Google Trend Expert, Robert Ferrara joins the Mason Vera Paine show to discuss the top New Year trends on Google for 2024 in health and wellness, financial resolutions, eco-friendly and more.
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Google New Years Trends Transcription
Announcer 00:00: Mason Vera Paine.
Mason Paine 00:01: it’s 2024 and people are already hitting Google searching for information about health, travel and more. Robert Ferrara joins me to speak about the new year’s trends. Thanks for joining me, Robert.
Robert Ferrara 00:13: Thanks for having me. Happy New Year.
Mason Paine 00:15: You know, what are some of the top search new Year resolutions people are searching for?
Robert Ferrara 00:20: Now is that time of year. You know, everyone’s thinking about their New Year’s resolutions, how to better themselves for 2024, and we’re really seeing that reflected across all of our search trends as well on Google. So this year, resolutions are always top of mind in January that we see in our results. But the categories that we’re seeing, not surprising. The first one is health and wellness. So that includes physical health, mental wellness, really the whole gamut there. Also, right after that is financial. Also, one we see pretty consistently year over year things related to money and how you can be more budget conscious and manage your money more effectively in the new year.
Robert Ferrara 00:57: And then finally, the third one was a bit of a breakout and a little surprising to us, too, which is really cool. So green and ecofriendly resolution were some of the top ones as well. So a lot of people thinking about the kinds of products they buy, whether they’re deemed ecofriendly, sustainable fashion, how to be more green at home, just trying to lessen their environmental impact this year.
Mason Paine 1:17: That one is pretty interesting. How would that look in the trends? Is that kind of like, how would. I impact the environment less? Like, what can I eat or what can I do? What does that look like?
Robert Ferrara 1:28: I think there’s a lot of attention to what we’re consuming as a big one. So, for example, we’re seeing a big spike in ecofriendly cleaning products, things that we buy every day for our household that we might have overlooked, and what kind of chemicals and materials go into these products, what is the impact they have on planet and things like that. A big thing, too, that we’re seeing is sustainable fashion as well. More of a concern over fast fashion and making sure that you understand the kind of materials the garments are made out of, what kind of labor went into creating them. Is it something that’s going to last for a long time? All these things that people really want to think about before making that purchase, and then even goes for larger purchases as well, which is very interesting. A funding one we spoke to with sustainable engagement ring searches really increased as well. Whether that’s like vintage or pre owned or lab grown diamonds, and people doing research on alternative engagement rings, it’s really interesting to see how these pains year over year.
Mason Paine 2:29: Was there any differences from last year to this year?
Robert Ferrara 2:32: We always see some differences in the exact trends. Health and financial are pretty consistent year over year. Like, for example, gym membership and meal prep, they spike every January and then some change over time. So, for example, the health benefits of dry January has completely surged. We actually saw an increase of over 2000% in the past week alone. And that’s something that we’ve seen steadily growing year over year as more and more people are interested.
Mason Paine 3:01: I’m a little curious because you were talking about gym memberships, and I was just thinking of when people track their exercises. Were planners or apps also trending during this time?
Robert Ferrara 3:11: There’s definitely interest in that, too, and it actually works out perfect, because at Google, we’re very focused on helping you with these tips and tricks that could set you up for success with these resolutions. And one of those is the Fitbit charge six. The wearable tech that you have on you can be huge help in keeping you on these goals. So, for example, that device specifically can help with your sleep score. It monitors things like your heart rate, your movement. Sleep stages, really keeps you in check and also your stress. So it measures heightened stress levels, and it can even offer you breathing exercises throughout the day. Just keep yourself a little bit more in tune to what’s going on in.
Mason Paine 3:50: Your body when it comes to other stuff. Was there anything that you thought would. Be on the list or trending? And it totally wasn’t.
Robert Ferrara 3:58: I feel for the most part, they’re really different in a lot of ways, too. I was very surprised by some of the sustainability trends that we’re seeing, which was really cool. I think that there’s more of an interest, too. On the finance side, we typically see things like saving money, and that always spikes and how to save money on groceries and everyday items. But one thing in the finance bucket was that there’s a huge spike in personal finance apps and books. A lot of interest in improving financial literacy, whether it’s reading up on how to invest or how to manage your money more effectively in the new year, how to save for a big ticket item like a home or a car. So that was a really interesting one that was newer this year.
