Google this
So, what are you looking for today? On Google, that is.
I've had the pleasure of visiting the Google campus in Mountain View, Calif., a couple of times, and each time I waited in a reception area there I was drawn to an image projected high on the wall above showing search terms Internet users were inputting live. As you might imagine, the terms ran the gamut, covering anything and everything. I'd be guessing if I tried to give an example, but that's the point; there are no bounds when it comes to what folks look for on Google, or any other search engine.
What Google (and other search engines) do do, however, is track trends. Searches for "Tiger Woods" (and all things related) are trending upward right now, and searches for "Britney Spears" are on the decline. It makes sense: as people, places or things flow in and out of the news, they move up and down the list.
As 2009 enters the home stretch, it's fun to look at what's on people’s minds, as revealed by what is being searched for on Google. Here's the snapshot of today's 2009 top 10 search term trends and the amount of growth from the previous year:
1. Twitter, +1,600%
2. Michael Jackson, +900%
3. Facebook login, +750%
4. Facebook.com, +300%
5. Facebook, +250%
6. YouTube.com, +150%
7. Tuenti, +150%
8. Yahoo mail, +90%
9. Face, +90%
10. Hotmail.com, +60%
It's obvious that folks are relying on Google to learn more about other parts of the Web, with Facebook leading the way. Tuenti, in case you didn’t know, is the most trafficked Web site and top private social-platform site in Spain. I'm not sure what the significance of No. 9 is; "face" wins the which-thing-doesn't-belong award.
Michael Jackson also dethroned Britney Spears as the top search topic on Yahoo.com this year.
The Dec. 1 blog The Caucus on the New York Times’ Web site, nytimes.com, reveals the top rising and declining Google trends of the year in various categories. The fastest-falling Googled term in politics is "John McCain." Goes to show what losing a presidential election does for a U.S. senator. McCain’s running mate, newly minted author and former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, was No. 5 on the fastest-falling Googled list, just behind President Barack Obama.
You can see the blog post here:
http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/12/01/political-google/?scp=3&sq=twitter,%20google&st=cse
You can follow the trends yourself at Google.com/trends. Click into the advanced features link, which gives you some control over the time frame and topics you can search for.
Here are today's top searches on Google:
1. Tiger Woods affairs voice mail
2. Transgressions
3. Joan Najbar
4. Jaimee Grubbs pics
5. Kalika Moquin pictures
6. Michelle Obama ape woman
7. Jamie Grubbs pictures
8. Transgressions definition
9. Tiger woods text messages
10. Meredith Baxter Birney
Now, get back to work!
