It is easier to sell with a trend rather than against it. Take a look at the top 500 keywords searched in the last 48 hours and see if there are any trends, topics, or marketing ploys that you can derive from perusing the following 500 “hot” terms.

As a starter set, here were some of the 500 that I thought were interesting:

18. haggle auction
189. auctions
257. texas auctions
267. foreclosure auctions
Lots of auctions: have to sell, free entertainment, a place to meet people

215. ebay motors – what’s next, e-bay home dental

53. home depot – people hanging on to houses, fixing them up themselves; how else can you help these people save money

60. southwest airlines – by far the most clicks of airlines; what are they doing that you as a small business need to do?

64. craigs list
68. dogpile

74. www.elkware.com
271. lobby.com
What are these?

221. drudge report (small company) – only news entities ahead of it are msn.com and Fox News

111. coloring books
345. coloring pages
Is there a subset of children that are tiring of computer games?

It’s now up to you to provide interesting insights from these top 500 search terms

Top 500 Keywords In The Last 48 Hours by Mikes-Marketing-Tools.com
(http://www.mikes-marketing-tools.com/keywords/)
Top 500 keywords kindly provided by Wordtracker.
Research keywords using Wordtracker’s database of 330 million search terms.

Last Update: Saturday, February 13, 2010
Nos Keyword Count
1 google 4,587
2 youtube 4,506
3 craigslist 3,750
4 yahoo 3,211
5 myspace 2,737
6 facebook login 2,594
7 ebay 2,467
8 aquarius 2,413
9 yahoo mail 2,337
10 tube8 2,048
11 facebook.com 1,692
12 yahoo.com 1,669
13 face book log in 1,610
14 grocery coupons 1,594
15 hotmail 1,450
16 john murtha 1,439
17 gmail 1,436
18 haggle auction 1,419
19 discount flowers 1,405
20 67.63.55.53 1,404
21 red tube 1,394
22 leo 1,298
23 mapquest 1,277
24 scorpio 1,245
25 weather 1,225
26 you tube 1,190
27 virgo 1,187
28 cancer 1,175
29 msn 1,152
30 libra 1,152
31 taurus 1,125
32 pisces 1,124
33 sagittarius 1,077
34 aries 1,058
35 gemini 1,058
36 yahoo mail login 1,030
37 capricorn 1,001
38 google.com 878
39 muurkandelaren lichten 870
40 hotmail.com 864
41 aol 829
42 walmart 824
43 weather channel 823
44 brooklyn decker 796
45 google search 789
46 weather.com 789
47 aol.com 779
48 google maps 773
49 facebook 768
50 amazon 761
51 bing 689
52 search engine 684
53 home depot 658
54 tube 8 621
55 www.facebook.com 617
56 megan fox 605
57 ls models 595
58 cnn 594
59 wikipedia 584
60 southwest airlines 584
61 dictionary 580
62 best buy 574
63 hot 557
64 craigs list 548
65 msn.com 544
66 fox news 541
67 youtube.com 536
68 dogpile 518
69 valentine cards 515
70 white pages 500
71 redtude 496
72 gmail.com 488
73 myspace.com 487
74 www.elkware.com 481
75 daily horoscope 466
76 lowes 465
77 phil harris 464
78 chinese horoscope 461
79 amazon.com 460
80 target 451
81 lindsey vonn 444
82 eurofase lichten 443
83 www.yahoo.com 440
84 weather forecast 437
85 astrology 435
86 games 420
87 sears 417
88 dogs 393
89 netflix 392
90 verizon wireless 391
91 girls 385
92 maps 385
93 face book 381
94 comcast.net 371
95 tube8.com 368
96 backpage 365
97 drudge report 363
98 4tube 359
99 zodiac 359
100 google earth 358
101 tax tips 356
102 youtube videos 356
103 movie trailers 355
104 test 355
105 national weather service 354
106 chocolate recipes 351
107 carmen electra 346
108 kim kardashian 346
109 www.google.com 344
110 valentines day 343
111 coloring books 337
112 bikini 330
113 irs 327
114 bank of america 326
115 delta airlines 326
116 empflix 326
117 tube8com 322
118 webkinz 320
119 accuweather 318
120 ebay.com 316
121 ls island 315
122 ask.com 308
123 weekly horoscope 302
124 espn 299
125 valentine poems 299
126 literoctica 298
127 human genetics 297
128 hotmail email 295
129 dogpile.com 295
130 roze kroonluchter 294
131 expedia 291
132 love horoscopes 290
