Indicators to Measure The Results Of Your Digital Strategy

On every web page, it is necessary to carry out continuous improvement actions to attract quality traffic, increase visibility and capture the attention of new customers. That is precisely what search engine optimization, better known as SEO (Search Engine Optimization), is all about. Well, it is a Digital Strategy focused on making a web page.

SEO

On every web page, it is necessary to carry out continuous improvement actions to attract quality traffic, increase visibility and capture the attention of new customers. That is precisely what search engine optimization, better known as SEO (Search Engine Optimization), is all about. Well, it is a strategy focused on making a web page appear in the first results of search engines such as Google, Yahoo!, or Bing. However, to be successful, it is not enough to execute; it is also essential to analyze and understand the SEO metrics. These allow you to monitor the results and evaluate a website's performance.

Likewise, they are crucial to monitor the evolution of the strategy and determine its effectiveness. It is based on a series of quality guidelines and relevant factors for search engines. Then, through a careful analytical process, it will be possible to correct errors and make correct decisions. Therefore, here we will talk about 15 SEO metrics to analyze the performance of your website and improve your organic positioning strategy.

What are SEO Metrics

To begin with, it is essential to clarify what we mean when we talk about SEO metrics. These parameters or values allow you to monitor and compare optimization actions in search engines. Therefore, they provide a global perspective of the state of a website. All optimization actions are aimed at achieving specific objectives and must be measured to determine what percentage they contribute to it.

For this, KPIs for SEO (key performance indicators) must also be defined and monitored. These are measurable values ​​that indicate the performance and effectiveness of the strategy. It may seem that metrics and KPIs refer to the same thing, but this is not entirely accurate. While it is true that both are quantifiable measures that are tracked in an SEO process, they have different characteristics.

KPIs And Metrics Difference

First, the KPIs align with the strategic objectives and allow us to know if these have been met. In other words, they measure the performance of the actions against the goals in a range of time and are essential to determine if the process is successful or not. For their part, metrics are data derived from the strategy but are not necessarily indicators of its success. They allow optimizing and improving the SEO process, but more is needed to determine if the objectives have been achieved.

In this sense, metrics are not KPIs, as they are quantifiable parameters that allow SEO results to be tracked. They are used to track the status of the process, but some of them need to be indicators of its effectiveness. On the other hand, all the KPIs are metrics since they are measurable values ​​that are obtained when performing SEO actions. In summary, with KPIs, it is possible to define the essential metrics to determine if an SEO strategy is effective.

How To Measure The SEO of a Web Page

Since we have delved into the definition of SEO metrics and KPIs, it is time to get down to business and explain how to track these parameters. So if you have a website and want to know how SEO is measured, you should start by identifying and defining the objectives of your strategy. Then, you can determine what you need to track based on fulfilling those objectives. The point is that there are dozens of metrics, but there is no standard list of those relevant to all companies or projects.

In this sense, SEO objectives vary according to the type of website (e-commerce, blog, corporate website, directory, etc.), its functions, the need to which it responds, and business goals. Therefore, monitoring SEO metrics must be based on these factors, in addition to being carried out according to the evolution of the strategy. It is pertinent to mention some of the critical tools with which it is possible to monitor the results and follow up on the process. These tools allow you to know relevant metrics about a website and its performance in search engines. Let's see what this is about:

Search Console

Search Console is a free service from Google that allows you to monitor and monitor the appearance of a website in the search results pages (SERPs), so it works to find and resolve technical errors related to its performance. In addition, it helps to understand and improve how Google sees and perceives the site. Among its main functionalities are: This is an essential tool for obtaining SEO metrics, as it provides vital data to improve organic positioning. In the same way, it helps make timely decisions regarding the operation of a website and its presence in search results.

Google Analytics

This is another of Google's free tools and the most recognized and used to obtain SEO metrics. Since it provides statistical data and KPIs about the traffic and behavior of users on a website. And this allows the analysis and monitoring of the results of the optimization strategy in search engines. Google Analytics can also be integrated with other Google services like Ads and Search Console. Furthermore, it is ideal for monitoring the profile of users who access a website and the most visited sections, access devices, geographic location, conversions, and many more factors.

SEMrush

SEMRush is an all-in-one SEO tool that has become popular for analyzing and comparing results. It is used to obtain many metrics about the positioning of a website in search results. It's also great for backlink analysis, domain data, and technical SEO audits. There it is possible to study various factors such as SEMrush has a free version that allows you to obtain a basic overview of the website since it limits many of its functions. On the other hand, it also offers different paid plans with significant advantages.

SEO metrics and indicators are essential to understand the behavior of a website, as well as to determine the effectiveness of the actions carried out and improve the optimization process. Therefore, here are 15 essential SEO metrics to monitor and measure the results of your strategy.

Indexing Status

We know that SEO is oriented to the execution of actions to improve the positioning of a website in the search results. Therefore, having a fast site with good content and attractive design is only valid if it can be seen and crawled by Google. This is precisely what indexing refers to, for Google robots (crawlers) to find the web, analyze it, and store its information in the search engine index.

