Anytime you’re developing or fine tuning an online marketing strategy you need to review the keywords you’re targeting. This is particularly true if you have a diverse practice, with many different treatments and services. In the past I’ve recommended using Google’s keyword tool, and I still do, but the search engine giant has another cool feature worth exploring, and it’s called Google Trends.

Trends let’s you see exactly that, what’s popular over a period of time. More importantly, you can see what’s trending in a given time period within a specific geographic region. For example, take a look at the screen shot to the right. You’ll notice that I started with the search “plastic surgery,” and I narrowed it down to Texas. From there I can see which metros are receiving the highest search volume for that specific keyword phrase. Google provides an index of 1-100 (100 being the highest) to gauge the top metros.

You’ll also notice other top related keywords next to the map. This is another great way to determine some additional keywords to target. Furthermore, you’ll notice the tab in the related keywords section labeled “Rising.” If you click this you’ll see the latest keywords that are gaining momentum, and by what percentage.

So what do you do with this data?

Well, playing off of the Texas example above, let’s say you’re a plastic surgeon in the Austin area. You’ve drilled down to the state of Texas and then to the Austin metro. You’ll then see several cities laid out on the map within this metro. Surprisingly, it’s not the city of Austin with the highest search volume for the term “plastic surgery,” it’s Cedar Park.

Now that you’re armed with this knowledge, the next step is to produce quality content that targets the two keywords: “plastic surgery” and “Cedar Park.” This can be done in a blog article, video or press release.

If you’ve had a patient come in recently from this city consider asking them for a testimonial. A video testimonial is ideal, and you can optimize for “Cedar Park, TX Plastic Surgery.” Alternatively, even if they only provide a written testimonial, you can include it in a blog and optimize for those same keywords.

Google Trends is a pro-active way to stay on top of what people are looking for in your area. Sometimes it’s obvious what people are looking for, but you’ll be surprised at not only some of the keywords that are trending, but the top cities in your metro where these keywords are trending.

If you have any questions about Google Trends, or keyword research in general, leave TRBO a note here, or give us a call directly at 877-673-7096 x2.