• On CBSSports.com: Mike Tyson's daughter dies in accident
August 6, 2008 7:06 AM PDT

Google offers 'Insights for Search'

by Caroline McCarthy

Google has taken its popular Google Trends and launched a spin-off product called Google Insights for Search. Geared toward advertisers, it's a tool to track a particular search term's popularity across the Web and geographic regions of the world.

For Google, this can help boost advertiser confidence and potentially win its program some new converts who would've otherwise been skeptical regarding how effectively they could target an online ad campaign.

With Google Insights for Search, you can search for a term to track how much it's been googled over time, where on a "heat map" it's most popular, and what the top "related" and "rising" searches for the term are.

Results can also be filtered by geographic region, time frame, or category. Let's say you search for "spears," and most of the results on Google Insights for Search deal with some trashy pop star. But you happen to be the owner of a small business that creates replica medieval weapons, so that's not the sort of spears you're looking for. You can narrow your search down to a single field--"industries," say, or "recreation," and hope you see fewer instances of Britney and Jamie Lynn.

Here's another one: search for "spaghetti," and you'll get a lot of results about people seeking recipes. But narrow it down to the "lifestyles" category, and you'll see that most of the search results that Google Insights provides involve the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster.

Caroline McCarthy, a CNET News staff writer, is a downtown Manhattanite happily addicted to social-media tools and restaurant blogs. Her pre-CNET resume includes interning at an IT security firm and brewing cappuccinos. E-mail Caroline.
Recent posts from Digital Media
Seattle fire knocks out service to Bing Travel, other sites
DOJ opens formal investigation into Google Books settlement
Ad industry groups agree to privacy guidelines
Microsoft chucks vomit ad
Jammie Thomas will appeal, lawyer says
Usenet.com ruling, a 'whittling down' of Betamax defense
Microsoft resorts to vomit to market IE 8
RIAA triumphs in Usenet copyright case
Add a Comment (Log in or register)
by jamalystic August 6, 2008 7:28 AM PDT
What kind of a church is that?? God being a sopagheti sound ridiculous!! Are these the next phase of internet religions?In Search of Online Gods & Spaghetti Monsters(http://www.internetevolution.com/author.asp?section_id=544&doc_id=151193&F_src=flftwo)
Reply to this comment
advertisement

Making sense of Windows 7 upgrades

faq The basics and the fine print on Microsoft's options for those eyeing the next operating system from Redmond.
• Full Windows 7 coverage

Road Trip 2009: Big Sky Country

CNET News reporter Daniel Terdiman takes his car full of gadgets to the Rockies and the Great Plains in search of tech, science, nature, and more.
• America's Fortress: Cheyenne Mountain

About Digital Media

The Web is now the place to go for news and entertainment. Look here for the latest on blogs, music, video, virtual worlds, social networking and more.

Add this feed to your online news reader

Digital Media topics

advertisement
advertisement

Inside CNET News

Scroll Left Scroll Right