer look at the Business and Finance category, we start to see that the Yahoo! Bing Network’s share of paid clicks is significantly higher than the network average at the category and sub-category levels as illustrated below.

The Yahoo! Bing Network Share of Paid Clicks within Business/Finance9

BUSINESS/FINANCE TOTAL 34%

Online Trading 47%

Taxes 47%

Personal Finance 33%

Banking 34%

Financial Information/Advice 35%

To complement the data on share of paid clicks, comScore also reveals our audience’s propensity to search for, apply for and own various categories of financial products. When comparing the Yahoo! Bing Network audience to Google, our audience has some striking strengths across Financial Services.

Mortgages and Real Estate Ownership10

37% more likely to have bought a residence/property other than primary in the last 6 months

19% more likely to have searched for an initial home mortgage

12% more likely to have bought a vacation property in the last 6 months

6% more likely to have sold or changed primary residence in the last 6 months

6% more likely to have searched for a second home mortgage

In March 2013, AdGooroo stated:

”With nearly a third of every U.S. search query now being conducted on either Bing or Yahoo!, committed paid search advertisers should be asking themselves a number of key questions. Does Google dominate in every vertical? How do the engines compare on clickthrough rate (CTR) and cost per click (CPC)? Are the paid search auctions as competitive on [the Yahoo! Bing Network] as on [Google] AdWords?”11

6, 11 | AdGooroo Special Report, Yahoo! Bing PPC Performance Metrics: What Search Marketers Need to Know About “The Other Search Engine.” March 2013 7 | comScore US qSearch (custom), June 2013 8, 9 | comScore US Core Search (custom), June 2013 10 | comScore US Plan Metrix, April 2013

5

Insurance Products12

20% more likely to use their mobile device 1-3 times throughout the month to access insurance content

13% more likely to access insurance content on their mobile device through an app

9% more likely to have applied for life insurance

9% more likely to have applied for health insurance

8% more likely to access insurance content on their mobile device through a browser

7% more likely to use their mobile device to access insurance content in the last month

4% more likely to have searched for home insurance

Credit Cards13

18% more likely to shop online but apply offline for a credit card

8% more likely to own a hotel points credit card

5% more likely to own a credit card that offers points for other travel services

Cash Reserve14

20% more likely to have applied for a money market account

11% more likely to have applied for a checking account

8% more likely to have searched for a checking account

6% more likely to have searched for a savings account

4% more likely to have searched for a high yield savings account

Education Loans15

52% more likely to have applied for an education loan

6% more likely to personally own an education loan

Brokerage, Retirement and Investments16

17% more likely to have applied for a brokerage account

7% more likely to have searched for 401(k)

6% more likely to have searched for a brokerage account

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More Reach, Now Although we’ve increased search volume year-over-year, upward of 8.2% across Financial Services and clicks are up 15.5% across the Yahoo! Bing Network as a whole, unlocking search volume will continue to remain a key focus for us.17 We know this is going to take a multi-faceted, long-term strategy and senior leadership at both Yahoo! and Microsoft are being thoughtful and aggressive to demonstrate this commitment to growth, while at the same time, delivering value to our customers, partners and advertisers. Below, we’ve outlined five primary pillars to this strategy across both Yahoo! and Microsoft.

Syndication Partnerships

Yahoo! and Microsoft have strong technology and distribution partners, which helps us innovate and connect Financial Services marketers to our active audience, delivering substantial and cost-effective clicks.18

An example of this is our ongoing syndication partnerships with CNBC.com and The Wall Street Journal Digital Network, a network that includes trusted finance sites such as The Wall Street Journal, MarketWatch, BigCharts and Barron’s. These sites deliver high quality ad real estate to advertisers that are opted into the Content Ads match type.

Corporate Partnerships and Acquisitions

On June 10, 2013 at WWDC, Apple announced iOS 7, which brings Bing web search integration to Siri, Apple’s breakthrough personal assistant, for the first time. Starting this fall with iOS 7, Bing will power Siri’s new integrated web search on iPhone, iPad and iPod touch.

In addition to Apple, Yahoo! and Microsoft maintain several strategic partnerships that are instrumental in growing and diversifying the Yahoo! Bing Network.

• Facebook. Bing powers all web search results on Facebook. These results list websites and content from across the internet, not just from Facebook.

• Nokia. Windows Phone OS exclusively powers all Nokia smartphone devices with Bing as the default search engine.

