Separate branded and non-branded search queries
Build a practical brand-query classification and report its limits instead of presenting it as a complete traffic split.
Brand analysis separates people already looking for your organisation from people discovering a topic or solution. A useful classification includes product names and common spelling variants. Ambiguous names need manual review because a word can refer to your business and to something else.
Work through it, step by step.
Create a small brand dictionary with the company name, distinctive product names and known variants. Keep generic category words out unless the surrounding phrase clearly identifies your organisation.
Classify visible queries using the provider’s available filters or an export. Inspect a sample from both groups to catch false matches and missed brand variations.
Compare clicks and impressions within each group over matched periods. Keep the unclassified or ambiguous queries visible rather than hiding them in whichever group looks better.
Make it concrete.
A company named North Star should not automatically classify every search containing “star” as branded. The full company phrase and distinctive product names provide a more useful starting point.
What to keep in mind.
Query-level visibility has limits. Treat the result as a classification of the available rows, not a perfect division of every organic visit.
Your next useful step.
Use the split to choose a follow-up question: brand demand, discovery content or product-specific visibility. Version the dictionary so a later rule change is not mistaken for audience growth.
Working with this in Liftaven
Start with a verified property and a complete reporting period. Keep the search type, country and device consistent when comparing results. Liftaven provides search reports and an MCP route; use the native Search Console interface for checks that are not exposed in a particular report.
Explore the workspaceSources & context
This note combines original practical guidance with the reporting references below. Follow provider documentation for current definitions and availability; suggested investigations are not guarantees of a particular result.