Attribution
Branded search
Also called brand query.
Branded search is search traffic from queries that contain your company or product name. People who search that way already know you.
How it is measured
Classify queries by a list of brand terms, including misspellings and product names. Count sessions or conversions per bucket. Search tools often hide the query, so you may use landing page and ad group names as proxies.
Keep the brand-term list under review. New products and campaigns create new brand terms, and typos grow. Check the unmatched queries monthly.
Worked example
A tool-rental chain looks at March: 8,200 sessions from search, of which 5,900 come with queries that include 'Hartwell Rentals'. Branded queries convert at 14 percent; generic ones at 2.8 percent.
The chain's paid search team had been reporting the 14 percent as proof of ad performance. Pausing the branded ads for a week drops paid clicks by 4,100 but total orders by only 9 percent, because most of those people just clicked the organic result.
How it differs
Branded search includes the name. Non-branded search describes a need without it. Branded queries show demand you already have; non-branded queries show demand you are winning.
Common errors
Counting brand queries as marketing success. Mixing them into organic totals. Missing misspellings in the list. Bidding on your own name without a test. Forgetting competitor names are not brand terms.
In practice
Split the search report into branded and non-branded. Judge SEO on the non-branded side. Test whether branded ads add orders before paying for them.