Mason Paine 4:39: See, I was thinking something silly would be, like, trending, because for me personally, my New Year’s resolution is I want. To learn how to moonwalk and I was like, there was nothing goofy on there.
Robert Ferrara 4:49: There was in sustainability category, sustainable bikini surge as well, which was very interesting and something we were laughing about because everyone’s like, what is a sustainable bikini. But it really goes to show it’s the attention to detail of folks that are looking more into their purchases. Like, a bikini is something that you might not wear as many times as you had hoped for or gets a lot of wear throughout when you’re using it. What are alternative materials that you can get a bikini in? What? Some of them might last you a little bit longer, season to season, and something that doesn’t have as much of an impact on the environment.
Mason Paine 5:28: That is pretty funny. And I was thinking maybe it’s made of like that bamboo fiber. That’s probably what’s making it sustainable because that’s a good one. I kind of like it. I’m going to search for it myself. It’s something to get for my sister now.
Robert Ferrara 5:41: Yeah. Always a surprise.
Mason Paine 5:43: Before I let you go, Robert, I Got to know, what about you? What was your New Year’s resolution?
Robert Ferrara 5:48: I am definitely more focused on the health stuff, which is kind of boring and expected, but being a little bit more mindful and trying to get myself back into shape and be a little bit more active. The great part is, as someone that uses all Google products and services, there’s a lot of great tools to help you stay on track. The sad reality is that, like 9% of Americans that create New Year’s resolutions actually complete them by the end of the year. Most people fall off. And it’s tools like we have, like, for example, generative AI. It can be a huge, huge help to stay on track with some of those resolutions. So we have a product called Bard that we actually launched less than a year ago. And it’s our generative AI tool that we think of as like a creative collaborator.
Robert Ferrara 6:32: It’s a tool to help you get unstuck. It’s for when you need inspiration and just to brainstorm a little bit. And I use it every day, and I think that it’s really excellent for staying on top of some of those resolutions that I’ve made this year. So, for example, I ask that you create me custom workout plans based on my habits every day. I ask it all the time to help me with meal prep and meal planning. You can say I’m working with a couple of these items in my fridge and pantry. What are some ideas for a high protein, healthy dinner tonight? What are some ways I could make a mocktail, for example? What are some different recipes? I’m doing dry January, so it’s really cool and the options are just endless with the ways you can play around with it. It’s a really helpful tool.
Mason Paine 7:15: Oh wow. That is pretty cool. Are the prompts a little bit easier than like Chat GPT? Does it respond a little bit faster?
Robert Ferrara 7:23: We can’t speak to any competitors in a comparison, but it does an amazing job. You can prompt it with however way you want to phrase it and you can get some really incredible results, everything from your travel plans. I don’t know about you, but I’m like itching to get out of this cold weather here in New York and I’m ready to start planning some trips. And I’ve been using bar daily, just helping me research what are some destinations I might want to check out? What are some hotels in that area? It’s really incredible what it can come out with. I went on a few trips last year using Bard to come up the itinerary and I was so pleased like really custom to what I was looking for. And I think that’s the beauty of being able to chat with it, is that you’re not held to a single prompt. You can just go back and forth in your exchange without having to restate yourself. So you can get a recommendation, say opting for something a little bit more know.
Robert Ferrara 8:16: Or maybe I’m looking for more of a casual restaurant that night and you can just continue to really tell your results something that fits what you’re looking for.
Mason Paine 8:25: Well, thanks Robert for joining me. I really appreciate you being here. For those listening, where can they find more information about everything that we spoke about?
Robert Ferrara 8:32: So, for those interested in generative AI and wanting to play around with it, Bard is free and all you need is your Google account. So I encourage you to check out Bard Google.com for more. And for those interested in the trends and what we’re seeing on search, I mean, absolutely. Check out trends Google.com and you’re able to kind of play around and see what we’re seeing on our end.
Announcer 8:56: This has been the Mason Vera Paine show. Thanks for listening.
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