Using the Google Keyword Tool that shows you search trends it seems that when it comes to searching for party names in Ireland Fine Gael romps home with Sinn Fein and Fianna Fail joint second, Labour Party and Green Party joint third. This data is a few weeks out of sync so will change again right before the election.
Of course if we use the more general Labour and Greens searches, this changes the table but that brings in everything from child birth searches to labour court type searches:
Leader searches:
Enda Kenny, then Gerry Adams, John Gormley and Eamon Gilmore at same level, then Micheal Martin.
What about Jedward? They kinda own searches:
Superb.
(Not the result!)
Hopefully the final result demonstrates that most searches are carried out by impressionable pubescent morons, rendering the other results moot.
Very interesting post Damien.
I don’t trust the Google AdWords External tool – it’s too inaccurate in Ireland. Its based on computations on search phrases, not just a count. Google extracts words and makes up phrases based on combinations. Here’s a really good example:
If you search for monthly searches in Ireland for “Fianna Fail” – one of the combinations is “Fianna Gael” – which doesn’t exactly exist (although I can understand how people type it in – and it is now a suggested phrase).
Google suggests that the monthly searches for “Fianna Gael” is 22,200 – higher than both “Fine Gael” and “Fianna Fail”. The word “Fianna” has become mutually exchangeable in Google’s dictionary for “Fine” – like “Majorca, Mallorca and Mayorca” all return similar results.
I posted about it in more detail http://primaryposition.blogspot.com/2011/02/google-gets-fed-up-of-fianna-fail-and.html
Cool post David. I’m voting Shin Gale myself.
@Ruairi thank you and indeed you could do worse.