Using Google Search Trends In Your 2022 Digital Strategy

It’s a new year and a fresh slate, and it’s time to consider your digital strategy for the year ahead. If you’re not sure what you should include in your strategy or even where to start, don’t stress. The team at SponsoredLinX are the digital marketing experts, and we’re here to help you use Google search trends to inform your 2022 search engine optimisation content strategy. To do that, we’ll need to take a look back at the last 12 months to get a sense of what consumers are looking for, where they’re looking for it, and how they go about searching for items and services.

Why Are Google Search Trends Important? 

Google Trends show how frequently search terms are entered into Google’s search engine over a given period. They provide digital marketers and businesses worldwide with valuable information that helps them better advertise their products and services. 

• Know what people are looking for right now. Google Trends can be used for keyword research to discover event-triggered spikes in keywords search volume, allowing you to adjust your keyword budget accordingly.
• Choose your keywords strategically. To develop the best SEO strategy, you need to identify keywords to target. Google Trends helps us find keywords, test them, and measure their potential success for your business. 
• Overview of competitors. While it’s not the most comprehensive form of competitor analysis, Google Trends gives you a pretty good idea of how often their brand, products, and services are being looked up on Google. 
• Use historical data. If a specific event or holiday is coming up, like Christmas, Valentine’s Day, or Halloween, you can use search trend data from 12 months ago to see what people were searching for, so you can plan your keyword targeting early. 
• Comparative keyword research. If you’re tossing up between a couple of keywords, you can see comparative results, allowing you to compare and contrast spikes in search volume for each phrase or word.

A Few Interesting Search Trends From The Last Year

We’ve looked through Google’s 2021 Year In Search and highlighted some of the most interesting, valuable insights you can consider when planning your strategy and predicting Google trends in 2022. 

• More people are shopping online than ever before. This shouldn’t come as a surprise considering the combination of the pandemic and rapidly advancing technology, but more and more people are choosing to shop online. In the Asia-Pacific region, more than 58% of consumers buy items they need online rather than going in-store. Time and cost savings, flexible payment options, diversity of product offerings, and efficient delivery services are the motivators behind this digital migration. So, this indicates that the pandemic is no longer the driving factor behind a digital-first lifestyle. 
• Digital channels are used throughout the entire consumer journey. Throughout the Asia Pacific region, there were rises in searches for ‘which brand is good’, ‘when is [XYZ]’s sale’, ‘free delivery’, and ‘same day delivery’. Consumers are using the Google search functions to source recommendations, compare brands, and find the best options for them. 
• Virtual consultations and appointments aren’t going anywhere. Search volumes for terms like ‘online appointment’, ‘virtual consultation’, and ‘online doctor consultation’ saw an 80% growth, indicating consumers like the convenience of virtual appointments.  
• People are reevaluating their lives and lifestyles. From small everyday upgrades to major life decisions, Google search trends from 2021 indicate that people are taking control of their lives and making choices that align with their morals and values. As a result, consumers are switching careers, renovating their homes, financial investments, and spending time on their wellbeing and self-care. 
• People were showing their virtual appreciation of one another. Throughout 2021, half the online population in the Asia Pacific region bought a gift for someone online. Additionally, Australia saw a 20% rise in searches for gift and hamper deliveries. 
• Australians love AfterPay. Australia is one of the top three countries with the highest number of searches for ‘bnpl’ or ‘buy now pay later’.

What Should You Be Doing In Your 2022 Digital Strategy?

If you’re wondering how you can learn from these trends and adapt your 2022 digital strategy, the SponsoredLinX team have a few tips and tricks. 

• Stay current. You need to keep an eye on search trends as they happen so you can leverage the best keywords for your business. You can discover what’s trending on Google and tailor your digital strategy accordingly. If you look up ‘most searched on Google today’, you’ll likely find some pretty interesting answers. For example, at the time of writing, the most searched term of the day is ‘Neil Young’. So if you sell CDs or music memorabilia, it might be a good time to leverage that keyword. 
• Meet consumers wherever they are in the consumer journey. Modern consumers expect businesses to fulfil their shopping needs whenever they need them, wherever they are. The consumer journey includes a complicated web of touchpoints that differs from person to person. Businesses need to meet their customers at each of those points, creating bridges to guide them toward a purchase. You can do this by;
  • Listing products in the Google Shopping Feed.
  • Targeting keywords for the research and purchase phase with tailored ads.
  • Using Responsive Search Ads relevant to the shopper.
  • Emphasising your store’s proximity to create a seamless online to offline shopping experience. 
• Think about how your products and services add value to consumers’ lives. As consumers make lifestyle changes, businesses need to fit into this new way of thinking. Consumers no longer want things for the sake of wanting them; they want something that adds real value to their lives. So, choose keywords and search terms that focus on improvement, well-being, financial health, and lifestyle. 
• Use search automation to grow your brand’s discoverability. 15% of Googles searches made each day are brand new. By broadening your keyword match type to Broad Match with Smart Bidding, you’re able to automatically adjust your campaigns to capture the different ways consumers are looking for your products and act on new opportunities as they arise. 
• Bring emotion into your digital strategy. Humans are social and emotional creatures, and we’re always looking for ways to connect with the people we love. To capture your audience’s attention, use emotional content and remind consumers there are people behind the brand. Likewise, ensure you use each marketing opportunity to tailor messages to consumers utilising the wealth of data Google offers. Nurture the relationships your brand builds with its customer base by consistently empowering and reassuring consumers at every touchpoint. 
• Provide an incentive to purchase. If you offer incentives like discounts, free shipping, or buy now pay later options, make sure to target those keywords in your marketing strategy.

If You Need Help With Your 2022 Search Strategy, Contact The Experts At SponsoredLinX

The SponsoredLinX team of marketing experts are passionate about seeing our clients succeed. We’ll do everything we can to help you improve your search strategy and boost your traffic, conversions, and sales. So, what are you waiting for? Contact the team at SponsoredLinX to get started!

---