The Sofa Retailers Report by Salience Search Marketing has assessed the current industry trends and what consumers search for by analysing 11 crucial performance indicators, including YoY visibility, search volume trends, and brand awareness.
The findings uncovered the sofa trends on their way out, and the retailers dominating the industry online.
According to the report, searches for leather products within the sofa retail industry have decreased, with keywords including ‘leather sofas’ and ‘leather for couches’ seeing a -7% drop in interest trends.
Grey and crushed velvet sofas are also losing popularity, as the once-dominating interior design trend loses traction. Searches for ‘grey corner sofa’ and ‘velvet sofa’ are seeing an -18% decrease in interest trend, whilst ‘crushed velvet sofa’ sees a -23% drop.
Meanwhile, the findings revealed a growing demand for corner sofas, suggesting the furniture piece to be a 2024 interior design trend. Searches for ‘bedroom corner sofa’ gained 60,500 in search volume, with a +6% interest trend increase. ‘Small corner sofa’, with a 33,100 search volume, saw an +8% increase in interest trend.
Alongside sofa trends, the report revealed the industry's most prominent online sofa retailers, by analysing the number of monthly searches for each brand and calculating an owned social score that combines the number of followers and engagement rate across major social platforms.
DFS is the most prominent brand in the sector, with 673,000 brand searches per month and an owned social score of 475.
Sofa follows as the second most prominent, with an owned social score of 368,000and 253,436 social media followers.
Brett Janes, MD at Salience Search Marketing, says: “This report allowed us to uncover what was in and what was out in the industry, revealing the sofa trends expected to vanish from the interior design industry.
“Corner sofas are a favourite this season, with the furniture piece a popular option for its family-friendly design and aesthetic appeal.
“Notable names such as DFS, Sofa.com and Oak Furnitureland dominate as the most prominent brands within the industry, highlighting the brands as popular choices for home furniture pieces.
“Regarding organic visibility, there has been a -2% drop in overall organic growth within the industry, demonstrating that brands need to revisit their strategy to strive in a competitive industry. This is a crucial time for brands to continue amplifying their online presence to gain prominence in the year ahead.
“Overall, building a strong following and online presence across multiple channels becomes vital in driving sales and capitalising on the expanding market demand.”
Photo courtesy Unsplash/Phillip Goldsbury
