Google’s Impact in Birmingham 2020

Key Facts

In total, by making it easier for them to connect with customers, we estimate that Google’s core search and advertising tools helped provide an estimated £624 million in economic activity in 2020 for over 8,400 businesses in Birmingham.

Over 6,700 Birmingham businesses have started selling online for the first time as a result of the pandemic.

72% of Birmingham residents under 30 have used Google Search to look for a job in the last year.

By helping them find information faster and collaborate easier, Google Search and Google Workspace are saving Birmingham workers an estimated 14 million hours a year.

Since the start of the pandemic, around half of Birmingham residents have used Google Search to find out if local shops or businesses are open.

Introduction

In 2020, the Internet was more important than ever: keeping us connected and informed, entertained and productive. From checking whether your local shop was open to keeping up to date with changing lockdown rules, or trying out a new fitness video to discussing work plans with colleagues, we turned to Google services to keep us going.

In this short report, Google commissioned us to quantify how their products helped British workers, businesses, content creators, and families in Birmingham throughout 2020.

In total, by making it easier for them to connect with customers, we estimate that Google’s core search and advertising tools helped provide an estimated £624 million in economic activity in 2020 for over 8,400 businesses in Birmingham.

Economic activity supported by Google in Birmingham by Parliamentary constituency (£ mn)

What is your favourite Google product?¹

My favourite google product is Google Search as I can gain access to any queries, or help I may need.

Woman, 28

Google Maps as I would not know my way around the country without it.

Woman, 30

YouTube as it gives access to such a wide variety of uplifting talks and music and learning.

Woman, 61

Google Maps. Very reliable and always up to date for traffic information.

Man, 34

Google Search is my favourite, it's like having all the information in the world there at the touch of a button.

Woman, 34

Helping Workers Get Things Done

Workers in Birmingham agreed that online tools had helped keep them productive:

49%

of Birmingham workers say their job would be impossible or difficult without access to an online office suite

75%

of Birmingham workers believe that they were as or more productive doing their job now, as compared to the time before Covid-19

When we asked how hard their job would be to do without access to core online services:

45%

of Birmingham workers say their job would be impossible or difficult without access to a search engine

37%

of Birmingham workers say their job would be impossible or difficult without access to video chat

48%

of Birmingham workers say they have used Google Search multiple times a day for their job

A 2015 Forrester Consulting study estimated that the deployment of Google Workspace, including tools like Gmail, Drive, Calendar, Meet, Docs, Sheets and Slides had the potential to save employees between 15 minutes to two hours per week at work, in more efficient collaboration.²

Based upon this, and other research on the time saved by Google Search,³ we estimate that in a given year, Google services could be saving workers in Birmingham around 14 million hours. That is the equivalent of producing a £645 million improvement in productivity for the British economy.⁴

Helping businesses adapt during lockdown

With Covid-19 forcing many physical stores to have to repeatedly shut, online sales and advertising became ever more important in 2020. Independent estimates suggest that the share of online retail increased from 19% to 30% as a result of the pandemic.⁵

Based upon our business survey, we estimate that:

6700

Over 6,700 Birmingham businesses have started selling online for the first time as a result of the pandemic

6700

Over 6,700 Birmingham businesses have started advertising online for the first time

6000

Over 6,000 Birmingham businesses have started taking online payments for the first time

At the same time, tools like Google Search, Google Maps and Google My Business helped keep Birmingham’s residents connected with their local shops, and up to date with who was open. Since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic:

48%

of Birmingham residents have used Google Search and 32% Google Maps to find out if local shops or businesses are open

25%

of Birmingham residents have use Google Maps to check for changed opening hours for local businesses

Other recent polling by Censuswide has found that over two thirds of small businesses in Birmingham plan to expand either nationally or internationally in 2022. Of those businesses expanding for the first time, 30% say that increased uptake of digital following lockdown is a factor in their decision to expand, and 30% the opportunities created by digital platforms.

By helping businesses shift to online sales for the first time during 2020, we estimate that Google helped support £128 million in economic activity.

