One of the best measures of SEO success is click velocity. This is because organic clicks, as reported in Google Search Console, are a first hand measure from Google about what people are searching for and then clicking through to your website on. Clicks are great metric as they are a proxy of great content, great websites and great keyword rankings. This makes them a very good measure of the fruits of your SEO efforts. The best way to report and analyze click data, and all other Google Search Console data is to use a LookerStudio dashboard. With a detailed and highly customizable dashboard, you can quickly visualize results with trended graphs by keyword and landing page. Data visualization is so important here, as you can eyeball click velocity and analyze what is driving what.
The conversion rate (CR) is the most important metric to us. Our team can bring as much organic traffic to a website, but if that traffic doesn't convert into customers, we didn't help our clients. So we're highly focussed on BOFU keywords that convert visitors into customers. We measure the CR in Google Analytics. One of the first things we do for a new client is to make sure that we track the conversions correctly (not just events) and that we know which specific CTA made the conversion.
The most important metric in measuring SEO success is total traffic which can be measured through total clicks. To keep track of traffic, you need to consider other KPIs as well to ensure that the majority of this traffic is generated organically. As an SEO Executive, I use Ahrefs and Search Console for an in-depth analysis of our SEO strategies and to make data-driven improvements to these plan-of-actions. Read our blogs on how to measure SEO success and how to audit SEO for more information. https://www.analytico.ca/blog/how-to-measure-seo-success-kpis-and-metrics-to-track https://www.analytico.ca/blog/how-to-do-an-enterprise-seo-audit-key-components-to-check Source out to these blogs in your next article or story if you find the content helpful and engaging. Feel free to reach out for further assistance or if you require another blog.
There are many performance metrics to really see the impact of your SEO strategy. My true performance metric when it comes to SEO is sessions, but most importantly, engaged sessions. Although many people base their SEO performance on ranking, rank means nothing if your online presence isn’t either driving users to your website or users who engage (stay to read your content or convert) on your website. Engaged sessions shows you whether you’re driving the right users to your website. If they don’t engage you have to ask the question of whether your targeted keywords are right or whether your content needs work. To track SEO performance you’ll want to use GA4. However, to track progress on your visibility, Google Search Console is a great tool.
One key metric of the success of SEO efforts is the number of keywords for which your site ranks on the first page (or approximately the first ten results) of Google. People are much more likely to click on these links than those on the second page or after the tenth result. Increasing the visibility of your site is an important goal of SEO, and tracking the change in your rankings over time can help you measure your success. Semrush is a great tool for SEO analysis and reporting, allowing you to track your keywords and backlinks over time, as well as benchmark them against those of your competitors.
The one metric to measure SEO efforts is sales. Most SEO clients focus on the profitability of the SEO Campaign. It means nothing if keywords are ranking but don't generate leads. Therefore, tracking conversion is important. The one tool I used is Google Tag Manager in conjunction with Google Analytics 4 to understand which page converts well. This allows me to adjust my SEO campaigns and efforts to the area where it matters most.
Customer Acquisition Cost. To me, it’s one of the most essential metrics clients need to understand and the best way to gauge whether SEO is working or not. People get too caught up in MQLs, but customer acquisition cost is the only metric that measures how much it costs to earn that lead. You could be bringing leads through PPC but paying $100 per acquisition, whereas with SEO, it will likely have a much lower CAC. How else will you determine which channel is most effective for your bottom line?
The key metric I prioritize is targeted organic search traffic, as it directly reflects the visibility and reach of a website in search engine results. And I'm not talking about random query traffic with little to no benefits, I usually try to filter this out. The metric I'm targeting is critical because it correlates with a lot of potential for lead generation and benefits the business owner directly. To measure and analyze this, I rely heavily on Google Search Console. For detailed SEO analysis and reporting, I use Ahrefs. This tool is invaluable for tracking keyword rankings, monitoring competitor strategies, and identifying areas for on-page SEO improvement. By combining the quantitative data from Google Search Console with the strategic insights from Ahrefs, I can develop targeted SEO strategies that drive measurable growth in organic traffic and overall online presence.
For the clients i consult for, i use ROI as the core metric for SEO success. While i use organic sessions (GA), clicks (GSC), and conversions (GA) as secondary success metrics. I specialise in Service model businesses which makes ROI especially difficult to track, as compared to an E-commerce model. To track ROI for Service model businesses, I integrate website forms with a basic CRM, that the client then tracks their sales in. For successful lead -> close sales, the client inputs the value of the sale. While this takes time and effort from the client's side, it is ultimately the most valuable way in understanding the return on SEO efforts. Clients want to know that their money spent is resulting in money returned.
We use CallRail and AHREFS to track SEO efforts. This gives us and our clients a clear picture of how many calls and form leads they are receiving from SEO and how many more first page keywords resulted in our work vs when starting with them and documenting their current traction the time. Client can login at anytime to see calls, and we can provide a monthly ranking report or a report in real time on current SEO metrics via AHREFS
Every effort in marketing should tie back or through to revenue generation in some way. For SEO efforts, I look at the pipeline generated and supporting metrics such as close rates, days-to-close, and total ARR. Being able to tie efforts back to a hard dollar figure helps justify any investment. For simplicity’s sake, it’s easier to start with a last touch model, but quantifying SEO’s role in the full journey requires going beyond that. Having a marketing platform (like Hubspot as an example) that can give you better insight into the full customer journey will help you better quantify your efforts over time.
