Google’s Keyword Planner tool just became even more inaccurate

You’re probably familiar with the Keyword Planner tool, which is one of the best sources we have to spot opportunities and make the business case for an investment into paid or organic search campaigns.

One of the things it provides is guidance on the volume of searches for any given query. The numbers reported in the tool have always been somewhat vague. They are rounded up and numbers end with at least one zero. A pinch of salt has always been required when digesting the data.

It turns out that these numbers are now even more imprecise.

Manish spotted that Google has started to combine related terms, pooling them all together and reporting one (bigger) number.

No longer can you separate the data for keyword variants, such as plurals, acronyms, words with space, and words with punctuation.

As such it would be easy to get a false impression of search volumes, unless you’re aware of the change. No sudden jump in search queries, just an amalgamated number. Be warned.
Here are a couple of examples…

Bundling together anagrams and regional spellings

Lumping together plurals and phrases without spaces

The problem could be exacerbated by third party tools. Manish says:

“For those that don’t notice the change – or worse, pulling the data from tools that haven’t updated to take into account the change – this means that some advertisers and SEOs are grossly overestimating those numbers, since many tools will combine data, and there is no notification alert on the results to show that how Google calculates average monthly searches has been changed.”

So yeah, this isn’t exactly good news. In fact, I can’t think of any benefit to the end user, but Google has a history of obfuscating data, so perhaps it shouldn’t come as a surprise.

That said, it once again pushes the focus towards relevance and context rather than pure volume. Advertisers and content creators would do well to focus on optimising clickthrough rate and landing page performance, rather than just shotgun marketing.

Guesstimated data aside, you can use Search Console to make sense of actual performance. Map your page impressions to organic (or paid) positions and you’ll get a sense of how accurate the Keyword Planner data is for any given term.

It’s also worth remembering that there are seasonal factors at play with the reported data. Volumes shown are an approximate figure based on 12 months search data. You might get a better idea of more accurate monthly figures if you cross-reference data from with Google Trends, which will show seasonal spikes (February is a big month for flowers).

Keyword Planner replaced Google’s Keyword Tool and Traffic Estimator about three years ago. Users of the old tools initially complained about missing the broad match and phrase match options. Now, they’re going to miss even more detail around keywords and data.


Proceed with caution, as ever. 

How Google Analytics Can Be Misleading...

I love Google Analytics, but their reports can be misleading if you don’t understand the critical concept in the article below.

In today's Check This Out, I’d love to get your input...

 

 

Why Google Analytics Reports Do Not

Match AdWords Reports

 

Out of many popular topics like Facebook advertising, email marketing, mobile website development, and a handful of others, would you believe me if I said more people want help with Google Analytics setup and reporting?  Well, it’s true.  My assumption going into the survey was that bland and boring Google Analtyics would be sitting on the rock bottom.  But it’s right at the top!
 

So with that in mind, I’ve decided to write about a topic that I’ve held back for fear that no one would find it interesting.  However, it’s a very important concept to keep in mind when you’re reviewing your Google Analytics reports.  It’ll also explain why your Google Analytics reports are often very different than your Google AdWords reports (if you’re advertising).
 
It’s call attribution.
 

What is Attribution?

Online attribution is the process of assigning credit for a website conversion, or Goal in Google Analytics. Think of it like giving credit to a salesman for closing a new client.  In that case you’re attributing the sale to one particular salesman.  The same thing happens online when a Goal is completed in Google Analytics.  The program must attribute the sale to the correct source of traffic (i.e. SEO, AdWords, Facebook referral, etc.).
 
This sounds simple until you think about the typical person surfing around online.
 
Let’s say I do a search in Google and click on one of your ads, which brings me to your website.  I read all about your amazing widget and how I would be insane if I didn’t purchase right now.  Then I leave your website. :)
 
I do a little more research into your company, I read some reviews, and find an online press release or two.  Finally, I search in Google again, but this time I use your company name, and I click on the non-paid result (the organic SEO result).  I’m already sold so I quickly make a purchase.
 
