4 Ways to Find Trending Products to Sell in Your Retail Store

This is a guest post by Diana Ford. 

Most people have already switched to online shopping. It is more convenient, especially because of COVID-19 restrictions and closed physical retail stores during coronavirus outbreaks. The number of digital purchasers is increasing more and more every year. According to Statista, e-retail sales surpassed 4 trillion globally in 2020. At the same time, the retail market sector grew up to $25 trillion in 2021 (based on the eMarketer’s statistics).

Both ecommerce shops and physical retail stores are at a firm pace of growth. The e-retail market niche is more advanced nowadays. Nevertheless, there are still shoppers who prefer physical stores. According to the SCORE survey, about 32% of Baby Boomers, 31% of Millenials, 27.5% of Gen X, and about 10% of Gen Z buyers prefer to do shopping from local offline retailers.

It means that today’s retail trade is rather diversified. Both physical and online stores can count on sound sales performance if they hit the market as the leading product providers. To sidestep rivals and compete in retail or e-retail business, sellers should offer trending goods people are interested in. 

Products on the market can become outdated due to an ever-changing assortment. That is why keeping track of trending and frequently searched retail items is required not only for owners of new stores but also for standing sellers. 

How to find trending products to sell in 2022

New trending products are the golden goose of the retail world. If you can determine the most searched for novelties, you’ll be in the best position to boost your margins and fight off competition. You’ll be the first to offer something really cool to the audience and enjoy high sales.

But how do you find the best products to sell online and offline? Run comprehensive research of the marketplaces, SEO analytics (including queries in the search engines), social networks, and trends in your niche. In-depth analytical background and fresh insights can help you understand the demands of present-day shoppers and determine a win-win assortment for your store.

1. Online Marketplaces

It is worth noting that B2C and B2B market performers should act differently in the context of online marketplace research. Sellers who offer their products directly to the customers are recommended to pay focused attention to ecommerce giants like:

At the same time, B2B business representatives have another range of marketplaces to explore. Among them are Globalsources, Toptenwhosale, and Alibaba. It will be possible to find products that will likely become best-sellers soon and create a goldmine catalog that will hold the top spot. 

B2C

Uncover any available trending opportunities with online marketplaces for business-to-customer sellers. Let’s take a closer look at the top ecommerce websites that offer fresh insights about the best products to sell. 

How to find trending products on Amazon

Let’s start with Amazon Suggest. According to the surfers’ queries, it is possible to determine the most searched keywords. Let’s say your store sells cat food online. You can use Amazon Suggests to create the keyword list for website optimization and find new trending products in your niche. 

One more great way to pick sides with viral goods on the Internet is to try Amazon Movers and Shakers. These are the biggest gainers for different categories of products. The top ecommerce website Amazon determines the sales ranks and forms its lists for catalog items from various departments like:

• Automotive;
• Baby care;
• Clothing;
• Jewelry;
• Electronics, etc.

The list of product categories is seen on the left side of the Amazon Movers & Shakers section. For example, you have a retail store that sells musical instruments. Go to this department and see the highest-ranked items in this category. 

To complement your research in the context of the Amazon marketplace, you can also use Jungle Scout software. Almost all the information is generated automatically. The keyword planning tool, winning product databases for various categories, product tracker, inventory manager, and much more. 

It is worth noting that all the top-selling products presented in the list obtain the ranking within 24 hours. Amazon Movers and Shakers’ insights are updated hourly. You can count on the freshest ranks in the top list for any of the departments. 

How to find trending products on eBay

As for eBay, you can also keep track of new trending products there. Initiate a search for the best sellers on the marketplace. The eBay ecommerce website updates information about best-selling goods regularly. You can get lists for different product categories on the Amazon site. 

Pay attention to the special-purpose tool eBay Watch Count to find viral goods according to a specified keyword. For example, let’s say you would like to see what products related to Michael Jackson are popular in the marketplace and sold well. Specify the keyword Michael Jackson and see all the results generated by eBay Watch Count.

It is worth noting that the tool shows the number of past sales, amount of watchers (Internet surfers who are searching for the top item on the list), and short descriptions of the products included in the Watch Count list according to the keyword (the price, discounts, special offer terms).

How to find trending products on Aliexpress

Another popular marketplace that gathers millions of shoppers around the world is Aliexpress. You can undertake new trending products research on this reputable ecommerce site as well. Search by categories and find the bestsellers in each one. Many retailers decide to complement their assortments with the most searched Aliexpress goods.

For instance, if your store sells pajama sets, you can choose the women’s outfit category and find the section for sleepwear. Here you can see all the available goods and sort them by various criteria:

• Newest items;
• The best shoppers’ rating;
• Best match;
• The most ordered items.

This way, you will get insights on the pajama set pricing, most ordered models, and the optimal price range for buyers.

