Moz Q&A is closed.
After more than 13 years, and tens of thousands of questions, Moz Q&A closed on 12th December 2024. Whilst we’re not completely removing the content - many posts will still be possible to view - we have locked both new posts and new replies. More details here.
Search Volume vs. CTR
- 
					
					
					
					
 Is it better to optimize based on search volume or click through rate? For example: If a keyword has a CTR of 19% and only 3,000 monthly searches, while another keyword that is relevant to that page has a CTR of 0.7% and 20,000 monthly searches, which keyword should that page be optimized for for better natural results and the bottom line? 
- 
					
					
					
					
 I agree with Egol. Conversion rate would be a deciding factor. Current position and ease of improving that position would also be a factor. Cost of maintaining a position should also be considered. If all things were equal and you are looking at pure traffic numbers... Keyword A - 3,000 at 19% = 570 Keyword B - 20,000 at 7% = 1400 Go for Keyword B. 
- 
					
					
					
					
 I don't know where your data is coming from so it is difficult to give a reply in context. So, let's assume that you have data from google webmaster tools. Keyword A has CTR of 19% and 3000 monthly searches Keyword B has CTR of 0.7% and 20,000 monthly searches When I look at that data my conclusion is that KW A ranks highly - maybe in the top three... while KW B might be on the second page. I would reoptimize the page a bit towards KW B if I thought that it would yield valuable traffic. Always keep in mind that there is another step in the calculation... that if the 19% of people who click through KW A have a 0.1% conversion rate but the KW B people convert at 10% then that could alter any decision that you might have. 
Browse Questions
Explore more categories
- 
		
		Moz ToolsChat with the community about the Moz tools. 
- 
		
		SEO TacticsDiscuss the SEO process with fellow marketers 
- 
		
		CommunityDiscuss industry events, jobs, and news! 
- 
		
		Digital MarketingChat about tactics outside of SEO 
- 
		
		Research & TrendsDive into research and trends in the search industry. 
- 
		
		SupportConnect on product support and feature requests. 
Related Questions
- 
		
		
		
		
		
		U.S. Vs. Canada search volume
 How does Moz differentiate Canadian data vs. U.S. data? I'm particularly interested in search volume. Why is there such a big difference in volume (much less in Canada)? Is this due to population differences or are there other factors? For example, see the monthly volume for the keyword "Business resilience": U.S. = 360 Keyword Research | | BDOCanada
 Canada = 6 This seems like a huge difference!0
- 
		
		
		
		
		
		Inconsistent Keyword Search Volume & Difficulty Across Tools (e.g., Moz, Google Keyword Planner, Ahrefs, Semrush)
 Hi there, Moz Community! I'm reaching out for some guidance on keyword research discrepancies. I'm currently targeting the keyword "sui gas bill" for my blog, sngplbill, which focuses on information related to Sui gas bills. I've used several keyword research tools, including Moz, Google Keyword Planner, Ahrefs, and Semrush, and each platform provides different search volume and keyword difficulty scores: Moz: No search volume data, Keyword Difficulty (KD) 24 Keyword Research | | Faizali.786
 Google Keyword Planner: Search volume 100k-1M, Difficulty (Low)
 Semrush: Search volume 90k, KD 31
 Ahrefs: KD 1 (Very Easy)
 These varying results are causing some confusion. Ideally, I'd like to understand which platform offers the most reliable data for search volume and keyword difficulty. Here are some additional details that might be helpful: My target location: Pakistan My Questions: What factors might contribute to these discrepancies in keyword data across different tools?
 Considering my niche (Sui gas bill information in Pakistan), which platform would you recommend for the most accurate search volume and keyword difficulty estimates?
 Are there any additional factors to consider beyond search volume and keyword difficulty when selecting keywords for content strategy?
 Any insights you can provide would be greatly appreciated!
 Capture sui gas bill semrush.PNG Capture moz sui gas bill.PNG Capture gkp sui gas bill.PNG Capture ahref sui gas bill.PNG
 Thanks,0
- 
		
