During May 2010, visits to social networking sites overtook the number of visits to search engines.

The use of social networking sites in the UK is now more popular than the use of search engines, according to Experian Hitwise.

For the first time, a greater number of visits to networking sites over search engines was recorded, accounting for 11.88% of all UK visits compared with 11.33% for search engines during May 2010.

Robin Goad, Research Director for Experian Hitwise, said: “Social networks are a key part of the online landscape in the UK, and their popularity continues to grow. Although social networks and search engines perform different functions, they both act as gateways to the wider internet. This data perfectly illustrates the key role that social media now plays in so much online behaviour.”

Facebook has once again remained the most favoured social networking site, accounting for 55% of all UK social sites, while also making up the top 5 are YouTube (16%), Twitter (2.08%), Bebo (1.19%), and MySpace (1.15%).

However, Facebook still does not have the same market share as Google has within the search engine sector. During May, visits to both the .co.uk and .com versions of Google accounted for nine in every ten web searches carried out in the UK – 9.29% of all visits, while Facebook achieved a lesser 7.04%.

Currently, spend is directed towards search engines, as these are the primary sources of traffic for most websites. However, Experian Hitwise anticipates that online marketing spend will increase on social networking sites.

Goad commented: “Many marketers and brand owners have yet to grasp the full potential of social media marketing, but spending on the channel will increase as more proven success stories emerge. There will be particular opportunities for sectors that have traditionally struggled with online and remained tied to traditional media, such as FMCG (Fast Moving Consumer Goods) and automotive.”

Experian Hitwise is a global online competitive intelligence service, measuring samples of internet users worldwide – 8 million in the UK alone. It has more than 100,000 clients and employs approximately 15,000 people worldwide.