Setting Up Google Search Console Weekly Insights

This guide will show you how to set up an automated workflow that monitors your website's SEO performance and sends weekly reports directly to your inbox with actionable insights.

Features Included in This Workflow

Prerequisites

• An n8n instance (cloud or self-hosted)
• A verified Google Search Console property
• A Google Cloud project with API access
• A Gmail account for receiving reports
• Basic understanding of n8n workflows

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Step 1: Download and Import Workflow

1.1 Download Workflow File

1. Click the workflow card below to visit the workflow details page
2. Click the Download button to download the workflow JSON file
3. Save the file to your local computer

1.2 Import Workflow to n8n

1. Open your n8n instance
2. Create a new workflow
3. Click the ... menu (three dots) in the top right
4. Select Import from File...
5. Choose the downloaded workflow JSON file
6. The workflow will appear with sticky notes containing setup instructions

Step 2: Set Up Google Cloud Project

2.1 Create or Select a Project

1. Go to Google Cloud Console
2. Create a new project or select an existing one
3. Note your project name for later reference

2.2 Enable Required APIs

1. In the Google Cloud Console, navigate to APIs & Services → Library
2. Search for and enable the following APIs:
   • Google Search Console API
   • Gmail API
3. Wait a few moments for the APIs to be enabled

2.3 Create OAuth 2.0 Credentials

1. Go to APIs & Services → Credentials
2. Click Create Credentials → OAuth client ID
3. If prompted, configure the OAuth consent screen:
   • Choose External user type
   • Fill in application name (e.g., "n8n GSC Integration")
   • Add your email as a test user
   • Save and continue through all steps
4. Back at Create OAuth client ID:
   • Application type: Web application
   • Name: "n8n Google OAuth"
   • Authorized redirect URIs: Add your n8n OAuth callback URL
     • For n8n Cloud: https://YOUR_INSTANCE.app.n8n.cloud/rest/oauth2-credential/callback
     • For self-hosted: https://your-n8n-domain.com/rest/oauth2-credential/callback
5. Click Create
6. Copy the Client ID and Client Secret - you'll need these in n8n

Step 3: Configure n8n Credentials

3.1 Add Google OAuth2 Credential

1. In your n8n workflow, click on any of the HTTP Request nodes (e.g., "Fetch GSC Queries")
2. Under Credential to connect with, click the dropdown
3. Select Create New Credential
4. Choose Google OAuth2 API
5. Fill in the credential details:
   • Name: "Google OAuth - Search Console"
   • Client ID: Paste from Google Cloud Console
   • Client Secret: Paste from Google Cloud Console
   • Scope: Add these two scopes (one per line):
     • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/webmasters.readonly
     • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/gmail.send
6. Click Save
7. Click Connect my account and authorize with your Google account
8. Select the Google account that has access to your Search Console property

3.2 Attach Credential to All Nodes

The same Google OAuth2 credential needs to be attached to these nodes:

• Fetch GSC Queries
• Fetch GSC Pages
• Fetch Previous Week Pages
• Send Email Report

To attach:

1. Click on each node
2. Under Credential to connect with, select your "Google OAuth - Search Console" credential
3. Save the node

Step 4: Configure Your Website Details

4.1 Find Your GSC Property ID

1. Go to Google Search Console
2. Select your property from the dropdown at the top
3. Look at the URL in your browser's address bar:
   • Domain property: URL will show sc-domain:example.com - copy sc-domain:example.com
   • URL prefix property: URL will show https://example.com - copy the full URL

4.2 Edit Configuration Node

1. In your n8n workflow, double-click the Set Configuration node
2. Update the following values:
   • websiteUrl: Your full website URL (e.g., https://workware.dev)
   • gscProperty: Your GSC property from step 4.1 (e.g., sc-domain:workware.dev)
   • emailTo: Your email address for receiving reports
   • dataRangeDays: Number of days to analyze (default: 28)
3. Click Save

Step 5: Test the Workflow

5.1 Manual Test Run

1. Click Execute Workflow (play button) at the bottom of the n8n editor
2. Watch the nodes execute in sequence:
   • Configuration is set
   • GSC data is fetched (3 parallel API calls)
   • Data is merged and analyzed
   • Email report is formatted and sent
3. Check your email inbox for the weekly report

5.2 Verify Report Contents

Your email should contain:

• Performance Overview: Total clicks, impressions, CTR, average position, newly indexed pages
• Newly Indexed Pages (if any): Pages that appeared in search results this week
• Quick Wins: Keywords in top 10 with CTR below expected (optimization opportunities)
• Almost There: Keywords ranked 11-20 (close to page 1)
• Top Performing Queries: Your best-performing search terms

Step 6: Activate Weekly Schedule

6.1 Enable the Workflow

1. Once you've verified the test email looks good, click the Active toggle at the top of the workflow
2. The workflow will now run automatically every Monday at 10:00 AM

6.2 Customize Schedule (Optional)

To change when the report is sent:

1. Double-click the Schedule Trigger node
2. Modify the schedule:
   • Trigger Interval: Weeks
   • Trigger on Day: Select day of week (default: Monday)
   • Trigger at Hour: Select hour (default: 10 AM)
3. Click Save

Customization Options

Change Report Frequency

Daily Reports:

