Measurement traps

A number can be arithmetically correct and still be a lie about the thing it is labelled as. These are the ways that happens in search data.

Add up every query and you get less than your site total

Sum a Search Console query report and it falls short of your site total. Google withholds rare searches to protect the people who typed them.

Clicks, impressions, CTR and position in plain English Clicks, impressions, CTR and position explained: what a good value looks like, and the three traps that make them mislead you, above all average position.
Half your search traffic may not be search traffic at all Brand vs non-brand search traffic: split them and you find out whether your SEO is actually growing. People searching your name were already coming.
Why did my Google traffic drop? Search traffic fell and you don't know why. Work through it in order: is it real, is it seasonal, is it one section or all of them, and what each answer means.

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