In that example, how do you think Google Analytics will handle attribution?  Does the AdWords ad get credit for the sale?  That’s how I originally found your site so that seems like a logical answer.  Or does the non-paid, organic result get credit because that’s the last action I took before purchasing?  Or do both get credit?
 
Take a guess if you’re not sure before reading on.  Don’t cheat. :)
 

How Google Analytics Handles Attribution

By default, Google Analytics uses what’s called “last click” attribution.  That means in my example, the conversion will show up as coming from the non-paid, organic search.  So it’ll look like revenue from SEO, not from the AdWords ad that originally brought me to the site!
 
Ah ha! See why I said this was a critical topic.  All this time you may have been misinterpreting your reports in Google Analytics.  Just because you’re getting all of your leads and/or sales from organic traffic, doesn’t mean your advertising is not performing.  It could be simply a case of mistaken attribution.
 
To make this even more complicated, I need to warn you that Google AdWords reporting uses “first click” attribution. That means in my example, when you run the report in Google AdWords, the sale would be attributed to the keyword and ad that was first clicked on.  So you’ll see the sale in AdWords and you’ll see the same sale in Analytics, but Analytics will be telling you the sale was generated from SEO!
uh oh… which program, Adwords or Analytics, should you trust?
 

Which Attribution Model Is Best For Your Business?

The short answer to my question above is that it depends on your business.  If most of your leads and sales are generated quickly upon the first visit, then “last click” attribution is most likely fine for you.  If you have a longer sales cycle and you know people shop around before making a purchase or contacting you, then first click might be best.  The good news is that earlier this year Google Analytics gave us the ability to report on conversions, or Goals, using 7 different attribution models.  They even let you create custom models if you really want to go nuts.  For the record, I do not recommend going nuts… Stick with the basic models.
 
To see this in action, log into your Google Analytics account and go to Conversions in the left navigation.  Then click on Attribution and then Model Comparison Tool.  You’ll see a report like the one below where you can compare different models.
 

 
I also recommend you review the Multi-Channel Funnels while you’re in the Conversions section of Google Analytics.  The most interesting reports are:

• “Time Lag” to see how many days it takes for prospects to convert.  This is where you can see if the majority of your conversions happen on the first day, or if it usually takes longer.
• “Top Conversion Paths” to see the full path to conversions.  In my previous example, this report would show “Paid Search” led to the “Organic Search” which then generated the sale.  So rather than rely on one single attribution model, you can see the entire sales path.

OK, that’s probably more than enough Google Analytics reporting info for one day.  The key takeaway is to always be aware of how Google Analytics (or any other tool you use) is attributing conversions in your reports.  And if you’re receiving reports from a marketing company, then make sure it’s clear how their tool is handling attribution.  Different attribution models can show vastly different results, which can lead to vastly different decisions about where to focus your marketing budget.

Is Your Website "Over-Optimized"?

If your website is “over-optimized” then your Google rankings will suffer.  Use today’s article as a 4-point checklist to ensure you’re not sabotaging your rankings using overly aggressive SEO tactics.

4 Spammy SEO Mistakes to Avoid

 

Many businesses are so eager to get ranked in Google that they over-do it. They use aggressive SEO techniques that ultimately backfire, pushing their website further and further down the rankings…
 
It reminds me of the guy who is trying so hard to impress a girl that he ends up doing the complete opposite – she runs away.  When you over-do it with Google, she’ll push you away as well!
 
So, in today’s article, I’m going to walk you through 4 “over-optimization” mistakes to avoid to ensure you don’t get pushed away by Google.
 

1. Stuffing Keywords into Page Titles

Google looks at the title of every page, and it helps to tell Google what your page is about. Your titles have a major impact on how your pages will rank in Google.
 
In case you’re not familiar, your title is part of the code of each page. It’s actually not visible on the webpage itself, but if you open up a browser, in the upper left-hand corner of that browser, you’ll see the title of the page.
 
Because of the weight Google puts on titles, a lot of people try to force their keywords repetitively in the title. I see this mistake very often when I’m reviewing websites.
 
Back in the day, this type of keyword stuffing could improve your search engine rankings. But these days, that tactic does not work as well. Instead, it can be counter-productive.
 
