Tracking SEO performance with the three-box strategy

Executive overview

Without monitoring, SEO investment — time, money, team effort — has no measurable outcome. The three-box strategy combines Google tools, SEMrush, and human intelligence from your own team to give a complete picture of search performance.

Qualitative signals from your sales and ops teams are as important as platform data.

Google toolbox

• Google Search Console tracks organic search performance: clicks, impressions, queries, and indexing issues
• Google Analytics / GA4 tracks all website traffic, not just organic
• Google Lighthouse and PageSpeed Insights measure and improve site performance
• Google Trends surfaces breakout and real-time search trends — useful for content timing
• Google Merchant Center is relevant for anyone running Google Shopping

SEMrush toolbox

• Position tracking monitors keyword rankings over time
• Site audit identifies technical SEO issues
• On-page SEO checker gives page-level optimisation recommendations
• Backlink analytics and link building tools track authority signals
• Traffic analytics and competitor analysis benchmark performance against rivals
• Keyword research and SERP analysis inform content strategy

Brain box: qualitative intelligence

• Ask your sales and lead teams: how did enquiries find you, what did they search, what device were they on?
• Check whether sales volume has changed since SEO activity began
• Have team members in different locations and on different devices run the same searches — results can vary
• Anecdotal data from internal teams fills gaps that analytics platforms miss