Search Keywords Performance

See the actual search terms driving traffic to your website.

Overview

Search Keywords Performance integrates with Google Search Console to show you the exact keywords people use to find your website in Google search results. Unlike standard analytics where most search keywords appear as “not provided,” this feature reveals the complete picture of your organic search performance.

What You’ll See

The Search Keywords report shows:

• Keywords — The actual search terms people used
• Clicks — Number of times people clicked through to your site
• Impressions — How often your site appeared in search results
• Click-through rate (CTR) — Percentage of impressions that resulted in clicks
• Average position — Your typical ranking for each keyword

Why This Matters for Healthcare

Understanding search keywords helps you:

• Identify patient intent — See what conditions, treatments, or services people search for
• Optimize content — Create pages that match what patients are looking for
• Track provider visibility — Monitor how well individual providers rank for relevant searches
• Measure SEO efforts — See if your optimization work is paying off

Requirements

To use Search Keywords Performance, you need:

1. A verified property in Google Search Console
2. OAuth credentials configured in Ghost Metrics (requires Ghost Metrics support)
3. Admin access to your Ghost Metrics account

Setup Guide: Google Search Keywords Import

Step 1: Create a Google Search Console Account

1. Sign in to Google Search Console  (create an account if needed — it’s free)
2. Click the property dropdown in the top left and select Add property
3. Choose your verification method:

4. Follow Google’s verification instructions (typically adding a DNS record or uploading an HTML file)
5. Wait for verification to complete

Step 2: Create a Google API Project

Important: You will not need to submit your app to Google for verification. If prompted to submit for review, revisit these steps — you may have added unnecessary information.

1. Sign in to the Google Cloud Console 

2. Create a new project:

   • Click the project dropdown in the top navigation
   • Click New Project
   • Name it something like Ghost Metrics Search Keywords
   • Click Create

3. Enable the Search Console API:

   • Make sure your new project is selected in the top dropdown
   • Go to APIs & Services → Library
   • Search for “Google Search Console API”
   • Click on it and click Enable

4. Configure OAuth Consent Screen:

   • Navigate to APIs & Services → OAuth consent screen
   • If prompted, click Get Started on the Google Auth Platform overview
   • Enter an app name (e.g., Ghost Metrics Integration)
   • Enter your email as the User support email
   • Click Next
   • Select External for the audience type
   • Click Next
   • Enter your email for contact information
   • Click Next
   • Agree to the Google API Services User Data Policy
   • Click Create

5. Create OAuth Client Credentials:

   • From the OAuth overview page, click Create OAuth Client
   • Select Web Application as the application type
   • Set a name (e.g., Ghost Metrics)
   • Under Authorized JavaScript origins, click Add URI and enter:

     https://example.ghostmetrics.cloud

     (Replace with your actual Ghost Metrics URL)
   • Under Authorized redirect URIs, click Add URI and enter:

     https://example.ghostmetrics.cloud/index.php?module=SearchEngineKeywordsPerformance&action=processAuthCode

     (Replace with your actual Ghost Metrics URL)
   • Click Create

6. Download the credentials:

   • Click Download JSON to save the OAuth credentials file

Step 3: Send Credentials to Ghost Metrics Support

The OAuth credentials must be uploaded by the Ghost Metrics team.

1. Email the downloaded JSON file to support@ghostmetrics.io
2. Include your Ghost Metrics URL in the email (e.g., https://example.ghostmetrics.cloud)
3. Our team will upload the credentials and notify you when complete (typically within 1 business day)

Why can’t I upload this myself? Uploading OAuth credentials requires Super User access to Ghost Metrics, which is restricted to our team to maintain platform security and HIPAA compliance.

Step 4: Authorize the Connection

Once our team confirms the credentials are uploaded:

1. Log in to your Ghost Metrics account
2. Click the Settings (gear) icon in the top right
3. Navigate to System → Search Performance
4. Click Start OAuth Process under Google Search Console
5. Sign in with the Google account that has access to your Search Console property
6. Click Allow to authorize Ghost Metrics to access your search data
7. You’ll be redirected back to Ghost Metrics with a success message

Viewing Search Keywords Data

Once configured, search keywords data will begin appearing within 24-48 hours:

1. Go to Acquisition → Search Engines & Keywords
2. Select Search Keywords from the submenu
3. Use the date picker to view different time periods

Troubleshooting

No data appearing

• Verify your Google Search Console property is receiving data (check directly in Search Console)
• Ensure our team has confirmed the OAuth credentials are uploaded
• Wait 24-48 hours for initial data sync

Authorization errors

• Confirm the redirect URI exactly matches your Ghost Metrics URL
• Check that the Google account has access to the Search Console property
• Contact support to verify the OAuth credentials are correctly configured

Data discrepancies

• Ghost Metrics imports data from Google Search Console, so numbers should match
• Small differences may occur due to timing of data imports
• Search Console data has a 2-3 day delay from Google

Need Help?

If you run into issues setting up Google Search Keywords import, contact our support team. We’re happy to configure this for you.