If you host your own podcast, you already know how important it is to keep track of your show’s performance. Understanding downloads, subscribers, and other metrics give you valuable information that you can use to improve listener engagement and create a more successful podcast.
But it doesn’t stop there.
If you have a website for your podcast, you also need to keep track of your site’s performance as well.
Google Search Console—formerly Google Webmaster Tools—is an easy, free interface that lets you analyze your podcast website's analytics. Our Google Search Console guide will walk you through the basics of how to monitor and understand your site so you (and your audience) get the best possible results.
Let’s dive in.
What Is Google Search Console?
Google Search Console (GSC) is a free service that allows you to “measure your site's Search traffic and performance, fix issues, and make your site shine in Google Search results.”
The tools available through GSC provide you with structured data so you can easily understand how many visitors your site gets, what keywords they used to find you, which links they are clicking, and more.
Without this data, you would have no idea if your website is even successful, which can defeat the purpose of having one.
Getting Started With Google Search Console
Getting started with Google Search Console starts with setting up a Google account (if you don’t already have one) and verifying your site. This step proves that you are the owner of the website you are trying to monitor.
Next, you’ll want to select the website’s site owners, as well as any users. These can be assistants, employees, or any SEO companies that may be helping you manage your site.
If you have one, you can also submit a sitemap, which is essentially a roadmap to the various pages on your website.
Essential Terms
Google Search Console uses a lot of terms that may be unfamiliar to you as a first-time website owner. Understanding these terms, however, is vital to understanding your site’s performance.
Queries
Also known as keywords or key phrases, queries are simply the search terms that users typed into Google before they ended up on your site.
Impressions
If your site shows up on a search engine results page (SERP), that’s an impression.
Clicks
If someone clicks on a link that takes them from the search platform to your site, that’s a click. (Note: If someone clicks a link, hits the back button, then clicks the same link again, that’s considered one click.)
Click-Through Rate (CTR)
A click-through rate is a percentage of the impressions your site receives versus the number of clicks. For example, if your homepage got 100 impressions in a month with 16 clicks, your click-through rate is 16%.
Average Position
A page’s position refers to how far down the list of search results it appears. A position of 1 will show up first (after the sponsored posts).
Indexing
In order for your site to start showing up in Google search results, Google first has to find, organize, and store it in their database. This process is called indexing.
How To Use Google Search Console
Looking at your Google Search Console dashboard for the first time can be a little intimidating. Let’s demystify GSC by walking you through some of the more common tools you’ll be using.
Once you login, you’ll find the menu on the left-hand side of the page. While there are a lot of options here, don’t worry. There are only a few that you will be most concerned with at first.
Performance
Performance is separated into three categories (Search Results, Discover, and News) depending on which feed users are finding your information, but most podcasters will find themselves using the Search Results filter the most.
This is where you will find a helpful graph—that you can manipulate in real time—displaying your site’s clicks, impressions, CTR, and average position.
Underneath this graph, you’ll find a chart that displays total clicks and impressions for certain queries, pages, countries, devices, and more. This data can help you identify your highest- and lowest-performing pages and queries.
Indexing
This report shows which of your pages are indexed by Google and which ones haven’t. It also tells you why they haven’t been indexed.
Manually indexing a specific page allows Google to find it sooner than it might have otherwise. (With more than 190 million active URLs, this process can take a while!)
To request indexing for a specific page, enter the URL into the URL Inspection Tool at the top of the screen and click on “Request Indexing.”
Experience
A good page experience equals a good user experience, something that Google holds in high regard.
This is where you’ll find information about your site’s core web vitals (i.e. the loading times and visual stability of the page).
Links
Towards the bottom of the menu, you’ll find information about your site’s internal and external links.
Internal links are those that link to other pages within your own site, while external links are links to your site found on another page (also called “backlinks”). This report also shows your top linked pages (i.e. which sites are backlinking to yours) as well as what anchor text they are using.
Conclusion
Don’t worry if Google Search Console seems confusing at first. With enough time, the insights and tools provided by this powerful platform will feel like second nature.
Plus, by meticulously monitoring your site's performance, understanding your audience through search results, and optimizing for core web vitals, you can significantly improve your listeners' engagement and grow your podcast.
Embrace the data, make informed decisions, and watch as your podcast reaches new heights.
