Content Trends Report: April 2021

Spring is officially here and we’ve got six fresh trending topics to unpack for your April content and marketing strategies! 

Whether you hone in on just one of these topics or tailor them all to your niche, use these insights to help gain increased search traffic by reaching your audience with the right content at the right time.

1. Celebrating Earth and nature
2. Hopping into spring holidays
3. Injecting a global perspective
4. Tax Day tips
5. Spring break and travel ideas
6. Life hacking

1) Celebrating Earth and nature

April is Earth Month

This month, people around the world are celebrating our planet and coming together to make Earth a better, cleaner place. From activism and education, to cleanups and recycling ideas, people are coming together to honor this magnificent planet we call home.

Two notable holidays this month include Earth Day (April 22) and Arbor Day (April 30). Share specific ideas for activities and education for those two holidays as well as other ideas for Earth Month in general. 

People are looking for: 

• Education and science lessons
• Classroom activities and ideas
• Recycling and upcycling
• Garbage pickups and cleanups
• Conservation and restoration ideas
• Virtual activities 
• Volunteer opportunities

Focusing on the green in their backyards

April is also Lawn and Garden Month. People have already started sprucing up their outdoor spaces (as we saw last month), but we expect to see this trend ramp up as more and more states start warming up.

People are especially focused on getting their lawns and gardens ready for summer, and we know from last year that this includes beginner gardeners all the way to expert green-thumbs. Share your guidance and expertise to meet the wide gamut of readers interested in making their outdoor spaces as beautiful and functional as possible. 

According to Google, searches and purchases are up for: 

• Mulch
• Landscape fabric
• Herbicides
• Sprinkler accessories
• Lawn aerators & dethatchers

2) Hopping into the spring holidays

Easter

While Easter is an important Christian holiday, it has expanded to become one of the more popular non-religious holidays as well, ushering in springtime with fresh decorations, tasty menus, and fun celebrations. 

We know holiday search traffic continues to have larger spikes than past years so promote your Easter content early and often!

Popular Easter decorating queries:

• Easter decor ideas
• Spring decor
• Easter wreaths
• Easter table decorations
• Easter centerpieces
• Egg decorations

Popular Easter recipe searches:

• Easter treats
• Easter desserts
• Easter baking
• Easter brunch
• Easter dinner

Crafts and activities:

• Egg decorating ideas
• Egg hunt ideas
• Easter crafts

Beauty searches:

• Easter and pastel nail ideas
• Easter outfit ideas

Passover

Passover is the most-celebrated Jewish holiday and many dedicate this week to remembering the Israelites’ deliverance from Egyptian slavery. This year, Passover begins the evening of Saturday, March 27 and runs through the evening of Sunday, April 4.

Popular Passover searches:

• Passover haggadah
• Candle lighting
• Seder meal
• Whether specific foods/ingredients are kosher for Passover
• How to say happy Passover in Yiddish
• Ideas for celebrating Passover

Popular Passover recipes:

• Matzo ball soup
• Gefilte fish
• Passover bread recipes
• Latkes
• Fish recipes
• Brisket
• Egg noodle dishes
• Kugel
• Passover desserts

Read more about Easter and Passover traditions and trends here!

Ramadan

The month-long Muslim holiday of Ramadan is April 12 through May 12 this year. Those celebrating Ramadan fast for 30 days from dawn to sunset, spending time on reflection, introspection, and prayer.

Popular Ramadan search queries:

• Ramadan decor ideas
• First day of Ramadan
• How do you say happy Ramadan
• How many days of Ramadan

Despite the fact that the holiday focuses on fasting, people are still seeking out ideas and recipes for the meals they can partake in.

• Ramadan recipes for suhoor (pre-dawn meal) & iftar (evening meal and prayer)
• Eid al-Fitr feast ideas to celebrate the end of Ramadan

3) Injecting a global perspective

Children’s education & activities to broaden their horizons and shape them into tiny global citizens

With more children getting an at-home education providing a bit more flexibility, many people missing international adventures, and the awareness that the global community is in this pandemic together, parents and teachers are introducing kids to more of the world than ever before. There’s a desire to expose kids to new cultures, languages, and foods as part of the process of shaping them into the next generation of global citizens. 

Share your knowledge or experiences for those who are eagerly looking for ways to make at-home learning easier and the content more inclusive.

Some popular activities and subjects:

• Geography education
• Foreign languages
• Activities and games with an international take
• Subscription boxes that expose them to global perspectives
• International snacks and cooking ideas for kids

International recipes & food

This trend extends beyond children. As part of their pandemic culinary education, people are experimenting with more international recipes and foods to expand their knowledge and appreciation of other cultures. 

