Category Summary

What is the Category Summary Table?

The Category Summary Table is a powerful feature in the Keywords section that provides a consolidated view of your SEO performance across different keyword categories. This tool helps you quickly understand how your website is ranking for various categories of keywords across different search engines, allowing you to identify trends and prioritize your SEO efforts effectively.

Understanding the Value of Category Summaries

Search engines categorize content to better understand its relevance to user queries. By organizing your keywords into logical categories, you can:

• Track performance trends across related keywords
• Identify which content areas need improvement
• Prioritize content optimization based on category performance
• Measure the impact of your SEO efforts at a more strategic level

Accessing the Category Summary Table

1. Log in to your SEO dashboard
2. The Category Summary Table will automatically load with data from all available search groups

Understanding the Table Columns

The Category Summary Table provides a comprehensive view with the following columns:

Reading Category Trends

The Category Trend column uses intuitive icons to show the performance direction:

• Upward Arrow (Green) - Category is improving (better rankings compared to previous period)
• Rightward Arrow (Orange) - Category is stable (similar rankings to previous period)
• Downward Arrow (Red) - Category is declining (worse rankings compared to previous period)

The trend is calculated by comparing both the best and worst positions between the current date and the previous date with available data.

Filtering by Search Group

To focus on specific projects or websites:

1. Locate the "Search Group" dropdown at the top of the table
2. Select a specific search group to filter the data
3. Choose "All Search Groups" to view data across all your projects

A search group typically represents a specific search configuration in your SEO portfolio.

Navigating Through Large Datasets

For accounts with many categories:

1. The table displays 10 categories per page
2. Use the pagination controls at the bottom of the table to navigate:
   • « - Jump to the first page
   • ‹ - Go to the previous page
   • Page Numbers - Jump to a specific page
   • › - Go to the next page
   • » - Jump to the last page

The current page is highlighted in the pagination controls for easy reference.

Practical Applications of the Category Summary Table

Identifying High-Performing Categories

Categories with keywords ranking in top positions (1-3) are prime opportunities to:

• Drive more traffic by enhancing content with related keywords
• Create additional content around these high-performing topics
• Leverage success by interlinking with lower-performing pages

Addressing Declining Categories

For categories showing a downward trend:

1. Investigate what changed (content updates, competitor activity, algorithm updates)
2. Compare the current best/worst keywords to previous periods
3. Check if technical issues are affecting rankings
4. Update content to better address user intent and incorporate relevant keywords

Balancing Resources Across Search Engines

The table helps you understand performance variations across different search engines:

• If a category performs well on Google but poorly on Bing, you might need to optimize specifically for Bing's ranking factors
• Identify search engine-specific opportunities where competition might be lower

Best Practices for Using Category Summaries

Regular Monitoring

• Check the Category Summary Table weekly to identify early warning signs of ranking issues
• Pay special attention to categories associated with high-value conversion pages
• Track seasonal fluctuations in category performance

Strategic Planning

• Use category trends to guide content creation priorities
• Focus optimization efforts on categories showing the most potential for improvement
• Build content clusters around categories with strong performance

Reporting

• Include category-level performance in SEO reports to provide a strategic overview
• Highlight category trend changes to demonstrate progress
• Use the best and worst keyword data to illustrate specific wins and challenges

Troubleshooting

No Data Showing

If your Category Summary Table is empty:

• Verify that you have keyword tracking set up correctly
• Ensure categories have been assigned to your keywords
• Check that sufficient time has passed for ranking data to be collected
• Confirm you have access permissions to the domains being tracked

Unexpected Trends

If category trends don't match your expectations:

• Check that the date range includes significant data points
• Verify that no technical issues are affecting your site
• Look for recent search engine algorithm updates that might impact rankings
• Ensure tracking is set up correctly for the right domains and keywords

Conclusion

The Category Summary Table provides a strategic view of your SEO performance that complements keyword-level data. By understanding category trends, best and worst performers, and search engine variations, you can make more informed decisions about your SEO strategy and resource allocation.

Use this powerful tool regularly to identify opportunities, address issues early, and track the impact of your optimization efforts at a more meaningful category level.