The Weighted Average Rank is a calculation used to help give a more accurate Average Rank for a group of keywords. This calculation seeks to improve upon a standard average rank by taking search volume for each keyword into account as a weight. Weighted Average Rank paints a more accurate picture of performance and highlights where there is room for growth. The nature of this weighting means this metric is available at the domain and tag level, and not at the individual keyword level as it is only weighted against itself.  

Weighted Average Rank in Rank Intelligence

How to Calculate the Weight of a Keyword

When calculating the weight of a keyword, we first take the search volume for a single keyword and divide it by the total search volume for the keyword group. So, if the overall search volume is 6,000 and Keyword 1 has a search volume of 600, the weight of Keyword 1 is 0.10. The weight for each keyword represents what percentage that keyword makes of the total search volume. If Keyword 1 has a weight of .10, which means it makes up 10% of the total search volume for that group of keywords. 

Example: Using Keyword 1

Keyword Search Volume / Total Search Volume = Weight

600 / 6,000 = 0.10

How to Calculate the Weighted Rank

To calculate the Weighted Rank, you multiply the Weighting Factor by the Rank. 

Example: Using Keyword 1

Weight x Rank = Weighted Rank

0.10 x 1 = 0.10

How to Calculate Weighted Average Rank

To calculate the Weighted Average Rank, you add up all of the Weighted Ranks for each keyword in the group. This total will give you the Weighted Average Rank. 

Example: 

Weighted Rank (keyword 1) + Weighted Rank (keyword 2) + Weighted Rank (Keyword 3)...... + Weighted Rank (Keyword 10) = Weighted Average Rank

0.10 + 0.05 + 2.92 ...... + 1.13 = 10.58

Results

We can see that the Weighted Average Rank for this group of Keywords is 10.58, not the 9.4 rank we calculated using just the Average Rank calculation. With a Weighted Average rank of 10.58, this group of keywords is actually performing worse than originally thought. The average rank for the group of keywords is no longer in the top ten, which should alert the user that they need to change up their SEO strategy in order to improve their rankings. By improving their Weighted Average Ranking, they will ultimately be driving more traffic to their website which could lead to higher conversions.  

Importance of using Weighted Average Rank

The Weighted Average Rank allows a user to get a more accurate picture of their current standings and where there is room for growth. seoClarity uses the Weighted Average Rank figure in two parts of the platform. The first is within Keyword Clarity, when you create a group of keywords (keyword tag) and the second is within Page Clarity. Looking at the Weighted Average Rank in the Keyword tags, you will be able to gather a much clearer picture of how your keyword tags are performing and where you need to focus your efforts.  Using the Weighted Average Rank in Page Clarity provides another great benchmark to use when deciding your future SEO strategies. By associating certain keywords to a URL, you will be able to track the performance of that page and see if there is opportunity to drive greater traffic.