• Amazon. Bing is the official default search engine on all Amazon Kindle HD Fire devices since its launch in 2012.

• Tumblr. Yahoo!’s acquisition of Tumblr. is anticipated to be instrumental in growing and diversifying the Yahoo! Bing Network.

17 | Microsoft internal data, US Yahoo! and Bing owned and operated sites, comparing January – March 2012 to January – March 2013 18 | AdGooroo Special Report, Yahoo! Bing PPC Performance Metrics: What Search Marketers Need to Know About “The Other Search Engine.” March 2013; comScore US Core Search (custom), March 2013

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Mobile / Smartphone Partnerships

Yahoo! offers choice with top mobile partners like AT&T, Apple, Chitika and NativeX, allowing advertisers to reach more mobile consumers across the web. In the coming months, Yahoo! plans to stay laser-focused on building and offering mobile products to help you expand your audience across the growing mobile landscape.

Devices and Services

There is no bigger daily habit than mobile and Yahoo! is currently the #1 destination for Finance information on mobile devices. With engaging mobile content, precise mobile targeting, a host of advanced creative options and the scale to reach millions of mobile users, Yahoo! is creating effective mobile advertising solutions for Financial Services brands.

On the device front, people are experiencing search as a seamless service, beginning their search from wherever they are and assuming search will be smart enough to understand the context of their situation. This evolution in how people interact with their devices is facilitating the convergence of search across Microsoft’s product footprint, expanding to audiences on new surface areas such as Windows 8, Windows Phone and the upcoming Xbox ONE.

Distribution Deals

Lastly, Yahoo! maintains distribution partnerships with high quality software providers like Mozilla, McAfee and AVG to provide broad reach and additional searchers to the Yahoo! Bing Network.

Through the independent and collective strategies of both Yahoo! and Microsoft, the Yahoo! Bing Network is expanding its search capabilities and reach to lead a transformative era of new devices, interfaces and untapped search volume for our advertisers.

.

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Get the Most Out of Ad FormatsSitelink Extensions

If there’s one ad format we’re highly recommending advertisers to take advantage of its Sitelink Extensions. Sitelink Extensions create richer, more relevant search ads by providing direct access to site content and more utility for searchers. In a recent internal analysis, Financial Services advertisers experienced an average 23% higher CTR than with standard text ads, with a lift in CTR ranging from 20% - 30%.19 You can also run Rich Ads in Search (RAIS) brand campaigns with Sitelink Extensions to drive performance and brand awareness.

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Content Ads

Content Ads give search advertisers a way to easily extend their reach to potential customers who are browsing websites. They are text ads displayed next to relevant, high-quality content on Yahoo! and Microsoft websites, and across our network of partner sites. Bing Ads analyzes the content of a website and matches relevant, keyword-targeted ads to display on the page.

In January 2013, our research and analytics team performed an internal study on Content Ads. For Financial Services, this study found that the cost-per-acquisition was 36% lower than other match types.20 Lower cost-per-acquisition was also seen in the Automotive, Retail, Travel and Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) verticals. Although performance will vary across verticals, Content Ads can help advertisers maximize cost-effective clicks, resulting in lower acquisition costs. If you are new to Content Ads or this match type hasn’t worked well in the past, it could be a good time to re-test, given these new performance insights. Yahoo! and Microsoft are constantly striving to improve the quality of our syndication networks and drive performance through partnerships with high-value finance sites like The Wall Street Journal and Barron’s.

1. stock market 6. forex currency trading 11. investing stock 16. us news2. research tool 7. financial news 12. day trade stock 17. investments3. stock price 8. world news 13. stock chart 18. penny stock newsletters4. breaking news 9. ETF 14. investment program 19. stock quote5. stock quotes 10. latest market news 15. stock investing 20. economic news

In order to help you optimize Content Ad campaigns, we’re providing the top 20 impression-generating keywords in finance:

36% lower cost-per-acquisition than other match types.

20 - 30% higher CTR than with standard text ads.

