How can your business measure the success of your SEO strategy?

Google has become so central to finding information in the modern world, that it has become its own verb. Is there some information you need to quickly locate? “Google it.” Such is Google’s predominance that people born after the year 2000 might struggle to conceive of a world without it. That’s why, most businesses rely, to a lesser or greater extent, on customers finding them on search engines. And that’s why, ranking high on Google can make or break a business.

In our previous blog, we went over some key insights to help businesses get their webpages ranked as high as possible for search engine results pages (SERPs), and we’ve also shared our top tips for those just starting out. These insights lay out general principles that, if followed, will boost your online visibility. But optimisation isn’t a one-time activity. It is an ongoing process. ROI can be slower. And naturally, it can be harder to gauge the full impact of a long-term strategy. So, how can you tell if your efforts to optimise are really working? 

This blog will explain which SEO metrics you should be tracking and why. By gaining valuable insights into the performance of your website and online strategy, you can hone your activities to drive further success.

What tools will I need?

You can access a huge amount of data and analytics about your search engine performance using free online tools. The two essential tools you need to get started are Google Search Console and Google Analytics. 

GOOGLE SEARCH CONSOLE

Google Search Console is an essential (and free) tool to support your SEO efforts. It provides valuable data and tools that focus on the performance of your website in Google's search results. 

GOOGLE ANALYTICS

Google Analytics 4 (GA4) is Google’s most up-to-date analytics platform that allows you to track and analyse user behaviour on your website.  It is already freely available and will be Google’s default analytics tool from July 1 2023. You should integrate GA4 with your existing Google Search Console.

COMBINING YOUR SEO TOOLS

You can also integrate GA4 with other SEO tools for additional functionalities. Some SEO tools that are well-loved by marketers include SEMrush, Moz, and Ahrefs. 

While some tools may overlap in functionality, they each differ, and you can explore and use a combination of tools, based on your specific needs and preferences.  To learn more about useful digital marketing tools, see our blog, 9 essential digital marketing tools you should start using yesterday.

Which metrics should I track?

1. ORGANIC TRAFFIC

Organic traffic refers to the number of visitors that come to a website through organic (non-paid) search engine results. By measuring organic traffic, you can understand how well your website is ranking in search engine results and therefore how effective SEO efforts are. Increasing organic traffic can lead to higher visibility, brand exposure, and potential conversions.

Google Analytics 4 (GA4) tracks organic traffic by default, allowing you to view the number of users who visited your website through organic search results.

2. KEYWORD RANKING

Keyword rankings refer to the position of a website or webpage in search engine results pages (SERPs) for a specific keyword or search query. Measuring keyword rankings allows you to monitor your business’s online visibility and competitiveness in search engines. By tracking keyword rankings, you can identify which keywords are performing well and optimise SEO strategies accordingly to improve visibility and attract more organic traffic.

Tools like Google Search Console, SEMrush, Moz, or Ahrefs can help track your keyword rankings and provide insights into search engine performance.

3. CLICK-THROUGH RATE (CTR)

This is the percentage of users who click on a specific link or advertisement compared to the total number of impressions. CTR is a crucial metric in SEO because it indicates how compelling and relevant a website's title tag and meta description are in attracting clicks from search engine users. By optimising these elements, you can improve their CTR, increase organic traffic, and potentially improve your business’s search engine rankings.

Google Search Console provides data on impressions and clicks, allowing you to calculate click-through rates. Additionally, some SEO tools offer click-through rate analysis, such as SEMrush's Organic Research tool.

4. ENGAGEMENT RATE

Engagement rate measures how actively users interact with a website's content. This metric can include various actions such as time spent on the website, page views, social media shares, comments, and likes. Monitoring engagement rate helps you assess the quality and relevance of your content. Higher engagement rates indicate that users find the content valuable, leading to increased brand exposure, improved SEO performance, and potential conversions.

Google Analytics, including GA4, provides metrics like average session duration, pages per session, and bounce rate to measure engagement.

5. CONVERSION RATE

Conversion rate is the percentage of website visitors who complete a desired action, such as making a purchase, signing up for a newsletter, or filling out a form. Measuring conversion rate allows you to assess the effectiveness of your website in turning visitors into customers or leads. By optimising your website design, content, and user experience based on conversion rate data, you can enhance your SEO efforts and improve the overall success of your online marketing campaigns.

Google Analytics, including GA4, allows you to set up conversion goals and track conversions. E-commerce platforms like Shopify or WooCommerce may also offer built-in conversion tracking.

6. BACKLINKS

These are links from external websites that direct users to a particular webpage. Backlinks are a vital SEO metric as search engines consider them as a vote of confidence for a website's content. Websites with high-quality backlinks from authoritative sources are more likely to rank higher in search engine results. By monitoring backlinks, you can identify opportunities for link-building, improve your website's authority, and enhance your SEO performance.

Tools like Ahrefs, Moz, SEMrush, or Majestic provide comprehensive backlink analysis and monitoring features.

7. PAGE LOAD SPEED

The page load speed is the time it takes for a webpage to fully load and display its content. Page load speed is crucial for user experience and SEO. Search engines, like Google, consider fast-loading websites as a positive ranking factor. Additionally, users tend to abandon slow-loading websites, resulting in higher bounce rates and lower engagement. By optimising page load speed, you can improve user experience, increase organic traffic, and enhance your search engine rankings.

Google PageSpeed Insights, GTmetrix, or Pingdom are popular tools to measure and analyse page load speed.

8. MOBILE

With the increasing use of mobile devices for browsing the internet, mobile optimisation has become critical for SEO. Mobile metrics involve measuring the performance of a website on mobile devices, including factors like mobile responsiveness, mobile site speed, and mobile user experience. Optimising for mobile can helps your business reach a larger audience, improve user satisfaction, and positively impact search engine rankings, as search engines prioritise mobile-friendly websites in their mobile search results.

Google's Mobile-Friendly Test tool can help determine if your website is mobile-friendly. 

Final thoughts

By tracking these key metrics, you can hone your digital strategy to improve the online visibility of your website, and therefore your business.

Measuring these metrics helps you improve your SEO activities by empowering you to:

• Identify performance gaps
• Measure effectiveness
• Benchmark against competitors
• Spot trends & patterns
• Refine your content strategy 
• Improve user experience
• Empower data-driven decision-making

An experienced digital marketer can help steer your online activities with strategies that align with your own business needs and priorities. If you would like to chat with one of our digital marketing experts, contact us today.