Share of Search is a marketing metric that measures the percentage of all search queries for a product category that include a specific brand name. It is calculated by dividing the volume of searches for a specific brand by the total search volume for all brands in that category. For example, if searches for “Nike running shoes,” “Adidas running shoes,” and “New Balance running shoes” total 100,000 per month, and “Nike running shoes” accounts for 40,000 of those, Nike’s share of search is 40%. The power of Share of Search lies in its predictive quality. It is considered a leading indicator of market share. If a brand’s Share of Search is increasing, it often signals growing consumer demand and intent, which typically translates into increased market share in the future. Conversely, a declining Share of Search can be an early warning sign of waning brand relevance. It provides a real-time, cost-effective way to gauge brand health and campaign effectiveness between traditional market share reports, which are often delayed.
Additional resources:
Share of Search by 42Signals
How to Calculate Share of Search