In our wider business poll of the West Midlands, we found that:

61%

of businesses said that online search was an important way that customers found their business, second only behind word of mouth

16%

of businesses said that Google Docs / Workspace were useful or important in helping their business adapt to remote work

46%

of businesses said that they had use Google Search to keep up to date with the latest government advice

29%

of businesses said they are likely to continue selling their products or services online after the economy and society return to normal

Helping Families in Everyday Life

Throughout 2020, Britons turned to Google services to help keep them informed, up to date, and safe. Google Search was one of the most important platforms through which Britons kept up to date with official advice and adapt to live during the pandemic:

51%

of Birmingham residents have used Google Search to keep up to date with the latest government advice

72%

of Birmingham residents under 30 have used Google Search to look for a job in the last year

22%

of Birmingham residents have used Google Maps to plan a walk or other outdoor leisure activity since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic

35%

of Birmingham Android users downloaded the NHS Covid-19 app

34%

of Birmingham residents under 30 have used YouTube to watch fitness videos

In our polling, we found that Google products are now essential household tools - helping us around the home, learn new skills and keep learning:

35%

of Birmingham Google Search users have used it in the last month to learn a new skill

47%

of Birmingham YouTube users have used it in the last month to get help with cooking and 43% to get help with DIY tasks

33%

of Birmingham Google Maps users have used it in the last month to look for something new to try

Google’s model, free at the point of use, makes it possible for everyone, no matter their background, to benefit from the power of digital search and online information. This information can be incredibly valuable. The consumer surplus of a product looks at how much it is worth to a user - in other words, how much you would have to compensate somebody for them to voluntarily give it up.

In 2020, we estimate that Google’s core services are creating a consumer surplus worth a median of £40 per person per month in Birmingham.

Mockingbird Cinema

Housed within Birmingam’s celebrated Custard Factory, Mockingbird Cinema is both an independent film space and Community Interest Company (CIC). Since opening its doors for the first time in 2014 it has been a key venue for both film fans and filmmakers alike in the West Midlands area.

“We use our profits for community interests, so anything we make we invest back into the public good,” explains Mockingbird’s programmer and co-director Lee Nabbs.

Before the pandemic the Mockingbird had a quirky and popular reputation locally for its themed film nights and filmmaker Q&As. However, as the UK entered its first lockdown the cinema was faced with the challenge of keeping these events alive and their loyal customers engaged within an online space.

Although the furlough scheme allowed them to remain stable and retain staff while they were unable to open their doors, Lee and the team knew that they couldn’t close shop entirely. Starting with online film screenings, they drew inspiration from their previous events to host their own online quizzes, using Google Ads – a tool the company had previously seen success with – to reach their customers.

“We knew that people were going to be searching for things to do online and we used Google Ads to reach them.,” says Lee. Capitalising on growing keyword trends that they had seen during the pandemic gave added weight to the Ad campaigns and the events became an important source of revenue for the cinema. Lee also credits Google Ads with introducing Mockingbird to a much wider audience nationwide.

“I found it really easy and in terms of marketing it’s one of the cheapest and most successful things you can do. It’s great talking to customers we’ve already got through things like email ‘lists but Google Ads are a great tool for being found by new customers,” says Lee.

“Google Ads are a great tool for helping you grow and find new customers”

How we quantified Google’s impact in Birmingham

In this paper, we used a range of different methods to quantify the economic impact and helpfulness of Google Search, YouTube, Android and other Google products:

Building on the precedent of previous Google impact reports from markets including the UK, the United States, and Europe, we used traditional economic modelling built upon third-party estimates of Google market size in the UK, and standard returns on investment (ROI) to measure the economic activity driven by Google’s core products.
Working with independent providers Dynata and Kantar, we conducted extensive polling of a representative sample of over 5,000 individuals representing every region in the UK.
As part of this, we ran a decided poll of 600 adults in Birmingham, weighting this by age and gender.
At the same time, we polled 1,000 senior business leaders from small, medium and large businesses, representing a range of different industries across the UK.

All polling numbers in this report are taken directly from our Birmingham poll, which in turn has been used to produce estimates of the consumer surplus and business productivity impact created by Google products in Birmingham.

In order to estimate the business benefits and economic impact of Google in Birmingham, we apportioned out our national estimate based upon:

Birmingham’s business demography, taken from ONS data
Relative use of Google advertising services by business size
Relative use of Google advertising services in the West Midlands region

To learn more about our modelling approach, please see the Methodology section in the national report’s appendix.

Public First is a member of the Market Research Society. The full tables for all the data used in this report is available to download from our website. While Google commissioned this report from Public First, all economic estimates are derived from official, third party and Public First’s proprietary information.

Answers have been edited for clarity and grammar but are otherwise unchanged.
The Total Economic Impact of Google Apps for Work, Forrester Consulting, 2015
Economic Value of Google, Hal Varian, 2011
Public First estimate built upon Forrester Consulting (2015) and Varian (2011).
ONS