10 Hidden Features of Google Tools Every Marketer Should Know

Introduction

In the ever-evolving world of digital marketing, staying ahead means more than simply using the right tools—it’s about mastering them. While most marketers are familiar with Google’s flagship products like Google Analytics, Google Ads, and Google Search Console, very few are aware of the lesser-known, hidden features that can unlock new levels of productivity, precision, and performance.

These “hidden gems” are often overlooked simply because they’re not always front and centre. Yet, for those who learn how to use them strategically, they offer a competitive edge that can mean the difference between average results and exceptional outcomes. Whether you're a freelance marketer, an agency professional, or a blogger working to monetise your content, tapping into these advanced features can greatly elevate your campaigns.

In this blog post, we’ll unveil 10 hidden features across essential Google tools that you likely haven’t explored—but absolutely should. These insights will not only enhance your marketing efficiency but also help you extract deeper value from tools you’re probably already using daily.

So, let's dive into the hidden power Google has tucked away behind its simple interfaces.

1. Google Analytics: Behaviour Flow (Explained in Depth)

Understanding how users interact with your website is the key to optimising both user experience and conversion rates. This is where Behaviour Flow—one of the most underrated features of Google Analytics—comes in.

What is Behaviour Flow?

The Behaviour Flow report visually maps the path users take through your site. It shows how they land, which pages they visit next, and where they drop off. Unlike standard metrics like bounce rate or page views, this flow chart helps marketers visualise actual movement, revealing the user journey across your content.

Where to Find It

In Google Analytics, navigate to:
Behaviour > Behaviour Flow

Here, you’ll find a visual diagram consisting of nodes (pages or events) and connecting lines that represent the path users follow.

Why It's Powerful for Marketers

Identify Drop-off Points:
It clearly shows on which page users exit most often. This insight can help you tweak that specific page's content, layout, or CTA to retain visitors longer.
Understand Content Performance:
You can see which blog posts, landing pages or service pages act as gateways to deeper engagement. This helps you promote or update high-performing content more strategically.
Refine Navigation Structure:
If users are bouncing around unexpectedly or not following the path you intended (like from homepage to product page), this data can help you improve your site’s internal linking or navigation menu.
Custom Segmentation:
You can filter Behaviour Flow for different traffic sources (like social media or email), countries, or devices. This reveals how different audience segments behave on your site.
Conversion Journey Insights:
For eCommerce or service websites, Behaviour Flow helps map how far users go in the sales funnel. If most users drop off before reaching the cart or lead form, it may indicate friction in the process.

Practical Example

Suppose you’re running a digital marketing blog (like Skill2Cash). If visitors land on a post titled “Best Affiliate Programs in 2025” and then jump to “How to Drive Traffic without Paid Ads”, but most exit before reaching your affiliate product review, you know you need better CTAs or internal linking to guide users toward monetised pages.

Bonus Tip:

Use UTM parameters in your promotional links (e.g. social media, emails) to track specific entry points in Behaviour Flow and optimise those campaigns based on real behaviour.

2. Google Ads: Ad Variations – Test Creatives Without Headaches

Successful digital marketing demands continuous testing—and when it comes to ads, one message rarely fits all. That’s why Google Ads' “Ad Variations” feature is a game-changer for performance-driven marketers.

What is Ad Variations?

Ad Variations lets you run A/B tests at scale across your Google Ads campaigns without creating multiple new ads manually. You can test variations of headlines, descriptions, display URLs, or even entire text ads—then measure the results before fully applying the winner.

Where to Find It

In Google Ads, go to:
Drafts & Experiments > Ad Variations

From there, you can create a variation across an ad group, campaign, or multiple campaigns—saving hours of manual tweaking.

Why It's Invaluable for Marketers

Test Messaging Easily:
Not sure whether “Get Free Trial” or “Start Your Journey Today” converts better? Test both headlines across your search ads without having to pause and replace originals.
Improve CTR and Quality Score:
By identifying which variation performs best, you can optimise click-through rates, which in turn may boost your ad relevance and reduce CPC (cost per click).
Controlled Testing:
You can apply a variation to just a portion of your audience (say 50%) and compare performance with the original version, much like scientific testing.
Time Efficiency:
You no longer need to duplicate ad sets manually. You can apply text replacements like swapping all instances of “2024” with “2025” in seconds.
Better Campaign Insights:
Ad Variations come with built-in reporting, so you can track CTR, conversions, and impressions side-by-side. This is perfect for data-driven decisions.

