How to Measure SEO in Google Analytics 4: A Step-by-Step Guide

Ready to step up your SEO in Google Analytics 4?

Whether you’re an analytics pro or just starting out, we’ll take you through 5 easy ways to use Google Analytics 4 (GA4) to measure your SEO performance and take your strategy to the next level:

1. How to create ‘Views’ like Universal Analytics in GA4 in order to segment or exclude certain traffic to get the most accurate numbers for your SEO reporting
2. How to create a Traffic Acquisition Report to see exactly how much of your website traffic comes from search engines like Google Search and Bing, and why
3. How to see your top backlinks in order to determine which backlinks are really worth the investment
4. How to create a Landing Page Report to analyze which of your website pages are attracting the most organic traffic and which need to be improved
5. How to see if your organic visitors are converting and follow their path from discovery to conversion so that you can patch any leaks in your marketing funnel.

Grab a cup of coffee and get comfortable. Let’s dig into the world of SEO in Google Analytics 4!

(And if you get overwhelmed, don’t worry—our SEO services include done-for-you GA4 integration. Don’t hesitate to reach out if you need help getting started.)

Background: What’s the Difference Between Universal Analytics and Google Analytics 4 for SEO?

Google Analytics 4 (GA4) is the latest version of Google Analytics, and it brings some significant changes compared to Universal Analytics (UA).

GA4 adds a ton of new functionality, a brand-new interface, and most importantly a completely new data model. This provides some significant advantages over UA when it comes to measuring SEO performance, including:

• Enhanced Measurement: Google Analytics 4 introduces automatic tracking called enhanced measurement which automates a wide range of tracking processes you had to set up by hand in Universal Analytics. GA4 automatically tracks page scrolling, clicks to external sites, using site search, video engagements (including starts, progress, and completion), file downloads, and more.
• Cross-Device Tracking: Google Analytics 4 features reliable cross-device tracking using Google Signals or User-ID. In other words, GA4 can tell when a user switches from their mobile device to a desktop computer and treats them as one user. Not only is it more accurate than UA, but it also offers you deeper insights into how people use different devices.
• Improved Session Tracking: Google Analytics 4 no longer breaks sessions as it goes past midnight, causing it to appear that a person has two sessions when they actually only have one.
• Enhanced Funnels and Paths: Google Analytics 4 offers a robust funnel exploration feature that provides you a detailed look at the steps your users take to complete certain goals on your website, like filling out a form or making a purchase.
• More Flexible Conversion Goals: Google Analytics 4 enables you to set up additional and more flexible conversion goals that can be used to better understand your site.

There are, however, some big changes and missing features that make the transition to GA4 challenging for marketers.

One significant difference from UA is that GA4 does not offer separate Views by default—so, in the next section, we’ll tell you how to configure GA4 to get the same results.

GA4 also lacks certain reports that were available by default in UA and have to be configured manually. We’ll also discuss how to create custom reports for organic traffic, landing pages, backlinks, and organic conversions in GA4.

1. How to Create Views and Filters in GA4

In Universal Analytics, a View is a subset of data for a single domain based on filters that you have applied. Marketers often use Views to exclude internal traffic, test new reporting set-ups, or filter traffic by geographical location.

However, due to a change in the overall account structure, Views are not available as a way to filter data in Google Analytics 4.

The good news is that GA4 does allow you to filter Data Streams to provide a similar experience to UA’s Views.

To create an equivalent to UA’s Views in GA4:

• Click into the Reports section of GA4. In the left navigation menu, it’s the second option from the top.
• Click into the default Events report under Engagement.
• Click on the pencil icon in the top right of the screen to customize the report.

• Click Add Filter to apply a filter based on any of the available dimensions.  
• Select a Dimension. For example, if you want to create a filtered view of traffic from one country, apply a filter where the dimension of County equals the country you want to see. 
• Click the blue Apply button.

You can also filter certain types of traffic at the Property level. This is the best way to go about excluding traffic that comes from your own staff, since internal traffic can skew the data and make it more difficult to understand exactly how your SEO efforts are performing.

How Views and Filters Help You Measure SEO Performance

Like views in Universal Analytics, this custom GA4 report filters your data so that you can analyze it in a more focused and actionable way. 

By creating separate Views for different countries or regions, for example, you can analyze the performance of your website in each location and understand which areas are driving the most traffic. The same can be done using GA4 report filters.

2. How to Check Your Organic Traffic in GA4

To understand where your website users are coming from and how they got there, you’ll need to customize the Traffic Acquisition Report under Acquisition.

• Click into the Reports section of GA4. In the left navigation menu, it’s the second option from the top.
• Click into the default Traffic Acquisition report under Acquisition.
• Click on the Primary Dimension, which is Session Default Channel Group by default.

• From the list of Dimensions, select Session Source/Medium. 
• In the search bar above the Primary Dimension, type Organic and press enter.

Now, you can assess the performance of your SEO efforts metrics such as users, sessions, engaged sessions, and average engagement time.

Analyzing Organic Traffic Growth with GA4

SEO is one of the most powerful tools a business can use to boost its online visibility.  

However, without tracking how many visitors are coming to your website through organic search, you won’t know if your SEO strategy is really working or not. 

By tracking how many visitors come to your website through organic search, you can gain valuable insight into what is working and what isn’t. Measuring your organic traffic in GA4 will not only help you fine-tune your SEO strategy, but also help you optimize your entire digital marketing strategy for long-term success.

