​Project Goal:

To analyze consumer search behavior for leading burger brands in California using Google Trends data, with the aim of understanding brand visibility, competitive positioning, and consumer intent.

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Approach:

• Collected weekly Google Trends data for McDonald’s, In-N-Out Burger, Burger King, Five Guys, and the generic keyword “Hamburger” across California.

• Transformed the raw dataset into a structured format, ensuring consistent weekly comparisons across all terms.

• Built line charts and comparative tables to identify peaks, seasonality, and relative brand search performance.

• Compared branded queries to the generic “Hamburger” term to understand consumer search funnel dynamics.

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Insights:

• In-N-Out Burger emerged as the strongest regional brand, consistently leading in search interest compared to Burger King and Five Guys.

• McDonald’s maintained a steady baseline demand, reinforcing its role as a global staple brand rather than a trend-driven player.

• The generic keyword “Hamburger” consistently outperformed brand-specific terms, showing that many consumers begin with broad, category-level searches before narrowing to brands.

• Five Guys lagged significantly, reflecting low regional awareness and competitive visibility.

• Seasonal spikes in searches aligned with summer months and holidays, suggesting seasonal demand patterns.

 

Results:

• This analysis provided a clear picture of the burger brand landscape in California:

• Validated In-N-Out’s strong local dominance.

• Showed McDonald’s resilience as a global constant.

• Identified opportunities for SEO and content marketing around generic terms like “hamburger.”

 

Key Learning:

• Google Trends can serve as a proxy for consumer intent and brand visibility in specific markets.

• Category-level searches often outweigh branded searches, highlighting opportunities for SEO strategies targeting generic keywords.

• Regional favorites like In-N-Out demonstrate how brand equity drives sustained interest, even against larger global players.

• Brands with low search volume (e.g., Five Guys) may need targeted campaigns to increase visibility in specific regions.

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Tools Used:

• Google Trends

• Excel