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Google Search Console

SEO is one of the most important strategies for growing a content business, alongside writing quality content. Meanwhile, the future of search is uncertain with the accelerated rise in AI and its use in AI overviews in search results. That’s why we believe putting search performance data alongside content performance data in our easy-to-use dashboard will provide the torchlight for you to fashion out effective content strategies. 

The Google Search Console (GSC) integration with Parse.ly allows you to view “Google Search Keywords”, “Google Discover”, and “Google News” data in your Parse.ly dashboard, eliminating the need to log in separately to Search Console. This saves time, reduces tool switching, and enhances your focus on keyword analysis to improve content performance.

Some use cases for GSC data in Parse.ly

  • Identify the top keywords bringing traffic to your content. You can double down on those keywords by producing more content for them.
  • Identify the keywords you’re not strong on and adapt your SEO strategy accordingly.
  • See which posts are showing up in Google Discover and bringing you traffic. If you observe this over a long period, you can begin to make sense of the kind of content that Google likes to show in Discover for your site.

How to connect Parse.ly with GSC

You’ll find detailed steps for integrating Google Search Console on this page.

Once your team has set up the account, they will need to grant user access with these instructions.

How to do keyword research in the Parse.ly dashboard

After the integration with GSC, your keywords data should begin to show in the Parse.ly dashboard. You can now view the data by navigating to the Google Referrers page. Here are the steps to find the page:

  1. Click on the Referrers menu in your Parse.ly dashboard
  2. Click on the View Google Keywords button near the date picker to see your GSC data OR
  3. Scroll down to the section for Individual Referrers and Referrer Groups
  4. Look for “google” and click on it to see your GSC data.

You can also access the keywords and Discover data from the post details page. If you click on any post and scroll down a bit, you will find the Google Console section after the Referrers section.


How to add Google Keywords and Discover data to your Overview

  1. From your Overview, click the Settings button to customize your view.
  2. Toggle on Top Google Search Keywords to display your site’s top keywords in the Overview factoids section.
  3. Under Listings, toggle on the third listing, click on the default data type Authors and under Show change it to Google Keywords or Google Discover. This will display keywords or Discover data in the third column.
  4. If you prefer to keep the default two columns but want to change one to show GSC data, click the cog icon next to the column title and change the Show option to Google Keywords or Google Discover.

FAQ

  • Why is my GSC data not up to the minute?

Google limits how often they share GSC data with us. Due to this, the data we show in the Parse.ly dashboard is delayed by 24-48 hours and captured in Pacific Time.

  • I have integrated my GSC account but cannot see all my search and Discover data. Why?

Due to Google’s limitations, only a few days of the most recent data are available in Parse.ly immediately after you add your account. Depending on the amount of data, all data will be accessible over the next couple of hours to days.

  • My teammate can see GSC data in Parse.ly, but I can’t. How do I get access?

Contact your team’s Parse.ly admin so they can grant this access to you via the User Management screen. Visit this page to see a list of your dashboard admins.

  • Is GSC data available at the network level?

At the moment, this is only available at the individual site level.

  • Do I see real-time Discover data?

Google does not provide real-time distinct Discover data, and given how important accurate data is, we do not venture to guess on your behalf.

  • Why doesn’t the data in Parse.ly match precisely what I see in GSC?

Google doesn’t always show the same data in the Search Console as it sends through its API. This can cause extra keywords to appear in Parse.ly that aren’t visible in Google Search Console, or Google might show metrics not linked to URLs in the Discover section that don’t make it to the Parse.ly dashboard.

  • Why doesn’t Google Discover clicks match search referral traffic from Google?

Every click on an article in Google Discover does not result in a pageview on your site. This could be due to various reasons, such as ad blockers, browser-based analytics blocking features, consent banners, or the inherent inconsistency of the web.

Google Discover data comes directly from Google and is based on a proprietary tracking methodology. So, we can’t comment on exactly how their tracking works, but they certainly won’t be subject to the same limitations that web analytics platforms face.

Also, Google typically sets a google.com referrer for Discover traffic, which will be a percentage of all your Search traffic from Google.

Last updated: November 06, 2024