Are You Using Google Trends? Here’s Why You Should Before Your Competitors Do!

Google Trends provides users a large amount of data about various items, countries and products along with their evolution over the years. That data has mainly been used for simple statistical purposes, but the same data can be used by digital marketers for finding out competition analysis, best products and consumer behavior. Using this information digital marketers could devise future strategies about their products and services.

In a recent video, Google Trends team shared tips on maximizing its tools for benchmarking against competitors, analyzing brand awareness, and forecasting product demand. Curious? Dive into the details below.

Competition Analysis

The level of competition among businesses can be assessed using the graphical and visual data provided by Google Trends. By entering two names, users can explore their historical performance. Additional options, such as country and subregion, enable the display of more precise data.

Follow the steps to find out how to use Google Trends for competition analysis data.

1) Open Google Trends using the search engine.

2) Add a search term in the search box and click on explore.

3) Add the other search term (Competitor’s name) in Compare search box (in our demonstration we are comparing KFC with McDonald's).

4) Select from the available options a country, starting time period, a category and search option (Whether you want image-related data or Youtube data), as per your wishes.

5) To make data more specific, select a subregion of the country to find out about consumers’ behavior in that area.

6) Related search terms are also given for more related-comparisons.

The graphical data shows which fast food chain has been in business in the last 30 days, especially in the subregion. BTW, users can change the date range to include data from the past five years or further back. The data provided by Google Trends would allow digital marketers to invest and promote the brand which is more in demand in their area.

Tracking Awareness about a Brand

The data also helps digital marketers to know how popular a brand has been over the years. The past trajectory allows them to see when a specific brand gained popularity in a specific area and what caused that sudden boom in the business. Similarly, related terms give clues about what people mostly associate with the brand in question.

Changing the category from web search to Youtube search can also provide data from across the web for better decision making.

Potential Future Trajectory

Moreover, a prediction could be made on the basis of the data about the future trajectory of a brand. By analyzing what caused the boom in the past and whether those elements still exist, the potential future of a brand could be predicted.

By reviewing seasonal data and competition with other brands, the future of a specific brand could be seen hidden in the past trajectory. To find out about other brands, related terms given at the end give clues about what might occur in the future.

Conclusion

The just mentioned ways using Google Trends would provide great insights to digital marketers before they make important decisions. Data provided by Google Trends would save many from committing mistakes by investing in the wrong place. Moreover, they could trace the popularity of their brands.

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Survey: 40% of Small Businesses Now Using AI, With Marketing and Customer Insights Leading

According to a new research by the US Chamber of Commerce, there has been a 17% increase in small businesses using AI in 2024 from 2023. In 2023, 23% of the small businesses were using AI but now 40% of small businesses have integrated AI into their workspaces. This survey was based on 1,100 people working as small businesses in the US.

Upon asking what purposes these small businesses are using AI for, 51% said they use it for marketing and promoting purposes. 56% said so in 2023, marking a 5% decline this year. Marketing and promoting was still the top purpose for using AI in 2023 as well as 2024.

46% of small businesses are also using AI for developing customer insights, a 14% up from 32% in 2023. 41% of small businesses are also using AI for communicating with their customers. There has also been a 10% increase seen in usage of AI for managing customer relationships in 2024 (38%) from 2023 (28%).

The top AI enabled tools small businesses in the US are using are search engines (63%), social media (61%) and email services (58%). Financial management tools (51%), digital cameras on smartphones (46%) and computer virus detection and cybersecurity tools (44%) are also some AI enabled tools used by small businesses in 2024 .

31% of the US small businesses have been using AI for more than a year, with 12% using it for three to four years. 27% of the small businesses have started the use of AI just this year. 60% of the respondents of the survey also said that they believe that AI can help their business in the future. 5% also think that AI can hurt their business in the future.

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by Arooj Ahmed via Digital Information World

X Tightens Scraping Rules, Imposing Hefty Penalties While Shifting Towards Data Licensing

X is gearing up to change its privacy policy, allowing for user data sharing with third-party collaborators. Effective November 15, 2024, this update hints at a model akin to Reddit, where outside companies could pay for access to user data.

The new section, “third-party collaborators,” suggests a shift in how user data is handled. The policy states that depending on your settings, your information may be shared with third parties. However, it’s unclear how users can opt out, as the settings menu doesn’t currently offer this option. With the policy's effective date approaching, there's a chance for updates, but X has yet to comment.

If this data licensing takes off, it could provide a crucial revenue stream for X, especially as interest from advertisers wanes.

Simultaneously, X is tightening its terms of service with harsher penalties for those scraping tweets. In a new section called “liquidated damages,” X states that accessing over one million posts in a day could result in a $15,000 penalty.

Elon Musk has been vocal against scraping. Last year, he briefly blocked tweet visibility for logged-out users to deter web scrapers. He also moved X’s API behind a paywall, limiting researchers' capabilities to study the platform's dynamics. Musk has cited scraping as a justification for legal actions against organizations investigating hate speech and other issues.

As X navigates this new landscape, the balance between data privacy and revenue generation will be crucial. Users will need to stay informed and vigilant about how their information is utilized.

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by Asim BN via Digital Information World

Apple Expands Business Connect with Caller ID for Safer Customer Interactions

Apple is expanding its Apple Business Connect program by adding new features that will benefit businesses and customers alike. The most important new feature is Business Caller ID, which will launch next year. This feature will let businesses, no matter their size, show their name, logo, and department when they call customers. It aims to help people tell the difference between real business calls and possible spam giving them more peace of mind and safety.

