Glossary Term

Disclosure Gap

The difference between what Google shows in total search traffic and what it hides from the search query details.

Definition

A Disclosure Gap is what happens when Google tells you the total number of search visits, but does not show all of the searches that created those visits. For AS400System.com analysis, this matters because aggregate clicks can land on commercial IBM Power, AS/400, hosting, pricing, and support pages even when Google withholds the exact matching queries.

The gap is calculated by comparing total GSC dimensions, such as page or day, against Google-disclosed query dimensions for the same date range. It does not recover the hidden search terms, but it keeps the hidden traffic from being counted as zero.

Example

In one AS400System.com window, total GSC clicks showed 46 clicks while the disclosed query rows showed 9 clicks. The 37-click difference was the Disclosure Gap. A Power 11 HMC article also showed clicks and strong average position with no disclosed query rows.