Most SEO professionals already know it: Google Keyword Planner is made for advertisingand fails at keyword research for organic traffic.
There is still another free tool in the Google toolset that can be very helpful though.
Indeed Google Trends is better than ever for this task, that’s why I mostly recommend it now for starters instead of the many free or paid alternatives. By now it even allows you to determine local search traffic.
What’s the purpose of Google Trends?
The Google Keyword Planner is for advertisers who need to buy Google search ads (AdWords). Either they don’t rank yet or anymore on Google or because Google has hidden organic results below the fold altogether.
The Google Trends tool has been introduced to influence the general public. It was originally meant for normal people who don’t necessarily buy ads but want to find out what’s cool on the Web.
