Google has announced a new tool called Google Correlate that offers marketers insight on which phrases are most searched.

Google has launched a new tool, Google Correlate, which helps users find hot queries related to their industry interests. Marketers might consider how they can use this tool to find popular keywords for search engine optimization according to season and region.

Google Correlate allows users to find “search terms that correlate with real world data.” The company explains it “is like Google Trends in reverse.” Whereas Google Trends tells users the trending search phrases, Google Correlate lets them input a query and it provides the popular, relevant search phrases.

The tool offers charts that indicate the search volumes for specific queries according to region and/or time of year. When users enter a query to “correlate,” the keywords Google suggests generally have similar search patterns.

The company suggests people use the time series data to determine the time of year when search phrases are trending, and it says that the “Correlation by U.S. State” function offers insight on where certain search terms are most popular. For marketers, this may help them develop seasonal and regional keywords.

Using Google search data to inform keyword selection might pay off. As Brafton has reported, Google organic search drives a lot of traffic to local business sites, and Google is still consumers' search engine of choice by a long shot.

Katherine Griwert is Brafton's Marketing Director. She's practiced content marketing, SEO and social marketing for over five years, and her enthusiasm for new media has even deeper roots. Katherine holds a degree in American Studies from Boston College, and her writing is featured in a number of web publications.