Connect Google Search Console

What You Get

Automatic daily sync of:

• Search queries and rankings
• Click and impression data
• Average position tracking
• Page-level performance
• Query-to-page mapping

Powers these features:

• Content decay alerts when rankings drop
• Competitive gap discovery (keywords competitors rank for, you don't)
• Maya's search opportunity insights
• Keyword expansion suggestions
• Rank tracking over time

Setup Steps

1. Start the Connection

Go to Settings > Integrations > Analytics & Search tab.

Find the Google Search Console card and click Connect.

2. Authorize ILLIXIS

You'll be redirected to Google's authorization page.

Sign in with the Google account that has access to your Search Console property.

Click Allow to grant ILLIXIS read-only access to your search data.

3. Select Your Property

After authorization, you'll see a list of all Search Console properties you have access to.

Select the property that matches your website.

Property types:

• Domain Property (recommended): Covers all subdomains and protocols (http/https). Shows as example.com (Domain Property).
• URL Prefix: Specific to one protocol/subdomain. Shows as https://www.example.com.

Click Save to complete setup.

4. Wait for First Sync

ILLIXIS syncs GSC data once per day at 5:00 AM UTC.

The first sync happens during the next scheduled run. You don't need to trigger it manually.

Data includes the past 90 days of search performance.

What Gets Synced

Query data:

• Search terms that trigger your pages
• Clicks and impressions per query
• Average position per query
• Click-through rate (CTR)

Page data:

• Performance metrics per URL
• Total clicks including anonymous queries
• Date-level granularity for trend analysis

Mapping data:

• Which queries appear on which pages
• Query-page performance relationships

Using Your GSC Data

Once synced, GSC data powers:

Maya recommendations:

• "Your article X has dropped from position 4 to position 11"
• "Competitors rank for 'keyword' but you don't"

Discovery tools:

• GSC opportunities in Strategy Hub
• Keyword expansion from actual queries
• Rising search trend detection

Content decay:

• Automatic monitoring of ranking drops
• Alerts when content loses traffic
• Recommendations to refresh underperforming pages

Automation Schedule

ILLIXIS syncs your GSC data automatically on a daily schedule.

Sync timing:

• Daily sync runs at 5:00 AM UTC
• No manual action required after initial connection

Initial connection:

• First sync pulls historical data going back up to 16 months
• This provides trend analysis and baseline metrics from day one
• Large properties may take longer to complete the initial import

Ongoing updates:

• After the first sync, daily updates are incremental
• Only new data since the last sync is fetched
• This keeps your data current while minimizing API usage

Why not real-time?

GSC data isn't available in real-time for several reasons:

1. Google's processing delay: Search Console data typically lags 2-3 days behind real time. Google needs time to process and aggregate search data.
2. API quotas: Google enforces daily request limits on the Search Console API. A single daily sync respects these limits while still capturing all available data.
3. Data consistency: Batch processing ensures complete, consistent datasets rather than partial updates throughout the day.
4. Performance: Scheduled overnight syncs avoid competing with your daytime usage of the platform.

For most SEO workflows, daily updates are sufficient. Ranking changes and search trends emerge over days and weeks, not hours.

Disconnecting

To disconnect GSC:

1. Go to Settings > Integrations > Analytics & Search
2. Find the GSC card (shows "Connected" badge)
3. Click Disconnect
4. Confirm the action

This removes the stored refresh token. Your historical sync data remains until you manually delete it.

Troubleshooting

"No sites found" after authorization:

• Make sure you're signed into the Google account with Search Console access
• Verify your site is added to Search Console at search.google.com/search-console
• Wait a few minutes and try reconnecting

Connection shows "Connected" but no data:

• First sync happens at 5 AM UTC daily
• Check back after the next scheduled sync
• Historical data (past 90 days) is included in the first sync

Authorization fails:

• Make sure you clicked "Allow" on Google's permission screen
• Try disconnecting and reconnecting
• Clear browser cookies and try again

Privacy & Permissions

ILLIXIS uses read-only access to your Search Console data. We cannot:

• Modify your Search Console settings
• Submit URLs for indexing
• Change property ownership
• Access data from other properties you didn't select

Your GSC refresh token is encrypted and stored securely. Daily syncs use this token to fetch updated data without requiring repeated authorization.

Next Steps

With GSC connected:

• Check Maya for search opportunity recommendations
• Review content decay alerts in Strategy Hub
• Use keyword expansion in brief creation
• Monitor competitor gaps in Discovery tools

All of these features use your actual search performance data from GSC.