Predicting trends for Mother's Day 2023! What is the new demand for gifts?

Since Mother's Day falls on the second Sunday of May every year, it will be celebrated on Sunday, May 14, 2023.
In fact, many countries, including the United States, China, Canada, and Germany, celebrate "Mother's Day" on the second Sunday of May as well.

When do people generally begin to consider gifts for Mother's Day?

Many people may first casually start looking online. Therefore, we will use Dockpit, an online behavioral analytics tool offered by VALUES, to examine users searching for keywords that include "Mother's Day.”

The number of searches began to increase in March, approximately five times that of the previous month, suggesting that some users are thinking about Mother’s Day two months before Mother's Day.

We also found that search volume was very high, with nearly one million people searching in April and May, the peak months for Mother’s Day searches.

Now let's look at the demographics of people searching for "Mother's Day."

More than half of the respondents were women, with 63% being female.

The majority of people were in their 30s and 40s, with half of the people searching “Mother’s Day” in these age groups.

Next, we would like to explore recent trends by comparing the combination keywords in 2021 and 2022.
*The period from November 2020 to October 2021 is defined as "last year" and the period from November 2021 to October 2022 as "this year."

In addition to "carnations" and "flowers," which are typical Mother’s Day gifts, "potted plants," which are easy for first-time plant owners to manage and have a long life span, are also popular.

In addition, "sweets" and "candy," such as "cake," are also popular, as they can help people relax. Many users may be feeling stuck in a rut with gifting the regular gift of flowers, or they are interested in giving "practical" and "handmade" items.

The fact that "message" and "LINE" were ranked in the list suggests that they are also considering the what to write in their Mother’s Day messages to express their gratitude.

"Rakuten," "Aeon," "Takashimaya" and "Chateraise" were the most popular destinations for purchases.

While there was no major difference in keywords between 2022 and 2021, "60s" and "70s" were ranked in 2022. Some users were looking to find the best gifts that are well-suited for the older generations.

Now that we have explored recent trends based on combination keywords, we would like to look at what will be popular for Mother's Day 2023.

We will focus on keywords searches that have increased in number since 2021. (Words highlighted in yellow in the chart below)

In the aforementioned age group of people searching "Mother's Day,” the composition of users in their 30s and 40s was high, but searches combining "Mother's Day" and "mother-in-law" are growing. Since these are not their own parents, it is possible that they are putting more careful consideration into selecting a gift, referring to rankings and word-of-mouth.

It appears that a certain number of users want to order as early as possible and save money. The year-on-year growth suggests that Mother's Day sales are taking place earlier and earlier. It would be a good idea to promote "early bird specials" in February and March, when the searches peak.

Since they are fresh flowers that have been preserved, they do not require watering and can be enjoyed for a long time while maintaining its vivid colors. They seem to be an ideal gift for people who want to give the classic gift of flowers but also want to enjoy them for a long time or give flowers that are easier to manage.

Carnations are the classic flowers gifted for Mother's Day, but in recent years, more and more people seem to be giving hydrangeas.
Incidentally, in the language of flowers, pink hydrangeas mean "cheerful woman," and thus, are the preferred gift for Mother's Day.

Since this is a gift that is given once a year as a token of appreciation, many are looking to "pre-order" carefully-selected Japanese and Western sweets and other sweets.

They are often gifted to mothers who have an interest in beauty, and there seems to be a demand for "cosmetics" that are practical and also bring out their femininity.

"Bags" are a practical item and also seems to be attracting attention. Even mothers who already have a lot of bags feel that bags are the perfect gift, as they can never have too many. They can have different kinds to choose from depending on the amount of luggage they have and the outfit they are wearing.

"Wallets," which can be used daily, are recommended as practical gifts and are in demand.

"Roses," the eternal flower of women's admiration and popular for its luxurious impression, was also a candidate for a "Mother's Day" gift.

A bottle of "wine," which has a gorgeous look and can create an exclusive or special feeling, is also popular. There is a wide variety of wines to choose from, and the wide price range allows for a selection to suit any budget.

Finally, let's look at the inflow websites that come up after searching "Mother's Day" to see what websites are popular.

While major mail order websites such as Rakuten Ichiba and Hibiya Kadan ranked high, the next highest-ranking website was the media website "Hahanihi.me (MothersDay.me)." This website claims to be the only information media website in Japan that specializes in "Mother's Day," and in addition to rankings and articles, it also publishes the results of surveys, making it a truly satisfying and useful website.

It is rare for a website to specialize in an event such as "Mother's Day," but on the other hand, although it is an occasion that happens once a year, there was evidence for a big demand.

Incidentally, the company also operates " Chichinohi.jp (FathersDay.jp)" and "Keironohi.jp RespectfortheAgedDay.jp," which will be very useful for holidays where you will express gratitude to family members.

In this case study, we investigated and analyzed the needs and demands for "Mother's Day" based on online search data.

We found that search needs begin to increase around March each year, peaking in April and May, and search volume is also high.

In recent years, the most popular gift trends have been the classic "carnations," "flowers," and "potted plants," with "cakes" and other "sweets" and "confections" also gaining popularity. On the other hand, "practical" and "handmade" gifts also attracted attention, perhaps because many users feel stuck giving the regular gift of flowers.

In addition, it was evident that people were also considering how to express their gratitude.
"Rakuten," "Aeon," "Takashimaya" and "Chateraise" were the most popular places to purchase.

In addition, the following gifts are predicted to trend in 2023.
Early bird specials, preserved flowers, hydrangeas, pre-orders, cosmetics, bags, wallets, roses, and wine.

By using the keyword analysis function in "Dockpit," it is possible to better understand the reality and the time when the number of searches increases. Please make use of this function for better content creation, word selection, and information provision at the optimum timing by correctly understanding your objectives and targets and firmly capturing the interest of your target customers.

・"Dockpit" was used to analyze online behavioral data and user attribute information with the cooperation of a nationwide consumer panel
・Period: November 2020 - October 2022
*Volume is estimated based on the domestic online population, based on the rate of occurrence in respondents in the VALUES-owned consumer panel
*Target devices: PC and smartphone

▼Data from Dockpit was used in this case study. Dockpit is an online behavior analytics tool provided by VALUES, Inc., and it allows you to access online behavioral data (updated monthly) via your browser so you can research competitor websites and investigate trends. There is a FREE version of Dockpit, so if you are interested in using it, please register below.