Does Google still use keywords?

Almost 2 years after having made one of the most significant changes to secure searches, which led to a steady increase in data, it seems like Google has cut-off keyword data totally. Google has transitioned to encrypted searches that now use HTTPS. In simplified terms, keyword data will no more be passed onto site owners.

​By Alain Houle, Alco Web Design LLC

The encrypted Google searches do not transfer the keyword data to websites. Thus, they now eliminate the ability for site owners to track users via their keyword searches. And so, has Google scrapped the Keyword Tool? Yes it has. But it’s not left users in the lurch. The company has replaced it with the Keyword Planner. This tool combines functionalities of the erstwhile Keyword Tool and that of the Traffic Estimator.

Now, users are required to create a Google Adwords account. This is just a one-time inconvenience for any Google advertiser and website marketing will now have to be tackled differently. The missing keyword data “not provided” will definitely impact online marketers.  It is a very effective indicator of what topics actually work and new topics can be uncovered.

There are certain impacts on Internet marketing. There will be no more keyword-specific website traffic. Keyword-specific trends cannot be tracked over time-by geography or seasonality. Marketers will no longer be able to iteratively optimize efforts based on the user content. It will not be possible to determine brand Vs. non-brand keywords mix, which is a reflection of impact of the other media-driving searches (earned, ads, owned, shared).Unless you are advertising with the Google’s AdWord program, the insight is now gone.

However, marketers do have some alternatives. They will be able to correlate the keyword content mapping & ranking of any page to the traffic of that page.  From the keyword glossary, it will be possible to map the keywords that are most relevant for the corresponding and optimized web pages. They can also check relative ranking of the keywords & pages and the organic referred-search traffic to those specific pages. They can line-up all the page metrics and get some idea about the search performance

However, all of this is based on the singular assumption that pages that are optimized for specific phrases, (with higher-ranking and higher traffic) are a result of attraction of those designated phrases. For additional details about Search Engine Marketing and SEO, feel free to contact me or visit my website at www.alcowebdesign.com.