Monitor SEO progress – Basic ROI analysis every site owner should know

Benny July 23, 2012 0 comments

Wow, time flies! It’s hard to believe it’s been 12 years since I first wrote about SEO and how businesses can track their progress. Yes, site owners need to Monitor SEO progress all the time – that doesn’t change. I even gave it a little update back in 2016 (remember when Universal Analytics was all the rage? ). But the digital world moves fast, and it’s time for another refresh! This is an update from the end of 2024.

As I revisited my old post (you can see that at the bottom), it was like opening a time capsule. Some things felt endearingly familiar (like the emphasis on Google Analytics and conversion rates), while others were hilariously outdated (ah, the simpler days of keyword density and meta tags!).

But one thing remains constant: the need for businesses to understand and measure their SEO success. So, let’s dive into how you can do that in 2024, with a blend of nostalgia and cutting-edge insights:

1. From Google Analytics to GA4: A New Era of Data

Remember when Google Analytics was this revolutionary tool that gave us unprecedented access to website data? Well, get ready for Google Analytics 4 (GA4), its even more powerful successor!

GA4 is like the cool, upgraded version of our old friend. It’s got a sleek new interface, tracks user engagement in more detail (scroll depth, anyone?), and even lets you analyze cross-platform behavior (website and app!). And the best part? Enhanced Measurement automatically tracks events like outbound clicks and video engagement – no more fiddling with code!

2. Conversions Still Reign Supreme: The Power of CRO

Back in the day, we talked about setting goals in Google Analytics to track conversions. Well, that hasn’t changed! Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO) is still king (or queen!).

But now, we have even more sophisticated tools and techniques to help us turn traffic into customers. Think A/B testing different headlines and images, personalizing landing pages, and using heatmaps to see where users are clicking (or not clicking!).

3. Beyond Rankings: Decoding the Mystery of Search Intent

Remember when we obsessed over keyword rankings? While rankings are still important, they’re not the whole story. In 2024, it’s all about understanding search intent.

Google wants to give users exactly what they’re looking for. So, we need to go deeper with our keyword research, craft content that satisfies different search intents (informational, navigational, transactional), and even optimize for those coveted featured snippets. Oh, and don’t forget about voice search! “Hey Google, find me the best SEO blog post!”

4. Know Your Audience (Better Than Ever!)

Even back then, we knew that understanding your target audience was crucial. But now, GA4 gives us even richer insights into who our visitors are, what they like, and where they’re coming from.

This means we can tailor our content with laser precision, create personalized experiences, and even discover new market opportunities. It’s like having a crystal ball that shows us exactly what our audience wants!

5. The Ever-Evolving World of SEO

One thing I’ve learned over the years is that SEO never stands still. Algorithms change, new technologies emerge, and user behavior evolves. That’s what makes it so exciting!

So, keep learning, keep experimenting, and keep adapting. Follow industry blogs, try out new SEO tools, and never stop analyzing your data. The journey of SEO is an ongoing adventure!

It’s been fun revisiting this old blog post and seeing how far we’ve come. I hope this updated version provides you with valuable insights and a touch of nostalgia as you navigate the exciting world of SEO in 2025!

---

Here is the old blog written in 2012 For your reference, Read at your risk. 🙂

We all know SEO can do wonders for a business and even a non-brick and mortar firm can rake in huge money. And even for busineSEOss owners who tops in conventional business strategies, SEO can definitely help improve their business. For many small-scale businesses, SEO has become the life saver. And with the introduction of features like Google places business owners who were invincible before SEO giants sprung up and made huge profits in their business. Mostly for small scale business, SEO firms promote the websites and whether the SEO campaign is a success or a failure,  it is necessary for the business owner to know whether the SEO campaign succeeded or not. There are certain features that the business owners need to know  the SEO companies who manage their business website.

1. Google Analytics:

This is one of the most fabulous tools provided by Google. Even a site’s hosting company to provide such details  will charge thousands of dollars, but the most interesting part  is that it’s absolutely free. Just a piece of code creates magic. Google analytics provides complete details such as the visitors, pages visits, Demographic details, and time spent on the website, most visited pages on the site etc. By default, Google analytics provides the above details for the past 30 days from the current date but the beauty of is the comparison of the above details between two different periods of time because Google analytics completely stores  all the above data from the date the code was added to the website. E-commerce websites product performance data and sales revenue details can also be detected using Google analytics.

2. Conversion Rate:

Search engine optimizers often boost their performance by quoting the number of keywords they have achieved top rankings, the amount of traffic they have brought to the website and so on. On the contrary, business owners will never even bother to hear all of the above SEO success stuff unless some business is generated out of their website.In Google analytics, goals can be set on contact page where websites normally have the contact form; phone number and contact email address  displayed. Even goals can be set on a “Thanks” page that appears after a user completes the contact form in websites. This way the conversion ratio can be determined and the business owners can measure the success of SEO and can make suitable adjustments with regard to landing page optimization.

3. SERP:

Search engine ranking position (SERP) is the most important factor in organic SEO success. Only for the improvement in these keywords, SEO is actually done. While optimizing a business website for the search engines (It may be any business), it would be better to get certain important business core keywords from the business owners and based on the keyword count, suitable modifications can be done later. The synchronization between the business website and keywords is highly important and Google also weighs this factor in the name of keyword relevancy. A regular progress of the business keywords (provided initially by the business owners) should be updated to them (Monthly/ weekly). This way the business owners can directly measure the site performance.

4. Target Audience and Market:

The target audience and target market vary from Business to business. So it’s highly important to provide certain details such as the demography of the traffic. If the traffic is high but the inquiries are not convertible, then the business owners can change their business content / pricing for that particular target market to increase the revenues.The above said factors are the basic factors that every site owner needs to know otherwise whatever stats the SEO firms show them it’s just Greek and Latin for them.

 

(Blog updated on 13thJuly 2016)