A web page that ranks at the top of Google’s search results gets twice as much traffic as the number two listing, and triple the traffic as the page listed third. That’s according to some new research published by the online ad network Chitika.

Chitika’s Dan Ruby explains that they looked at traffic coming into their ad network from Google and separated it by placement in Google’s search results. Pages in the number one position received more than 34% of all visits, compared to 17% for pages ranked second, and 11% for pages ranked third.

That speaks to the value of a number one ranking, but Ruby points out that the biggest jump shows the bvalue of being on page one. Pages ranked in the #10 spot — at the bottom of page one — got 143% more traffic than pages in the #11 spot, at the top of page two.

Chitika’s sample covers more than 8.2 million impressions earlier this month.

The data is reminiscent to the 2006 release of AOL search data that showed 42% of clicks were on the top-ranked page, 12% on the number two listing, and 8.5% on the third-ranked result.

Together, it all proves what SEOs have known for a long time: The top of page one is where you want (your clients) to be.

Related Topics: Channel: SEO | Google: SEO | Google: Web Search | SEO: General | Stats: Search Behavior

About The Author: Matt McGee is Editor-In-Chief of Search Engine Land. His news career includes time spent in TV, radio, and print journalism. His web career continues to include a small number of SEO and social media consulting clients, as well as regular speaking engagements at marketing events around the U.S. He blogs at Small Business Search Marketing and can be found on Twitter at @MattMcGee and/or on Google Plus. You can read Matt's disclosures on his personal blog. See more articles by Matt McGee

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