This article originally appeared on the Prime Design Solutions website.

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Of the many online tools available for use in marketing, you should absolutely be using trends.google.com, a free online tool created by Google. Google Trends displays analytics of different search terms people are using on its search engine, Google — and you can use this information in a variety of ways to ensure you are doing the best job possible with your digital marketing.

How it Works

The best way to learn how to use Google Trends is by playing around on the website. Start by entering anywhere from one to five search terms to compare. Then, Google Trends will show the relative percentage of traffic each term has, compared to each other. It is possible to make the search more specific by applying one of their filters: Location, timeframe, category of search, and the type of device used.

When establishing SEO for a website, it is important to use the keywords that are the most searched and relevant for your industry. Using Google Trends, it is easy to choose the keywords and phrases that have potential to drive the most traffic to your website.

Advertising

When creating location based advertisements, Google trends can be used to see what the proper dialect is for a certain area. For a simple example, in the Johnstown-Altoona area roughly 70% of the population searches for soft drinks as “pop,” while the remaining 30% uses the term “soda” in their searches. This information is useful for grocers or others selling soft drinks who want to run an ad targeted in that area — they will have better results with the audience they want to attract by using the term “pop” rather than “soda.”

Another way to use Google Trends in advertising is to determine when exactly the best time is to run an ad. The “Interest over time” graph appears for all searches, and it shows the peaks and valleys of interest for a subject. Knowing when the demand is highest in your industry gives you an advantage in planning your advertising.

Blogs & Social Media

On the homepage of Google trends, you can find current events, featured stories, and the trending searches for that day. All of this information is gold for marketers, because it gives you a direct look into what people are looking at and thinking about in real time. Using this information can be useful in staying relevant on social media, or writing timely articles that coincide with things going on today. Due to how fast-paced the world is these topics are changing daily, giving you access to a fresh outline of what the world is concentrating on at any moment.