19 | Microsoft internal data, performance study based upon flight data, January 201320 | Microsoft internal study on Content Ads, January 2013. Study only includes accounts with conversion tracking enabled

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Location Extensions

Location Extensions is an important feature for Financial Services marketers that are wanting to drive foot traffic to local branches or direct response through a phone call. In a recent study focused on finance advertisers, ads with Location Extensions saw a 46% increase in average CTR compared to ads without Location Extensions. And for local intent queries across all industry categories, Location Extensions saw a 34% increase in average CTR compared to ads without.21 We are continually updating this ad format with new types of features such as click-to-call and click-to-directions, so check with your Yahoo! or Microsoft account team or our online resources to learn more about pilot and upcoming release dates

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Long Ad Titles

Long Ad Titles can help drive more clicks on top position (mainline) search ads, improving overall ad performance. Advertisers have experienced over 7% increase in CTR for mainline Long Ad Titles22

Long ad titles is an industry standard and improves performance without an impact to pricing. The key to adopting this feature is understanding when and how to optimize campaigns so your ads serve in the top position (mainline). Your Yahoo! or Microsoft Search Specialist has advanced tools to help seek-out where these opportunities exist and are readily available if you’d like to take a deeper look.

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Rich Ads in Search (RAIS)

With high competition and cost-per-click, some Financial Services advertisers have been able to drive performance through utilization of Rich Ads in Search. RAIS allows advertisers to increase brand presence through display of images or videos, while securing the entire top position on Yahoo! and Bing search results pages, which may help increase click-through rates on your brand terms.

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Over 7% increase in CTR for mainline Long Ad Titles.

46% increase in average CTR.

21 | Microsoft internal data, includes US PC searches for Yahoo! and Bing owned and operated sites, 9/10/12 to 10/6/12 and 10/8/12 to 10/28/12. Considered all ads with extensions on mainline where ad is displayed as: URL + Location, URL + Location + Phone, URL + Phone

22 | Microsoft internal data, compared to mainline ads without long ad title treatment, 2012

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Search Traffic by Device The device market is evolving as consumers and businesses increasingly shift their focus to touch and mobility. And as expected, search volume is increasing steadily on smartphones and tablets. Since last year, smartphone searches have more than doubled on the Yahoo! Bing Network and tablet searches are close behind. Generally, we are seeing smartphone conversion performance for Financial Services lower than that of tablets and PCs; which is also in line with Ignition One’s Q2 FY12 report. However, with lower CPC, return on ad spend could fair higher on mobile campaigns, especially for tablets where Financial Services engagement in search tends to be higher.

In terms of competition, Google recently announced a change to AdWords, called Enhanced Campaigns, where campaigns will run across desktop, tablet, and mobile devices, and the process of campaign management and reporting will be simplified. The Yahoo! Bing Network understands that an advertiser’s search campaign can be optimized across devices and through various targeting methods. And that’s why we are committed to providing advertisers the transparency and device-level control to customize campaigns to maximize their effectiveness. We are focused on evolving our platform to provide you with functionality that puts you and your campaigns first, such as reducing friction when importing AdWords campaigns, especially now that Google has changed how campaigns are structured.

Mobile Device Searches: As % of Total Search Volume23

Banking 14%

Investing 11%

Financial Planning 9%

Insurance 8%

Financial Services: Searches on Mobile Devices

2012 20122012 2012

+86%

+113%

Smartphone Tablet

Source: Microsoft internal data, US mobile devices includes Lo-Fi Phones, Smartphones and Tablets 2/13/13

23 | Microsoft internal data, includes US mobile searches for Yahoo! and Bing owned and operated and syndicated sites, 2/15/13

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Improve Ad Copy QualityWhile search queries give you a view of recent search trends and themes, other analyses, such as ad copy quality testing, can fine-tune search campaigns. Last month the Bing Ads research and analytics team conducted an ad copy analysis across seven sub-verticals within Financial Services, providing directional suggestions for boosting click-through-rate (CTR). The team analyzed thousands of ads in each sub-vertical and selected one or two-word phrases that appeared in ads from at least five distinct advertisers. From this data, they calculated the ad quality, which takes into consideration the clickability of the ad, in addition to other signals of ad quality. Ads with higher ad quality benefit from higher CTR, improved ad ranking and lower CPC.24

Key Observations

• What works well for one category (sub-vertical) may perform poorly for another.

• Dollar signs ($) should be used with caution. They were usually associated with poorer ad quality, with some exceptions (like health insurance).

• Sitelink Extensions consistently had high impact on ad quality; much higher than any variable of the ad copy.

• There was variability in the analysis, so the data and recommendations should be used as a guide, and not a substitute, for performing your own ad copy tests.

