In the old version of Raven's Google Analytics integration, a Top Keywords view was front-and-center in the sidebar navigation. But, as keywords have become less and less valuable through Google Analytics due to (not provided), Raven has deemphasized keywords in our own Google Analytics tool.
What is (not provided)?
In October 2011, Google altered its search protocols in such a way that searches by users logged into Google accounts (including those logged into Gmail, Google+ and other Google services) were encrypted.
This update means that if someone is:
- Logged into Google (for Gmail, Google+ or any other Google product), and
- they perform an organic search, and
- they click an organic keyword through to your site, then
- you will not be able to see what organic keyword they used to find your site, nor their visitor session information from Google Analytics associated with that keyword.
In short, this means that searches by these users no longer provide data to Google Analytics on what keyword phrase was used to discover your website in a Google search. The resulting data is instead categorized under "(not provided)."
For more information on "(not provided)" keywords and its impact on Internet marketing, see this blog post from November 2011.
How do I view keywords in Google Analytics anyway?
Viewing data in Raven's Google Analytics integration is still possible, but requires a couple of additional steps.
- Navigate to SEO Research > Google Analytics.
- Select All Traffic from the sidebar.
- Change the Primary Dimension to Keyword.
- If you want organic data, select the Organic Traffic keyword. Otherwise, you will see PPC data along with the small amount of organic data that is available through Google Analytics.
Alternatively, you can also set up a Custom Chart using Keyword as the Primary Dimension.
Where can I view better keyword data?
Fortunately, there is a much better view and report that you can use when analyzing keyword data: the Keyword Rankings tool.
Keyword Rankings provides data on your organic keywords, not only giving you information about the phrases that your website is ranking for but also performance metrics on how often your website is appearing in searches of those keywords and how much traffic is being driven.
We highly recommend using the Keyword Rankings tool for your keyword analysis and reporting needs.