How to Use Google Analytics to Track Print Advertising

“How do I know if my print ads are working is a question that can be answered by Google Analytics.” While many assume that Google Analytics is only useful for digital campaigns, it’s most powerful tool helps marketers attribute offline efforts, such as print ads, to measurable online activity. Business owners can harness Google Analytics to understand the value of their print advertising campaigns by leveraging keyword search data. Seeing your business name emerging as a top keyword is a clear sign that offline marketing is driving online interest. When your business name climbs the ranks as a top keyword in Google Analytics, it’s a direct affirmation of your print advertising success, and a sign that your offline campaigns are making a meaningful impact in the digital world.

The Role of Keyword Search in Tracking Offline Campaigns

Keyword search data is often associated with digital marketing, but its implications extend to offline channels as well. When users search for your brand name, Google Analytics records this activity under the “Queries” section in the Search Console or via your organic traffic report, giving detailed insights into the keywords driving traffic to your site. If you notice that branded keywords—your business name and variations thereof—are ranking among the top search terms, it’s likely that your print advertising is prompting these searches. This observation is a direct measure of the “offline-to-online” conversion and can help you optimize your print campaigns further.

Here’s How It Works

When consumers interact with print ads, the pathway to conversion is typically indirect. They might see a business’s logo or tagline in a magazine or on a billboard, remember the ad later, and then search for the brand online. When people search for your business name, it creates an organic signal in your analytics that can be directly attributed to your offline efforts. This phenomenon is called “brand lift,” and it is a tangible metric that helps validate the ROI of your offline ad spend by giving you a clear picture of how much brand awareness and ad recall your business has. When business owners notice their business name emerging as a top keyword in Google Analytics, it’s a powerful indicator that offline advertising is resonating with your audience. Instead of guessing whether your print ad was effective, you have data-backed insights showing that viewers are taking action.

Brand lift leads to search lift.

For example, if your print campaign includes your business name, unique slogan, or a specific call-to-action that prompts a search, you might see a spike in organic searches for your brand. Seeing your business name as a top keyword signals that your print advertising is not just a passive branding exercise; it actively drives consumers to seek out your business online. This “search lift” is a key metric that signals the effectiveness of print advertising to increase search queries.

Ask yourself, how did they know about my business to google my business name?

For example, consider a local restaurant that launched a print campaign in a regional magazine. The ad prominently featured the restaurant’s name along with a catchy tagline. Within a week of the publication, Google Analytics showed an uptick in searches for the restaurant’s name, along with a corresponding increase in visits to the dedicated landing page mentioned in the ad. By tracking these branded keywords, the restaurant could confidently attribute a portion of its new online engagement and reservations to its print ad spend.

This type of cross-channel success story isn’t isolated. Many businesses, from retail stores to service providers, are finding that the key to understanding their customer journey lies in combining offline and online data. When you see your business name ranking as a top keyword, it’s a direct correlation to the trust and interest built by your print advertisements.

How to Access Keyword Search Metrics in Google Analytics and Google Search Console

Below are step-by-step instructions to help you uncover keyword searches for your business in both Google Analytics and Google Search Console. These steps will show you how to find data on the queries users are typing into Google to reach your site—a vital piece of information when assessing the impact of offline advertising and overall SEO performance.

In Google Analytics, Universal Analytics (UA):

1. Log In and Navigate to Your Account:
   Sign in to your Google Analytics account and select the relevant property for your website.

2. Access the Search Console Section:
   On the left-hand sidebar, click on Acquisition. Then select Search Console. (If you haven’t already connected Search Console to your Analytics property, you’ll need to set that up in your Admin settings under the Property column.)

3. View Queries:
   Click on Queries under the Search Console section. This report will show you a list of the search queries (keywords) that have led users to your website.

4. Analyze the Data:

   • Look for branded keywords or your business name to see if they rank highly in user searches.

   • Note impressions, clicks, click-through rate (CTR), and average position. These metrics will help you gauge how well your print advertising might be driving online interest.

5. Customize Your Date Range:
   Adjust the date range in the upper right corner to compare periods before, during, and after your print campaigns.

In Google Analytics 4 (GA4)…

1. Log In to GA4:
   Visit Google Analytics and choose your GA4 property.

2. Navigate to Acquisition Reports:
   From the left-hand menu, click on Reports > Acquisition. In GA4, the interface is different from UA, so search query data might be located under a different section. Look for any Search Console integration or, if not directly available, consider linking Google Search Console to your GA4 property using available guides.

3. Link Google Search Console (if needed):
   If you haven’t yet integrated Search Console data into your GA4 property, you may need to follow Google’s guide on linking these tools. This integration can enrich your reports by showing which search queries drive traffic to your site.

4. Explore the Data:
   Once set up, you can analyze the Search Console data provided in your GA4 reports. Look for your branded keywords and analyze how their performance metrics have shifted in relation to your print advertising campaigns.

In Google Search Console…

1. Sign In to Search Console:
   Go to Google Search Console and log in with your Google account.

2. Select Your Property:
   On the homepage, click on the website property you want to analyze.

3. Access the Performance Report:
   Click on Performance in the left-hand menu. This report provides insights into your website’s search performance over a selected period.

4. Set Your Date Range:
   Adjust the date range at the top of the report. Choose a period that corresponds with your print advertising campaign to see how your offline efforts may have driven search queries.

5. Review Queries:
   Under the Queries tab, you’ll see a list of search terms that led users to your site.

   • Branded Keywords: Look for your business name and other branded terms. If these keywords are ranking high, it’s a strong indication that your print advertising is prompting online searches.

   • Additional Metrics: Examine other metrics such as clicks, impressions, CTR, and average position to understand the overall performance of these queries.

6. Drill Down for Details:
   Click on a particular query to see more detailed information. You can further filter the data by pages, countries, devices, and search appearance, which can help you identify patterns or trends linked to your offline campaigns.

Make Advertising Decision Based Off Data Not Feelings

Understanding how consumers interact with your brand across channels is key to refining your overall marketing strategy. By monitoring keyword search data, especially the appearance of your business name as a top search term, you can attribute online engagement directly to your offline efforts. With careful planning, strategic call-to-actions, and a robust analytical framework, you can transform seemingly intangible print ad impressions into quantifiable, actionable data. This not only validates your ad spend but also provides valuable insights for refining future campaigns and lets you build a more accurate customer journey map, illustrating the role print ads play in creating awareness, generating interest, and ultimately driving conversions. Embrace this cross-channel approach, and you’ll be well-equipped to optimize your marketing strategy in a way that fully leverages every advertising dollar.