How to track keyword performance over time?

[mhkatz]

The SEOMoz keyword reports show week-to-week changed in keyword positions, but what report can I run to see trends over time so that I can evaluate the effectiveness of our SEO efforts?

[GeorgeDavis]

Could you provide some clarification on your question?  In my mind tracking the positions of multiple keywords over time is the best way to evaluate the effectiveness of your SEO efforts, along with :

• of Visitors (Broken down into Traffic Sources)

• of Conversions (Try to assign a dollar amount for this)

• Statistics on the amount of Indexed data

Follow this up with :

• A snapshot of this same data from last month (or last quarter, or last week) to highlight what you've done for the website with a particular emphasis on ROI.
• A plan for what you are doing next month (or next quarter, or next week)

Obviously if the client wants to get further into specifics you should be knowledgeable and prepared to do this.

Sam Crocker wrote a great YouMoz post on this just last week, it's a great read : Improving Reporting Efficiency and Relevance

[mhkatz]

Clarification:  The SEOmoz Campaign Manager shows me how all of my keywords did compared to last week.  Does SEOmoz keep a history of keyword positions over time so that I can see trends?

[GeorgeDavis]

Ah I understand now.  SEOmoz does not have anything like this in their arsenal.  There are a number of tools that you can use to do this, the two i'm familiar with :

• Raven Tools
• Authority Labs

Of the two I found Raven Tools much better but Authority has some features Raven does not so it is a matter of preference.  Best of luck!

[AroundtheGlobe]

You can also use the free program cuterank. It works okay and if you buy it you may produce the reports as wel.

[hillierre]

I too wish there was something like this. I download the rankings to the .csv file and  then import into my master file with all my keywords. Takes a few minutes but worth it --- I can see my trends based on my SEO work.

[hornsbylaw]

You can run a graphical report showing your Ranking History for each keyword targeted since you started your campaign.

To do this log into your campaign.  Click View This Campaign/All Keyword Rankings.

On your Rankings Report click on the ranking you want to see charted.  For instance, if you rank #1 on Google for a keyword this week, you can click on that ranking and a graphical report showing your Ranking History for that keyword since you started your campaign for that word will appear.