Online health info seekers choose relevance over trustworthiness

Online health info seekers choose relevance over trustworthiness 

 

Source: ePharm5(tm)

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Relevance trumps trustworthiness when it comes to choosing sources of online health information, according to a study from JupiterResearch. The report shows that 65% of online health consumers say they click on a search result because of its relevance to a particular health query, whereas 16% say they do so because they trust the source. Moreover, only 3% of online health users think that most online health information is untrustworthy. The study also shows that only 19% of online health users go directly to a favorite Web site for health queries, instead choosing to begin their search with a search engine. According to JupiterResearch, this means that companies that want to target this audience should focus on search engine marketing to get Web site traffic, saying that only big properties such as WebMD and portal channels can rely on loyalty.