It’s important to include your keyword in the title, but if you repeat your keywords a lot or include lots of different variations unnaturally, that can actually hurt your search engine rankings because Google will see that as manipulative.
 
And here’s another way that stuffing your titles with keywords can backfire…
 
The title is actually what shows up in the search results – it’s the blue under-lined link in Google’s search results. And if you’ve just put a lot of keywords as the title, then when somebody does search, and your website shows up, then that’s going to look pretty spammy.
 
I know, personally, I’m not going to click on that link if it doesn’t look like a legitimate website.
 

2. Forcing Keywords into Your Webpage Copy

The second over-optimization tactic I see all the time is stuffing keywords into the actual webpage copy.
 
Before, I was talking about stuffing keywords into the title. From a website visitor’s standpoint, you could sort of fly under the radar stuffing keywords into your title tag, because most people actually don’t notice that when they’re on your website.
 
But putting keywords directly into the body of the webpage is obviously much more noticeable to your website visitors.
 
If you force keywords into your copy, your website visitors will read unnatural sentences and random keywords stuffed into the content. That looks really spammy, and it can be counter-productive for your ultimate marketing goals.
 
After all, what’s the goal of SEO anyways?
 
It’s not just rankings. And it’s not just traffic either. The ultimate goal of SEO should be to generate leads and sales. And if your website content is spammy, that could really hurt your website conversions.
 
Plus, if you force keywords into your website copy, Google will see that as unnatural and spammy as well. And that can hurt your search engine rankings. So it’s just not a good idea.
 

3. Creating Near-Duplicate Pages Purely For SEO

Imagine you’re a dentist, and you wanted to rank for the keyword phrase “New York City dentist.” You might create a page on your website focused around that keyword phrase, right? Maybe you’d optimize your homepage for that phrase.
 
But then, you might decide you’d also like to rank for a similar phrase like “Manhattan dentist.” And so, maybe you’d create a page for that keyword phrase too.
 
And so on, and so on.
 
Creating those near-duplicate pages used to work OK years ago…
 
But not today.
 
Google has gotten smarter at figuring out that a lot of different keywords are synonyms with the same search intent. And the Hummingbird update improved Google’s abilities even more.
 
You don’t need to have two different pages for New York City dentist and Manhattan dentist because Google understands that’s the same search, so they’ll display the same results for that.
 
Instead of creating near-duplicate pages for different synonyms, you should group your keywords into topics, and then create the best page you can for each topic.
 

4. Over-Optimized Anchor Text

When it comes to SEO, you need to build up your website’s authority.
 
And a major factor in your website’s authority is the quantity and quality of links from other websites that are linking to your website. You can basically think of a link from another website as a vote in your favor.
 
Every link to your website has what’s called anchor text, which is the clickable text.  This anchor text helps Google understand what a particular page is about.
 
Again, imagine you’re a dentist based in Manhattan, and you want to get your website ranking at the top of Google for “New York City dentist.”
 
Wouldn’t it be great if lots of websites linked to your website with the anchor text New York City dentist? That would help you reach the top of Google for that phrase.
 
And so, that’s how a lot of companies have approach SEO for years. They would go out and build tons of links with identical or very similar anchor text.
 
When we’re conducting an SEO audit, we’ll take a look at a website’s link profile, and see how many links they have and where they’re coming from, and the anchor text of those links.
 
Often, we find that websites have very highly-concentrated anchor text, with almost all the incoming links containing the same keyword phrases.  Well, this is extremely unlikely to happen naturally!
 
Google knows that, and increasingly, this type of linking has become a big red flag to Google. When Google sees this, they know you are trying to manipulate the search results. As a result, taking this approach with your SEO can do more harm than good over the long-term.
 
Google’s Penguin updates and “unnatural link” penalties are focused on devaluing (or penalizing) these unnatural linking schemes. So you should avoid building links to your website with overly-concentrated anchor text.
 
If you’re in business for the long-term (which I hope you are!), then it makes sense to take a long-term approach to SEO. By avoiding these 4 mistakes, you’ll stay on Google’s good side and protect your rankings for the long-term.