The indexing process is not automatic in all cases, so specific basic steps must be carried out for Google to crawl a website, such as creating a site map or sitemap. The file contains all the URLs that make up the website ordered hierarchically. Likewise, it is necessary to create a robots.txt file, whose function is to indicate to Google which pages and contents of the site it should crawl and which not.

There are several ways to check and monitor if a website has been indexed. First, by typing in the search engine the command " site:mywebsite.com," where "mywebsite.com" is the home page URL without the http:// or https:// prefix. This allows you to get an idea of ​​the URLs of the site that have been indexed. 

The other way is through the Google Search Console tool in the index coverage report. There, the status of all the website URLs concerning the Google index is shown. This is what the indexing status looks like in the Search Console dashboard:

Positioned Keywords

Monitoring keywords is one of the essential SEO metrics to validate a website's performance in the search engine. Well, it allows you to analyze how you are positioned with respect to specific queries and in relation to the competition. Remember that keywords (keywords) refer to the terms or phrases that users search for to find certain content.

Therefore, a website must be optimized based on a study of keywords related to the niche or sector of interest. This study can be done with Google's Keyword Planner tool, which allows you to find the keywords —and their search volume— that work best for a website according to what users are looking for. So, several steps can be followed to analyze this metric and verify the positioning of the keywords of a web page. The first and most elementary is manually making the queries in the search engine. So you can see on what page and position of Google results your site is. Then, through the Search Console, it is possible to find data about the performance of the website in relation to the keywords of interest. Well, the tool shows what are the main queries for which users have found the site in the search results. In addition, it allows you to know the number of clicks. Received and the average position in which it appears for each keyword. All this for specific periods of time.

Visibility In The SERPs

As we have seen, the SERPs (Search engine page results) are the search results. Precisely, the index of positioned websites appears when specific searches are carried out. Therefore, having visibility there is the first indication that a website works, in addition to being the starting point to optimize performance and take actions to position yourself in the first search results.

Visibility in the SERPs is closely related to the previous metrics since they are a way of monitoring it. However, other visibility parameters can also be tracked. This is because the SERPs have certain features that allow you to obtain extra visibility. Some of them are:

Featured Snippets: These are concise answers to a search for a keyword. These appear above the first organic position and are also known as the zero position. Knowledge panel: These are graphics that offer detailed information about a keyword. News: When searching, in addition to the organic results, the search engine shows various featured news. In this sense, this SEO metric aims to determine the number of users who see a website in the search results. The way they see it is its appearance in the search engine.

Organic traffic

Organic traffic is one of the determining SEO metrics to monitor the progress of a positioning strategy. This provides data about the flow of visits received throughout the website through search results. This means that users have found and clicked on the site by making specific queries that include the keywords. Therefore, measuring organic traffic makes it possible to obtain an insight into the pages of the site and the keywords on which you should focus, work or improve.

It is important to note that monitoring the number of visits the site receives is not enough. Also, you should pay attention to other indicators such as the number of new users, the country where the traffic comes from, the duration of the visits, etc. And analyze all this data together to determine whether or not the objectives are being met.

For this, you can make use of Google Analytics and Search Console. Both tools provide data about the percentage of organic traffic received in a given period and information on the internal pages that are getting this traffic.

CTR (click-through rate)

CTR (click-through rate) refers to the percentage of clicks a website gets from search results (SERPs). This metric is calculated concerning impressions: the number of times the site is displayed in the search engine when making a query. To sum it up, the following formula is applied: (Number of clicks/number of impressions) * 100. For example, if your website received 50 clicks and appeared 200 times in the SERPs, the CTR, in this case, would be (50 / 200) * 100 = 25%.

formula-ctr

This SEO metric is handy for studying the percentage of impressions that convert into user visits. In addition, it evaluates how attractive the web's appearance is in the search engine. That is, if the title, the meta description, and the URL manage to capture the attention of the user performing the search. Optimization actions can be carried out, and work on achieving some SERPs functionalities to increase CTR. For its part, Search Console allows you to view the average CTR in a given period, as well as the total clicks and impressions received on a website.

Conversion Rate

This is one of the fundamental SEO metrics in a results analysis process, especially for e-commerce sites. However, it is also essential for sites or blogs that offer downloadable content, subscriptions, or any resource that implies that the user buys or becomes a customer. Therefore, its tracking lets you know what percentage of the traffic received is converted into leads. That is, in users who show interest and become potential customers who generate an action or a transaction on the website.

The conversion rate is a metric strongly related to the achievement of objectives. Therefore, the user's actions must be defined (buy, subscribe, leave data, contact, etc.). So it is essential that from the beginning of the process clear and accurate objectives are established that benefit both the user and the SEO strategy. Conversion rate tracking can be done using Google Analytics. The platform allows you to set goals and monitor the percentage of users who perform some action and generate conversions on the site. Similarly, it has indicators for electronic commerce.

Time Spent On The Site

This metric refers to the time a user's session lasts on a website, that is, the period in which they interact with it. Thus, it allows analyzing whether the web content responds to the user's needs and search intention. In this sense, the dwell time indicator is related to the level of engagement of the page. A long session means the user found valuable information that caught her attention. Within the Google Analytics panel, it is possible to monitor users' time on the web. Likewise, it lets you view your behavior and which internal pages interest you.

