Financial services are popping up all over the world, as various companies try to tackle different issues that need to be addressed. One aspect of FinServ that will always be far more important to consumers than anything else is the option to compare prices. Especially in the United Kingdom, price comparison websites are dominating the search rankings for financial products.

Also read: Meet Tixie – The Sleek Physical Bitcoin Price Ticker

The Growing Demand For Price Comparison Sites

As consumers become more aware of their financial situation, the hunt for alternative and cheaper solutions has begun. Platforms offering some level of price comparison are ranked among the top search results for UK consumers, as they want to get the most bang for their buck in every market.

To put this news into numbers people can relate to, 62% of all paid and organic visibility belongs to price comparison websites. While this number may seem rather high, the percentage was at 83% in 2014. This is a clear indication that, while consumers value price comparison options a whole lot, traditional brands are starting to fight back.

Some people might be wondering what makes these price comparison sites such  a powerful force to reckon with. The answer to that is quite simple: all of these sites gained a lot of ground because traditional financial companies took far too long deciding how to establish their brand online. Ever since that moment, high street banks have been forced to play catch up, but it looks like they are slowly starting to regain some lost ground.

As one would come to expect, the UK site comparison market is dominated by two major players. MoneySavingExpert and MoneySupermarket – both of which are aptly chosen domain names – represent 54% of all site comparison search volume. Alternatives such as Tescobank, HSBC, Halifax, and Santander are creeping up the ranks as well, although they still have a very long way to go.

One important factor to keep in mind is how both MoneySavingExpert and MoneySupermarket have been able to establish their own brands over the years. Google search results will more often than not return either of these platforms when looking for any type of financial term in the UK. The only real major competitor in the search engine results is none other than Google itself.

Clear Search Trends In The Consumer Financial Services Sector

It should come as no surprise to find out consumers are looking for certain products and services more often compared to others. In this day and age, mortgages are one of the most sought after financial products on the market. Or to be more precise, the term “mortgage calculator” seems to be the starting point for most consumers.

While this search term shows a variety of results belonging to high street banks and MoneySavingExpert combined, it just goes to show how much catching up there is still left to do. When thinking about the concept of a mortgage, traditional banks would be the de facto go-to solution for most people in real life situation, yet the situation is vastly different when searching online.

High Street banks are forced to pay for exposure in the search engine world to increase their online visibility. Both MoneySupermarket and MoneySavingsExpert are partaking in the paid click scene as well, but these expenses are far less favorable to them due to their strong online presence in general, as there is very little to gain.

There is still a long way to go until traditional banks dominate the online search results for financial services. Some people are questioning whether or not they will ever be able to make up the lost ground. Other types of financial services are gaining more ground in the search engine results as well, as popular digital currency Bitcoin is overtaking certain fiat currencies in this segment.

What are your thoughts on price comparison websites? Do you use these platforms to find the best bang for your buck? Let us know in the comments below!

Source: Search Engine Watch

Images courtesy of Shutterstock, Dreams Time, On Digital Marketing