In order to have a successful SEO campaign, it is crucial to track keywords on Google Analytics. By doing so, you can gain valuable insights on the performance of your content, identify the top keywords driving traffic to your website, and pinpoint areas for enhancement. This blog post will provide a step-by-step guide on how to track keywords using Google Analytics.
1. Set Up Google Analytics Account
The first step to track keywords is to set up a Google Analytics account. If you don’t have one, you can create it for free by visiting the Google Analytics website. Once you have your account, you’ll need to install the Google Analytics tracking code on your website. Providing detailed instructions for this step is beyond the scope of this blog post as the process varies depending on the type of website you have. However, Google provides a straightforward guide that you can follow.
2. Enable Keyword Tracking
Once you have Google Analytics installed on your website, the next step is to enable keyword tracking. This step is quite simple. Go to the Admin section of your Google Analytics account, select ‘View Settings’, and then click on ‘Site Search Tracking’. Switch it to ‘ON’.
3. Set Up Keyword Query Parameters
To track your keywords effectively, you need to identify the query parameters. The query parameter is usually the part of your website’s URL that comes after a question mark (?). For example, if the URL is ‘www.yoursite.com/search?q=keyword’, the query parameter is ‘q’. Enter this parameter in the ‘Query Parameter’ box in the Site Search Settings, and click on ‘Apply’.
4. View Your Keyword Data
Once you have set up keyword tracking and identified the query parameters, you can start viewing your keyword data. To do this, navigate to ‘Behavior’ > ‘Site Search’ > ‘Search Terms’ in your Google Analytics account. This will show you a list of the keywords that people are using to find your website.
<h2>5. Use Google Search Console</h2>
<p>To get the most comprehensive data, it's advisable to integrate Google Analytics with Google Search Console. This allows you to view not only the keywords that are driving traffic to your site, but also the ones that are not. To integrate these two tools, navigate to ‘Acquisition’ > ‘Search Console’ > ‘Landing Pages’ in your Google Analytics account. Click on ‘Set up Search Console data sharing’ and follow the prompts.</p>
In conclusion, tracking keywords in Google Analytics is a crucial component of SEO. It provides valuable insights that can help you optimize your content and improve your website’s performance.