How do you report SEO ROI?

1 Define your goals and KPIs

Before you can report SEO ROI, you need to define your goals and key performance indicators (KPIs) for your SEO campaign. Your goals should be specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART). Your KPIs should be aligned with your goals and reflect the metrics that matter most to your business. For example, if your goal is to increase organic traffic, your KPIs could be sessions, users, bounce rate, and average session duration. If your goal is to generate more leads, your KPIs could be conversions, conversion rate, and cost per lead.

2 Track your costs and revenue

To calculate SEO ROI, you need to track your costs and revenue from your SEO campaign. Your costs include the expenses you incur to plan, execute, and monitor your SEO strategy, such as tools, software, agency fees, salaries, and overhead. Your revenue includes the income you generate from your SEO campaign, such as sales, subscriptions, ad clicks, or donations. You can use tools like Google Analytics, Google Search Console, and Google Tag Manager to track your revenue and attribute it to your SEO sources.

3 Choose your formula and timeframe

There are different ways to calculate SEO ROI, depending on your goals and preferences. One common formula is:

SEO ROI = (Revenue from SEO - Cost of SEO) / Cost of SEO x 100%

This formula gives you the percentage of profit or loss from your SEO campaign relative to your cost. Another formula is:

SEO ROI = Revenue from SEO / Cost of SEO

This formula gives you the ratio of revenue to cost from your SEO campaign. You can also use other formulas that factor in customer lifetime value, profit margin, or opportunity cost.

Whichever formula you choose, you need to decide on a timeframe for your calculation. SEO is a long-term investment that can take months or years to show results. Therefore, you should choose a timeframe that reflects the maturity and seasonality of your SEO campaign, such as quarterly, yearly, or custom.

4 Create and share your report

Once you have calculated your SEO ROI, it is important to create a clear, concise, and compelling report to share with clients or stakeholders. This report should include an executive summary of the main findings, a breakdown of goals, KPIs, costs, and revenue, a comparison with benchmarks or industry standards, a visualization of data, and a list of recommendations and action items. To create the report, you can use tools such as Google Data Studio, Excel, or PowerPoint. Additionally, templates or examples from online sources can be used as guidance. It is important to share the report with clients or stakeholders regularly (e.g., monthly, quarterly, or annually) and solicit their feedback and questions. Reporting SEO ROI is a key skill for any digital marketer who wants to demonstrate the value and impact of their SEO efforts. By following these steps, you can measure and communicate your SEO ROI effectively and confidently.

5 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?