There are experts who claim that search engine optimization (SEO) is a little like gambling. 

Why? Essentially, you’re rolling the dice by changing up certain aspects of your page and hoping for a windfall of traffic to follow.

While this is partially true, it isn’t totally the whole picture.

In fact, most enterprise-level digital marketers understand that there are certain patterns in analytics data that make it easy to anticipate certain trends in traffic.

This means you don’t need a crystal ball to predict what’s to come in the future. Instead, you can use what’s called SEO forecasting.

In this guide, we’ll go over what this process is and how it is useful for your company. Plus, we’ll provide a list of tools to help you make it part of your bigger marketing strategy.

How to Use Data to Forecast SEO

Using data for forecasting SEO isn’t as difficult as you might believe. 

In fact, it is something that just about anyone can do with the right knowledge and tools.

While the actual workflow for the process highly depends on your niche and needs, there are certain steps you’ll want to follow no matter what. 

Here are the ones you need to pay the most attention to.

1. Gather Data

The first step in SEO forecasting is to gather historical data for your website traffic.

This can be either a Google Analytics report, data from specific tools, or anything else you have that gives insight into your past traffic levels and who is coming to your page.

You’ll want to go as far back as you can with this information, as it will help you see any specific patterns or seasonal phases that might affect results over time.

Remember, at this stage in the forecasting process, you’re attempting to get a high-level view of past traffic.

2. Consider Outside Factors

Once you have all of your past traffic data, it is time to take into consideration any outside factors that might have impacted results during a specific time period.

A few elements to remember include:

• Various Google algorithm changes that impacted traffic for everyone.
• Seasons that make it more likely a website visitor would seek content on your page or look for the goods and services your company provides.
• Prior marketing campaigns or pay-per-click (PPC) advertising that made traffic higher than normal.
• For eCommerce brands, pay close attention to key shopping dates like Black Friday or the holidays.

During this step of the process, you can also utilize SEO tools to gain the third-party data we discussed above. 

While you won’t likely have as much information on your competitors as you do on your own website, it can help identify industry downtrends that aren’t specifically based on your own efforts.

It’s surprising how often companies forget to factor in the unpredictable stuff: a worldwide event, for example, can throw a major wrench into your year-over-year numbers. The COVID-19 pandemic made that painfully obvious, but even smaller disruptions—think supply chain issues or sudden product recalls—show up in traffic if you bother to look. If you’re seeing a weird spike or drop, zoom out and ask, “Did something bigger happen?” Often, there’s an explanation lurking outside your own four digital walls.

The murky part is knowing when outside factors are truly outside, or when you accidentally contributed to a dip without realizing it. Maybe your site got slower after a redesign, or your top product went out of stock for a week and nobody told the web team. A little internal poking around—sometimes awkward, sometimes enlightening—goes a long way. It’s these “Oh, that’s why!” moments that separate a decent forecast from wishful thinking and hand-waving.

3. Use a Forecasting Tool

Next, you want to take all of the information you’ve gathered and use a forecasting tool. 

There are literally dozens of different apps and software programs that do this and we’ve outlined a few of our favorites below.

You might want to use a couple of different options and compare the results to see what insight each offers. 

Sometimes this gives you data that’s pretty close together to offer a clear picture, but other times the two resources are pretty far apart. 

In that case, you’ll want to make your own inferences based on what you know about your business and niche.

4. Analyze the Data

Finally, it is time to analyze the data. 

Be sure to look at any emerging trends that you notice and determine if they look like they’ll continue into the future.

This is also the point where noticing areas where you have a particular weakness or need to make a change is critical. 

For example, maybe you had a ton of traffic previous to a Google algorithm update and need to edit your content to rank better.

In this last step of the process, you need to be willing to see where you can make those changes or adjustments in order to meet your bigger goals.

Top 4 SEO Forecasting Tools

Of course, understanding the process of SEO forecasting also includes choosing the best tools to make the process easier. 

We’ve included four of our favorites here for your brand to try out.

Google Data Studio

When it comes to optimization, the first place you should always look is with the search engine itself. 

In this case, Google Data Studio is a free forecasting tool that you can use to spot trends in your web traffic.

The program connects with data sources like Google Analytics, SEMrush, and others to pull the most comprehensive information possible. 

From there, you can create dashboards, reports, and other visuals to help with your forecasting process. Best of all, it is free to use.

Prophet by Facebook

If you’re familiar with computer programming, then you might want to use Prophet by Facebook. 

This giant open-source code library includes tons of ways to track and review data to help predict seasonal traffic trends.

The only problem? It isn’t beginner-friendly. 

However, it is free and might be a good option if you have a background in Python or someone on your team is knowledgeable about it.

Ahrefs’ Traffic Site Forecast

We can’t stress enough that Ahrefs’ entire suite of tools is a fantastic investment for any brand looking to improve their on-page optimization. 

One super robust aspect is their Traffic Site Forecast tool.

The program takes data from other sources and makes it easy to create charts and graphs showing your predicted organic traffic forecast. 

While this does take a bit of custom coding, the development team has put together plenty of tutorials on how to make it work for your needs.

The light version costs $99 per month, which is a total deal if you’re really committed to using SEO forecasting as part of a bigger digital marketing strategy.

SEO Keyword Forecasting by SEOmonitor

What if you just need prediction information for specific keywords and want a simple solution? 

Then you’ll love SEO Keyword Forecasting by SEOmonitor.

While it tends to be on the pricier end, it is a super informative program that takes into account a wide range of data to give you the clearest picture of your results. 

Plus, it offers automated reporting, meaning you can get these forecasts sent directly to your inbox at specified intervals.

If you’re looking for a done-for-you solution for SEO forecasting, then this is definitely the best option on the list.

Wrap Up

Keeping track of your website’s past data and comparing it to future trends through SEO forecasting is important. 

Not only does it make planning digital marketing strategies and campaigns easier, but it also allows you to get a clear picture of the various factors that affect organic traffic.

Are you ready to learn how to improve your website’s inbound traffic as a whole? 

Our SEO guide is a great place to start and offers insight into how to use that forecasting data even more efficiently!

 

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