Interpreting The Data

The ad quality charts below show one and two-word phrases that appeared in at least ten ads from at least five different advertisers. Searches on brand names were excluded, and unless the chart specifically mentions Sitelink Extensions, those were excluded to avoid skewing the results.

Ads without any of these phrases were used as the baseline or index. When the bar is on the right of the baseline, it means the phrase, on average, had higher ad quality than ads that didn’t include any of the phrases in the list. When the bar is on the left of the baseline, it had lower ad quality.

Without Sitelink

Extensions

With Sitelink

Extensions

Effect of Sitelink Extensions on Ad Copy Quality in Auto Insurance

+73%

24 | US Ad Copy Quality Research, Microsoft, January 2013. Yahoo! and Bing owned and operated PC traffic

Without Sitelink

Extensions

With Sitelink

Extensions

Effect of Sitelink Extensions on Ad Copy Quality in Financial Services

+23%

12

Auto Insurance

The term car had a positive impact on ad quality, whether in the ad title or ad description, and outperformed the term auto. Safe saw positive results in the ad title, whereas fast and savings had strong lift in the ad description. The term safe in the ad title had especially strong results when paired with free, fast, quote(s), or auto in the ad description.

Auto Insurance: Ad Title Performance Lift

8%

-6%

18%

-42%

-19%

-47%

-20%

8%

-51%

22%

-8%

-24%

80%

-86%

$

auto

car

coverage

discount

free

get

insurance

keyword

param

quote(s)

rate

safe

save

Auto Insurance: Ad Description Performance Lift

$%

autocar

could savecoveragediscount

easyfreeget

insurancekeyword

parampolicy

quote(s)ratesafesave

savings

6%

4%

7%

91%

24%

-21%

-26%

36%

88%

36%

12%

36%

-62%

-45%

-68%

5%

31%

10%

-4%

61%

Ad Copy Quality, Car vs Auto

AutoCar

Car

+101%

+35%

Ad Title Ad Description

Auto

Without Sitelink

Extensions

With Sitelink

Extensions

Effect of Sitelink Extensions When Term “Car” is Used

in the Ad Title

+410%

Auto Top Ad Title / Ad Description Combinations

Rank Title Description

1 Car Safe

2 Car Auto

3 Coverage Coverage

4 {Keyword} Save

5 Insurance Safe

13

Banks

The term savings did not perform particularly well in the ad title or ad description. However, online and find showed strong ad quality, with online and rate having presence across several top ad title / ad description combinations.

Banks: Ad Title Performance

$

apply

bank

checking

compare

find

keyword

online

open

param

rate

savings

-57%

18%

-9%

36%

-24%

177%

87%

104%

44%

-13%

112%

2%

Banks: Ad Description Performance

$

%

apply

bank

checking

compare

fee(s)

find

free

mobile

now

online

open

rate

savings

yield

2%

55%

40%

7%

7%

16%

47%

46%

46%

4%

22%

106%

17%

35%

-22%

94%

Banks Top Ad Title / Ad Description Combinations

Rank Title Description

1 Online Free

2 Rate Find

3 Rate Yield

4 Online Online

5 Rate Online

14

Credit Cards

APR and the dollar sign ($) performed better in the ad description than in the ad title. Approval, bad credit and fee had very strong ad quality. Even though the percent sign (%) was not the highest performing variable individually, it held three of the top ad title / ad description combinations.

Credit Cards: Ad Title Performance

APR

$

%

apply

approval

bad credit

best

cash back

fee

interest

keyword

offer(s)

reward(s)

secured

-8%

-81%

137%

81%

345%

186%

52%

28%

196%

73%

82%

-6%

18%

89%

Credit Cards: Ad Description Performance

APR

$

%

apply

approval

bad credit

best

cash back

compare

fee

find

get approved

interest

offer(s)

reward(s)

secured

54%

221%

52%

24%

125%

163%

6%

30%

13%

207%

-27%

140%

51%

3%

-24%

58%

Credit Cards Top Ad Title / Ad Description Combinations

Rank Title Description

1 % Approval

2 Approval Approval

3 % Bad Credit

4 % Fee

5 Approval $

15

Health Insurance

In health insurance, the dollar sign ($) experienced positive ad quality, counter to the performance seen in other categories. Dynamic keyword insertion held four of the top title / ad description combinations. When describing costs, the analysis reveals that usage of the term affordable in the ad title yields positive results while the term savings does not.

