Online Classifieds see a 31% Decline in 2009
A recent IAB report, on US online revenues, claims that for the first half of 2009, the industry experienced a 5 per cent revenue decline, when compared to the same period in 2008 and as usual, online classifieds saw the largest drop in revenue performance, of 31%.
Although there was no scientific explanation provided on the fate of online classifieds in this IAB report, I would hazard a guess that classified ad counts have increased, despite revenue declines, and that free listing sites have something to do with this. With that being said, free listings sites, with paid-for upsell products, have seen profitable economic performances. The classified decline, given all of the information disclosed by traditional media companies, more than likely comes from publishers experiencing a decline in their overpriced, online classified marketplaces, as small to medium sized businesses and private consumers gravitate towards sites like Craigslist and Kijiji.
Craigslist, according to the AIM Group analysis and reports, is scheduled to make $100 million dollars in 2009 – a 23% increase over 2008 and eBay’s marketplace business (includes Kijiji) amassed revenues of $5 billion in 2008 and the same vertical is predicted to yield eBay $10 billion in 2011.
Other interesting points in the IAB’s Internet Advertising Revenue Report for the first half of 2009:
- Search revenue rose 2% to $5 billion, meaning the category now accounts for 47% of US internet ad spend
- Display accounts for 34% of online US revenues
- Classifieds represent 10% of online US revenues
- Performance-based online campaigns grew by 4 per cent
- CPM model based campaigns declined by 4 per cent