 In the past three months, there’s been an increase in Google searches for: 

• Polish cuisine (+200%)
• Morrocan cuisine (+170%)
• Thai cuisine (+100%)
• Korean cuisine (+60%)
• Burmese cuisine (+60%)
• Nigerian cuisine (+50%)
• Indian cuisine (+40%)

 A few examples of rising international dishes and recipes:

• Pad Thai recipe (+200%)
• Tandoori chicken (+120%)
• Ramen (+100%)
• Falafel (+130%)
• Borscht soup (+110%)
• Shrimp taco recipe (+100%)
• Alfajor (+90%)
• Ceviche (+60%)

Fun & entertainment from different countries

Along with international culinary skills, adults are exploring other cultures through media and different forms of entertainment like:

• Film and television — Netflix has been expanding their international offerings
• Books
• Crafts
• VR & AR experiences

It’s a great time to meet your readers’ thirst for knowledge and introduce new ways to experience the world through your expert recommendations and experiences!

4) Tax Day tips

For 2021, the IRS has officially extended the federal tax filing deadline from April 15 to May 17 — state filings and payment deadlines vary and may not be affected by this extension.

According to one release, returns filed are down 25% year-over-year, and the IRS has processed 31% fewer returns compared to this same time last year. That means more people are likely to be filing closer to the deadline.

Searches for taxes are at an all-time high — share your suggestions to help answer these popular tax-related Google searches in the past 30 days:

• How long after taxes are accepted are they deposited?
• How long does it take for taxes to be approved?
• When is the deadline for taxes 2021?
• How long after your taxes are accepted to get a refund?
• How long does it take to get state taxes back?
• Do you pay taxes on employment?

5) Spring break and travel ideas

Tiptoeing back to travel

People are still eagerly awaiting their opportunity for “revenge travel”. With international flights off limits, people are sticking to domestic locations and keeping their travel radius within a few hours of home. 

That said, we’re seeing some increases in traveling starting this spring for those who are vaccinated or are located in more open states.

Seniors who’ve gotten the vaccine could be more apt to travel. Share fun ideas for those who have been going stir crazy this past year and are eager to hit the open road.

We may see more strict rules and regulations put in place this year to help people enjoy safe travels while still preventing resurgence of the virus. As regulations constantly update, help readers stay in-the-know so they can reduce last-minute changes to their plans and more easily enjoy their long-awaited time away.

Share travel and trip ideas for:

• Road trips
• Home and private rentals
• Bed and breakfast trips
• Glamping
• Disney vacations
• Beach trips

6) Life hacking

One of the best things to come out of this pandemic is the ability to focus on improving yourself. TikTok has especially lit a fire under people to optimize their lives by hacking them. The #hack hashtag has garnered over 17 billion views to date! People are interested in hacks for their health, homes, cooking routines, school, camping, traveling, and more. 

Biohacking: using apps & tech to monitor health

As we predicted at the beginning of this year, people want to get control over their health in 2021 and rid themselves of the “quarantine 15” and other unhealthy habits developed over the past year. 

People are looking to technology to help them make progress and stick to their goals like smartwatches for monitoring heart rate and walking distance, apps for tracking nutrition, posture correctors for fixing the work-from-home-shoulder-hunch, smart scales to monitor body composition, and more.

Share your favorite gadgets for supporting healthy routines and help your readers incorporate technology into their day-to-day lives. 

Using food as medicine

In addition to using technology, people are looking for ways to proactively stay healthy by using nutrition, supplements, and herbs to improve health, mood, or mental capacity.

Some popular searches:

• Supplements (such as Ashwagandha, Biotin)
• Gummy supplements for targeted uses (sleep, hair, digestion, etc.)
• Subscription vitamin services
• Collagen
• Mushroom coffee
• Apple cider vinegar

Now’s a great time to promote any affiliate products in this area or share your experience with these products and supplements as readers are very open to improving their health routine right now.

Home cleaning & organization hacks 

#CleaningHacks has been a very trendy topic on TikTok, amassing 1.2 billion views! Given people are in spring-cleaning mode, this is the perfect time to share any hacks you might have to help your readers make their homes sparkle.

People are seeking out tips and tricks like:

• How to fold clothes
• How to clean appliances
• Best products for cleaning
• Cleaning less obvious things (gutters, vinyl records, deep cleaning a mattress, etc.)