		
		
		
		
		Google: Is There a Way to Find Your "Unknown Search Terms"
 I believe Google stopped reporting search terms for privacy reasons. All my searches show as "unknown". I found a video that showed how to get around this but it's not current. Is there any way to get your Google terms search information? Thanks, Jo-Ann Keyword Research | | VinJGirl0
- 
		
		
		
		
		
		Has the keyword planner search volume metric gone crazy?
 I use the search volume found in keyword planner to score and weight my keywords in a similar way as Rand showed us in this WBF. This week I've found that in many cases suddenly the singular and plural version of the keyword have the same search volume. This seems crazy to me as singular and plural is not the same, the intent is different but more importantly they behave very differently from each other when looking at their track record in Adwords (impressions, clicks, conversions, CTR, CVR etc...all different). For example, here's a screenshot of 4 keywords (singular and plural versions of 2 phrases) with search volume captured a couple of months ago. Now here's another screenshot of the same keywords taken from Keyword planner today. Any ideas why this would be happening? Does it makes sense to you? It just seems buggy to me. Thanks! Keyword Research | | E_F0
- 
		
		
		
		
		
		Google recommended dropdown in search bar
 When Google drops down and tries to predict what you're searching for, are the terms in order of popularity from the top down? Keyword Research | | SSFCU0
- 
		
		
		
		
		
		Global Search Count
 If I ranked top on google for a keyword for Exact Local Search Count say 2000.How much of the Exact Global Search Count of 4000 contribute to Exact Local Search Count Keyword Research | | Frost0
- 
		
		
		
		
		
		Search Terms with Apostrophes
 In doing keyword research I discovered that the Google Adwords Tools returns results with a space in search terms where an apostrophe should be. For example: Searching for 'mens fashion' or 'men's fashion' will return keyword ideas like 'men s fashion trends', 'men s fashion styles'. Same thing happens if yous search for '50s fashion' or 'mens suits'. Not only that but if you search for 'men s fashion' in the adwords tool you get 14,800 exact matches! Who would you use that term? And if you do search for it in Google, it will auto correct to 'men's fashion'. If you know the answer to what a term like 'men s fashion' signifies, you can skip the rest of this post and answer my question (thanks!). If not, here's what I did to try and figure it out - but I'm stuck and I need your help. First off, I did a search for all 3 terms: (mens fashion, men's fashion and men s fashion) in the adwords tool. The tool responded with different numbers for each, with 'men s fashion' far exceeding 'men's fashion'. See image 1 I did a search for each of the three terms in Google. The top 10 results for each were different. See image 2 Google reads 'men s fashion' as 'men's fashion'. I know that because: Google says 'showing result's for men's fashion' (obvious!) Google instant lists terms beginning with 'men's fashion...' See image 3 Related searches are identical for those two but not for 'mens fashion'. But it's not completely the same since as I mentioned you get different results, and the number of results found are different as well. So that brings me back to my question: When the tool says that 28 people search for [men's fashion] and 14,800 search for [men s fashion]. What on earth does it mean? bknQU tNKo7 C0P7S Keyword Research | | 5225Marketing2
- 
		
		
		
		
		
		Broad Vs. Exact Match
 My question seems basic in nature but some recent keyword research has caused me to re-think broad vs. exact match. I was taught to focus on exact match for the short term and broad match for the long term prospects of a keyword. Today I was researching a niche of keyword phrases where the local search volume (broad) was, for example 33,000. The local search volume (exact) was only 500. What I know about broad vs. exact doesn't help me to determine if this keyword is worth going after. The keyword difficulty score by the way was 35% Yes, I do know that I will probably go after this keyword anyway but to refine my question, how do I get an idea of how "big" this keyword is? Is it more on the broad or more on the exact match of things? How do I determine the various derivatives of the phrase that occur under the broad match? Keyword Research | | leaseman0
 
			
		 
			
		 
			
		 
					
				 
					
				 
					
				 
					
				 
					
				 
					
				 
					
				