What are the most popular keywords?

Well, it depends on who you ask!

Knowing the latest search trends and most popular keywords is key to developing the most useful internet campaigns and practical SEO strategies for your company. However, sifting through all of the available resources to discover what people are searching for and then trying to make sense of the information can be trickier than it sounds.

There are many tools out there to help you track down popular search terms, and the majority of these keyword and trend search tools operate in a similar manner - they employ either a list of trending topics, or a search box with customizable filters, or a combination of both. Arguably the most useful and informative tools are the ones offered by Google and Bing, however, websites such as Twitter, Yahoo, AOL and YouTube also provide some interesting hints of their own.

Browse through them all, and experiment to get the most out of the features they offer - that is the best way to learn.

While most of these are simply not-so-unique spins on the same keyword research tool, the advantage to each individual tool is the difference in the platform being examined, and results from each will vary since different folks prefer to use different search engines. As a company in need of new, beneficial keywords and phrases to help with SEO and online advertising campaigns, it is best to take the time to explore all of these options in order to get the best-rounded information.

According to Yahoo! Buzz Log, the top 5 currently trending searches include:

• (1) Facebook
• (2) You Tube
• (3) Gisele Bundchen
• (4) Katharine McPhee
• (5) Madonna

And according to Wordtracker, the top 5 trending searches are:

• (1) Hotels
• (2) Facebook
• (3) You Tube
• (4) Craigslist
• (5) Google

A quick rundown of the top tools with a few tips on what to expect:

Google Trends - Explore the statistics of any keyword or phrase you wish and filter results by date, region or language with this keyword search database, or use "Hot Searches" to browse what's currently trending at the top of the list.

Google Autocomplete - The keyword suggestions provided by this tool can help you find popular search terms by completing your thought for you and/or providing a window into the "average" searcher's experiences and tastes. However, the downside is that Google uses its algorithms to predict what you personally are looking for, based on search history, indexed web pages and your Google+ account information. In order to get less biased results, you must delete your search history, log out of all Google accounts and turn off all customization.

Google AdWords Keyword Tool - Enter in a word or phrase and search for keyword ideas to give you a clue as to what others are searching for. This feature allows you to categorize your results by location, language, device (laptop, mobile etc.) and/or adult content. To help you determine how competitive a certain keyword or key phrase is to advertisers, view the Competition column. Other helpful columns include Global Monthly Searches and Local Monthly Searches - these show you the average number of searches to provide an idea of how useful a search term may be, if you decide to use it in your ad campaign.

Bing Trends - This trending feature is an interesting alternative to Google Trends in that it provides a detailed report of the previous year's most popular searches, along with the most relevant categories for you to explore, such as People, News Stories, Sports Stars, Musicians, Consumer Electronics, TV Shows, Celebrity Events and so on.

Bing Webmaster Keyword Research Beta - This tool provides you with keyword ideas and suggestions based on your own unique content. This particular research tool boasts advantages like all organic search data, as well as stats and suggestions based on language, region and 6 months of information.

Twitter Search - One half of this tool is similar to Google Autocomplete, where you begin to type a keyword into the search box and receive suggestions. The other half is a "Trends" section, under the search box, that shows regularly updated phrases and keywords being searched by users.

AOL Search Trends - An easy to use and quite useful tool for quick information on what\'s being searched on AOL, including both daily and hourly categories. AOL's web and image data is powered by Google, but the simplicity of two top 50 lists - one daily and one hourly -makes it interesting and informative.

Yahoo! Buzz Log - With the tagline "What the world is searching for", the Buzz Log shows the top 20 searches for the day, with categories such as Actors, Movies, Music, Sports, TV and Video Games. Another similar tool is Yahoo! Clues Beta, which allows you to view the most popular search terms filterable by time, age, gender, location or category.

YouTube Keyword Tool - This keyword tool allows you to enter your own keywords or phrases, filter them by language and/or location, and then receive keyword ideas based on monthly search volume within the YouTube site. Another option offered by YouTube is YouTube Trends, another list-type feature including top trending topics and articles under categories such as Music, Politics, Sports, Entertainment, and Holidays.

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P.S.

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