Overview: Metric Builder for Ahrefs Enterprise (Backlinks)

HOW TO

How to access the Metric Builder for Ahrefs Enterprise (Backlinks)

access-backlinks

Navigate to Metrics > Custom Metrics to access the Metric Builder. Click the green + New Custom Metric button and select your connected Ahrefs Enterprise Account from the Data Source drop-down list. Select the Backlinks radio button 

Metric Builder is available on Professional and higher plans. Request a trial of Metric Builder by following these steps.

How to use the Metric Builder for Ahrefs Enterprise (Backlinks)

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  • A) Data Source: This is the Ahrefs Enterprise Data Source that the Custom Metric is syncing data from.
  • B) Metric: Select a Metric from your connected Ahrefs Enterprise Data Source, such as Last Seen, Traffic or Page Size. 
  • C) Dimension (Optional): The Dimension parameter re-categorizes the returned Metric value based on common criteria. Examples of Dimensions are IP Source, Is Image, and Title. If no Dimension is selected, the Custom Metric will store 1 aggregated Metric value for each Date Range. 

Pro Tip: Add the word "by" in between the Metric and Dimension in order to determine an appropriate Custom Metric Name. From the Metric and Dimension examples outlined above, we could create the Custom Metrics "Refdomains Source by Url To" or "Refdomains Source by Url From".

  • D) Grouping Mode: Add the backlinks grouping mode. 
  • E) History: Select a time frame to add lost backlinks to the report. You can choose from the following options:
    • Live: No history
    • Since: History since a specified date
    • All time: Full history
  • F) Protocol: Select the Protocol of your Target
  • G) Date Limit: Select the Date Limit. You can choose a number between 3 and 100. Since Ahrefs API usage is monitored and limited with the monthly API units, you can choose how many items/rows (pages, keywords, backlinks, domains, anchors, countries, etc.) you will get with each metric. 
  • H) Favourable Trend: By default, Trending up is positive is pre-selected, which will display the percentage change value on Datablocks as green when the Metric value has increased. If the Custom Metric you created has opposite trends, select Trending down is positive radio button. Learn more here
  • I) Filters (Optional): Filters restrict the data that gets included in the Custom Metric. All data that is returned is tested against the Filter(s). Multiple Filters can be combined using AND boolean logic.    
    If the data synced from the Metric and Dimension fields meet the Filter specifications, the data is retained and included in the Custom Metric value. If the data synced from the Metric and Dimension fields don't meet the Filter specifications, the data is excluded from the Custom Metric value. When you select a Filter Property, the following fields will appear progressively as you select an option for each field:
    • Operator: Select The Operator for the filter setup
    • Values: Enter a Value for your filter setup

Pro Tip : If you don't know which Filters to put in place for your use case, use the Dimension + Data Preview to troubleshoot and get more insight into the data that is returned from your Ahrefs Enterprise Account for each field. Learn more here.

  • J) Preview data: After clicking Preview data, a Data Preview of the Custom Metric will be displayed. Daily Metric values are displayed in this section, along with the total Metric values for the Date Range in bold at the bottom. You can view the Data Preview for different Date Ranges by clicking on the drop-down list at the top of the Data Preview. 
  • K) Custom Metric Name: Enter a name for your Custom Metric. This Custom Metric name will be available in the Designer after saving. 
  • L) Save: Save your Custom Metric. 

How to create a Custom Backlinks Metric [Example]

In this example, we'll create a Custom Metric to report on Refdomains Source tracked in the Ahrefs Enterprise Account, split up based on URL To. 

Backlinks-example

  1. Navigate to Metrics  > Custom Metrics
  2. Click the green + Custom Metric button
  3. Select the appropriate Ahrefs Enterprise Data Source
  4. Select the Backlinks radio button.
  5. Select Refdomains Source from the Metric drop-down list  
  6. Next, we'll select URL To from the Dimension drop-down list so that the Refdomains Source values returned are split up based on URL To.
  7. Select All as the Grouping Mode and All Time as History.
  8. Select Both from the Protocol drop-down and 5 as the Data Limit
  9. We don't need to further filter the data, so we will leave the Filter section blank.
  10. In order to accurately explain what this Custom Metric is reporting on, we'll name the Custom Metric "Refdomains Source by Url To" 
  11. Click Preview data to generate a Data Preview of the Custom Metric. 
  12. Once we confirm that these are the results we're looking for, we'll click Save to save the Custom Metric. 

How to add a Custom Backlinks Metric to a Databoard

Learn how to add a Custom Metric to a Databoard here.

Additional Information

IN THIS SECTION

Metric Considerations

  • Since Ahrefs API usage is monitored and limited with the monthly API units, you can choose how many items/rows (pages, keywords, backlinks, domains, anchors, countries, etc.) you will get with each metric.

    We have introduced the Data limit setting that can be set during the connection. This way you will have more control over how much of the API credits will each sync use. You can choose between 3 and 100 (items/rows). This applies to all basic metrics.

    Your credit usage can be monitored in Ahrefs by checking the Limits & usage page, or Databox, using metrics like:

    • Time to API usage reset
    • Time to API key expiration
    • Workspace API limit
    • Workspace API usage
    • API key usage.
    For the custom metrics, you can set this limit using the Data limit field in the Metric Builder
  • The Data Preview is limited to display a maximum of 20 Dimensions per Date Range for Dimensional Metrics. Dimensions will be sorted by descending value, therefore the 20 Dimensions with the highest total values will be displayed in the Data Preview for each Date Range.