Wolseley dominates online bathroom sector growth for 2024, report reveals

According to a new report, Wolseley has achieved the largest increase in online visibility within the online bathroom market over the past year.

Salience Search Marketing's annual supplements sector report lists the industry's leaders based on their online prominence and visibility. It analysed 11 performance indicators, including year-on-year visibility, search volume trends, and brand awareness, for bathroom brands, to reveal the industry’s most successful names. 

Central to this analysis is each brand's online visibility ranking, which is determined by the organic search traffic their website attracts. This metric is vital for understanding the website's overall growth or decline.

This year, Wolseley leads the online bathroom industry, boasting a 34% increase in visibility over the past year. Wolseley recorded a traffic score of 165,284.

Next, Better Bathrooms ranked in second place and had a productive year, growing visibility by 44%. This highlights a well-planned and executed strategy - with a recorded traffic score of 156,496.

Big Bathroom Shop, known for its extensive range of showers, toilets and furniture, grew online visibility exponentially, increasing by an impressive 81%. The bathroom brand now records a traffic score of 143,272.

Additionally, it was a great year for Bathroom Mountain as its visibility exploded in comparison to 2023’s data, increasing by 115%. This demonstrates the brand’s commitment to providing a top-quality service and improving brand awareness.

Lastly, the UK Bathroom Store was able to grow its online presence this year, achieving a massive 278% increase in visibility.

These brands stand out as ones to watch, experiencing the most significant growth in the market and demonstrating the success of their strategies in enhancing brand awareness and boosting customer numbers.

However just as some brands have been very succesful, others, among the best know brands, have seen a decrease in online visibility. 

In terms of brands that saw a drop off in visibility this year, DIY recorded a 7% decrease and now has a traffic score of 8,513,036. 

Wickes, a brand known for its range of building materials, bathroom facilities and tiles, experienced a turbulent year with its online visibility dropping by almost half (46%).

Travis Perkins, which owns brands such as Toolstation, had a worrying year in terms of online visibility. Overall, Travis Perkins’ visibility has dropped by 39% with the brand now recording a traffic score of 663,661.

Next, Plumbworld had a similar twelve months, with the brand’s visibility decreasing by a quarter (25%), in comparison to last year’s data.

Lastly, Victorian Plumbing will need to revisit its strategy to rapidly improve brand awareness following a 64% drop in online visibility.

These declines highlight these brands' challenges in maintaining the attractiveness of their online presence.

Brett Janes, managing director at Salience Search Marketing, said: “Examining brands’ online visibility is a great way to measure brand awareness and growth over a specific period of time. This year, it’s fair to say Wolseley had a productive year and a strong strategy, increasing its online presence by 34%.

“In such a competitive market such as the bathroom industry, maintaining a healthy level of online visibility can help keep brands relevant and ensure they’re at the forefront of consumer’s minds.”