133 plenty of fish 289
134 youtube music videos 285
135 movies and advertising 285
136 danica patrick 285
137 pthc 284
138 sandra model 284
139 x tube 281
140 map quest 278
141 elweb bbs 277
142 travelocity 276
143 redt tube 276
144 horoscope 275
145 hulu 274
146 msnbc 274
147 noaa 273
148 horoscope today 271
149 mature 271
150 aol mail 269
151 cars 269
152 turbo tax 269
153 sports illustrated 263
154 teeny angels 263
155 deadliest catch 262
156 craiglist com 260
157 myspace login 259
158 dog 258
159 united airlines 258
160 pali preakness scommesse 258
161 irs.gov 257
162 club penguin 254
163 funny videos 254
164 yellow pages 253
165 phil harris died 252
166 biljart kroonluchter 248
167 2rand0,1,1 246
168 jessica alba 244
169 ups tracking 243
170 usps 243
171 printable coupons 242
172 american airlines 241
173 monthly horoscope 241
174 exprimidor sunkist 241
175 search engines 241
176 sams club 240
177 star signs 237
178 my space 236
179 yahoomail 236
180 miley cyrus 236
181 jessica simpson 236
182 facebook log in 235
183 reality kings 234
184 zodiac signs 232
185 cam4 232
186 ask 231
187 cornelia marie 228
188 nudist 228
189 auctions 227
190 auto trader 227
191 myfreecams 227
192 gaytube 223
193 paypal 223
194 orbitz 222
195 pertama kali bersetubuh 222
196 bbs imgboard cgi 221
197 calla huwelijksboeket 220
198 kraft coupons 220
199 google images 219
200 online dictionary 217
201 kristen archives 217
202 customs auctions 216
203 altavista 214
204 angelina jolie 214
205 el ladies 213
206 dans movies 213
207 sunday paper coupons 212
208 topless 212
209 bersetubuh 211
210 camping sites in nc state parks 211
211 met art 211
212 kelly blue book 210
213 american idol 210
214 hearts 208
215 ebay motors 208
216 tiny angels 207
217 people search 207
218 mga tulang pilipino 206
219 craigslist.com 206
220 lingerie 205
221 drudge 204
222 costco 203
223 staples 203
224 tmz 203
225 anime 202
226 boysfood 202
227 jenna jameson 202
228 imdb 201
229 vers huwelijksboeket 201
230 www.myspace.com 201
231 pogo 201
232 holiday recipes 200
233 egotastic 200
234 haiti 199
235 www.youtube.com 198
236 the bachelor 198
237 _google_monitor_query_ or googletestad 197
238 asstr 196
239 poptropica 196
240 ovguide 195
241 ups 195
242 the weather channel 195
243 jessica biel 195
244 thong 194
245 super bowl commercials 194
246 nick jr 193
247 office depot 193
248 huwelijksboeket stengels 192
249 tube 192
250 bed bath and beyond 191
251 guess her muff 191
252 news 190
253 food coupons 190
254 music 189
255 wal mart coupons 188
256 www.hotmail.com 188
257 texas auctions 188
258 cabelas 188
259 tube galore 188
260 game cheats 187
261 twitter 187
262 itunes 187
263 free games 186
264 tula tungkol sa kalikasan 186
265 movies and advertising and sales 185
266 mujeres eyaculando 185
267 foreclosure auctions 185
268 verizon 185
269 tu 184
270 auction online auctions 184
271 lobby.com 183
272 msn hotmail 183
273 abc news 182
274 keu 182
275 free e-cards 182
276 people 181
277 lost 181
278 mardi gras 180
279 www.aol.com 179
280 basketball 177
281 walmart.com 177
282 heart 177
283 tattoo designs 177
284 pic hunter 176
285 jurassic park 4 176
286 go daddy 176
287 lucy pinder 175
288 flickr 174
289 elweb bbs livedoor gateway 174
290 mga tulang pambata 173
291 homemade videos 173
292 al4a 172
293 cnn.com 172
294 miniclip 172
295 gmail sign in 171
296 jobs 171
297 qvc 170
298 babes 169
299 birthday 169
300 breasts 169
301 kohls 168
302 wicked weasel 168
303 captain phil harris 168
304 equipment auctions 168
305 raccolta di fondi ptoq 168
306 pamela anderson 168
307 livestock auction 167
308 nudism 167
309 metacafe 165
310 ls dreams 165
311 halimbawa ng dula 165
312 music downloads 165
313 skype 164
314 homework helpers 164
315 love 163
316 tagalog kwentong bayan 163
317 soccer 163
318 stocking stuffers 163
319 mga kwentong pambata 163
320 jennifer aniston 163
321 continental airlines 162
