At the height of COVID-19, we were all put into lockdown and avoiding shops as much as possible. But how did this impact our search and online shopping habits when it comes to alcohol? We’ve done some research into the top online trends for buying alcohol online during lockdown. It seems that as we said goodbye to bars and pubs, our attention turned to digital ways we could stock up on our favourite drinks.
Increase in online alcohol purchasing
With all pubs and bars closing, and the number of times you could visit a shop being limited, people turned to buy their alcohol online. Although searches for alcohol are already quite popular, the demand increased significantly with the biggest peak being in April. These terms saw an incredible increase in searches:
- ‘Alcohol Online’ increased by 1025%
- ‘Buy Alcohol Online’ increased by 816.67%
- ‘Alcohol Delivery’ increased by 646.91%
What alcohol are we searching for the most?
Everyone has their own favourite alcoholic drink, but there are definitely some that stand out as being the highest searched over lockdown. We collected data for the 10 most commonly searched types of alcohol and found out which one had seen the biggest increase in searches over lockdown.
Gin topped the list for the most searched alcohol, with 135,000 searches in April 2020! Although Gin was easily the most searched, Vermouths saw the biggest increase in traffic, with a 173.65% increase in searches. Vermouths are commonly used in cocktails and very specific drinks, such as the summer staple Pimms, so it is likely that people were missing their favourite go-to orders and decided to stock up themselves!
Taking the bar home
The last thing we looked at was what are people doing with the alcohol they’re purchasing? Of course, drinking it, but were they getting a bit more creative than the usual Gin & Tonic while at home? With bars and pubs closed, people were craving some fancy drinks to spice up the lockdown blues, and it seems that people decided to stock up on the tools and ingredients they needed to craft the perfect cocktail.
‘Cocktail kits’ saw a 518.75% increase in searches, with 9,900 searches in April 2020 versus 1,600 in 2019. More people were looking to make their favourite cocktails at home as they couldn’t venture out to get them, so to do this they needed to get the right tools! Along with the tools is making sure you know exactly how the mixologists make them. ‘Cocktail recipes’ saw an impressive increase of 511.75%, with an incredible 74,000 searches versus last years 12,100. Whether you’re after a Cosmopolitan or Espresso Martini, Google was the spot to go for finding out how the experts make them.
Did you find yourself turning to online alcohol purchases and looking for ways to create your go-to bar order? If you did, you definitely weren’t alone! You can view our infographic with all the information and data found below.
