Consumer interest in nutrition and wellness has long been seasonal. But for all the persistence of new year’s resolutions and consumers vowing to turn over a new leaf after indulging in high caloric meals during Christmas and Easter, recent Google Trends analysis suggests that our desire for self-improvement is extending beyond the typical holiday peaks, creating a range of ‘always on’ behaviours.
Health Cartel founder, Catalina Levitt, reports more than 70% growth in FY21 as Covid-19 results in restricted access to gyms, yoga studios and other health and wellness destinations. More consumers than ever before are googling for help to achieve their nutritional goals.
Analysis indicates there’s been a broader, more inclusive step change in consumer behaviour around wellness and connected trends. And it’s a shift that appears to go far beyond the more immediate effects of the pandemic, with potentially a long-term and far-reaching impact on the services we Google.
There is a sustained interest in wellness over 2020 and into 2021, growing 21% year on year as reported by Google through it’s trends data. The year-long uptick in health and fitness search interest means that retailers and brands need to be smart about how they approach related categories.
Consumers can no longer be treated as beginners by default. Many may have already made their first steps into new habits and are now in the market for additional, or more advanced, products to support their new behaviours.
In topics such as exercise, self-care, and nutrition, search data indicates consumers are moving away from the learning phase to one of action. This is once again proven by Health Cartel’s FY21 growth, standing in stark contrast to search volumes in other non-fitness related industries.
On YouTube, viewers continue to seek accessible instructions to aid more active lifestyles — watchtime of ‘yoga’ and ‘high intensity interval training’ (HIIT) content are both up over three times on their FY20 levels.
Catalina Levitt
Health Cartel
https://www.healthcartel.com.au
catalinalevitt@gmail.com
(02) 9021 4500