3. How to See Your Top Landing Pages by Organic Traffic in GA4

If you’re familiar with UA, you’ll remember that a landing page report was available by default by clicking the Behavior drop-down menu, then clicking Site Content, followed by Landing Pages. 

GA4 isn’t quite as intuitive, but it only takes a few extra steps to create a report that gives you your top landing pages by organic traffic.

• Click into the Reports section of GA4. In the left navigation menu, it’s the second option from the top.
• Click into the default Traffic Acquisition report under Acquisition.
• Click on the Primary Dimension, which is Session Default Channel Group by default.
• From the list of Dimensions, select Landing Page + Query String.

• Click the + Plus sign and select First User Medium.

• In the search bar above the Primary Dimension, type Organic and press Enter.

Voilà: you have a report that tells you which of your landing pages drive the most organic traffic! 

Unlocking SEO Insights with a GA4 Landing Page Report

When you start seeing organic traffic coming in, it means that your SEO efforts are paying off.  

Customers are finding what they need on your website—and Google is rewarding you for it.  

You can use what’s working on that page to improve your SEO across your website. 

Pages with low traffic, on the other hand, might be missing the mark. By taking the time to spot these pages and make the necessary improvements, you can work to unlock your website’s full potential for generating traffic over time.

4. How to See Your Top Backlinks in GA4

You can use GA4 to get detailed information about which of your backlinks drive the most traffic to your site, and which of them carry the most weight for the search engines.  

By analyzing this data, you can identify which websites provide the greatest value to your SEO efforts and where you should focus your link building efforts.

• Click into the Reports section of GA4. In the left navigation menu, it’s the second option from the top. 
• Click into the default Traffic Acquisition report under Acquisition.  
• Type Referral into the search bar and press Enter.

• Click on the + Plus sign to add a Secondary Dimension.  
• From the list of Dimensions, select Session Source.

This report provides information about the source of your referral traffic as well as information about the traffic that helps you determine the value of those backlinks.  

Use the objective metrics Google Analytics gives you — number of visitors, page views, pages per visit and bounce rate — as well as subjective characteristics like relevance, uniqueness, and authority.

Analyze Referral Traffic to Boost Your Search Ranking

Building backlinks is one of the most essential SEO strategies. One of the factors determining the ranking of your website on Google for targeted keywords is the number of quality links that point to your website.

5. How to Check Your Organic Conversions in GA4

Measuring the volume of website traffic alone can give you a general idea of how your website is performing, but it doesn’t tell the whole story. 

Conversions in GA4 measure how effective your website is at driving desired actions from visitors. These actions could be anything from making a purchase to subscribing to a newsletter or downloading a PDF guide.  

To create an organic conversion report in GA4:

• Click into the Explore section of GA4. In the left navigation menu, it’s the third option from the top. 
• Click on the Blank exploration report template.

• Name your report Organic Conversions. 
• Set the date range to at least 30 days. 
• First, you’ll need to create a Segment.
  • Click on the + Plus button next to Segments and click the User Segment button.
  • Name the new Segment Organic Search.
  • Click Add Condition and select First User Medium.
  • Click on the Add Filter button. Set the first box to Contains and the second to organic. Click Apply.
  • Click the Save and Apply button in the top right corner.

• Next, you’ll need to add Dimensions.
  • Click on the + Plus button next to Dimensions.
  • Search for the following Dimensions and click the checkbox for each one:
    • First user source/medium 
    • Landing page
    • Event name
    • Item name
    • Device category
    • Browser
    • Country
  • Click the Import button in the top right corner.
• Finally, it’s time to add Metrics.
  • Click the + Plus button next to Metrics.
  • Search for the following Metrics and click the checkbox for each one:
    • Total users 
    • Conversions 
    • User conversion rate 
    • Session conversion rate 
    • Event revenue
  • Click the Import button in the top right corner. 
  • Double-click the First User/Source Dimension to add it to the Rows section. 
  • Double click all the Metrics one by one to add them to the Values section. 
  • Under Values, select Cell Type Heat Map.

Why Organic Conversions Matter in GA4

Organic conversions and organic traffic go hand in hand when it comes to measuring the success of your SEO strategy. 

While organic traffic is essential for getting visitors to your website, conversions are what really tells you that the effort you’re putting into SEO is moving the needle. 

If you’re getting a lot of website traffic but your conversion rate is low, it may indicate that your website is not effectively converting visitors into customers; or, that your SEO efforts aren’t bringing you the right kind of traffic. 

Additionally, comparing your organic conversion rate to that of other channels can help you understand which channels are driving the most valuable traffic to your website. For example, if you see that your organic traffic has a higher conversion rate than your paid traffic, it may indicate that you should redirect some of your PPC advertising budget to SEO. 

With this information, you can make data-driven decisions that will improve your website’s performance and drive more revenue to your business.

Unlock the Keys to SEO Success with Google Analytics 4

Google Analytics 4 (GA4) is a powerful tool for measuring your SEO performance.  

By following the steps outlined in this post, you can track the most important SEO metrics, create accurate views, and make data-driven decisions for your SEO strategy. 

Remember: GA4 can be a bit daunting at first, but with a little bit of practice and the right guidance, you’ll be a pro in no time! 

If you find yourself getting overwhelmed or need help with integration, don’t hesitate to reach out to our team. We offer done-for-you GA4 integration and can help you set up your account, track the right metrics and create accurate views.  

Contact us today to learn how we can help you drive more traffic to your website.