322 snowmageddon 162
323 airline tickets 162
324 peek a brew cameras 162
325 halimbawa ng tula 162
326 chase 162
327 lisa ann 162
328 girl 161
329 toyota recall 161
330 discovery channel 161
331 cereal coupons 161
332 wwe 161
333 chinese zodiac 161
334 asian 160
335 kmart 160
336 bauchnabel lint sammlung 159
337 sports 159
338 opknoping lamp 159
339 firefox 158
340 kim kardashian full video 158
341 mga alamat 158
342 att.net 158
343 kroonluchter tinten 157
344 x hamster 157
345 coloring pages 157
346 japanese beauties 156
347 travel 156
348 lil wayne 155
349 radio shack 155
350 the digital divide 154
351 abraham lincoln 154
352 richards realm 153
353 justin bieber 153
354 free online games 152
355 wal mart 152
356 tattoos 152
357 amazon books 152
358 mga tula 151
359 yahoo mail sign in 150
360 funny 150
361 limewire 150
362 craiglist 149
363 www yahoo com 149
364 homes for auction 148
365 coloring pages to print 148
366 food network 147
367 busty 147
368 coupons 147
369 barack obama 147
370 upcoming movie trailers 147
371 at&t 147
372 breaking news 146
373 cats 146
374 ask jeeves 146
375 vida guerra 146
376 super bowl 146
377 bbc news 145
378 round and brown 143
379 maxim 143
380 free movies 142
381 astrological signs 142
382 mga kwentong bayan 141
383 besplatni domaci filmovi 141
384 spring break 141
385 mortgage calculator 141
386 tacori bagues de fian?ailles 141
387 movies 140
388 olympics 140
389 naturism 140
390 web md 139
391 lil amber 138
392 photobucket 138
393 walter a eisner 138
394 fire 138
395 valentine 138
396 valentine poetry 138
397 4chan 138
398 marisa miller 138
399 yahoo sign in 138
400 cars.com 137
401 my first teacher 137
402 huffington post 137
403 currency converter 137
404 filipino tula 136
405 macys 136
406 valentine heart clipart 136
407 mature women 136
408 abc 136
409 computers 135
410 ako 135
411 big mouthfuls 135
412 talambuhay ni jose rizal 135
413 lolicon 135
414 brooke burke 134
415 dish network 134
416 chinese new year 133
417 koleksyon ng tula ng mga pilipino 133
418 lindsay lohan 132
419 you tube videos 132
420 autotrader 132
421 movie previews 132
422 fedex 132
423 talambuhay ng mga bayani 132
424 quoizel kroonluchter 131
425 dude tube 131
426 addictinggames 131
427 adam4adam 131
428 we live together 130
429 baseball 130
430 printable valentines 130
431 oops 130
432 grocery coupon websites 130
433 chase.com 130
434 zodiac signs meanings 130
435 cheap airline tickets 130
436 us airways 130
437 valentines day facts 130
438 balita sa pilipinas 130
439 michael jackson 130
440 birth signs 130
441 football 129
442 apple 129
443 yahoo games 129
444 whitepages 129
445 barnes and noble 129
446 better business bureau 129
447 comcast 129
448 mga epikong tagalog 129
449 direct tv 129
450 buod ng florante at laura 129
451 used cars 128
452 love poems 128
453 women dressed and undressed 128
454 foxnews 128
455 wells fargo 128
456 cerita ghairah 128
457 nascar 128
458 hunks without trunks 127
459 dictionary.com 127
460 bebo 127
461 trish stratus 127
462 online games 127
463 libra tattoo 126
464 kwento ng ibong adarna 126
465 the hunsyellow pages 126
466 mapquest.com 126
467 nc state parks 126
468 lowes home improvement 125
469 chloroformed kidnapped 125
470 alamat ng lansones 125
471 astrology compatibility 124
472 avatar 124
473 jersey shore banned 124
474 filipino poems tula 124
475 sports illiusrtated 124
476 motherless 124
477 chinese astrology 124
478 weather underground 123
479 mga pangulo ng pilipinas 123
480 manhunt 123
481 breast 122
482 amanda bynes 122
483 facebook login page 122
484 sara jay 122
485 naturist 122
486 disney channel 122
487 http 121
488 reggie bush 121
489 priceline 121
490 cheap flights 121
491 prius global recall 120
492 elkware.com 120
493 global warming 120
494 hin 120
495 toyota 120
496 pogo games 120
497 capt phil harris 119
498 erin andrews hotel video 119
499 ikea 119
500 dell 119

