Google Analytics 4
To see what visitors do on your site and which actions count as conversions.
Our approach
How we measure SEO ROI
We judge SEO by what it brings into your business, and we show you how we work that out each month.
The goal
Visitors don't pay invoices
A page can rank well and attract thousands of clicks from people who will never buy from you. Impressions, clicks and rankings are useful signs that SEO is working. On their own, they don't tell you whether it's paying for itself.
So we start with the question that matters to you: is SEO bringing in enquiries that turn into revenue, at a cost that makes sense? Everything we track points back to that.
What we track
The numbers that connect SEO to your bottom line
We still keep an eye on rankings and traffic, because they help explain why leads go up or down.
What we report on
- Leads: enquiries from organic search
- Phone calls: from people who found you on Google
- Form fills: contact, quote and booking forms
- Cost per lead: based on your SEO investment
- Revenue: from organic leads that became customers
Supporting signals
- Impressions
- Clicks
- Rankings
- Traffic
Useful for spotting problems and opportunities early. Never the goal on their own.
The tools we use
Well-known tools, so you can check the numbers yourself
Google Search Console
To see which searches bring people to your site.
Call tracking, where useful
To link phone enquiries back to search.
CRM and UTM tags
To follow a lead from first click to closed sale.
Setting a baseline
A fair starting point to measure from
Before we change anything, we record where you're starting from. That means checking that tracking works properly, then noting your current organic leads, calls, form fills and, where available, revenue from search.
If tracking is missing or broken, we fix that first. Without a reliable baseline, it's hard to say whether a later change came from SEO or from something else.
Your monthly report
Written for business owners
- Organic leads, calls and form fills against your baseline and last month
- Cost per lead from SEO
- Revenue linked to organic leads, where your sales data allows it
- What we worked on and why
- What we plan to do next month
The ROI formula
SEO ROI = (revenue from organic leads − cost of SEO) ÷ cost of SEO
EXAMPLE ONLY: made-up figures to show the maths. Not our pricing or a client result.
- Cost of SEO for the period: £2,000
- Revenue from customers who came through organic search: £5,000
- ROI = (£5,000 − £2,000) ÷ £2,000 = 1.5, or 150%
Some businesses prefer gross profit in place of revenue for a stricter view. We'll agree with you which to use.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
How soon can SEO show a return?
SEO usually takes time to build, and the timing depends on your market, competition and starting point. We give you a realistic view after reviewing your site, and your monthly report shows progress against your baseline.
What if I do not have a CRM?
We can still track leads, calls and form fills through Google Analytics 4 and call tracking. Linking leads to revenue is easier with a CRM or a simple sales record, and we can suggest a practical set-up.
Will I be able to see the data myself?
Yes. We use tools you can log in to, and we explain how each number in your report is calculated.
Find out what your website is bringing in now
Start with a free evaluation, which includes a check of whether your tracking shows where your leads come from.
It's free and there's no obligation.