Step 1: Set Up Your Trend Monitoring Dashboard

Goal: Create a centralized system that automatically monitors multiple sources for emerging topics and trends

1. Set up Google Trends monitoring:

   • Go to Google Trends and create a Google account if needed _{google trends}
   • Click "Explore" and enter 3-5 broad topics related to your niche _{trends explorer}
   • Click "Compare" to add additional terms
   • Set the time range to "Past 12 months" to see recent patterns _{12-month view}
   • Expected result: You'll see trend lines showing search interest over time

2. Create a Feedly content aggregation dashboard:

   • Sign up for a free Feedly account _{feedly signup}
   • Click "Add Content" and search for 10-15 industry blogs and news sites _{discover sources}
   • Create separate categories like "Industry News," "Competitor Content," and "Trending Topics"
   • Add RSS feeds from relevant publications in your niche
   • Expected result: A personalized feed showing the latest articles from your chosen sources

3. Set up Reddit monitoring:

   • Create a Reddit account and identify 5-10 relevant subreddits in your niche _{reddit signup}
   • Subscribe to these subreddits and bookmark them
   • Sort posts by "Hot" and "Rising" to see trending discussions
   • Use Reddit's search function with keywords like "help," "how to," and "struggling with" _{reddit search}
   • Expected result: A list of active communities discussing problems in your area

4. Configure social media trend tracking:

   • Follow 20-30 industry leaders and influencers on Twitter/X
   • Create Twitter Lists for different topic categories _{twitter lists}
   • Monitor trending hashtags in your niche daily
   • Set up Google Alerts for key industry terms _{google alerts}
   • Expected result: Real-time notifications about trending topics and discussions

5. Create your monitoring spreadsheet:

   • Open Google Sheets or Excel and create columns: "Date," "Source," "Topic," "Trend Score," "Competition Level," "Notes" _{google sheets}
   • Set up tabs for different trend sources (Google Trends, Reddit, Social Media, etc.)
   • Create a "Priority Topics" tab for high-potential discoveries
   • Expected result: A organized system for tracking and evaluating discovered topics

If Google Trends shows "Not enough data": Try broader keywords or extend the time range to 5 years
If Feedly feeds aren't updating: Check that the RSS URLs are correct and the sites are still active
If Reddit communities seem inactive: Look for larger, more general subreddits in your niche area

You'll know you're done when: You have a functioning multi-source monitoring system that updates automatically

• Google Trends is bookmarked with your key search terms saved
• Feedly shows fresh content from at least 10 industry sources
• You're subscribed to 5+ relevant Reddit communities
• Your spreadsheet is set up with proper columns and tabs
• You're receiving daily notifications from at least 3 different sources

Ready for next step? Your dashboard is now collecting trend data - time to learn how to analyze search patterns for topic opportunities.