Close Window

Disclaimer: We make every effort to remove adult/offensive related search terms from this report. Despite our best efforts however, adult/offensive material might occasionally appear. Due to the nature of the internet it’s simply a fact that about 20-25% of search engine keywords are of this nature. Should you find any in the list, we apologise in advance. Reproduced by permission, courtesy of Rivergold Associates Ltd.

How the ghostblogging debate should have been.

The annals of Turning Left Against Traffic consist of one-sided diatribes, not balanced, blow-by-blow reviews of pugilistic contests. So to capture the Great Ghostblogging Debate, I shall offer the most enticing literary technique for presenting two opposing worldviews: the Italian method. In this model, two characters engage in heated conversation moderated by a third. Ghostblogging will be championed in the hypothetical by Casper, ridiculed by Imma and mediated by Sagredo. Bonus points available for identifying those offbeat references. Quiet now, here come the curtains:

* * *
Sagredo: Sir and madam: the issue of the day is ghostblogging—authoring an article for web publication that carries the byline of another person. Where do you stand, Casper?

Casper: Ghostblogging is merely transcription and editing. We speak with the client on some topic, capture the exchange on paper and assemble their ideas for the electronic medium. The finished product includes the client’s name because the client retains authority and ownership.

Sagredo: Do you concur with this definition?

Imma: No. Ghostblogging is ghostwriting, and the primary aim of ghostwriting is deception. Society should not permit fraud. Although we consciously tolerate or fail to detect many of these lies, they are nevertheless reprehensible.

Sagredo: Your positions seem irreconcilably distinct. Casper insists that ghostbloggers work with the named author to generate copy. Imma apparently believes that because the ghostblogger does not publicly share credit, the public is purposely fooled.
Surely, Casper, you do not feel that a ghost sets out to trick readers?

Casper: The suggestion that ghostwriters lie is hurtful and inaccurate. We don’t intend to deceive anyone. Our involvement is irrelevant to the reader, so listing the ghostwriter’s name is a distraction. The purpose of that byline is to show who came up with the published ideas, not who assembled them into coherent sentences for publication.

Imma: But that’s the crucial point. The public does not know the depth of your efforts. Perhaps the client has a broken finger and your job is solely to be a typist, or perhaps you’ve never spoken with the expert and instead researched and wrote the entire piece on your own and merely signed your client’s name and collected your fee.

Casper: I’d never do that!

Sagredo: Decorum, please!

Sagredo: Casper, what Imma seems to propose is that in theory, a ghostwriter could generate a piece with no client interaction and successfully fool the public. Do you agree?

Casper: I suppose it’s possible, but I don’t feel such a practice would be either practical or ethical. It would be far more time consuming to create something purely through research than by just talking to the client. And I do agree that doing so would be wrong, because the named author would have nothing to do with finished product.

Sagredo: Imma, does this mean anything to you?

Imma: Casper and I concur that ghostwriting without engaging the client in conversation is wrong because the client is not actually involved in work attributed to them. I want Casper to explain how much conversation must occur for the ghostblogging process to be ethical.

Casper: I know you’re going to attack this response, but it depends on the client and the topic. At the very least, the client must give the ghostblogger the core ideas that will be used in the post.

Imma: But does that delivery have to occur actively? Would it not be reasonable—under your ethical guidelines—to study their past comments and clippings and work something up that sounds like the client?

