Search Engine Optimization and its Importance in the Purchase Process

Searching through search engines has become the means of meeting the information needs of Internet users, and such information can be linked to a product in which users are potentially interested. The main aim of this paper was to determine the level of Internet search engines use during the purchase process in a Slovak market. Based on the results of the questionnaire survey, it was found that a major proportion of users consider a search engine to be a source of information on the already purchased product as well as on the potential product. The paper did not record a difference in search engines usage when purchasing products based on respondents' sex. The paper further states that only a small proportion of users click on the paid search results. By testing the hypothesis, however, it was shown there is a statistically significant difference in the pattern of clicking on paid search results based on the sex of respondents.