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From hoverboards to adult onesies: the gifts we’re searching for this holiday
November 30, 2015
If your holiday shopping plan this season involves grabbing a spare minute on your phone to hunt for presents while you’re standing in line or on the train to work, you’re not alone.
More than half
of holiday shoppers say they plan to use their smartphones in free moments throughout the day to get their holiday list done. As we wake up to what has become
the
day for online deal hunting—Cyber Monday—we took a look at the top gifts trending on Google Search to help you shop smarter in those spare moments. Here’s a look at online shopping search trends across the U.S., to give you ideas of what your loved ones might like to find under the tree.
Source: Google Shopping Data, U.S., Oct 2015 vs. Oct 2014
Drones are now toys:
Drones are no longer expensive playthings for the tech-savvy. Search for “toy drone” and you’ll find countless inexpensive, easy-to-use devices available from department stores and toy stores. And they’re popular—nationwide, shopping searches for drones are up 80% over the past year, and they’re highest in California.
Hoverboards are real, and they’re trending:
While we’re on the topic of electronic toys, hoverboards are so popular this year they’ve even overtaken searches for drones. They may not be exactly like the boards from
Back to the Future
or the
Lexus commercial
, but these two-wheeled boards have become a hot toy this season. Searches for “hoverboards” started trending in the summer and are up more than 500% since July.
Source: Google Shopping Data, U.S., Oct 2015 vs. Oct 2014
Holiday onesies are the new “ugly Christmas sweaters”:
Last year “ugly Christmas sweaters” were all the rage. This year we’re seeing holiday onesies are the new kitsch partywear of choice, as searches for “adult onesies” are trending even faster than searches for “ugly Christmas sweater.” (Hey—we don’t try to explain these trends. We just report them. -Ed.)
Your 90s wardrobe is BACK:
Bomber jackets. Levi jeans. Adidas Superstars. Looking at this year’s top-trending apparel list you’ll be forgiven for thinking we’ve gone back to the 90s. Not only have we seen searches for these 90s fashion trends more than double over the past year, each city has their own 90s fashion item of choice—shoppers in Chicago are more interested in Levis while shoppers in New York are on the hunt for Adidas Superstar shoes.
Source: Google Shopping Data, U.S., Oct 2015 vs. Oct 2014
“Smart” devices top electronics searches:
With more models on the market than ever, both smart watches and smart TVs topped our list of trending electronics this year—with “smart watch” searches seeing a particularly phenomenal growth, up nearly 300% compared to last year. But as smart devices get more popular, retro electronics are also making a comeback: searches for instant cameras like “Polaroid Camera” and “Fujifilm Instax” have been rising steadily in popularity each holiday season.
So there you have it. Ready to start shopping? To help you search for these gifts quickly and easily while on-the-go, we recently redesigned
Google Shopping
on mobile. And for more insights behind this season’s trends, check out the
Shopping Insights
tool. Happy deal-hunting!
Posted by Brad Johnsmeyer, Google Insights
Brad Johnsmeyer
Manager
Google Insights
Google Express: more cities, more stores and a new name
October 13, 2014
One year ago, the first Google Shopping Express order was delivered—a box of granola. Our idea was to make shopping your favorite local stores as easy and fast as shopping online, and to help you get what you need delivered the same day. Since then, you’ve told us how we helped you restock diapers in the nick of time, made sure you had Bananagrams for family game night, and even made you feel connected to the outside world when you were home sick. Along the way, we've expanded to new locations, brought on more merchants, and offered more products. And now, we’re adding to the program you love.
More cities, more stores and more products
Starting today, we’re expanding to three new cities: Chicago, Boston, and Washington, D.C. Across all our cities, more than 7 million people can now access our same-day delivery service, and in Northern California almost 12 million can use our next-day service.
We’re also adding more merchants: 16 in total over the last couple of months. We’ve added national brands including 1-800-Flowers, Barnes & Noble, Nine West, PetSmart, Vitamin Shoppe and Sports Authority, and regional merchants such as Paragon Sports in New York and Vicente Foods in Los Angeles. In our new markets, we’ve added regional brands including Stop & Shop in Boston; Giant Food in D.C.; and Lux Roses, TigerDirect, Treasure Island Foods and Wrigleyville Sports in Chicago.
Additionally, customers in the Bay Area who are 21 and over can now order alcohol. Cheers (and please drink responsibly)!
Express membership
Starting today, shoppers who decide to become Google Express members will enjoy:
Free same-day or overnight delivery on eligible orders over $15.*
First dibs on delivery windows
Shared membership with a household member
Membership costs $95/year or $10/month. Or you can choose to pay as you go, at $4.99 per eligible order.
Learn more on our Help Center
. Either way, we don’t add any hidden markups, so you pay the same price for your stuff on Google Express as you would in-store.
New shoppers can try the
first three months of membership for free
. You can cancel it at any time, so it’s easy to test it out and decide if you like it.
A shorter name
We've also noticed people referring to us as "Google Express"—and we love it. So as of today, we've simplified our name. Plus, we've added a punch of color to our parachute:
With more cities, more merchants, and more of your favorite items, Google Express is on its way toward making your life easier by helping you get even more errands out of the way. We hope to give you more free time—and we can’t wait to hear about all the things you do with it.
Posted by Brian Elliott, Head of Partnerships, Google Shopping
*Free delivery means no
shipping & service fees
. Same day or overnight depends on availability of delivery windows. Eligible orders are $15+ before taxes/fees in select
delivery areas
and exclude
restricted
items. Service fees apply to ineligible orders. Pricing may change. Requires active membership subject to
terms & conditions
.
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