In recognition of Canada 150, a year-long celebration that wrapped up in December, Google released some Canuck-centric consumer insights that shed light on what Canadians are excited about for the future and how our search habits are changing. The email report focused on three main points, all of which are relevant to search marketing professionals.

First, Canadians expect fast – indeed, almost instantaneous – results. Since 2015, ‘open now’ searches have more than tripled and ‘same day shipping’ searches have increased by 160 per cent. Ultimately, Canadians are interested in first-rate desktop and mobile experiences including lightning-fast load times, responsive web design, and frictionless purchasing and communication.

Second, Canadians are leveraging the 24/7 connectivity offered by mobile devices to find the very best products and services available. “Today’s consumer defines what’s high versus low consideration for herself,” Google’s email states, “so marketers across categories have the chance to influence these curious and investigative shoppers.”

As for the future, Google believes Canadians will flock to digital assistants in the coming years. The email report states that nearly three-quarters of Canadians are interested in completing tasks by talking to their devices, and simple, conversational queries have risen 89 per cent since 2015. As such, search marketing agencies will need to dedicate more energy to optimizing for voice search and mobile in 2018 and beyond.

Of course, Google’s year-end insights weren’t restricted to Canada; last week, the search giant also released its global “Year in Search” video which focused on the use of the word “how” in queries. You can check that out here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vI4LHl4yFuo.

Canada is a highly developed, competitive, and connected nation with an increasingly tech-savvy population. Mobile devices and e-commerce are no longer novelties in Canada; they’re a fact of life. As a Premier Google Partner All-Star search marketing agency with access to valuable insights on Google’s preferred practices, GrowthEngine Media is uniquely positioned to ensure our clients are visible to the customers who matter most.