Health Insurance: Ad Title Performance

$

affordable

cheap

compare

coverage

exam

health

insurance

keyword

low cost

medical

param

plan

plans

quote

save

savings

64%

153%

61%

10%

75%

200%

50%

41%

44%

70%

79%

42%

79%

77%

44%

65%

-21%

Health Insurance: Ad Description Performance

$

affordable

apply

call

cheap

compare

competitive rates

coverage

exam

fast quote

free info

health

insurance

keyword

learn

low cost

medical

param

plan

plans

quote

save

savings

103%

80%

42%

102%

124%

51%

54%

62%

76%

31%

-24%

38%

42%

75%

42%

98%

91%

272%

63%

63%

67%

78%

-20%

Health Insurance Top Ad Title / Ad Description

Combinations

Rank Title Description

1 Insurance Low Cost

2 Health {Keyword}

3 Low Cost {Keyword}

4 Insurance {Keyword}

5 {Keyword} Compare

16

Health Insurance: Relative Impact of Cost-Related Ad Copy Variables

Ad Title Ad Description

$ Affo

rdab

le

Chea

p

Low

Cos

t

Save

Savi

ngs

$ Affo

rdab

le

Chea

p

Low

Cos

t

Save

Savi

ngs

Optimize with Search Query TrendsSince Financial Services searches tend to be heavily concentrated among a small number of expensive keywords, we’re providing category-level search query trends to help reveal what our audience is searching for, leading to a better understanding of consumer preference and demand trends.

While some industries within Financial Services bid more heavily on brand name keywords (for instance, banking and tax), Financial Services is usually more concentrated in non-brand, high-volume generic keyword usage. Because 75% of paid clicks for Financial Services go to the ads at the top of the page, it’s important to stay competitive on this narrow set of keywords.

The search query trends provided below can help enable more effective management of your campaigns and these keyword categories.

Banking

The two main search terms—bank and banks—drive the majority of non-brand search volume. Brand searches dominate the banking and credit union categories.

Banks

Bank

CD Rates

Banking

Bank Account

12/0

1

12/0

8

12/1

5

12/2

2

12/2

9

01/0

5

01/1

2

01/1

9

01/2

6

02/0

2

02/0

9

02/1

6

02/2

3

03/0

2

03/0

9

03/1

6

03/2

3

Top 5 Banking Searches | Not Including Brand Names

Banks

Bank

CD Rates

Banking

Bank Account

12/0

1

12/0

8

12/1

5

12/2

2

12/2

9

01/0

5

01/1

2

01/1

9

01/2

6

02/0

2

02/0

9

02/1

6

02/2

3

03/0

2

03/0

9

03/1

6

03/2

3

17

Brand

Manage Me Account

Generic Banking Services

Locations

CDs

Checking

12/0

1

12/0

8

12/1

5

12/2

2

12/2

9

01/0

5

01/1

2

01/1

9

01/2

6

02/0

2

02/0

9

02/1

6

02/2

3

03/0

2

03/0

9

03/1

6

03/2

3

Banking & Credit Union Searches by Type

Brand

Manage Me Account

Generic Banking Services

Locations

CDs

Checking

12/0

1

12/0

8

12/1

5

12/2

2

12/2

9

01/0

5

01/1

2

01/1

9

01/2

6

02/0

2

02/0

9

02/1

6

02/2

3

03/0

2

03/0

9

03/1

6

03/2

3

Credit Cards

Credit card searches were also largely brand-driven, whether it be the major credit card companies, their affiliates, or store credit cards.

The manage my account category consists of searches related to servicing an existing account, such as logging in or paying a bill. Generic credit card search includes searches for credit cards, rates, and attributes.

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Manage My Account

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Generic Credit Card Search

Credit Card Searches by Type

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Top 10 Credit Card Queries | Not Including Brand Names

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Credit CardsCredit CardCredit Cards Bad CreditSecured Credit CardsPrepaid Credit CardsBad Credit CardsSecured Credit CardApply Credit CardsCredit Card OffersCredit Cards Rebuild Credit

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Credit CardsCredit CardCredit Cards Bad CreditSecured Credit CardsPrepaid Credit CardsBad Credit CardsSecured Credit CardApply Credit CardsCredit Card OffersCredit Cards Rebuild Credit

18

Financial Planning

Some financial planning queries showed a consistent spike in searches at the end of each month, while other searches were more stable.

