This document discusses the future of comparison websites in Belgium. It finds that while Belgian internet usage and interest in online research for financial products is growing, usage of comparison sites is still relatively low due to issues of small market size, language barriers, and consumer skepticism. The document proposes a new comparison site for Belgium that focuses on providing objective information, ratings of companies, and building trust to overcome these challenges and connect consumers to advertisers in a mutually beneficial way.

1. The future of comparison websites in Belgium

8. Millions of sites… 2.2 million sites / 50,000 searches per month = 40 sites per search (NL) 520 site per search (FR) !!

9. Competition is tough

13. How they work… 1. People fill in personal data and needs 2. They compare the different rates 3. If they apply, the advertiser pays for the lead

15. Margins not hurt by comparison websites ING.nl BE ING.Be

18. A booming Business

19. Turnover BeatThatQuote.com

20. 70 different price comparison websites in UK (even sites to compare comparison sites) More than

21. Online verzekeren is het tweede internetproduct in Nederland Serge Fenenko ( Novocortex ) woensdag 6 februari 2008, 13:12 Rubriek: Cijfers en feiten | Trends | Bekeken: 8551 keer (4861 keer doorgeklikt) 21% that looked on-line bought on-line

25. Iprospect (NL) http://www.checkit.nl/pdf/whitepaper_internet_en_financiele_dienstverlening.pdf

26. now Jan Hilde

27. week 1 family & friends bank websites

30. week 2 A new bank found on internet

31. week 3

32. week 4

35. Belgium

36. The UK Comparison site Comparison site Comparison site Comparison site

37. Not 7 less 3 But a log difference something like 2 7 vs 2 3 836 K vs. .5 K

38. Half of Net users have heard of at least one financial price comparison site . Belgium: 9% A quarter of Net users have used a price comparison site in the past year . Belgium: 4%

42. Belgian consumers are also looking for financial information on line 41,5% of Belgian respondents have looked for financial product information online

43. Consumer information 68% 13% 41% 13% 11% 15% 11% 4% Belgian results 52%

44. Belgian usage is low low 8.6%

45. Belgian trust is low 32% = enough trust + lots of trust 65%

46. Negative effects for not-listed banks? If your bank is not listed on a price comparison website, would this have a negative impact on consumer decision? Would consumers still consult your bank’s website? Language Negative impact Still consult FR 45% 89% NL 44% 90%

47. Planned usage is high

48. Imagine a site…

50. But we know what consumers want What other information would you like ? NL FR TOTAL Specific product details 41.55% 44.42% 44.07% Comparison of characteristics/prices of different banks 29.83% 31.15% 31.48% What product is best for you 23.10% 25.19% 24.81% Non-biased information about the product 14.31% 21.54% 16.67% Information about saving and how to pick the best product 14.14% 17.88% 15.74% Comparison of characteristics/prices of one specific bank 8.45% 11.92% 9.81% Recommendations of specialists 8.79% 10.19% 9.63% Opinions of other consumers 9.48% 5.96% 9.07% Names of companies with products I am looking for 8.45% 8.46% 8.89% Independent reports 7.93% 5.96% 7.78% Information about service level and quality 4.31% 6.54% 5.00% Other 1.90% 3.08% 2.22%

54. Our plan: Info + Action + Ratings Plus Ratings on suppliers

55. Top 5 search results for most of our sites

57. Our business model Consumer focus Consumer Fair Advertiser focus 80% of companies Neutral Honest Transparent

59. That means a lot of business in many categories Share of visits/ conversion rates based on data on our sites Conversion rates based on UK / Dutch results

60. Comparison vs. alternative media (price)

61. A rough comparison vs. CPC (google)