Calculating the Return On Investment of B2B SEO

Marketing ROI is a top-of-mind concern for many teams. Digital marketing campaigns are easier to track and measure than virtually any other marketing project, but ambiguity can still creep in. When executives are unclear on the value marketing adds, it may be difficult to secure the resources you need. One of the areas where this pops up most frequently is B2B SEO.

Lots of things happen behind the scenes in SEO, and even the most savvy marketer can’t always piece it all together in total detail. However, ROI is easy to quantify and measure if you use the right data.

A Simple Process for Measuring B2B SEO ROI

There are lots of complicated schemes for figuring out SEO ROI.

While many of these may work out in the end, they have one major disadvantage: The more steps there are, the less likely anyone is to stick to it, and the more likely there’ll be mistakes.

Next time you need to report SEO ROI, use this approach:

b2b seo roi

Set up Conversion Tracking

Any modern analytics suite offers a wide range of ways to define and track conversions. Luckily, Google Analytics comes packed with features that make it easier. There are two major kinds of built-in conversion tracking approaches: E-commerce and lead generation.

The e-commerce tracking option has the advantage of highlighting total number of transactions, total revenue, average order rate, and many other useful statistics on top of conversions.

On the other hand, lead generation requires you to set up custom goals that allow Google to recognize conversions as they happen throughout your site. Each can include a dollar value.

Determine the Value of Your Web Traffic

This takes three steps:

  • Determine how many leads convert into sales by dividing sales by number of leads.
  • Determine average sale value: Add up all sales revenue, then divide by number of sales.
  • Determine the value of a lead by dividing total value of conversions by number of leads.

Sort Conversions by Channel

With the figures above, you’ll understand the average value of a lead and a sale across all digital channels. Using Google Analytics, you can sort the data to highlight organic search users – those attracted by the fruits of your SEO efforts.

Use the Conversions report: Conversions > Multi-Channel Funnels > Assisted Conversions.

Select Conversions from here and then click the Organic Search selector to isolate the data.

Calculate ROI Based on Monthly B2B SEO Spend

A simple formula for comparing SEO costs to raw SEO revenue is:

  • Revenue minus cost.
  • That solution divided by cost.
  • That solution multiplied by 100.

This gives you your ROI as a percentage. Wow!

Combining these techniques with the right data, your SEO ROI will always be crystal clear.