Both Google search data and internal search data are invaluable tools for understanding user behavior, optimizing your website, and driving both acquisition and engagement. Each data type serves distinct purposes, but when used together, they offer a powerful, complementary strategy for improving both how users discover your site and how they interact with it once they’re there.
Google Search Data:
Driving New Traffic and Understanding Web-Wide Behavior
Google search data provides a window into how users across the web are discovering your site. It helps you understand what potential visitors are searching for, how well your site ranks in search results, and how effectively your content captures relevant traffic.
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Broader Audience Insights
Google search data reveals popular search terms and trends across the entire internet, allowing you to tap into user behaviors beyond your site’s visitors. This broad view can help you identify new audiences, expanding your reach to users who may not know about your brand yet.
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SEO and Organic Traffic Optimization
Through tools like Google Search Console, you can see which keywords drive the most traffic to your site and how well your pages are ranking. This helps you refine your SEO strategy, ensuring your content is visible to users searching for relevant terms. In your Looker Studio Dashboard, on the report page " Google Organic Search Data " we have connected Google Search Console as a Data Source to provide transparent organic traffic data for your college/unit.
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New Content Opportunities
By analyzing what users are searching for on Google, you can create new content or update your intersite linking strategy that aligns with high-demand topics. This allows you to capture a larger audience by addressing unmet needs or trending topics in your industry.
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Understanding User Discovery Behavior
It shows how users are finding your site—whether through branded search terms or more general keywords—allowing you to refine your content to better meet their needs at the discovery stage. Branded search terms include "Ohio University" in their Queries.
Internal Search Data:
Optimizing On-Site Experience and User Engagement
Once users arrive at your site, internal search data provides insights into how effectively they find the information they’re looking for. This data helps you understand what users are searching for within your site and whether your content is meeting their expectations. Users can search internally by navigating to the top-green-bar and clicking on the magnifying glass and searching.
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User Intent is More Focused
Internal search data reflects users who are already invested in your site and are looking for specific content. These users are often closer to making decisions, such as wanting to apply or view program details, making this data highly actionable for improving the user journey.
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Content Optimization
When users perform searches within your site and fail to click on results, it signals potential content gaps. You can use this information to create new content or improve navigation so users can more easily find what they need.
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Actionable Site Improvements
Unlike Google Organic search, you can make direct improvements to the search functionality itself—adjusting filters, refining search algorithms, or enhancing result relevance—ensuring that users find useful content quickly and efficiently.
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Improving User Experience
If certain search terms consistently lead to no link clicks, it may indicate that the content users want is hard to find or missing entirely. This helps you adjust both content and design to keep users engaged and satisfied. If you believe there is a large gap, please reach out to UCM and we can collaborate on adjusting the internal search strategy.
Blending Google Search and Internal Search Data:
The Best of Both Worlds
When used together, Google search data and internal search data provide a complete picture of user behavior, from discovery to on-site engagement.
Both Google search data and internal search data are critical to the success of your website, but they serve different purposes. Google search data helps you attract new users and stay competitive in search rankings, while internal search data helps you engage and convert users by improving their on-site experience. By leveraging both data types, you can build a comprehensive strategy that not only brings more traffic to your site but also ensures that visitors find exactly what they’re looking for, leading to higher engagement and better outcomes for your business.
Attracting Users
Google search data helps you understand what potential visitors are searching for across the web, allowing you to optimize your SEO strategy and capture new traffic. By identifying popular keywords and content gaps, you can create content that aligns with search demand, improving your site's visibility and bringing more users to your site.
Engaging and Converting Users
Once users are on your site, internal search data allows you to analyze what those visitors are specifically looking for and whether they are finding it. If users are searching for content and not engaging with any results, you can take action to refine your content or improve your site’s search functionality, keeping them engaged and guiding them toward our goals.
Continuous Feedback Loop
Google search data helps you understand what potential visitors are searching for across the web, allowing you to optimize your SEO strategy and capture new traffic. By identifying popular keywords and content gaps, you can create content that aligns with search demand, improving your site's visibility and bringing more users to your site.
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How can I view my Google Search Data?
Curious about how users are discovering your content on ohio.edu through Google Search? Explore your Looker Studio Dashboard and check out the training materials for guidance on navigating the dashboard and making strategic, data-driven decisions for your unit or college.
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Where can I find Internal Search data?
Looking to understand how users are discovering your content on ohio.edu, through Internal Search? Access your Looker Studio Dashboard and explore these training materials to learn how to navigate the data and make informed, strategic decisions for your unit or college.
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You still need help?
You're not alone in this! Schedule a personalized 1:1 consultation with UCM to get your specific questions answered and gain expert guidance. We'll help you and your team unlock the full potential of your data, making it easier to drive actionable improvements for your webpages and achieve meaningful results. Click the project request form below and navigate to Web < Web Analytics/Dashboard Support Request.