Striking distance keywords are search queries for which a page already ranks, but too low to earn many clicks. There is no official definition. Many SEOs use positions 11 to 30, the second and third result pages. Others define the term by a low click-through rate despite decent rankings. Google does not use the term.
How do you find them?
The usual source is the Performance report in Search Console. Queries can be filtered by position and sorted by impressions. A query with many impressions at position 14 is a candidate, because moving up a few places can change the click count noticeably.
Google notes that the position value in this report is the topmost position of a result, averaged across queries and appearances, and that a position number can mean different things depending on the layout of the results page. Read the number as a rough pointer to where a query stands.
Example
The query “coffee machine with grinder” shows an average position of 14 and 8,000 impressions a month, with few clicks (invented numbers). The page already covers the topic, so a sharper title, a clearer answer near the top and more internal links are the first things to review.
Sources
- Performance report (Search) – Search Console Helpsupport.google.com
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