Google is updating the privacy threshold for the Search Query report in Universal Analytics, and the Google Ads query, First user Google Ads query, and Session Google Ads query dimensions for the explorations in Google Analytics 4.
What is the privacy threshold. Google announced new privacy thresholds last year, ensuring user anonymity by only reporting on terms that have seen sufficient search volume across all Google searches. They also committed to giving advertisers more data.
What this means. The new thresholds should make what advertisers are seeing in their Google Ads accounts more consistent with what they see in GA4. But Google says that “Due to differences in data models, with this update, search query terms reporting in Universal Analytics will be more limited than Google Ads reports.”
Learn more. You can read the announcement from Google here.
Why we care. The Search Query report has always been a source of data to help advertisers ensure they’re bidding on the right keywords. But if the new standards of privacy thresholds continue to only show keywords with significant search volume, it may no longer be a useful tool.
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Nicole Farley is an editor for Search Engine Land covering all things PPC. In addition to being a Marine Corps veteran, she has an extensive background in digital marketing, an MBA and a penchant for true crime, podcasts, travel, and snacks.