Use Case Example

Suppose you're running Google Search Ads for your ebook "Affiliate Marketing Made Simple". You could create two headline variations:

“Boost Your Income with Affiliate Marketing”
“Start Earning from Home – No Investment”

With Ad Variations, you can test which one resonates better with your audience, without overhauling the original ad structure.

Pro Tip:

Use Ad Variations periodically—especially around seasonal campaigns or after significant changes to landing pages—to keep your messaging aligned and optimised.

3. Google Search Console: URL Inspection Tool – See Your Page Through Google’s Eyes

If you're a digital marketer, SEO enthusiast, or blogger, knowing exactly how Google sees your web pages is crucial. That’s where the URL Inspection Tool in Google Search Console becomes a must-have feature.

What is the URL Inspection Tool?

It’s a diagnostic tool that allows you to check a specific webpage's indexing status, crawl data, and SEO health directly from Google's perspective. Think of it as a magnifying glass showing how Googlebot reads and treats your content.

Where to Find It

In Google Search Console, select your property (your website) and click on:
URL Inspection (top bar)
Paste your URL there and hit Enter.

Why It’s a Hidden Gem for Marketers

Check If a Page is Indexed
Ever published a blog post and wondered why it’s not showing up on Google? The tool immediately tells you whether the page is indexed or not—and if not, why.
Live Testing Option
You can request a live test, where Google fetches the current version of your page, even before reindexing. This is perfect after making urgent SEO fixes.
Identify Crawling or Mobile Usability Issues
If there's any issue—like blocked resources, missing structured data, or mobile usability problems—the tool highlights them with detailed insights.
Request Indexing Instantly
After fixing SEO issues or updating content, just click “Request Indexing” and your page is re-queued for crawling, speeding up the update process.
Analyse Canonical URLs
It shows you the canonical URL Google has chosen—helping you understand if Google is indexing the correct version of a page (great for duplicate content scenarios).

Use Case Example

Let’s say you’ve just published a new blog on “Top Free Tools for Digital Marketers in 2025”. You can:

Inspect the URL right after publishing,
Check if it’s in the Google index,
Request indexing,
See if mobile usability is optimal,
Confirm your canonical tag is working as intended.

Pro Tip:

Use this tool every time you publish or update content. Combine it with regular performance tracking to ensure that all your hard work gets discovered and ranked by Google.

4. Google Trends: Micro-Niche Keyword Discovery – Ride the Wave Before It Peaks

In the ever-changing landscape of digital marketing, timing is everything. And when it comes to catching trends before they go viral, no tool is more powerful (yet often underused) than Google Trends.

What is Google Trends?

Google Trends shows real-time search interest in specific keywords across the globe or in a targeted region. It reveals what people are searching for—right now—and how interest in that term has changed over time.

Why It’s a Hidden Gem for Marketers

Discover Emerging Keywords
Spot keywords that are just starting to trend in your niche. For instance, if you’re in affiliate marketing and “AI content detectors” is rising, creating content early can give you a serious SEO edge.
Compare Keyword Potential
You can compare multiple search terms (e.g., “digital product” vs. “online course”) to see which is growing faster—allowing you to invest time in the right content.
Seasonal Content Planning
It’s ideal for planning seasonal campaigns. For example, “Black Friday deals” spikes every November—Google Trends helps you prepare ahead of time.
Find Regional Interest
Target your content or campaigns based on location-specific search interest. Great for geo-targeted marketing or running local promotions.
Explore Related Topics
Trends suggests related queries and topics that are also gaining momentum. This helps in finding micro-niche ideas that your competitors may have missed.

Use Case Example

Let’s say you run a blog on digital skills. You notice "AI video generators" is a rising trend. Using Google Trends, you confirm it's rapidly growing in interest—especially in the US and India. You now have a clear direction to create early content before the topic becomes saturated.

Pro Tip:

Combine Google Trends with tools like Google Keyword Planner or Ubersuggest for keyword validation and to build content around high potential, low competition terms.

5. Google Tag Manager: Event Tracking Without Coding Hassles

If you’ve ever wanted to track how users interact with your website—like who clicked your affiliate links, who downloaded your lead magnet, or who watched your embedded YouTube video—without touching a line of code, Google Tag Manager (GTM) is your secret weapon.

What is Google Tag Manager (GTM)?

GTM is a free tool by Google that allows marketers to deploy and manage marketing tags (snippets of code) on their websites without modifying the actual site code. It’s like a control panel for all your tracking needs.

