Striking Distance report: interactive demo

What this report finds

Queries that already rank at positions 4 to 20 and have impressions are the cheapest place to win clicks: the page is relevant enough to be shown, just not high enough to be clicked. The report lists them, estimates what moving each one to a target position would add, and sorts the biggest estimates first.

What the screenshot shows

The screenshot above is the real Workspace report in its safe demo mode: neutral sample data, queries labelled DEMO and every address replaced by an example.com placeholder. Nothing in it is your data or anyone else’s. Open the report on your own properties in GSC Workspace to see your numbers and move the target position yourself.

How the estimate is calculated

For each query the report computes gain = max(0, round(impressions × expected CTR at the target position ÷ 100 − clicks)). The expected CTR comes from the property’s own CTR curve, not from a published average, and the target position defaults to 3.

Take the first demo row: 2,400 impressions, 48 clicks at position 6.8. The demo curve gives 11.2 percent at position 3, so the gain is round(2,400 × 0.112 − 48) = 221 clicks. If you pick a target of position 5 and the curve gives 5.8 percent there, the same query gains round(2,400 × 0.058 − 48) = 91.

The result is an estimate, not a forecast. It assumes the page can reach the target position and that the curve holds, and Search Console data can be preliminary for the newest days (Performance report help).

How to read the list

1. Start with impressions. A high-impression query at position 8 to 12 is worth more than a low-impression one at position 5.
2. Check the page. The report shows the page that ranks; open it and ask whether it answers the query better than the results above it.
3. Pick the action. Title and snippet, a clearer answer on the page, internal links, or a new page if the ranking page is the wrong one.
4. Record the change with an annotation and test it later (validate a change).

Striking distance, answered

Why positions 4 to 20?

Below position 3 a move up changes the click share a lot, and past 20 the page is too far away to expect a short-term win.

Is the estimated gain a promise?

No. It is impressions times your own expected CTR at the target, minus today’s clicks.

Go further

Read the striking-distance playbook for the full routine, the optimization reports for every report in the group, and open the report on your own properties in GSC Workspace.