Did you know - Dating related searches in India are growing much faster than matrimony queries or that there has been a 75% increase in ‘Near Me’ queries and a 100% growth in queries for co-working spaces. These are some of the insights from Google’s annual Year in Search: Insights for Brands Report that was released today. The report is a deep dive into what Indian users are searching for online and the opportunities these trends can unlock for brands.

Sharing insights from the report Vikas Agnihotri, Country Director, Google India said; “The online space in India has never been more vibrant. India has become the fastest internet consuming country in the world and the internet has now become the bridge to Bharat’s aspirations. As highlighted in the Year in Search Report, the growing influence of online video, increase in usage of language and voice, along with a rise of ML and AI are opportunities for brands and marketers. This enables brands to create relevant experiences to engage and retain customers on a platform that they spend considerable time on.”

The top five emerging trends from the Google India Year in Search-Insights for Brands report are:

1. Bharat is going online: With an average yearly addition of 40 million users, the internet is being welcomed into homes all over India. Rise in online search volumes in non-metros is now trumping metros. Consumers in non-metros are using the internet to search for information regarding insurance, beauty and travel more than metros.

* 61% of all searches across BFSI are coming from non-metros

* 55% of all auto related searches from non-metros

* Interest in travel is much higher in non-metros

2. Video is the new search tool: Indian consumers love online video. Period. Everyday millions of users are using Video to ‘learn’ something new. Online video audience in India is expected to grow to 500 million by 2020. Watch time for Science videos as well as Hobby related videos in India have more than tripled in 2018. YouTube has also become the new beauty advisor, as watch time for Beauty Tips videos in India has doubled YoY in 2018 and searches related to beauty have grown by 40% last year. 

 * 1/3rd of searches for online video are entertainment related

 * Lifestyle, education and business have shown 1.5x - 3x growth in last 2 years

 * 80% of car buyers use online video as a research destination

3. Regional languages: Indian language internet users are expected to account for nearly 75% of India’s internet user base by 2021, and Google search trends show a significant move in this direction. Hindi is also gaining traction in the Technology sector with 2X increase in Hindi queries related to laptops and PCs. 

* 9 out of 10 new internet users in India are likely to be Indian language users

* 2.3X jump in Hindi queries for smartphones and mobile phones

4. The rise of omnichannel: With the rise of omnichannel, consumers are making the most of their online and offline experiences. Food seems to be the ‘topic of interest’ and pizza has emerged as a hot favorite for Indians searching online There was a 2.5X jump in aggregator brand queries in comparison to the total growth of food tech queries.

* 50% of organized retail to be influenced by digital in 2020

* 88% increase in ‘Near Me’ searches for telecom stores

5.Assisting businesses through AI and ML: 2018 saw an increase in the adoption of online automation, as businesses used artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) to drive efficiency and improve customer experience. Brands across various categories, such as BFSI and telecom, have started integrating voice assistants like Google Assistant with their customer service to help customers. Brands such as Uber, Ola, Meru made cab booking services available on Google Assistant. Furthermore, brands are using automated capabilities in digital marketing to save time and drive higher return on ad spend (ROAS). 

* 7X rise in use of assistant

* 2X sales for GSK Otrivin by running real time weather based campaigns