Casper: Again in theory, sure. But the client has to approve the piece to reasonably receive credit for the ideas. That safeguard ensures that the ghostwriter isn’t inventing entirely from their own mind.

Sagredo: This is, of course, exactly what speechwriters do for politicians. They crib from past speeches, articles and policy documents. What do you think about that, Imma?

Imma: Actually, I do believe that speechwriting is equivalent to ghostwriting. The practice is widespread and commonly accepted, but just because something is popular does not mean it is right.

Casper: Seriously? Speechwriting is a fantastic example of why ghostwriting is a reasonable and useful activity. You don’t really expect government officials and corporate executives to waste time writing, do you? Plus, it’s likely that these individuals cannot write well. Believe me.

Imma: You’ve just made two provocative claims. First, that writing is a ‘waste of time’, which is a rather dismal view of your chosen profession. And second, you’ve called into question the competence of our leaders. The ability to write well is a fundamental qualification for any professional. If a CEO or a high-level bureaucrat cannot communicate effectively through the written word they do not deserve their such an important role in our society.

Sagredo: Now, let’s be fair Imma. I don’t think Casper meant that writing was a waste of time or that his clients are stupid.

Casper: Yes, what I meant was that writing might be a $50/hour job, but being an executive is a $1,000/hour job. If a CEO spends the entire morning writing a blog post, please let me know so I can avoid buying stock in that company.

Imma: Well, what about the second issue, that anyone who hires a ghostwriter because they can’t write is suspect?

Casper: That’s not fair. Certainly, there are examples of incredibly talented and skilled people with minimal formal training in writing, such as athletes. For their stories to be told, a ghostwriter makes sense. And even highly educated leaders don’t spend as much time writing as I do. I will be more efficient and more effective at writing than even the brightest of my clients.

Imma: I see your point, Casper, but those analogies don’t survive analysis. When athletes or celebrities publish books, there’s always the name of the supporting writer in smaller letters on the front cover. That’s not ghostwriting, that’s just co-writing. Why can’t you do the same for your blog posts?

Casper: Those are whole books! We’re just talking about blog posts. These are a few hundred words tossed onto a website, not masterpieces to be stored for all eternity at the Library of Congress.
Sagredo: These are great discussions, but we’ve wandered far beyond the topic at hand. We’re here to talk about ghostblogging, not speeches or biographies. The online medium seems crucial to this discussion. Does the fact that ghostblogging happens on the Internet make a difference?
Casper: No.
Imma: No.
Sagredo: I did not expect that. If it’s not the channel which matters, perhaps it is the motivation. Why do you or do you not ghostblog?

Casper: I am a ghostblogger because it’s a great way to help brilliant, busy people share their message online. My clients want to publish their ideas, but between the challenge of a well-crafted sentence, the eccentricities of English grammar and the technical know-how needed to publish on the web, it’s simply easier to work with me. Everyone wins, especially their readers.

Imma: I refuse to use a ghostblogger because I don’t want my audience to question the source of my ideas. If Robert Frost had quietly outsourced writing poetry to an apprentice, the world would revolt upon discovery. We generally assume that a byline honestly represents the person who wrote those words.
Casper: Again, ghostwriters don’t do that!

Imma: But I can’t tell! You might be entirely honest, having thoroughly discussed ideas with your client and submitted your final version for his approval. Or, you might have produced some copy entirely on your own and slapped his name on the front. Since the ghost is invisible and prides himself that he can’t be detected, I will likely never know that you existed and can never know if you behaved in a way I would approve. Ghostblogging is fraud.

Casper: Like anything else, you just have to have a certain amount of trust. Sure, the ghostblogger could complete an entire post without ever talking to their client, but that technique is not going to last. It’s simply not possible to produce believable copy indefinitely. Eventually, readers will catch on to the fact that the ghost is doing all of the work and go elsewhere.

Sagredo: That’s really what this debate is all about: public perception. If a ghostwriter includes their own name as a co-author, the reader might dismiss the piece. If the ghostwriter is not listed and the reader determines the person receiving the credit was not substantially involved, they will likely feel deceived. Do you agree?

