Google World Cup 2010 trends
How exactly do search trends affect SEO? Well if you wrote any useful content on your website or blog over the past month and the few weeks leading up to the 2010 FIFA World Cup you would of seen a steady boost in your traffic. Thank you Sepp Blatter. As we wait in anticipation for Sunday’s final match, Google examines the most prominent search trends over the last 30 days.
The vuvuzela has certainly been one of the biggest talking points of the 2010 FIFA World Cup™, and has since crossed beyond our borders into other countries. Even celebrities like Leonardo DiCaprio have been spotted with their lips around this plastic phenomenon. Google Zeitgeist – which provides insight into global, national, past and present search trends – has revealed that the United Kingdom is the number one country searching for places to buy the vuvuzela, followed by the United States and the United Arab Emirates.
Top 10 countries interested in buying vuvuzelas
Meanwhile, Uruguayans have been the most interested in Zakumi (the Official 2010 FIFA World Cup Mascot™), with the majority of searches taking place just before Bafana Bafana’s 3-0 clash against Uruguay. Besides South Africa, it seems that Peru, Argentina and Venezuela have also taken quite a liking to this cuddly, green haired leopard, who celebrated his 16th birthday during the World Cup.
When French coach, Raymond Domenech, snubbed a handshake from South African coach, Carlos Alberto Parreira, searches combining their names rose; particularly in France on the day of the momentous match in Bloemfontein. Luis Suarez’s infamous hand ball against Ghana during the quarter finals also sparked a series of searches, with the United States being the most eager to research the controversial play that inevitably dashed Africa’s hopes in the tournament.
Interestingly, Bangladesh leads the pack in trying to find out more about ‘Waka Waka’ (the official 2010 FIFA World Cup™ anthem), with Paraguay and Mauritius coming in second and third respectively. K’naan’s ‘Wavin’ Flag’, although slightly less popular, appears to have resonated with citizens in Hungry, Argentina and India.
Highest regional interest for Shakira’s ‘Waka Waka’ song in the last 30 days:
The 2010 FIFA World Cup™ has also brought a number of celebrity soccer fans to our shores, including John Travolta and Mick Jagger. It’s not surprising that South Africa was the most curious about Paris Hilton during the last 30 days, especially with her glamourised arrival at Lanseria Airport, her attendance at a World Cup match and her subsequent brush with the law in Port Elizabeth on July 2nd.
Web search interest in South Africa on Paris Hilton.
Anyone can use Insights for search to come up with their own rankings by visiting http://google.com/insights/search/ and Trends http://www.google.com/trends