'Friends' Is The Top Searched Term On Meetup For The First Time

NEW YORK, July 27, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Meetup, the platform that connects people who meet over a shared interest, today announced that online and app registrations are soaring and 'friends' is their most searched term.

As vaccines are distributed and the world begins to open up after the great reshuffling, people are looking to make new friends. This is evidenced by a 22% monthly increase in Meetup membership since January 2021. In the month of May, there were 350,000 new registrations, and 370,000 new registrations in June.

For the first time in its recorded history, "friends" is the #1 most searched keyword for Meetup events, when previously it wasn't in the top ten of search terms. By contrast, in 2020 the most searched keyword was "hiking." Today, there are twice as many searches for "friends" over "hiking." Additionally, there has been a 157% increase in the number of "friends" related Meetup groups created in the past year.

"Meetup is the leader in connecting people, fostering friendships, and building community," said David Siegel, CEO of Meetup. "When Meetup brings people together over a common interest, or to participate in an activity, we are providing them with a straightforward way to converse easily and connect authentically. Everyone at a Meetup event shares something in common, which is a clear starting point for new friendships."

Finding friends through Meetup is not something new. According to a study released in 2020, eight out of ten people who attend Meetup events report feeling more connected to others, and 72% report an increase in their friendships (source: ImpactED Study, University of Pennsylvania). However, in a post-pandemic era the demand for friendships and happiness may be greater than ever.

The theme of friendship seeking is seen in other areas of Meetup. The company's public Meetup group, Meetup Live, produces two live events weekly and topics vary from educational to entertaining featuring experts, authors, executives and event organizers. Its #1 most popular live event to date was Making New Friends as an Adult. This event attracted 11,500 RSVPs for a live, online video conference.

Following suit, Meetup's podcast, Keep Connected, reports that its top three most downloaded podcasts share a theme of friendship and happiness: How to Hack your Happiness, An Introverts Guide to Friendship, and How to Live a Meaningful Life. The company's blog, Community Matters, has seen increased page views on supportive themes: 5 Ways to Promote your Mental Health Every Day  received 17,000 pageviews since May, and Resume your Social Life on Pause received 12,000 pageviews.

About Meetup

Meetup is the social media platform for finding and building communities of people who meet about common interests. Established in 2002, the company remains true to its mission of helping people grow and achieve their personal or professional goals through authentic, human connections. Meetup has 55 million registered members across 330,000 groups in 193 countries and 10,000 cities around the world.

Join Meetup to meet new people, try something new, or to organize a group please visit Meetup (https://www.meetup.com/). Follow Meetup on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook (@Meetup). For enterprise business solutions visit Meetup Pro (https://www.meetup.com/pro).

SOURCE Meetup

Related Links

http://www.meetup.com/