Imma: Yes, on both counts. If I want to read about How to Get Rich, I’d much rather hear directly from Donald Trump rather than from Donald Trump and someone named Meredith McIver. Who knows how many of Trump’s ideas are in a book which he couldn’t be bothered to write without a named co-author? And if McIver instead took extra cash to have her name removed from the cover, I would be enraged. Attribution to a secondary, no-name writer diminishes the value of a work, but not as much as finding out later that this person was kept secret!

Casper: I agree with the first claim but for different reasons than Imma. Adding the ghostwriter’s name as a co-author does diminish the value of the work, but not because it implies the lead author is lazy or incompetent. Rather, adding this name confuses the reader. (Am I supposed to know the name Meredith McIver before buying this book?) The work is by Donald Trump and about the life of Donald Trump: ideally, anyone else involved should be pushed to the acknowledgments section.

As for the latter statement, I do not believe that readers will riot in the streets if they “discover” a ghostwriter was involved. People are smart. They know that most professional content is created by professional writers.

Sagredo: I think we’re at a standstill. Either including the ghostwriters name would make the author less credible, or it would merely confuse and distract the reader. Ghostwriting is all about perception.

Imma: The practical implementation of ethics in any field is completely about perception. Violence is wrong, except in a predefined context like sports or self-defense. False attribution is wrong, but society has grown to accept the practice in specific contexts.

Casper: And I think this is a case where the content is more important than who was involved. After all, if we are ethically obligated to list the ghostwriter, are we also obligated to state the name of the editor? Do we need to credit all of their English teachers as well as Strunk & White and Merriam & Webster?

Imma: That’s a good point. I think that ghostwriters should self-identify, but it’s clearly silly to note the name of the editor who fixed a spliced comma or a misspelled word.

Sagredo: So what is the conclusion here? what have we learned?

Imma: I feel ghostblogging is wrong because I feel deceived when I discover the presence of a ghost. But clearly, not all people feel this way, and in many contexts regarding ghostwriting, most people simply don’t care.

This seems like intellectual laziness to me, but that’s the way it is.

Casper: I feel that ghostblogging is really about helping clients to spread their word. People understand that content on the Internet is often created by professionals. Writing is like making sausage; just because you enjoy the final product doesn’t mean you need to watch it being produced. While some readers might be surprised to learn who was involved in creating a piece, I don’t think most people will feel betrayed.

Sagredo: I suppose that in the final analysis, it depends not only on the audience but on the content. If a personal blogger uses a ghost, people might be upset to find out that the mom isn’t really blogging about changing diapers but has some expert doing it for her. Contrariwise, everyone assumes that CEOs and politicians never write their own speeches and postings.

So ghostblogging is neither right or wrong, it’s a long mushy shade of gray. It seems that Casper draws the line at popular opinion. If most people would not be surprised or offended to discover the ghostwriter’s existence, he feels comfortable crafting the piece and keeping his name off of the byline.

Casper: Yup.

Sagredo: But Imma draws the line not by what is popular, but by what she feels is right. According to her view of the world, people ought to stand by their words. By her logic, expressing yourself without attribution and with the hope of remaining eternal undetected is a willful deceit. It’s a lie that may be used to enable people to represent themselves beyond their own intellectual capacities. Ghostblogging, says Imma, is effectively fraud.

Imma: Indeed.

Sagredo: I am no more convinced on the topic of ghostblogging. Rather, I have discovered the philosophies of two people. One is a realist driven by opportunity, the other an idealist driven by scholarship. Either path, unchecked, leads to extremism. The ghostwriter who is lured by wealth or threatened with poverty might produce work without engaging their client. The attributional among us might deny editors the right to repair errant words without equal billing.

Sagredo: I have learned one noble truth: the secret to ghostblogging is finding out what your audience wants. Perhaps they don’t care who fingers are at the keyboard, or perhaps they will come bearing electronic torches and pitchforks if your unnamed author is discovered.

Ghostblogging, and more generally ghostwriting, reminds us that writing is for those who consume words. There may be a business or political advantage to attach a particular phalanx of words to a certain individual, product or brand. Ultimately, though, it is the ideas which matter. No matter who produces the text and how transparent or opaque it’s manufacture, worthwhile constructions shall endure. Ghostwriting is still writing. Our future still depends on what we choose to say.

Read full column at

http://www.robbyslaughter.com/blog/?2010-02-06

Robby Slaughter
Slaughter Development, LLC
317.670.4563
rslaughter@slaughterdevelopment.com