Why GTM is a Hidden Powerhouse for Marketers

Track Everything Without a Developer
Whether it's clicks, form submissions, scroll depth, or video engagement, you can set up tracking using GTM’s visual interface. No need to ask a developer each time.
Speed Up Campaign Deployments
Want to run a Facebook Pixel, LinkedIn Insight Tag, or Google Ads Conversion Tag? You can add them in minutes using GTM, instead of waiting for your dev team.
Event Tracking for Conversions
GTM makes it easy to define conversion events—like when someone clicks a “Buy Now” button—so you can better understand which parts of your funnel are working.
Organised and Centralised Tag Control
GTM acts as a single dashboard for managing all tracking scripts, reducing clutter in your site’s source code and lowering page load time.
Debug Mode & Version Control
Use Preview Mode to test if tags are firing correctly before going live. GTM also keeps version history so you can revert to older setups if anything breaks.

Example for Marketers

Let’s say you have a free ebook opt-in form. With GTM, you can create a trigger to fire when someone successfully submits the form. Then, you can pass this data to Google Analytics or Facebook Ads to track lead conversions precisely—all without touching your website's backend code.

Pro Tip:

Combine GTM with Google Analytics 4 for next-level tracking of your customer journey—from scroll behaviour to button interactions—without code dependency.

6. Google Alerts – Passive Intelligence Gathering for Marketers

Staying updated in the fast-paced world of digital marketing is crucial. But what if there were a way to get real-time updates about your brand, competitors, or trending topics—without constantly checking Google? That’s where Google Alerts comes in.

What is Google Alerts?

Google Alerts is a free content monitoring service by Google that sends you email notifications whenever new results—such as news articles, blogs, or web pages—match your selected keywords.

Why It’s a Hidden Gem for Marketers

Monitor Your Brand Reputation
Receive alerts when your brand or blog is mentioned online. This helps you manage public perception, respond to feedback, or engage with audiences organically.
Keep an Eye on Competitors
Track mentions of your competitors’ names or their key products. This allows you to observe their PR moves, content strategies, or launches.
Discover Content Ideas
Set alerts for topics in your niche like “affiliate marketing trends” or “Pinterest SEO tips”. This keeps you informed and inspires new blog or video content based on what's trending.
Track Industry Changes
Want to stay ahead of algorithm updates, policy shifts, or new tools in digital marketing? Just create alerts for relevant terms like “Google algorithm update” or “Meta ads policy change”.
Find Backlink Opportunities
If you publish guest posts or engage in outreach, Google Alerts can notify you when your name or site is mentioned—sometimes without a backlink. This gives you an opportunity to reach out and request proper credit.

Example for Marketers

Say you’re a digital marketer working with local businesses. You can create an alert for “digital marketing for restaurants in London” to get regular insights, press releases, or blog posts that you can repurpose or refer to in your own strategy.

Pro Tip:

Use quotation marks for exact phrases (e.g., “Skill 2Cash”) and negative terms to filter irrelevant content (e.g., Skill 2Cash -jobs). Set frequency to “as-it-happens” for real-time intelligence.

7. Google My Business Insights – Understand Local Engagement Patterns

For businesses with a physical presence—or even service-area businesses—Google My Business (GMB) Insights is a goldmine. Often overlooked, this feature provides powerful analytics that help you understand how potential customers are interacting with your business on Google Search and Maps.

What is Google My Business Insights?

It’s an analytics dashboard within your Google Business Profile that shows how people find your listing, what actions they take, and where they’re located. This data helps you optimise your local marketing efforts.

Why Marketers Should Care

Know How Customers Find You
GMB Insights tells you whether users found your business via direct searches (typing your name) or discovery searches (searching for a category or product you offer). This helps assess your brand visibility vs keyword reach.
See What Actions They Take
It shows metrics like:
- Website visits
- Phone calls
- Direction requests
- Photo views
These insights reveal which call-to-actions are working and where improvements are needed.
Understand Location-Based Behaviour
Insights can show where your customers are located when they request directions. If a large portion is from a nearby suburb, you might consider geo-targeted ads for that region.
Optimise Your Content and Offers
Are people viewing your photos more than your competitors’? Are certain types of posts getting more clicks? Use this data to refine your offers, product displays, and visuals.
Track Seasonal or Weekly Patterns
Understand peak engagement times (days/hours) to plan posts, updates, or special promotions accordingly.

Real-World Example

A digital marketer working with a local salon might discover through GMB Insights that most engagement happens on Fridays. This insight can lead to promoting last-minute weekend deals every Thursday evening.