Through Apple Business Connect, businesses can control how they appear across Apple’s apps. In 2023, Apple introduced customization options for Maps, Messages, Siri, and Wallet listings. Now, these branding tools are available to any company, including those without physical locations.

Beyond Business Caller ID, the updates include branding integration within the Mail and Phone apps. Plus, companies can now display their logos in Tap to Pay, adding a branded element to contactless payments.

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by Unknown via Digital Information World

Survey Reveals Gen-Z Heavily Relies On Influencers For Information, With 22% Following Over 50 Influencers

According to Morning Consult data, most of the Gen-Z go to influencers' content for information on almost every topic. The data shows that 22% of the Gen-Z follow more than 50 influencers on social media while only 11% US adults do so. This shows that influencers are a big source of motivation and information for Gen-Z. 22% of the Gen-Z in the USA follow 1 to 5 influencers, while 20% follow 6-10 influencers on social media.

The respondents were also asked if they want to see more or less content from influencers on social media. 9% of the US adults answered that they want to see a lot more content from influencers while 14% of Gen-Z adults said that. 17% of the Gen-Z also said that they want to see a little more content from influencers. This makes about 32% of the Gen-Z who want to see more content from influencers on social media.

Gen-Z wants to know everything from influencers. The data shows that media recommendations, dating, lifestyle and health are the topics Gen-Z are most interested in hearing from influencers. 66% of the Gen-Z also reported that they have frequent real-life discussions on the topics they hear influencers talking about online. 57% or 3 in 1 Gen-Z also said that they would be ready to become an influencer if they are given the opportunity.

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by Arooj Ahmed via Digital Information World

Google Gemini is Soon Going to Have a New Tool Available to Resize and Reshape Images, Just Like Microsoft Bing Image Creator

Google has developed Gemini go make its AI dreams possible. Just like some other generative AI models, Gemini is good at generating pictures too. Google has recently upgraded Gemini to Imagen 3 and now users can use many tools to have some control over the image that generates. Even though Gemini and Imagen 3 have some of its pros and cons, Gemini is offering a new feature with it too.

Most of the time, the images generated by AI are square shaped. The images created on Gemini are also 1:1 ratio and if someone needs another shape, they have to crop it out (or use Microsoft Bing Image Creator 🙃). But there has been a new setting seen in 15.41.34.29.arm64 beta of the Google app which has some image resizing options. Users will be able to set image sizes to 16:9 ratio too (i.e.: Landscape photos), as spotted by Android Authority.

Another thing is that if you need your subject in the picture to be smaller without changing the ratio of the picture to smaller, you can simply make the subject small and Gemini will add more details in the background. It seems like Google is giving users some free hands to create images on Gemini. Google has also added a tool to refine images on Gemini. Now that the tool for changing the size and shape of the picture is here, this is greatly representing Gemini’s capabilities. But we still have no idea if this update is going to be available at all.

Image: Android Authority

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ChatGPT Surpasses Bing, Achieves 3.1 Billion Visits in September with 112% Growth

Since May 2024, ChatGPT has kept climbing higher smashing its own traffic numbers every month. In September 2024, chatgpt.com saw a mind-blowing 3.1 billion visits, which means it grew by 112% compared to the year before, i.e. according to SimilarWeb's latest data. This follows a bumpier ride in 2023 when the site went through a big rise and fall hitting its high point at 1.9 billion visits in spring before dropping off over the summer months.

Most Visited Websites in September 2024	Traffic
google.com	82.0 billion
youtube.com	28.0 billion
facebook.com	12.3 billion
instagram.com	5.7 billion
whatsapp.com	4.5 billion
x.com	4.3 billion
wikipedia.org	3.8 billion
yahoo.com	3.4 billion
reddit.com	3.4 billion
yahoo.co.jp	3.2 billion
chatgpt.com	3.1 billion
yandex.ru	2.7 billion
amazon.com	2.6 billion
baidu.com	2.4 billion
tiktok.com	2.1 billion
microsoftonline.com	1.8 billion
bing.com	1.8 billion
netflix.com	1.7 billion
linkedin.com	1.7 billion
pornhub.com	1.7 billion

ChatGPT hit the internet in November 2022 and became one of its most popular websites. It started to bounce back from its summer dip by September 2023, but didn't beat its 2023 traffic numbers until May 2024. Since then, the platform has kept growing landing the spot as the 11th most visited website in the world. While it's still behind giants like Google and YouTube, ChatGPT now ranks higher than Amazon's U.S. site cementing its place among the web's top destinations.

In September 2024, ChatGPT reached a new high point by beating Microsoft's Bing in U.S. traffic for the first time. It racked up 442.9 million visits in the U.S. topping Bing's 404.3 million, which showed its growing pull in the AI world. Globally, ChatGPT’s rise has been even more pronounced, aided by a series of product enhancements introduced alongside its switch to the chatgpt.com domain.

Mobile app adoption has also played a key role in ChatGPT’s growth. Although the app launched later, its increasing capabilities, including voice and image recognition, have made it essential for users. The app's user base continues to expand, particularly in markets like the UK, where ChatGPT outpaces competitors in mobile usage.

Even with this success, ChatGPT doesn't pose a threat to search giants like Google yet. It has gained devoted users after offering more features for free. Still, it works on a different scale compared to the biggest mass-market platforms. Yet, its ongoing growth shows a lasting appeal that keeps going strong.

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by Unknown via Digital Information World