Microsoft Advertising Insights looked at the Retail industry and category performance in the UK during the first wave of COVID-19 lockdowns. We asked: What behaviors and trends did we observe from the first lockdown? The goal of this analysis is to help advertisers identify how the marketplace is trending and to help with planning during this unknown time.
Some overall trends that were observed:
- A reduction in competition saw a reduction in cost-per clicks (CPCs) in most categories
- A longer time spent online led to increased browsing activity and longer consumer decision journeys
- We saw a change in certain seasonalities and an initial boom in searches for essential categories and also personal improvement and care categories
Download the PDF today to learn more about how Retail categories are performing in the marketplace and what demographic shifts we’ve seen during COVID-19.