Google is the number 1 site on all of the internet*. (And recently they announced that mobile searches exceed desktop searches so if getting a mobile responsive site was on your to do list, move it to the top).
Anyways, with all those people searching for stuff, Google has collected a lot of data. In fact, Google Trends has collected data on what people are Google-ing since 2004. Have you ever looked at Google Trends?
My guess is no.
But imagine the power of publishing blog posts that hit at the peak time certain phrases are being searched for? I hope you just got really excited. This is a whole new, and sophisticated, way of generating blog post ideas.
Some of you might have all of December’s posts already planned but for those of you who aren’t as forward looking I’ve put together a list of the top Google searches from December 2014 to help you decide what to write about, and when, in December 2015!
For starters, “Cookies” jumps up 10 places from November 2014 to December 2015. “Wine” jumps 4 places, “Chocolate” jumps 6 and “Sugar” jumps up 9. Given just those trends here are 10 blog post ideas to hit on these topics:
- Classic Sugar Cookie Recipe
- Easy Sugar Cookies
- How to Decorate Sugar Cookies
- Delicious Gingerbread Cookie Recipe
- Crowd Pleasing Wines
- Red Wine Basics / White Wine Basics
- My Favorite Hot Chocolate Recipe
- DIY Hot Chocolate Gifts
- Chocolate Cookie Recipe
- Types of Sugar Explained / Types of Flours Explained
Generally speaking any post with a how to component or one where you take the time to explain the differences in things is going to be more appealing to readers.
Outside of food, which is the lifestyle category that sees the most disruption in December, other search terms that peak in December are:
- What to wear to a Holiday Party
- Etsy
- DIY Gifts
- Black Tights
- Fleece Pajamas
- Wool Coat
- Blanket Scarf
- Holiday Workout
- Holiday Playlist
- New Years Eve Party Ideas
- What to wear on New Years Eve
- Holiday Storage Tips
Interestingly, “Christmas Cookie Exchange” peaks in November and “Holiday Budget” peaks in June/July (because everyone in Europe calls vacations a holiday). There are actually very few people searching for budget tips this time of year which is good news for your affiliate links!
Of course people are shopping for gifts this time of year but people are also shopping for 2016 Planners (our favorite ones are going to be on the blog soon), tool sets and party games (Cards Against Humanity is #1 and I’m a fan of Utter Nonsense).
One final tip because Pinterest is a important traffic driver this time of year – Holiday-themed pins actually start an upward spike in August so pin any holiday content from last year today. Gardening pins start to be more Pinteresting in December and health and fitness trends begin moving up in the early part of the year.
Happy Blogging!