Metrics That Lie to You: Average Position (Part 1)
I wouldn’t call the “average position” metric pointless, but it’s definitely lying to you. Most people approach this metric with a natural misunderstanding. It’s natural to think “this is the average position that my organic listing or paid ad shows up at in a search for this keyword.” Sorry, but no. How could a tool just flat out lie to you? Well, the tool isn’t lying to you. It’s your understanding of what that metric is communicating that is lying to you. In a recent article titled “The big lie of AdWords average position,” light is shed upon this subject. But, this goes beyond AdWords to organic search and many other applications in life as well.