Believe it or not, almost 76% of marketing budgets are wasted on campaigns that go nowhere. Businesses just fail to track and measure their campaigns properly, leading to resource draining and opportunities lost.
Companies that rely on SEO have an even larger challenge to face. What happens with leads that come through offline channels, like phone calls?
In this article, we will examine how SEO call tracking works to close the loop on attribution and make sure that none of your marketing dollars go unaccounted for.
Understanding SEO
First, let’s do a quick recap of what SEO is.
SEO means Search Engine Optimization. It’s the process of optimizing a website and its content to increase visibility and rankings on search engine results pages. You can do this with a variety of strategies and techniques that will make your content and website appear more appealing to search engines like Google, Bing, etc.
Key components of SEO are:
On-Page SEO: Keyword research, content optimization, meta tags, and internal linking. Things you can do directly on your content and website.
Off-page SEO: Backlink building and engagement from social media.
Technical SEO: Ensuring that your website loads fast, is optimized for mobile devices and that search engines can easily access and index it.
Local SEO: Optimizing for location-based searches, is crucial for businesses with physical locations.
What is call tracking?
And what about call tracking? Well, call tracking is a technology used to track and record information about incoming phone calls. It works by assigning unique phone numbers to different marketing sources, such as paid ads, organic search results, or specific website pages. When a potential customer calls one of these numbers, the call tracking software captures data such as the caller’s number, call duration, geographic location, and even the marketing source that led to the call.
Key mechanisms of call tracking are:
Dynamic Number Insertion (DNI): This technology dynamically replaces phone numbers on a website based on the user’s source of traffic. For example, visitors from a Google Ads campaign might see a different number than those arriving via organic search. This allows precise tracking of which campaigns are generating calls.
Tracking Phone Numbers: Different phone numbers are used for different campaigns or channels. Each number is associated with a specific source, such as an email campaign or a billboard ad, enabling clear attribution of call leads.
Call tracking helps businesses understand the effectiveness of their marketing efforts by measuring which ones are generating phone calls and bringing in valuable leads. It can also enhance customer service and lead generation with call flows, recordings, transcriptions, summaries, and AI tools.
Call Tracking in a Nutshell
Call tracking refers to the technology that enables the monitoring and recording of inbound phone calls. It’s essentially a system that uncovers how callers discovered your business. By assigning unique phone numbers to different marketing channels, Marketers can pinpoint which ads, campaigns, or search keywords are generating calls. This data is critical because it shows you what’s working in your marketing strategy and what’s not.
💡 For the complete Call Tracking Guide, check out this step-by-step guide.
SEO Call Tracking: A perfect synergy
Almost every marketer will agree that the biggest challenge they face in digital marketing is accurately attributing conversions to specific channels.
SEO, when done right, can drive significant traffic and leads that are easy to track and monitor. But when prospects decide to pick up the phone instead of clicking on a link, that’s when things get a bit murky.
This is where SEO call tracking comes in.
With call tracking tools, you can assign different phone numbers to websites, landing pages, ads, newsletters, and other forms of content. This will enable you to see exactly which SEO keywords or pages are driving phone calls.
For example, if a potential customer finds your website through an organic search for “best accounting services” and then calls the number on that specific page, call tracking will attribute that call to the keyword and landing page associated with it.
This way, you will be able to see which SEO efforts are not just driving traffic but also leading to valuable phone conversations, bridging the gap between online searches and offline actions.
Enhancing SEO strategies
Data from calls are a great source of insights you can use to refine your SEO. By analyzing which keywords and landing pages generate the most phone calls, businesses can:
- Identify High-Converting Keywords: If certain keywords consistently lead to phone calls, they likely indicate high intent. Marketers can prioritize optimizing content around these keywords to attract more qualified leads.
- Content Optimization: Understanding the context of phone calls can inform the creation of new content that addresses common questions or pain points raised by callers. This can lead to better user engagement and improved rankings for content that aligns with user intent.
- Landing Page Optimization: If a particular landing page drives a high volume of calls, it’s an indication that the page effectively encourages users to engage. Marketers can replicate the elements of successful pages—such as clear calls to action, informative content, and easy navigation—across other pages to boost overall performance.