While ranking highly in organic search results is important and necessary for every business that wishes to attract custom from search engines, the click through rate (CTR) is a vital metric that can’t be overlooked. Here lies a challenge for most SEO efforts; including the most relevant keywords or search terms in the title tag and meta description, while making the title attractive, engaging and prompting clicks. Ranking at the top of Google page one serves no purpose if the title doesn’t appeal to the user and generates clicks to the website. Much of the data used for our SEO client reports is available through Google Analytics, which we integrate into Agency Analytics to provide, with other data sources, a comprehensive overview of analytics data, ranking positions and backlink data.
Beyond just measuring organic search traffic, it’s important to also look at other SEO-related metrics such as Keyword Rankings, Click-Through Rate (CTR), Backlinks, and Domain Authority to get a comprehensive view of your SEO performance. When it comes to reporting, using a tool like Google Data Studio can be very helpful. It allows you to create customizable and visually appealing reports that can pull in data from various sources including Google Analytics. You can create dashboards that highlight the most important metrics for your SEO efforts, making it easier to share and discuss results with stakeholders. While there are numerous metrics and tools available to measure and report SEO performance, Organic Search Traffic tracked via Google Analytics and reported through Google Data Studio stands out as a valuable combination for many SEO leaders.
In my role as an SEO leader, I find that a metric crucial to gauging the success of our SEO efforts is the growth in organic search traffic. Observing the steady expansion of organic traffic over time provides valuable insights into how well our tailored SEO strategies are performing. Personally, I heavily rely on Google Analytics as an indispensable tool in our SEO analysis toolbox. It allows me to closely monitor various aspects such as website traffic, user interactions, and conversion metrics. Alongside Google Analytics, we leverage other powerful SEO tools like SEMrush and Ahrefs, enabling us to conduct in-depth analyses, continually assess performance, and generate insightful reports. This personalized approach supports my commitment to making informed, data-driven decisions in steering our SEO initiatives.
The singular best metric to understand if SEO is successful for a business is the bottom line - is SEO returning a ROI? Your website could be ranking highly in Google for 100 keywords, could be getting thousands of clicks and getting many users interacting on your site. However, if eventually none of that returns an investment on your SEO spend (either working with an agency, or doing it in-house), then none of it matters.
At Digital Darts, the primary metric we emphasize when gauging the success of our SEO initiatives is the growth in organic traffic. While other metrics such as keyword rankings and domain authority are significant, they're means to an end. The true end goal is to increase visibility in search engines to drive more targeted traffic to our Shopify clients. An upward trend in organic visitors, particularly when aligned with strategic keywords that drive conversions, is a clear indicator that our SEO strategies are working effectively. We believe that data-driven decisions are the backbone of successful SEO campaigns. Using Looker Studio, create dashboards that tailor GA and GSC data to your needs. For instance, a report measures organic search performance of the website while deriving unique insights into what search queries and landing pages generate revenue. This ensures our strategies are always tailored to what's truly working, leading to continuous growth and improvement for clients
One metric I track regularly for SEO is the organic click through rate (organic CTR%). This measures the rate at which your organic search results are attracting traffic to your website and gives you an indication if your title tags and meta descriptions are aiding your efforts in customer acquisition. One tool I use to help track SEO metrics and easily create reports is SEMRush. The ability to create easily digestible reports for clients is essential for me in my SEO work.
After managing multiple enterprise SEO accounts, I've found that reporting on the client's desired search terms is the metric that client cares about most (unsurprisingly). However, it can be difficult to present to them positive results each month because rankings fluctuate. So you must add 3 important items you your reports to make sure each month is as positive as can be. 1. Technical improvements made 2. On page changes made (including content created and optimised copy for better conversions) 3. Backlinks attained. This is because in order to rank a website, it must be technically sound, with optimised content and have lots of backlinks. These 3 will move the needle forward.
In my SEO work, I prioritize organic web traffic, relevance, intent and positive ROI as a vital gauge of success, reflecting the significance and value of my content in search results. For customized reporting, I turn to Grafana, a versatile tool that enables the integration of data from diverse sources, allowing me to craft detailed, tailored dashboards. Together, these tools provide a holistic view of my SEO endeavors, guiding my strategies towards improved performance and higher search rankings. Also, I rely on Ahrefs for thorough backlink analysis and comprehensive keyword research. These efforts shed light on my website's authority and the competitive landscape.
I consider the click-through rate (CTR) from search engine results pages (SERPs) as a pivotal metric. A high CTR indicates that the meta titles and descriptions are effectively capturing the attention of users. To track and enhance this, I use Google Search Console. It provides detailed data on how often my pages appear in search results (impressions) and how often they're clicked on (clicks), allowing me to calculate the CTR. By analyzing and optimizing for higher CTR, I ensure that our content not only ranks well but also entices users to click through, driving more relevant traffic to the site.