September 26, 2013 E3

So Long, Keyword Search Data: Google Switching To 100% (Not Provided)

Google has recently hinted that they will soon be encrypting all organic keyword search data. For the last few years, internet marketers have had to contend with the dreaded (not provided) keyword in their Google Analytics, and it’s caused many headaches. According to the website Not Provided Count, 75% of keyword searches are currently masked by Google. That last 25% might not seem like a big deal to people who aren’t versed in internet marketing, but the looming encryption has many people gnashing their teeth.

Why Make The Change Now?

The SEO site Search Engine Land was among the first to break the story. When they approached Google for comment, they got the following answer:

“We added SSL encryption for our signed-in search users in 2011, as well as searches from the Chrome omnibox earlier this year. We’re now working to bring this extra protection to more users who are not signed in.”

There has been a great deal of speculation about why Google is taking this action now. Some believe it’s due to the recent bad press Google received over NSA data collection. Google has been accused of turning search data over to the NSA, a charge they deny. Others who stand firmly in the camp that Google has turned “evil,” believe this is just a push to force marketers into using Google’s pay per click advertising service, AdWords.

What Does The (Not Provided) Switch Mean?

To understand these changes, it’s helpful to know the history behind (not provided) keyword search data. In 2011, (not provided) began showing up in Analytics.  Google stated that this was to protect users who were signed into their Google accounts while searching. They still provided data for anyone using Google search who was not logged into an account. It was at this time Google claimed only 10% of searches would be affected.

It quickly became clear that 10% was not accurate.  According to HubSpot, after one year of (not provided), up to 65% of searches were encrypted.  Fast forward to the data provided by Not Provided Count, and you can see how quickly that number skyrocketed.

So while you’ve been slowly losing more and more Google keywords search data over the years, you’re about to lose everything.  Rand Fishkin of Moz.com finds this to be a troubling development. States Fishkin, “I think it should be very troubling and concerning if you’re a web user as well, because marketers don’t use this data to do evil things or invade people’s privacy. Marketers use this data to make the web a better place…I think this is Google abusing their monopolistic position in the United States. Unfortunately, I don’t really see a way out of it. I don’t think marketers can make a strong enough case politically or to consumer groups to get this removed.”

So What Can You Do With Encrypted Keyword Search Data?

This development may have you reeling, but it’s not the end of the world. You’ve likely had to deal with reduced data over the last two years, so it’s just a matter of adjusting your approach one more time. Here are some tactics to consider as we all move forward:

Use Your AdWords Keyword Search Data

If you run an active PPC campaign with Google, you will still have access to keyword search data. All of the information Google has ever provided in their Keyword Tools has been based on this information, so you’ve probably used PPC data to design campaigns in the past. If your campaign is comprehensive, you can get a good feel for how visitors are finding you in organic search, as well.

Dig Into Google Webmaster Tools

For now, keyword search terms will still be available in Google Webmaster Tools. There has been no word on whether or not this will change any time soon, so you can still rely on this data for keyword search insights. The catch? You can only see the top 2,000 terms per day and the data only tracks a 90-day span. So you’d have to download your data very regularly in order to track trends.

Focus On Page-Level Results

Many would argue that the SEO world has been far too focused on keyword search data, thus creating an obsession with keywords that has diluted content over the years.  The (not provided) switch will force people to look more closely at page-level rankings, rather than keyword-level rankings. Hopefully, this will lead to a push in better content development.

You’ll still be able to see how much traffic each page is getting and where that traffic is coming from. You can infer a lot from this data. Note which pages are performing well and see how you can apply that success to other pages.

See What Bing And Yahoo Are Telling You

Bing and Yahoo are still providing all keyword search data to websites. While Google is still the Big Dog, owning 67% of market share, Bing owns 18% and Yahoo owns 11%. You can use the data that they provide to make educated inferences about your Google traffic.

Work On Developing An Audience

Rather than obsessing over keyword rankings, another viable tactic is to focus on developing an audience. If you’ve been neglecting your content development, email marketing, or video marketing, now’s the time to refocus your efforts. If you turn your website into an information source for your audience, you’ll begin to develop lots of high-quality, natural links. Your brand advocates will promote you on social media and you’ll be able to develop a larger following of targeted visitors. The thought of moving from keyword targets to audience development may scare many people. Audience development is a VERY slow burn. But it’s viable if you develop a solid content marketing strategy.

Audience development is a great strategy for businesses with small internet marketing budgets. Not everyone is going to be able to shell out the money for an AdWords campaign, but good content marketing can be done in-house or though outsourcing, and focusing on the needs of your customer is actually a lot less stressful than agonizing over split testing, quality scores, and PPC budgets. And great content development has a much longer shelf life than PPC. Video can offer you traffic returns for a year or longer, whereas a PPC ad has to be constantly reworked.

Keep Calm And Carry On

Once the initial shock wears off, take a moment to regroup. Determine which marketing outlets might work best to help you increase your traffic levels. If you haven’t dipped your toes into video marketing, now might be a great time to give it a try. If you’ve neglected your email newsletter, brush it off and keep in contact with your customers. Haven’t gotten in touch with your social media followers in a while? Hop on and start engaging. Google moved your cheese. So grow, adjust, and don’t be defined by (not provided) keyword search data.

What are your feelings about (not provided) keyword search data encryption? How are you planning to adjust your approach to SEO?  Let us know in the comments.

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