Google Zeitgeist

July 6, 2001 8:29 AM

Google Zeitgeist charts the popularity of certain search queries on Google (via Slashdot). Of course, it'd be more interesting to track your own keywords, and you can. I stumbled across this partially hidden Google feature last night. (More inside...)
posted by waxpancake (23 comments total)

Google Adwords has a built-in function to roughly estimate ad traffic to particular keywords. You can use this for free to check the popularity of any search terms you like. At the Google Adwords preview form, hit the "Continue" button. On this page, you can choose your search terms.

According to their estimates:
Pancake: 300 impressions/day
Waffle: 500 impressions/day
French Toast: 100 impressions/day
posted by waxpancake at 8:30 AM on July 6, 2001

Thanks Wax, some nice links there! What's especially interesting to me is to compare this to other lists such as the Lycos 50-- gives you something of an idea about Google's audience versus other search engines as well as what people are just generally looking for.
posted by FPN at 8:39 AM on July 6, 2001

Monkey: 14,600 impressions/day
Iron Monkey: 0 impressions/day
Monkeyhead: 0 impressions/day
Radiohead: 3,300 impressions/day
Evhead: 100 impressions/day
Give head: 100 impressions/day
Receive head: 0 impressions/day
Head: 23,000 impressions/day

I could do this all day.
posted by tranquileye at 8:47 AM on July 6, 2001

I think it rounds to the nearest 100. Anything less than 50 (or maybe less than 100?) gets estimated as 0 impressions.
posted by waxpancake at 8:57 AM on July 6, 2001

GoTo has a similar keyword popularity tool right here, for anyone looking for similar stuff...
posted by danwalker at 8:59 AM on July 6, 2001

That's fun! Viva Google!
posted by ParisParamus at 9:26 AM on July 6, 2001

Could Google possibly be the greatest thing since...ever? YES!

But there has to be some sort of mistake...French toast is clocking at only 100 impressions daily? Nope...don't believe it.
posted by davidmsc at 10:07 AM on July 6, 2001

You can use this for free to check the popularity of any search terms you like. At the Google Adwords preview form, hit the "Continue" button.

Wax: Call me simple, but can you tell me more about how to run said query? I can't figure it out... Thanks!

(hangs head in shame over failure to grasp obviously simple instructions...)
posted by davidmsc at 10:12 AM on July 6, 2001

No problem. (I'd link to the search page directly, but Google won't allow it.)

Instructions:
1. Go to Google Adwords preview form.
2. Hit the Continue button at the bottom of the page.
3. On their "Select Your Keywords" page, type in the keywords you'd like to search for.
4. Hit the "Update Keyword Estimates" button to get the traffic estimates.
posted by waxpancake at 10:18 AM on July 6, 2001

Try clicking here and refreshing.
posted by sonofsamiam at 10:27 AM on July 6, 2001

Yahoo! has had a similar feature for some time, called Yahoo! Buzz Index. This is the free, public version of the site, but there's also a more detailed version for paying customers.

These types of sites are often geared towards marketing types, but usually provide both info on what's hot now, as well as how various products/events/people/etc. rank.
posted by valerie at 10:52 AM on July 6, 2001

If you want to have your ad appear every time someone does a search including the word "I" it would cost you a quarter million a month. That was the highest I could find, even "sex" is a little lower.
posted by Nothing at 12:48 PM on July 6, 2001

"a" and "the" will run you $471,178/month.
posted by obfusciatrist at 1:51 PM on July 6, 2001

ha ha, i just tried adwords preview form, and their server is overloaded with requests! news travels fast...
posted by sighofrelief at 2:40 PM on July 6, 2001

The zeitgeist page really ought to make the search terms clickable. Boo. Hiss.

It's unfortunate that the Google adwords feature is so clumsy, too. A little unexpected. You should be able to put in multiple search terms and get a simple form showing them side-by-side.

(Just in case any Googlian insiders are reading.)
posted by dhartung at 3:20 PM on July 6, 2001

Google: 21,200 hits/day
Sliced bread: 100 hits/day
posted by fable at 7:40 PM on July 6, 2001

Suprfli, try: http://askjeeves.com/docs/peek/
posted by D.C. at 1:16 AM on July 7, 2001

wow.. VERY addictive.
posted by lotsofno at 10:02 AM on July 7, 2001

More snooping here.
posted by internal at 10:47 AM on July 7, 2001

And here.
posted by Aaaugh! at 11:49 AM on July 7, 2001

Aaaugh!: that is exactly what i was thnking of. thanx!
D.C. & internal: i haven't seen those before. that's awesome!

this is why mefi rawks j00!! =D
posted by suprfli at 8:05 PM on July 7, 2001

sweet, dude. "Lie Algebra" gets 200 hits a day!
posted by kaibutsu at 12:04 PM on December 24, 2001