1. Edit Schedule Trigger node
2. Change Trigger Interval to "Days"
3. Select which days to run

Bi-Weekly or Monthly:

1. Use "Every X" option in Schedule Trigger
2. Set to run every 2 weeks or 4 weeks

Send to Slack Instead of Email

1. Add a Slack node after "Format Email Report"
2. Remove or disconnect the "Send Email Report" node
3. Map the report data to Slack's message format
4. Use Slack blocks for rich formatting

Customize Email Layout

The email HTML is generated in the Format Email Report code node:

1. Double-click the node to open the code editor
2. Find the HTML template string (starts with const html = `)
3. Modify colors, fonts, layout, or add/remove sections
4. Click Save and test again

Adjust Metrics and Thresholds

To change what counts as a "Quick Win":

1. Open the Analyze GSC Data code node
2. Find the quickWins section
3. Adjust filters:
   • row.position <= 10: Change the position threshold
   • row.impressions >= 10: Change minimum impressions
   • row.ctr < expectedCTR * 0.7: Adjust the CTR threshold (0.7 = 70% of expected)
4. Save and test

Monitor Multiple Websites

To track multiple sites:

1. Duplicate the entire workflow
2. Rename it (e.g., "GSC Insights - Site 2")
3. Update the Set Configuration node with the new site's details
4. Each workflow will send a separate report

Pro tip: Create one workflow per client if you're an agency, or one per domain if you manage multiple properties.

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

1. "Unauthorized" or "Invalid Credentials" Error

• Solution: Re-authorize your Google OAuth2 credential
• Go to Credentials in n8n → Click your credential → Reconnect Account

2. "Property not found" Error

• Solution: Double-check your gscProperty value in Set Configuration
• Make sure it matches exactly what's shown in Google Search Console URL

3. No Email Received

• Solution:
  • Check spam/junk folder
  • Verify the Gmail credential is authorized
  • Test by manually executing the workflow
  • Check n8n execution log for errors

4. "Insufficient permissions" Error

• Solution: Ensure both scopes are added to your OAuth credential:
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/webmasters.readonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/gmail.send

5. Empty Report or "No Data" Sections

• Solution: This is normal for new sites with little traffic
• The workflow still sends a report showing zeros
• As your site gets traffic, data will populate

Getting Help

• Check the n8n documentation for general n8n questions
• Review Google Search Console API docs for API-specific issues
• Contact Workware for help customizing this workflow

Understanding Your Weekly Report

Performance Overview Metrics

• Total Clicks: Number of times users clicked your site in search results
• Total Impressions: Number of times your site appeared in search results
• Average CTR: Click-through rate (clicks ÷ impressions)
• Average Position: Your average ranking across all queries
• Newly Indexed: Pages that appeared in GSC data this week (compared to last week)

Quick Wins Section

These are your easiest optimization opportunities:

• Keywords already ranking in top 10
• CTR is below what's expected for that position
• Small changes (better title tag, meta description) can significantly increase clicks

Example action: If a keyword ranks at position 5 with 2% CTR (expected: 7%), rewrite the meta description to be more compelling.

Almost There Section

Keywords ranked 11-20 are just outside page 1:

• Often need content improvements or more backlinks
• Moving from position 15 to position 10 can 5x your traffic
• Prioritize keywords with high impressions (they have search volume)

Example action: If a keyword ranks at position 12, add more depth to that content, improve internal linking, or build a few backlinks.

Newly Indexed Pages

This section shows pages that just started appearing in search results:

• Useful for tracking which content Google is discovering
• See if new blog posts are getting indexed
• Monitor if technical changes affected crawling

Best Practices

Review Your Report Weekly

• Set a recurring calendar reminder for Monday mornings
• Spend 10-15 minutes reviewing the report
• Pick 1-2 quick wins to optimize that week
• Track your progress over time

Take Action on Quick Wins First

• These have the highest ROI (already ranking well, just need CTR boost)
• Rewrite meta descriptions to be more compelling
• Add numbers, questions, or strong verbs to titles
• Use structured data to get rich snippets

Track Newly Indexed Pages

• If new content isn't showing up, you may have indexing issues
• Check if important pages are being discovered
• Submit important URLs directly to Google Search Console if needed

Don't Obsess Over Daily Changes

• SEO is a long game - focus on week-over-week trends
• Rankings fluctuate daily; weekly averages are more meaningful
• Celebrate small wins (position 12 → 10 is huge!)

Use Alongside Other Tools

This workflow complements (but doesn't replace):

• Manual Google Search Console checking for deep dives
• Rank tracking tools for daily position monitoring
• Analytics platforms for conversion tracking

Security Considerations

• OAuth tokens: Store securely in n8n; never share credentials
• Email reports: Consider who should receive reports (contains SEO data)
• API rate limits: Google Search Console API has quotas (this workflow is well within limits)
• Credential rotation: Periodically reauthorize your Google OAuth connection

Next Steps

Once you're comfortable with this workflow:

1. Add more analysis: Track month-over-month changes, identify declining keywords
2. Automate actions: Build workflows that automatically request indexing for new pages
3. Multi-channel reporting: Send summaries to Slack, post to a dashboard, log to Airtable
4. Combine with other data: Merge GSC data with analytics for a complete picture