How to find trending products on Etsy

The main benefit of the Etsy marketplace is the opportunity to explore unique and handmade items before they become trendy and hit the mass market. For this purpose, visit the top ecommerce website and start the search by category and other criteria. Let’s say you would like to get hot-topic insights about home decoration products. 

First, you can see the list of sections related to the category of your interest. If you want to explore a certain range of products, select the one you need.

Maybe you are interested in wreaths and door hangers. Open all the results and sort them by the customers’ reviews and freshness (most recent). This way, you will see both top-ranking goods and the newest trending ones that meet the shoppers’ requirements.

B2B

The B2B market segment differs from the B2C one. That is why the research of new trending products should be undertaken with the help of other websites and digital platforms. If you practice wholesales andwante to get precise insights into the interesting novelties and trends in your niche, use Globalsources.com, Toptenwholesale.com, or Alibaba for your retail analytics.

How to find trending products on Globalsources.com

This is a reputable website with detailed information on ever-developing online marketplaces. For example, if your retail store sells smart living electronics, it is high time to specify this category and pay attention to the suggested items by the Globalsources’ analysts.

Additionally, you have the option to sort all products according to sub-sections, like smart home items, LED lighting, commercial electronics, etc. Pay attention to the category of Top 20 for your B2B market niche. There are two lists to take into consideration:

• Top 20 Most Popular (the biggest number of orders);
• Top 20 Hot New Releases (novelties and the latest updates on the market).

How to find trending products on Toptenwholesale.com

It is one more helpful digital platform for B2B market players. Here, you can select the category and sort all the offers according to product ratings, the reputation of the suppliers, and other criteria (like location, verified/unverified seller, etc.). 

For example, if you have a jewelry retail store, you could select this category and filter all the suppliers, sellers, and products according to your parameters and demands.

Additionally, there is an option for custom lists on the Toptenwholesale website. Create your own top-10 list. To do this, create an account on the digital platform and specify all the important criteria.

How to find trending products on Alibaba

This ecommerce platform obtains the lists of top-ranking products based on buyers’ inquiries. For example, if you are searching for in-depth insights on wireless headphones, Alibaba’s list of trending items will come in handy. 

Notice that all the top-performing products on the list have their ranking number, price information, and a number of orders. Also, take a closer look at the related inquiries if you are searching for some particular item on the Alibaba website. At the bottom of the page, a list of customers’ inquiries can come in handy for your new on-demand product analysis, search optimization strategy, and keyword planning tactics.

2. SEO Analytics

The most searched products on Google can be determined with the help of analyzing the People Also Ask section, Google Trends, and research of the competitors’ insights with the help of popular SEO tools.

How to find trending products on Google Trends

Google Trends provides retailers with trend lines related to the topic of their interest. It is possible to specify some product or category of goods to analyze the insights for ecommerce projects. The user will be able to keep track of the searchers’ interest over time in the form of a diagram, interest in the sub-region, and find related topics and queries.

For example, a retailer who sells football uniforms and other accessories for soccer players and fans can enter the term “football” in the search box and get detailed information concerning this topic to pick sides with Google trends products. 

Note that the user can specify the location, the period for the trend analysis, the category of the product or topic, and web search parameters. All these options are available in the top panel presented under the Google Trends search box. Additionally, the Compare option can run a comparison of two, three, or even four terms at once. 

SE Ranking Keyword & Competitor Research

Use this special-purpose tool to analyze competitors. SE Ranking has a keyword research tool that simplifies the search of the most matching key phrases and reports on rivals in the market. This way, you will evaluate the competitors’ performance in the niche in the chosen market and predict investments for online promotion. 

After specifying the product or the topic for keyword research, you will get insights on the difficulty of the keyword (the competitiveness rate to hit the high SERPs), search volume and CPC rate for the term, keyword ideas in the context of other top-performing websites in the niche, and search organic results to analyze the sites of your direct competitors.

This software is helpful when it comes to selecting the best products to sell online and planning adequate budgets for digital advertising and promotions.

3. Trend research

Besides SEO analytical approaches and exploring of B2B or B2C online marketplaces, there is the opportunity for trend research with the help of niche blogs and retail reporting together with ecommerce statistical data. This makes it possible to get some extra predictions and insights, which are helpful when choosing new trending products. 

Niche blogs

This is the real thing when it comes to the ever-changing online market. It is difficult to keep track of all the novelties in your niche at once. Additionally, you cannot risk uncertainty regarding newcomers on the Internet. Use niche blogs to get insights about new products that might become trendy and boost your margin. Among the advisory platforms with helpful information are:

• Trendhunter.com;
• Coolmaterial.com;
• Ecomhunt.com;
• Hiconsumption.com;
• Causeartist.com.

Visit each website to ensure that you are 100% informed about the new goods. Let’s take a closer look at one of the recommended niche blogs from the list (Trendhunter.com). For example, you sell tech items in your retail shop. Select the Tech category and navigate on the website to the subsection of your interest. 

