A branded keyword is any search term that contains a business, product or brand name, for example “Harbour Street Bakery”, “Harbour Street Bakery opening times” or “Harbour Street Bakery reviews”. Everything else, such as “bakery near me” or “sourdough Brighton”, is a non-branded keyword.
How branded keywords work
Branded searches come from people who already know your name, perhaps from a recommendation, a van, a past order, an advert or a news piece. Most of them are navigational: the person wants to reach you. Others add a qualifier that reveals what they need, such as “login”, “prices”, “complaints”, “discount code” or “vs” followed by a competitor.
You should normally rank first for your own name without much effort, because Google can see the site is yours. Problems arise when the name is generic (“Premier Cleaning”), shared with another company, or when review sites, directories and marketplaces crowd the results around you.
In Google Search Console’s Performance report you can separate the two groups by filtering queries that contain your brand name. At the time of writing (October 2026), Search Console also offers a branded queries filter for many sites, which does the grouping automatically.
Why it matters
Branded searches usually convert far better than non-branded ones, because the person has already chosen you. They also act as a health measure for everything else you do: if offline marketing, PR or social media is working, more people search your name. Watching branded and non-branded traffic separately stops one hiding the other. A rise in total clicks might be entirely branded, which says your reputation is growing, while your SEO for new customers stands still.
In paid search, many businesses run a separate brand campaign in Google Ads to hold the top of the page when competitors bid on their name. In the UK, competitors can generally bid on your brand as a keyword; the courts in Interflora v Marks & Spencer looked at this practice, and the line is whether the advert makes it clear who is advertising. Google restricts trade mark use in ad text where the owner has filed a complaint, but not usually as a keyword.
Common mistakes
- Reporting SEO success on total traffic when most of the growth is people already searching for the business by name.
- Choosing a generic or descriptive business name and then wondering why you do not own your branded results.
- Ignoring branded queries with negative qualifiers, such as “complaints” or “scam”, rather than answering them.
- Paying for brand clicks in Google Ads without testing whether they would have arrived organically anyway.
How to act on it
In Search Console, filter queries containing your brand name and note the clicks each month, then do the same for everything else. Search your name in a private browser window and look at the whole first page: your site, Google Business Profile, review sites, social profiles and anything negative. Make sure every result you control is accurate.
Look out for branded searches that pair your name with a competitor’s, such as “Harbour Street Bakery vs” followed by a rival’s name. They come from people close to a decision. A fair, factual comparison page, or a clear explanation of what makes you different on your main pages, can help them choose without you naming or criticising anyone unfairly.
Next, list the branded qualifiers people use and check you have a clear page or answer for each: prices, delivery, returns, opening hours, careers. For non-branded growth, the work starts with keyword research that separates the two groups so each page targets searches from people who do not yet know you.