Keywords, Search Console and DataForSeo

Aivie can show more than the keywords themselves. Google Search Console adds how your pages rank for a keyword, and DataForSeo adds search volume, difficulty and cost per click. Both are optional: without them Aivie still generates keywords and ideas, but the matching columns in the keyword list stay empty.

This page covers the keyword settings and the connection to both services. The keyword list itself is described in Keywords.

Keyword settings

The keyword settings are on the Settings tab of Setup, which only members of Aivie-admin can open.

1. Open the Aivie section, Aivie - Content.
2. In the sidebar, under Configuration, choose Setup, and then the tab Settings.
3. Find the group Keywords, change the values you need and press Save.

Setting	What it does
Agent for keywords	The agent, from AI → Agents, that comes up with the keywords. Press Choose to pick one.
Default number	How many keywords are generated when the request does not name a number.
Existing keywords in the briefing	How many of your saved keywords are shown to the agent so that it does not suggest them again. With 0 this is off, because the keywords context already does this.
Include company details	Whether the company details from the general settings are added to the briefing a second time. This is off because the Aivie settings resource already supplies them.

Keys and defaults are in the configuration keys.

Google Search Console

Search Console connects through a Google service account: a robot account with its own email address and key file. You create it once, give it read access to your Search Console property, and upload its key to Aivie.

1. Create the service account

1. Open Google Cloud Console and select a project, or create one.
2. Under APIs & Services, enable the Search Console API for that project.
3. Under IAM & Admin, open Service Accounts and create a service account with a recognisable name, for example aivie-search-console.
4. Open the new account, go to Keys, choose Add key and create a new key of type JSON. Google downloads a .json file.

Use the key of the service account itself. An OAuth client from the same Google Cloud screen does not work, and Aivie refuses it.

2. Upload the key in Aivie

1. On the Settings tab of Setup, find Service account key in the group Keywords.
2. Choose the .json file you downloaded.

Aivie checks the file before it keeps it. It must be a service account key with an email address and a private key. On success it shows Key for followed by the email address of the account. You need that address in the next step. Aivie stores the key as a secret and never shows it again. To replace it, upload another file. The screen then reads A key is set. Upload a new one to replace it. If no key is there yet, it reads No key uploaded yet.

warning

Aivie writes the key in plain text to appsettings.{Environment}.json in the content root of your site, the same file the setup wizard uses. Keep that file out of source control.

3. Add the service account to your property

Aivie can only read what the service account may see, so add the account to the property in Search Console:

1. Open Search Console and select your property.
2. Open Settings, then Users and permissions.
3. Add a user with the email address of the service account.

Aivie only reads data. It asks Google for read-only access.

4. Choose the site URL

Back in Aivie, find Site URL in Search Console. As long as no key has been uploaded it is a plain text field, with the hint Upload the service account key above first; then you can pick the property from a list. After the upload, press Choose. Aivie asks Google which properties the service account can access and shows them in a list, each with the access level of the account, for example full access. Pick yours and press Save.

The value goes to Google unchanged. A domain property has a name such as sc-domain:example.com, which differs from https://www.example.com, and the two are not interchangeable. This is why you pick from the list instead of typing. If your property is not in the list, or is marked no access to figures — add this account in Search Console, the service account has not been added to it yet. Repeat step 3.

Sites that still point to a key file on the server keep working, and an uploaded key takes precedence over that file path. Once a key is uploaded, the older setting Path to the service account file is hidden.

With the connection in place, Aivie can fetch the position and the impressions of your keywords. Where you see them is described in Keywords. Keys and defaults are in the configuration keys.

DataForSeo

DataForSeo is a separate paid service that supplies the Search Volume, Difficulty and CPC of your keywords. You need your own account with them.

You enter the DataForSeo login and password in the setup wizard, in the box May be skipped. There is no field for them on the Settings tab. To change them, run the wizard again and fill in the new values. A field you leave empty keeps what is there. See Setup wizard.

Without a login and password, the columns for volume, difficulty and CPC stay empty and everything else keeps working.

Aivie asks DataForSeo for the figures of the Netherlands, in Dutch. This cannot be changed. If your keywords are for another country or language, the figures do not apply to them.

warning

The wizard writes the DataForSeo password in plain text to appsettings.{Environment}.json. Keep that file out of source control.