Investment Services

Financial Advisor

Financial Planning

Portfolio

Investment Management

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Top 5 Financial Planning Searches | Not Including Brand Names

Investment Services

Financial Advisor

Financial Planning

Portfolio

Investment Management

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Mortgage

Calculators were popular search terms for mortgage, showing steady searches through the quarter. Searches that were more directly related to mortgage loans and rate comparisons have had peaks and valleys, but more recently have flattened.

Searches for reverse mortgages stayed fairly constant, with a small dip during the holiday week.

Reverse Mortage

Reverse Mortgages

Reverse Mortage Calculator

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Reverse Mortgage Searches | Not Including Brand Names

Reverse Mortage

Reverse Mortgages

Reverse Mortage Calculator

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19

Tax

Typically we see two peaks in tax season, one after W2s are sent to employees and a shorter peak immediately before the tax filing deadline.

In 2013, brand name tax software keywords peaked later in the tax season than in the previous year, but still earlier than other categories within tax. As tax season progressed, brand name keyword searches declined and searches for IRS and refunds rose. Searches for accountants were a smaller proportion of the searches when compared to 2012.

Accountant

Brand Name

Filing

IRS

Refunds

Tax Form

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Tax Searches by Type

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Tax Category Searches as a % of All Tax Searches10

Tax Category 2012 2013Brand Name Tax Software 37.42% 39.71%IRS 28.09% 29.24%Refunds 12.46% 14.36%Tax form 7.96% 7.97%State 2.62% 2.77%Filing 1.96% 0.99%EFTPS 1.36% 1.58%Accountant 1.47% 0.20%Calculator 0.88% 0.79%Generic Tax 1.03% 0.44%Form Questions 0.82% 0.40%

Tax Category 2012 2013Tax Tables 0.82% 0.36%Other 0.66% 0.44%Online Filing 0.41% 0.28%Deadline 0.58% 0.06%Extension 0.28% 0.31%Planning 0.40% 0.02%Business 0.29% 0.05%Audit 0.21% 0.01%Back Taxes 0.21% 0.01%Stimulus 0.05% 0.02%Attorney 0.03% 0.01%

20

In Summary The beginning of this report highlighted several key objectives or focus areas for Financial Services marketers. Based upon third party research reports, audience insights from comScore, and Yahoo! and Microsoft internal research, we’ve summarized the most significant ways for you to drive return on ad spend.

The Yahoo! and Microsoft teams are encouraged by the business intelligence we’re uncovering as a result of our vertical alignment and we need your help in continuing this momentum. This report is one of many initiatives we’re testing and we would like to hear your thoughts on how we can refine and improve these resources to make them more meaningful over time. Please email finservmarketing@microsoft.com if you have feedback or input you would like to share.

Wishing you prosperity in search,

Your partners at Yahoo! and Microsoft

Report Takeaways

• With strong momentum in clicks, budget and conversions, the Yahoo! Bing Network delivers strong return on ad spend as well as the opportunity to secure top ad ranking in a less competitive marketplace than Google AdWords.

• Traditional search advertising philosophy pivoted on maximizing resources first on Google and thereafter allocating remaining and incremental budget to the Yahoo! Bing Network. However, with substantially lower cost-per-click (CPC) for Financial Services compared to Google, the new imperative for Financial Services marketers is to start actively advertising on the Yahoo! Bing Network and make it the first place resources are maximized to drive stronger return on ad spend (ROAS).

• The Yahoo! Bing Network delivers 34% of paid clicks within the business and finance category 25, as well as 21 million business and finance searchers not reached on Google26. Share of paid click details from comScore can help inform shifts in budget. For instance, if a regional bank is currently allocating 20% of their search advertising budget to the Yahoo! Bing Network, increasing this budget allocation to roughly 34% (aligned to the bank category’s share of paid clicks via comScore)27 could maximize return on ad spend.

• Leveraging key ad formats, especially Sitelink Extensions, could help improve click-through-rates and overall campaign performance.

• Using the Ad Copy Quality and Search Query research provided by the Bing Ads research and analytics team can help fine-tune search campaigns and may help boost click-through-rates on the Yahoo! Bing Network.

25, 27 | comScore US Core Search (custom), June 2013 26 | comScore US qSearch (custom), March 2013