Bounce Rate

Some SEO metrics, such as bounce rate and dwell time, work better when analyzed together. First, let's clarify that bounce rate refers to the number of users who enter and leave a website. This is after a very short stay and without interaction , that is, without visiting other pages or sections of the site.

So, this metric allows us to study the factors that influence user abandonment. For example, unattractive design, usability difficulties, accessibility problems, irrelevant content, etc. In this order of ideas, if someone enters a website and leaves it without interacting, that visit is a bounce. However, there are specific scenarios that can determine if the rebound is something negative or not; let's see two of them:

User 1 enters the website, quickly reviews the content, and leaves after a few seconds. User 2 enters, stays on the entry page, reads the content for several minutes without interacting with another section, and then leaves the site. Both cases represent a bounce, but the dwell time plays a crucial role, as it makes the difference between the quality of the two sessions. User 2 did find information that responded to her search intention.

This is not to say you should ignore the bounce rate; of course, you do! Because the higher it is, the more it will affect the positioning. But the idea is to work together with the residence time so that you will obtain more reliable metrics. In Google Analytics, you can find data regarding the bounce rate of all the pages of your website.

Backlinks

The external links or backlinks that point to a website or backlinks are a decisive factor for its

positioning in the SERPs. Well, they determine the domain's authority and can mean an increase in the ranking in the results or receive a penalty. This depends on the quality of the links and whether they meet the search engine guidelines. Consequently, it is essential that you monitor your website's backlinks to analyze and evaluate if it is necessary to get or buy quality links to improve the link-building strategy.

This is crucial, as the quality of the links indicates how much link juice is transferred to a web page. How much relevance and authority are these links transmitting to the website? To monitor backlinks, you can use several tools and cross the data provided by each one in order to obtain more complete metrics. To begin with, in the Google Search Console, you will find the total number of links that point to your website and the pages that are most referenced. Additionally, SEMrush has a tool that allows you to view the number and type of backlinks and link attributes.

Referral Traffic

From SEO metrics to track the flow of visits and also related to backlinks. Since referred traffic is received when a user reaches a website through an external link. For example, a social media post, news story, or blog article with a link to the web. So then, this metric allows for evaluating the effectiveness of link-building and content marketing. Its monitoring is done through Google Analytics. There are data such as the number of users, bounce rate, session duration, etc., focused explicitly on referred traffic.

The loading speed is a vital parameter in the SEO process and in the user experience. It refers to the time it takes a website to load all its content, functionalities, and resources at the time a user enters. This factor directly affects the bounce rate and the conversion rate. It is because a slow website increases the chances of abandonment by users.

Additionally, a web page must not only be fast on computers but also pay special attention to performance on mobile devices. Since 2018, Google has established loading speed as a determining factor to gain positions in search results.

With all this, the same search engine offers a tool that carefully details all the elements that influence a site's speed. This is PageSpeed Insights, there you can check the performance of your page in its desktop and mobile version. The tool manages ranges of 0–49 (to improve), 50–89 (regular), and 90–100 (good).

Authority And Quality Of The Website

There are several SEO metrics to indicate the authority of a domain and to determine how effective its positioning will be. These should be monitored sparingly as their results are more long-term. However, it is necessary to track them from time to time in order to monitor progress and propose improvement actions.

These metrics are the domain and page authority (developed by MOZ) and the flow of mentions and trust (created by Majestic); let's see them in detail: Domain Authority (DA): This is a ranking score from 1 to 100 that predicts the likelihood of a website ranking in the SERPs. This, according to the evaluation of the domain. Page Authority (PA): This score is from 1 to 100, but it predicts how well a site page will rank. Trust flow (TF – trust flow): Score from 0 to 100 that measures the reliability of a website according to the quality of the sites that link to it. Citation flow (CF – the flow of mentions): Qualifies the strength of a website from 0 to 100 based on the number of links (external and internal) that point to it.

Exit Page

As its name indicates, it is the metric with which the pages through which users leave the site are monitored. That is the last section a visitor was in before leaving the web. Therefore, analyzing whether your search intent was answered and whether the conversion objectives were met is beneficial.

With this information, improving navigability and optimizing the user's journey on the site will be possible. It is to guide you more accurately toward the conversion. To track this SEO metric, you must also use Google Analytics. There you will see, in addition to the pages, the general percentage of exits and the number of entries in each section.

New Users vs Recurring Users

The percentage of new users and recurring users is an indicator that works to study how the audience responds to the SEO strategy. On the one hand, we have new users who have found the website for the first time. Then, the recurring users have entered at least once in the last two years and returned with some intention.

Said information can be analyzed with the traffic sources to determine which channels the site has the most significant impact and best performance. Likewise, you can improve and optimize the strategy for those without. You can access a complete report with this data in Google Analytics

Visibility and performance on mobile devices

We end our list of SEO metrics with a parameter that has gained significant relevance thanks to the digital revolution. And it is not for less if nearly 90% of all searches from mobile devices globally come from Google. Therefore, correct functionality and mobile website visibility are vital to positioning themselves in search results.