Google Trends

Communications & Media
Student's Name
Institutional Affiliation
Instructor
Date
Google Trends
One can use Google trends to enlighten us on what people search for in real time. Data obtained can measure search interest in a particular person, field, or interest. Google trends work in particular ways. One can assess this by selecting a topic, reading the interest over a time graph, understanding the numbers, top and rising searches, searches by location, and data excluded from the search (Choi et al., 2012). When selecting a topic, one can explore Google trends data using the free Trend Explore Tool. Here, the data is grouped into topics for easy access and a bigger picture of what people are searching for, especially in American high. One can also query personal search terms whereby, as you are typing the query in the search engine, a drop-down list will appear where one can view a list of topics that Google trend believes you are trying to search.
After searching for a topic on Trends Explore, one can access a graph showing the topic's popularity over time. Being able to read the interest over time graph is the beginning of understanding the numbers that are behind Google trends. Here, one should hover over the graph to see search interests numbered from 1-100, whereby one should locate the maximum number on the graph and note the date. In this regard, the numbers or values on the interest graph do not represent absolute search volume because they are not constant, for they are normalized and graded on a scale from 1-100. In Google trends, when looking at search interest in a topic, one should understand numbers whereby we look at the percentage of searches as a proportion to all rela...