SEO success is defined by many moving parts, and although SEO is an umbrella term, we have the ability to measure a number of different areas to determine whether or not your marketing efforts are making waves. With your end goal in mind, there are some key performance indicators that, when monitored, will measure both your SEO wins and losses.
So which metrics should you focus your attention on?
Your Search Rankings
How well your website ranks is an obvious measure of how well your SEO is doing, but not all search terms are created equal. It’s important to know if the keywords you’re trying to rank for are the right ones. Choosing terms that are too competitive can make it hard for your website to move up the ladder. Conversely, it’s important to remember that ranking first in the search results doesn’t mean anything if nobody is clicking your result. Working on a list of terms that are attainable will get you faster results and more traffic.
Organic Traffic
When it comes to SEO objectives, high organic traffic is at the top of the list, as it is, generally, in line with your primary SEO goal – to increase the number of visitors who see and visit your site.
It is important to look at your organic traffic reports to get a true sense of how your SEO is doing across all of the different search engines, not just Google.
Measuring organic traffic will give you an indication of the amount of time people spend on your site, the number of visitors, and how many pages were visited. Identifying this will help you diagnose which pages are working, and which can benefit from things like a better keyword strategy, UX design, ALT text, sitemaps, redirects.
Search Engine Visibility
is a crucial metric that gauges how frequently your website appears in search engine results pages (SERPs) based on the keywords it ranks for. Essentially, it tells you whether your site is on the first page or buried deeper in the results.
The Number of High-Quality Links
While the quantity of backlinks matters, quality is paramount. Not all links are equal. Here’s why:
- Avoid Low-Quality Links: Low-quality backlinks won’t boost your site’s authority and can harm your rankings. These might come from spammy or irrelevant sources.
- Favor High-Quality Backlinks: Google values authoritative links from reputable websites. These contribute significantly to building domain authority. Aim for quality over quantity.
- Track Link Authority Index: Regularly assess the quality of your backlinks. Tools like Ahrefs or MOZlink Explorer provide insights into your website’s authority index and the effectiveness of your high-quality links.
Remember, the higher your link authority index, the more visible you’ll be in organic search results. Prioritize quality over quantity when building your backlink profile.
Conversions
Ultimately, the success of your SEO efforts lies in conversions. Ask yourself:
- Are users clicking your links?
- Are they signing up for newsletters?
- Are they making purchases?
- Are appointments being booked through your website?
These actions indicate whether your strategies are effective. Regularly analyze conversion data to fine-tune your SEO approach and achieve your goals.
Google Analytics is a powerful tool that, when set up properly, can help you monitor important metrics in SEO. It requires knowledge in filters and set up but once you can sort through its mass library of data, it will allow you to extract numbers that will help you immensely in your marketing strategy.
