It’s important for marketers to keep current on topics of interests and trends around the world. This research gives us a good idea of what people are thinking and what they like and need. What did the world search for in 2015? Well, besides our usual searches for love and the meaning of life and how to tie a tie, the citizens of the world used Google’s search engine to keep current on topics including sports, celebrities, world events, food, entertainment, and more.
Google processes two-out-of-three Internet queries each day. These queries give marketers a good snapshot of trends around the world: 1,000 Top 10 lists from 72 countries. The 2015 top spots in the U.S. included queries about Caitlynn Jenner, the Paris attacks, Lamar Odom, Jurassic World, Star Wars, water on Mars, Ronda Rousey, politics, companies such as Volkswagen, and Cecil the lion.
Take a look – which of these topics did you search for in 2015?
Group Activities and Discussion Questions:
- Before showing the Google results, poll students as to what they think the top searches were in 2015. Why those topics?
- Next, show the Google site: https://www.google.com/trends/story/2015_GLOBAL
- Discuss the importance of market research. What are sources that can be used? Why is tracking trends important?
- Divide students into teams and have each team examine a different Top 10 List topic. What are the trends from that topic?
- How can these trends be used to develop new products?
- Debrief the exercise by listing the ideas from each team.
Source: Google