- Geo-Targeting and Local SEO: Call tracking can reveal where calls are coming from, allowing businesses to identify strong geographic markets. This data can be used to optimize local SEO efforts, such as creating localized content and targeting specific regions with geo-targeted keywords.
Benefits of combining SEO & call tracking
Let’s see now how SEO call tracking can benefit your business.
Accurate ROI measurement
Measuring the return on investment from your marketing efforts is one of the biggest challenges you could face as a marketer or owner.
Traditional metrics like traffic and keyword ranking simply don’t work for phone calls. You need something that will provide the full picture.
This is why you should integrate call tracking with SEO.
- Full attribution of conversions: With SEO call tracking, you can attribute phone calls to specific keywords, ads, landing pages, and campaigns. This means you will be able to track offline conversions as well.
- Detailed reporting & analytics: SEO call tracking will show you the full data picture and generate reports that show which keywords and pages are driving the most valuable leads. You will have an accurate picture of which SEO strategies are contributing to overall business goals and revenue, at your hands.
- Optimized marketing spend: Accurate data and reporting will help you allocate your marketing budget more effectively. By identifying high-performing keywords and pages that generate significant call traffic, you can focus your resources on the most profitable areas of your SEO strategy, leading to a more efficient use of marketing funds.
Improved lead generation
SEO call tracking provides actionable insights into which SEO strategies are most effective at generating phone leads. This way, you can refine your lead generation and drive more prospects to your business that are high-quality too.
- Identifying High-Intent Keywords: Call tracking data can reveal which specific keywords are not only driving traffic but also converting into phone leads. By focusing on these high-intent keywords, you can attract more qualified prospects who are likely to engage and convert.
- Targeted Content Creation: Insights from call tracking can give ideas for new content, that targets leads that are more likely to convert. For example, if call data shows that users frequently inquire about a particular service or product feature, businesses can create dedicated landing pages or blog posts on these topics to attract more targeted traffic and generate more leads.
- Improving Local SEO: Call tracking helps understand which local SEO strategies are driving phone calls, such as optimized Google My Business listings or location-specific landing pages. This can lead to improved local lead generation by refining geo-targeted keywords and optimizing local content based on what resonates with local audiences.
- Enhanced Lead Nurturing: By understanding which pages and keywords are associated with specific stages of the buyer’s journey, you can develop more effective lead-nurturing campaigns. For instance, a user searching for “how to choose the best CRM software” might be at the research stage, while a user calling after reading a “pricing and plans” page might be ready to buy. Tailoring follow-up strategies based on this understanding can significantly improve lead conversion rates.
Optimize your conversion game
Lead generation is the sum of a multitude of factors. Website content, structure, user experience, marketing campaigns, etc. To make it work, you need to constantly monitor and optimize its performance. With data from SEO call tracking, you can do just that.
- Refining Website Content: Call recordings and transcriptions provide direct feedback on what potential customers are looking for, their pain points, and their objections. This information can be used to refine website copy, FAQs, and landing pages to address these concerns directly, improving the chances of conversion.
- Optimizing Call-to-Action (CTA) Placement: Call tracking can reveal which pages are most effective at driving calls. By analyzing this data, businesses can optimize the placement and design of CTAs across their website. For example, if a particular service page drives a lot of calls, similar CTAs can be added to other relevant pages to encourage more conversions.
- Improving User Experience: Understanding the user journey from search to phone call can highlight areas of the website where users may be getting stuck or confused. If many users are calling after visiting multiple pages, it might indicate difficulty in finding information. This insight can lead to improvements in website navigation, internal linking, and overall structure, making it easier for users to find what they need and take action.
- A/B Testing and Optimization: Call tracking data can be used in A/B testing different elements of the website, such as headlines, images, and form designs. By measuring the impact of these changes on call volume, businesses can optimize their website elements to improve user engagement and conversion rates.
Takeaway
SEO call tracking. A combination that simply works. The only way to bridge the gap between online and offline conversions. With SEO you generate traffic and leads, while call tracking measures and captures data needed to see if your marketing is doing what it is supposed to be doing.
The result of this synergy is not just increased website traffic, but higher-quality leads and improved conversion rates. With this integrated approach, businesses can make data-driven decisions that enhance their marketing effectiveness and ultimately drive greater growth and profitability.
