Leading Brands in GB's Business & Productivity Software: Q4 2024 Analysis

Introduction

In the dynamic landscape of business and productivity software, certain brands continue to lead the charge with impressive digital footprints. In Q4 2024, Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, and Gmail emerged as key players in GB, boasting substantial monthly deduplicated audiences across their websites and applications. This article delves into the performance and trends of these leading brands, drawing insights from Sensor Tower’s comprehensive data offerings.

Microsoft 365 (Office 365)

Microsoft 365 maintains a robust presence with multiple websites and apps, including forms.office.com, microsoft365.com, office.com, and apps like Microsoft Word and Microsoft Teams.

• Audience Trends: Throughout Q4, true audience figures for Microsoft 365’s websites remained stable above 12M monthly, with notable peaks in October and November. The web market consistently outperformed the app market, though the latter showed significant engagement, especially with Microsoft OneDrive.

• App Engagement: Apps like Microsoft Word and Microsoft Teams saw steady growth, with monthly active users peaking in November. Microsoft Outlook consistently led in user engagement, maintaining over 8M monthly active users.

• Ad Spend & Channels: Monthly ad spend peaked in September, with a notable focus on LinkedIn, delivering impressions in the tens of millions. Facebook and Instagram were also significant channels, though less dominant.

Google Workspace

Google Workspace, with its suite of services, is anchored by calendar.google.com, docs.google.com, and meet.google.com, alongside apps such as Google Calendar and Google Docs.

• Audience Trends: Google Workspace’s websites saw a consistent rise, with unique visits reaching over 4M monthly in October. Docs.google.com was particularly strong, with visits per unique visitor reaching triple digits, indicating high user engagement.

• App Engagement: Google Docs and Google Calendar maintained a stable monthly user base, with active users hovering around 2M and 6M respectively. Google Messages showed a gradual increase in user engagement, surpassing 8M monthly active users.

• Ad Spend & Channels: A significant surge in monthly ad spend was observed in November, primarily across Instagram and LinkedIn, with impressions reaching the hundreds of millions.

Gmail

Gmail’s digital reach is formidable, centered around mail.google.com and the Gmail app.

• Audience Trends: Gmail’s true audience was remarkably stable, consistently above 43M monthly. The web market dominated, though the app also maintained a robust presence.

• App Engagement: The Gmail app demonstrated steady user engagement, with monthly active users consistently exceeding 24M throughout the quarter.

• Ad Spend & Channels: Notably, Gmail did not allocate any monthly ad spend in this period, focusing instead on organic growth and user engagement.

Conclusion

The business and productivity software sector in GB saw Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, and Gmail leading the charge in Q4 2024. With Sensor Tower’s unparalleled data capabilities, we gain critical insights into cross-platform user behavior, showcasing the power of web and app integration. For businesses aiming to understand this dynamic market, Sensor Tower’s Web Insights, App Performance Insights, and Pathmatics provide essential tools for strategic planning and growth.