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What Is Your Audience Looking for? Study Google Search Console to Find Out.
Graphs are pretty, but the real story of your website’s success is the numbers. Google Search Console (GSC) search results tell you what Users are looking for and if you’re providing it.
We went over the colorful report on the Search Results page last time. The next report is even more exciting if less colorful. There are six columns and each one opens a new report about how people search for and find your website on Google. Let’s hit the highlights of each.
Queries
On the left side of the chart are terms that Users type into Google’s search box. Your business name is probably one of them as well as words that obviously have to do with your service or product. You may also see a few surprising phrases.
On the right side are two columns for Clicks and Impressions. An Impression is logged when someone types in the search term and a link to your website is returned on the result page. If the User then clicks on that link, Google records it as a Click.
If you are seeing a lot of Impressions but few Clicks, it’s possible that while your site may be optimized for a particular search term it is not fulfilling the promise. For instance, your website could feature a lot of Taylor Swift search terms, and show up in search results for Taylor Swift, but if you're selling Swift Wrinkle-Reducer by Taylor, Swifties are not going to click on it.
Use this information to refresh your website content to provide better answers for search queries. Look also for terms you hadn’t considered before and consider working them into your content, too, as appropriate.
Pages
When a User searches online, the results don’t necessarily return a link to your Home page. Instead, it might be a link to some other page on your website, like a blog or product page. The Pages report shows you which pages on your website are getting the most Impressions and which are getting the most Clicks.
Again, this information gives you a blueprint for reworking content and search terms to pursue optimization.
Countries
If your business is focused on local search, the Countries report may be just for fun. World-wide companies will get more out of it.
Devices
This report is usually a surprise to businesses who assume that most folks sit at a desk to go online. Spoiler alert: They don’t. More than ever, Users are accessing search from their phones. Take this report as a reminder that your website had better look good and perform well on a tiny phone.
Search Appearance
A link to your website can be served up in results many ways, as we mentioned last time when talking about Average Position. Some of these results are due to structured data in the code of your site. Product Snippets or Translated Results are two ways your website may appear in search, or you may not have any information in this report.
Dates
Obviously these are the dates on which your website received the most Click and Impressions. Look for patterns. Do you see less activity on weekends or more activity on Mondays? Is there an increase before the holidays or before the school year starts? Use this information to plan blog posts, sales, email campaigns, and other marketing strategies.
The feedback from this report is full of actionable suggestions for your website, and for your general marketing as well. Even though you know your business very well, you can’t always predict how your online audience will react. Use this information to drive your Search Engine Optimization and check back to see how the changes are working.
Too busy to make use of this info? Then pass this task along to the Sprocket team. In addition to Google Search Console, we have access to a number of other tools that help assess your website’s visibility and improve it. Try our free SEO audit now, or just give us a call!
Photo by Monstera Production
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Kate Gingold
I have been writing a blog with web marketing tips and techniques every other week since 2003. In addition to blogging and client content writing, I write books and a blog on local history.
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I have been writing a blog with web marketing tips and techniques every other week since 2003. In addition to blogging and client content writing, I write books and a blog on local history.
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