Pro Tip:

Regularly update your GMB profile with new posts, photos, and offers. Google tends to favour active business profiles in local search results, and Insights helps guide your activity intelligently.

8. Google Trends – Uncover Real-Time Market Demand

Google Trends is an invaluable yet often overlooked tool that enables marketers to tap into real-time search data to understand what people are genuinely interested in — right now. It's not just about curiosity; it's about leveraging trending data for strategic decision-making in content creation, product launches, and regional targeting.

Why It Matters to Marketers

Discover Trending Topics: Identify what people are searching for at the moment. This insight helps marketers develop timely blog posts, videos, or social media content that are more likely to engage audiences.
Seasonal Campaign Planning: Google Trends allows you to detect seasonal spikes in interest. For instance, “home workout plans” may spike during New Year’s resolutions, guiding marketers on when to push specific campaigns.
Geo-Targeted Strategies: The tool shows interest levels by region or country, making it ideal for hyper-local marketing campaigns.
Compare Keywords Efficiently: You can compare multiple keywords side-by-side to see which performs better, helping you select the best-performing topics.
Validate Product Demand: Before launching a product or service, marketers can use Trends to assess consumer interest and adjust their strategy accordingly.

Pro Tip:

Always explore the “Related Queries” section. It reveals emerging keywords and gives you a goldmine of content ideas, especially for long-tail SEO strategies.

9. Google Search Console – Coverage Report Insights

The Coverage Report within Google Search Console is a crucial diagnostic feature that every digital marketer should use regularly. While most users glance at it for indexing status, the real value lies in the granular insights it offers about how Google interacts with your website.

Why It’s a Hidden Gem for Marketers

Identify Indexing Issues: The report highlights which pages are indexed, which are excluded, and — more importantly — why they’re excluded (e.g. ‘Crawled – currently not indexed’, ‘Duplicate without user-selected canonical’).
Resolve Crawl Errors: It flags crawl issues like server errors, 404s, or soft 404s, allowing you to fix them proactively before they affect your rankings.
Maintain Content Health: By checking the coverage status regularly, you can ensure that all your high-quality content is being indexed and not stuck in the "Discovered – currently not indexed" limbo.
Prioritise Technical SEO Fixes: It helps you focus your SEO efforts on the most impactful technical areas by showing a breakdown of errors, valid pages, and warnings.
Monitor Site Updates: After any major content or structural updates, you can use the Coverage Report to verify if Google has re-crawled your pages and indexed them accordingly.

Pro Tip:

Make it a habit to filter out pages by status and check the Last Crawl date. This helps ensure Googlebot is actively visiting your site and your content is staying fresh in the index.

10. Google Tag Manager – Streamlined Tracking Without Coding

Google Tag Manager (GTM) is a powerful tool that simplifies the process of managing tracking codes, scripts, and third-party tags on your website — all without requiring manual code changes or developer intervention.

Why It’s a Game-Changer for Marketers

No Coding Needed: With GTM, marketers can add or update tracking codes (like Google Ads, Facebook Pixel, or Hotjar) directly from the dashboard without touching the website’s code.
Faster Implementation: Launch campaigns, track button clicks, form submissions, or scroll depth almost instantly — no need to wait for developer support.
Custom Triggers & Events: Create sophisticated tracking setups like tracking when users download a file, watch a video, or spend a specific time on a page.
Clean and Organised: GTM keeps your website's code clean by centralising all scripts in one container, reducing conflicts and improving site speed.
Built-In Templates: It includes built-in tags for Google Analytics, AdWords, and more — making setup straightforward even for beginners.

Pro Tip:

Always set up a version control and preview your tags before publishing. It helps avoid misfires that could disrupt analytics or affect user experience.

Conclusion: Harness the Hidden Power of Google Tools

While most marketers are aware of the mainstream benefits of Google’s ecosystem, only a few truly explore its hidden features. These overlooked tools — from Behaviour Flow in Google Analytics to custom tags in Google Tag Manager — offer a treasure trove of insights and strategic advantages that can significantly enhance your digital marketing efforts.

In a competitive online world where data is power and timing is critical, understanding and utilising these hidden functionalities can set you apart. They enable smarter decision-making, more precise targeting, and better performance tracking — all of which contribute to higher ROI and sustainable growth.

So, don’t just use Google tools. Master them. Explore their depths. Test their limits.
And most importantly, make them work for your unique marketing goals.