We all love to see our website inches up the Google rankings. But seeing that traffic spike is only the first step in a successful SEO strategy. The juicy bit, the stuff that makes SEO worth it, happens after that click. Do those visitors stick around? Do they engage with your site? And most importantly, do they become paying customers or valuable leads?
Understanding what your hard-earned organic traffic does after landing on your site is the secret sauce to truly understanding SEO’s worth. And you don’t need to be a data scientist to figure it out. With Google Analytics 4 (GA4), you can start seeing the real impact of your SEO and measure ROI with a few straightforward steps. Let’s dive in!
Step 1: Finding Your SEO Landing Pages
Where to look:
- Head over to Reports in the left sidebar.
- Click to expand Engagement.
- Select Landing Page.
- Click that little “Add filter” button at the top.
- Choose Session source from the dropdown.
- Select includes and type in organic. Hit the Apply button.
What you’ll uncover:
This report now shows you the exact web pages that are the entry points for visitors coming straight from search engines like Google. These are your landing pages, the first impression many potential customers have of your business.
Why it matters:
An online garden furniture shop might find their “Rattan Garden Sofas” category page is a top organic landing page. This indicates that people searching for this specific type of outdoor seating are finding your website. Now you can focus on making sure that the page not only looks great but also clearly highlights the features of each set, unique selling points, and has a super-easy “Add to Cart” button.
Step 2: Seeing What Visitors Do Next
Where to look:
- Click on Explore in the left-hand menu.
- Choose Path exploration.
- Click the little pencil icon next to that “Starting point” box
- Select the dimension Landing page + query string.
- Pick one of those key landing pages you spotted in Step 1 as your starting point. Hit Apply.
What you’ll see:
This is where GA4 visually maps out the journeys users take after landing on that specific page from organic search. You’ll see where they click next, what other pages they browse, and whether they eventually head towards your conversion goals (like that product purchase or contact form).
Why it matters:
Consider a garden furniture retailer whose “Garden Benches” page attracts significant organic traffic. The Path Exploration report might reveal that many users then navigate to specific product pages for wooden benches or metal benches, or they might visit the “Garden Furniture Sets” category page. This suggests users are exploring related items after their initial search. However, if there’s a high drop-off after the category page, it could indicate that the product listings aren’t appealing or the filtering options aren’t intuitive.
Step 3: Diagnosing Drop-Offs and U-Turns
What to look for:
- Many visitors hit that back button immediately after landing (high bounce rate).
- Users endlessly circling between the same few pages without a clear path to conversion.
- Significant numbers of people are abandoning the site at a particular stage.
What this tells you:
These “roadblocks” in the user journey highlight potential issues such as:
Content isn’t hitting the mark: Maybe the content on the landing page isn’t what people expected, or it’s not compelling enough to keep them engaged.
User experience (UX) isn’t optimised: Perhaps the navigation is confusing, the page layout is cluttered, or your calls-to-action are hidden or unclear
Why it matters:
An online garden furniture store sees a high bounce rate on their “Outdoor Cushions” landing page from organic search. Analysing the page reveals that the cushion sizes and materials aren’t clearly stated at the top, forcing users to scroll extensively for basic information. Improving the clarity of this information could significantly reduce the bounce rate and encourage further browsing.
Step 4: Connecting the Dots to Real Business Impact – SEO’s Real Contribution
Where to look:
- Head back to Explore.
- Choose Funnel exploration.
- Click that pencil icon to edit the funnel steps.
- Now, let’s build your conversion story. Start with a Landing Page (and remember to filter it for “organic” traffic like in Step 1). Then, add a Key Page (this could be a product page, a pricing page, a contact form page – this is a key step towards your goal). Finally, add your Conversion Event. This is the ultimate action you want them to take, like a form submission or a purchase confirmation.
What you’ll finally see:
This report reveals how many of those organic search visitors are actually completing those key business actions. You’ll see the conversion rate at each stage of your funnel, showing you the direct impact SEO is having on your bottom line.
Why it matters:
A garden furniture e-commerce site sets up a funnel starting with their “Wooden Garden Furniture” category page (organic traffic), followed by a product detail page view, and ending with a purchase. The Funnel Exploration report shows that while a good number of users land on the category page, there’s a significant drop-off before they even view a product. This highlights a potential issue with the category page itself – perhaps the product previews aren’t engaging enough, or the filtering options are limited. Addressing this could lead to a direct increase in sales attributed to organic search.
Bonus Tip: Make the Numbers Work for You!
GA4 is a treasure trove of insights waiting to be turned into action.
- See a high bounce rate on a key organic landing page? Dig into the content. Is it answering the searcher’s query? Is the page easy to read? Is the call-to-action clear?
- Notice a lot of drop-offs on your contact form page from organic traffic? Maybe the form is too long or asking for too much information. Simplify it!
- Spot that organic traffic converts really well on a specific product page? Analyse what makes that page so effective – is it the compelling product description, the high-quality images, or the clear pricing? Try to replicate those elements on other product pages.
SEO shouldn’t be a mysterious black box. It’s a powerful engine for growth when you understand how it’s contributing to your business objectives. GA4 gives you the power to move beyond just traffic numbers and see the true impact of your efforts.
Making sense of all this GA4 data can feel overwhelming. KD Digital helps businesses simplify the process, uncover meaningful insights, and better understand the return they’re getting from SEO. Get in touch, and we’ll help you turn data into valuable insights.