What’s Captifying the world: Cult classics are king—Covid-19 drives an uplift in searches for nostalgic entertainment

Hunger for new entertainment continues to grow, but it looks like a revival of the old is on the rise. 

From throwback playlists, old school video games to childhood classics—pandemic fatigue is prompting a shift in mindsets towards nostalgia, where consumers are exploring the past, reinvesting in old hobbies, and seeking retro products.

Remakes, Reboots, and Rewinds

Captify analyzed billions of searches from Jan-Mar 20 to Nov ‘20-Jan ‘21 and identified an 83% YoY increase in nostalgia related searches. This noticeable shift in consumer mindsets has impacted category interest and the brands that audiences are turning to. 

Increase in category consumption: 

• Movies and Music—14.1X
• Classic Cars—13.7X
• Literature Classics—11.2X
• Gaming—6.8X
• Food and Drink—5.3X
• Apparel (sports clothing)—4.1X

Entertainment has the highest category search interest around nostalgia, with audiences searching around Movies and Music 14.1 times more than any other category. 

This is further reinforced by the top searched for brand, Disney—with searches focused around classic soundtracks and movies. The brand is looking to the successes of the past to stay ahead today, with recent releases of new live-action remakes of animated classics, such as Mulan—enabling them to engage with new viewers and resonate across generations

Other top indexing brands include Coca-Cola, Adidas, and Nokia—reflecting the positive impact of their nostalgia marketing efforts on search. 

Sustainability is a key driver of nostalgia

Interestingly, Captify saw an Eco-Conscious audience searching around nostalgia 1.9X more than any other audience—driven by consumers being more ethical in their approach to buying e.g. upcycling products rather than buying new ones.

Sports Fans also emerge as one of the top indexing audiences. In Sunday’s Super Bowl, brands such as Bud Light, Tide, and Cheetos leaned on nostalgia within their lighthearted commercials, using celebrities and nostalgic characters from decades ago to entertain and humor fans.

Tapping into mindsets and motivations

By understanding mindsets and motivations through Search Intelligence, brands can connect more meaningfully with new consumers with a message that reflects what’s important to audiences right now.

Measuring how consumers are searching online for brands is a powerful and explicit way to measure interest and intent, especially linked to advertising investment.

To understand how consumer mindsets might impact category interest around your brand, get in touch.

*Data sourced from Captify’s global network from 01/01/20-03/31/20 vs 11/01/20-01/31/21