How re-optimizing content drove 219% more traffic [success story]

The results:

• 345% increase in the total number of keywords each page ranks for.
• 664% increase in estimated monthly traffic value generated from the 5 pages.
• 219% increase in organic traffic to the 5 re-optimized articles.

The client and the problem

This story begins much like other stories we see on a daily basis. Our client in the ERP software solution space wasn’t seeing adequate returns from the content on their blog and needed to adjust their tactics to improve their presence in organic search.

In order to help, we knew we had to enhance the quality of the content on each page by improving its depth and relevance to our client’s target audience. It’s what today’s searcher (and Google for that matter) expects.

So where did we start?

With Brafton Search Performance Briefs. In short, these are data-led content briefs that maximize the likelihood of ranking for a target keyword and driving qualified traffic.

The solution

In order to generate results for the client on the organic front, we needed to first improve their target keyword positions to page 1 of SERPs. The difference in click-through rates between page 1 and page 2 is significant. If you’re not near the top of page 1, you’re basically invisible:

Our goal was to get them to page 1 and help them stay there.

First, we determined a set of articles to re-optimize with Search Performance Briefs. The selected articles had one major thing in common: They were positioned just off of the first page of Google for their target keyword.

Specifically, we looked for articles ranking between 11 and 25 for their target keyword. These articles were already ranking for the target keyword and they already had a chance to naturally build link equity, giving us a head start.

This, combined with the fact that these target keywords met a series of criteria (keyword difficulty, monthly search volume, CTR opportunity) meant the articles were worth the time and resource for re-optimization.

The results

Page-specific ranking improvements

So did we meet our goal for these articles?

Yep.

In every instance, the article jumped to the first page of Google after we re-optimized the content with a Search Performance Brief.

Number of Keywords Ranking (Per Page) Results

We’ve already looked at why page 1 rankings matter when it comes to improving CTR, but there are many other benefits to strong rankings.

Pages that rank higher in Google gain links at a faster rate.

They also start ranking for increasingly relevant “variant” keywords over time. In every instance (as we can see below), the re-optimized article increased the number of keywords it ranked for.

This is significant because the more keywords a page ranks for, the more traffic the page drives.. More keywords ranking = higher search visibility.

To recap, before our exercise, these 5 articles ranked for a total of 20 keywords. After re-optimizing the pieces with Search Performance Briefs, they rank for a total of 89 keywords. That’s a 345% increase, and over time that number will continue to grow.

Monthly Traffic Value (Per Page) Results

More keywords ranking = higher search visibility = more traffic to the site.

But what is this additional traffic really worth? Let’s take a look at just how much money the client is saving per month with their 5 re-optimized articles.

To do that, we’ll calculate how much the client would have to spend via PPC in order to generate the same amount of traffic to their site organically. This is a strong indicator of the commercial value and search intent of the keywords they rank for. Typically, higher buyer intent searches = higher PPC cost.

Prior to utilizing Search Performance Briefs, the client’s articles had an estimated monthly traffic value of $147. This is the amount of money they’d have to spend per month to see the same amount of traffic via the specific keywords they rank for, using PPC.

After we implemented Search Performance Briefs, their estimated monthly traffic value of these 5 pages has increased 664% for a monthly savings of nearly $1,200/month.

These savings will continue to stack up over time.

Organic Traffic Results

Next, we dove into Google Analytics to assess the increase in organic traffic to these pages.

To do this, we created an advanced segment to analyze the traffic coming solely from these 5 articles from Google.

In the 3 months after re-optimization, these 5 articles garnered 219% more organic traffic compared to the 3 months’ prior.

Not only are these articles appearing more frequently in SERPs because they’re ranking higher up on the page and for more keywords — they are actually bringing more traffic to the site.

Summary & Takeaways

These days it takes more than large quantities of keyword-stuffed content to land your business on the first page of Google. And if you’re not at the top of the first page, you’re practically invisible.

With time, research and data-backed tactics, we helped our client provide their readers (and Google) with quality content that, as a result, improved their organic search visibility and positioning on the web.

In short, it’s worth the time and effort to re-work the content you’ve got. Every single page matters.