5 hidden features make your SEO work easier

Who knows which topics on Google currently promise traffic that has to work with Google Trends. However, simply researching keywords is not enough: Daniel Waisberg, Search Advocate at Google, and Omri Weisman, Google Trends Engineering Manager, present tips for advanced users in a newly published eight-minute video. This will find exactly the data that SEO needs.

5 special features for Google Trends

The following tips apply to the “Discover” tab on Google Trends. The program can be used free of charge via the web browser, but a Google account is required. Google Trends shows which terms are currently being searched for frequently on the Internet.

1. Get better results with optimized queries

One way is to optimize the search using search operators. There are three ways to do this: quotation marks, plus signs or minus signs. Words in quotation marks – such as a quote – are searched for in exactly that order; This function is also available in Google search.

This also applies to the following two tips: If you put a minus in front of a word, you exclude the word from the search. Searching with a plus sign is exciting: it is placed between two words and then shows the search volume for each one individually. In addition, it can be used as often as you like in a query, making it easier to search for comparisons. Important: The word entered first is always more relevant to the search than the following words.

2. Customize language

It also makes sense to pay attention to the language of the keyword when making search queries. Google provides a comparison of the Japanese and English word for cat: If you only search for “cat” in general Japanese, you could miss a trend cluster that refers to the English word for cat. In such cases, both keywords must be searched for at the same time, ideally connected by the plus sign. In this way, the effects of one term on others can also be shown.

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3. Use filters: consider seasonality

Trends need to be put into context to understand them. Therefore, users should use different comparison points in their queries. The comparison between seasons is particularly useful. According to Google expert Waisberg, the term you want to search for should be entered under “Discover”. If the period is set to five years, seasonal fluctuations can be identified. They appear as peaks in the graph. In the video, Waisberg explains this filter use using the example of “boat trip”. While demand traditionally decreases in winter, demand increases in spring.

The Google video about the tips on YouTube:

If you want to know how trends have developed seasonally over the years, enter the same term in the second field in the top search bar as in the first field. In the second step, different time periods are set using the three-point menu next to the respective keyword: twelve months are entered for the first term, and the previous calendar year for the second term. Two graphs are then displayed that differ in color. They make a comparison possible – for example, whether seasonality was less pronounced last year than the year before last. The comparison works for up to five periods. Up to five search queries can be used, which are analyzed simultaneously and seasonally adjusted.

4. Use country comparison

If you want to compare global trends, you should use the country comparison: As with the seasonal comparison, it is entered using the three-dot menu next to the specified keyword. Instead of changing the time period, the country settings are adjusted for the country comparison. The customized search shows how search interests differ across countries. This also allows you to compare up to five different markets.

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5. Save or share results

There are three ways to save and share the results. The simplest and fastest variant: The URL is copied and shared with others. All search settings are transferred identically. However, the results are not permanently saved locally.

Alternatively, the results are embedded and added to a website. To do this, click on the “” symbol on the right above the graphic. The embedded map always shows updated data – this variant is therefore not suitable for securing a specific status at a given time.

If you want to save the data in the long term, you have to export it as a spreadsheet. This way they don’t change afterwards. All you have to do is click on the download icon and the data will be downloaded directly in CSV format.