Note that there are top-20 lists based on the shoppers’ demands, orders, and searches last week, month, two months. Additionally, all the Trendunter insights can be sorted by the format of the available information (lists, ideas, videos, articles, etc.).

Statistics and retail reports

Do not neglect any retail statistics and reports available on the Internet. These are your eyes and ears. Among the recommended websites for concise insights on new trending products, topics, and keywords are:

• Mckinsey.com;
• Ibisworld.com;
• Fortunebusinessinsights.com;
• Psfk.com.

For example, here is an article about Asian retail markets available on mckinsey.com. website.

Additionally, pay attention to Pinterest Predicts (including Pinterest annual reports). One of the helpful options is the trendy keyword terms according to the retail product categories. For example, retailers who make a specialty out of fashion goods distribution can find top-trend keyphrases based on the searchers’ requirements and searches.

We see that people are interested in homemade skincare sets, natural makeup, face yoga exercise tips, etc.

It is also recommended to keep track of design trends for ecommerce websites and tech solutions (payments, cart optimizations, etc.) to improve their UX and increase conversions via workable updates. For example, you can add some ecommerce-friendly Christmas themes or implement the multistore option to cope with the pre-Christmas shopping rush and boost sales. 

4. Social media and influencers

Social media networks and leaders of mind play an important role in today’s society. Such platforms as Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube, together with top influencers, directly impact people’s shopping behaviors. 

Let’s find the correlation between social media networks + bloggers, and new trending products together. How can retailers find essential forecasts, trends, predictions, and most searched goods on the Internet with the help of popular social networking programs and influencers?

YouTube Culture & Trends, YouTube Unboxing Videos

Explore YouTube Culture & Trends to understand the most demanding directions and hot-topic trends initiated by brands and video bloggers. 

Sort playlists and videos according to freshness (the newest) or popularity. Additionally, you can use the search box to find a video on the YouTube Culture and Trends related to some term or keyword (product, brand, location, etc.).

Plus, take a closer look at YouTube unboxing videos. Sort them by date (today, last hour, etc.) and see what people are shooting about. Use the popularity filter option to find the most watched unboxing videos on YouTube. 

Reddit and Quora

These are the most visited and popular social media forums today. People are searching for different answers here. Retailers can find brilliant responses to their burning questions here as well. Use the search box in Quora to find the answers for general requests or some special ones.

As we see, business representatives can read various discussions about new normal trends during the coronavirus outbreaks and changes in the retail markets because of COVID-19. The same story is about Reddit. You can search some articles and answers on the platform or join some groups to read expert reviews on trendy goods in your niche.

Instagram search by hashtags and influencers

Do not forget about Instagram with its wonderful hashtags. Specify something like #trendygoods #trend2022 or another variant to find exciting products that have not yet hit the mass market. 

Navigate through recommended posts, and do not stop searching for fresh ideas for your ideal margins. Plus, consider Instagram bloggers. Many influencers promote unique manufacturers, handmade products, and one-of-a-kind goods. Be attentive and complement your assortment with goldmine items.

To simplify the search for the best-matching influencer, use FollowerWonk. This tool obtains many helpful options for navigation, profile optimization, and analysis options. 

Facebook hashtags, trending topics, and popular pages

Facebook is still attractive for marketing purposes. Ecommerce market players can also use this social media network for insight spying. Let’s start with Facebook hashtags. Use the search box and specify the terms of your interest. For example, you are searching for the #trendybag hashtag. Take a look at the results and analyze the trends presented in the Facebook newsfeed. 

Pay attention to the Facebook trending topics. They appear in the upper section. Trending topics are usually related to the interests of the Facebook account owner. The same option is available on Twitter. This way, you can get fresh insights every day while surfing recommended trends. 

At the same time, popular pages appear in the Facebook newsfeed. They are also based on the user’s interests and inquiries. Be attentive to this information so as not to miss any updates in your retail market niche. Use your business account to get more detailed data entries related to your specification. Facebook algorithms are based on the personal information specified in the profile. 

Final words

Today’s retail market is growing at a fast pace. That is why retailers should keep track of the latest trends in their niches. The high-level competitiveness in online and offline retail involves regular analytical approaches when adding new trendy products to the existing assortment.

Use the above-listed hacks and practices to compete well in the present-day ecommerce market. Do not stop researching and stay tuned to hot-topic insights generated from online marketplaces, retail websites, and social media. 

About Francesca Nicasio

Francesca Nicasio is Vend’s Retail Expert and Content Strategist. She writes about trends, tips, and other cool things that enable retailers to increase sales, serve customers better, and be more awesome overall. She’s also the author of Retail Survival of the Fittest, a free eBook to help retailers future-proof their stores. Connect with her on LinkedIn, Twitter, or Google+.