How to Load AI Search Data in Looker Studio with Promptwatch
How we load Promptwatch into Looker Studio with the connector and an API key, using templates and a 90-day pull window.
Most clients already open Looker Studio for GA4. They will not live in a second GEO login. We load Promptwatch into the same report they already bookmark. Mentions and citations sit next to traffic. They do not get mashed into one "AI score."
Plan copy matters here. Data Studio is listed on Professional and above (and on the agency plans we actually buy). Essential at $95/mo has MCP and API, which is enough for chat and scripts, but we do not sell Essential as the Looker SKU. Professional is $245/mo. Business is $579/mo. Kick-off is $199/mo with unlimited projects and prompts, 10 seats. Explore is free, 10 ChatGPT prompts. G2: 4.7/5. Confirm the plan is Professional, Business, or Kick-off so Data Studio is actually on the contract before you spend an afternoon on the connector.
Connector plus a key
The Promptwatch Looker connector takes an API key. We use a read-only key. The report should not be able to create prompts or push CMS drafts. Write keys stay on the CMS-connected seat. See read-only keys.
A project key is enough for one logo. An org key is what we use on Kick-off when the Looker file has a page per client. Still read-only. We do not paste a write key into a connector that every analyst can open. Every analyst who can edit the report can see how the connector is set up. That is why the key type matters more than people think.
After the connector authenticates, we start from the templates rather than a blank report. The ones we actually use cover monitors, citations, prompts, and visibility. Auto-refresh is on. The pull window is 90 days. If a QBR needs a longer Google story, that comes from Search Console in the same file, not from stretching Promptwatch past the window.
Why only 90 days? That is the pull window. If you need a year of Google clicks, connect Search Console natively and keep those charts on their own, including generative AI performance reports when Overviews are in scope. Do not ask Promptwatch to pretend it stored 12 months of assistant rows it did not pull.
We do not screenshot the Promptwatch UI into Slides as the system of record. That is how two people show two different days. Looker is the shareable cut. Share the report. Keep the Promptwatch login for logs and content work.
What belongs on the first page
Engine columns stay split. ChatGPT is not Perplexity. AI Overviews are not a ChatGPT mention.
Citation rows name a URL when we have one. "Mentioned" and "cited" are different fields. We will not color a logo green because the model said the brand once. I have been asked to do that. It makes a pretty slide and a useless meeting.
A 90-day visibility trend is enough to see whether a page we shipped in how to get cited by ChatGPT showed up later. It is not enough to invent a case study.
What we leave out of this report
We do not put crawler 403s in Looker unless someone explicitly asked for a log extract. Agent Analytics stays in Promptwatch. Looker is the scoreboard, not the CDN debugger.
We do not promise a live ticker. There are no instant alerts in this setup. The report refreshes. We read it on the same cadence as the rest of the retainer.
Blending GA4 and GSC into this file is a separate job: how to blend Promptwatch with GA4 and Search Console. Load Promptwatch cleanly first. Blend after the client can read mention vs citation without help.
FAQ
Why only 90 days?
That is the pull window. If you need a year of Google clicks, connect Search Console natively and keep those charts on their own.
Which plan includes Data Studio?
Professional and above, plus the agency plans we actually buy. Essential at $95/mo has MCP and API. We do not sell Essential as the Looker SKU.
Do we put crawler 403s in Looker?
Not unless someone explicitly asked for a log extract. Agent Analytics stays in Promptwatch. Looker is the scoreboard, not the CDN debugger.
If you want the connector on an existing Looker file, hello@1001seomedia.com. Send the current report link and the project name.