By default, Google Analytics will show you some great information about your organic search engine rankings (also known as “free” or “natural results”), such as which terms brought visitors to your site via the search engines. However, Google Analytics does not include where that keyword ranked as part of the display. This information is now even more valuable as individualized/personalized search results mean that we all get different results and thus have rendered the tools that monitor rankings less accurate.
There have been several methods to provide clues about ranking information in the past, but each had limitations. But now that Google is modifying the way queries are structured, we can use this filter that will bring us this information inside the reports automatically.
Using this method, the standard Keywords report will now display the keywords ranking in parenthesis directly after the term.
The Filter(s)
There are two versions of the filter: a simple one-step filter for those not running pay-per-click campaigns (like Google AdWords) and a two-step filter for those that are running PPC.
Below is the simplified, one step version:
Filter Text:
Campaign Term: (.*)
Referral: (?|&)(cd)=([^&]*)
Campaign Term: $A1 ($B3)
If you are using AdWords or other paid search, you may want to use the alternate two-step filter that will isolate the organic traffic.
Tip: We suggest creating a new profile specifically for this filter so that you can maintain the default keyword report in addition to this enhanced version.
Caveat: Google is currently rolling out the new format, so it will not capture the ranking of all of the keywords immediately.
