So… What Should You Track?
If you want a simple “blog revenue dashboard,” you don’t need 47 metrics.
You need a handful of numbers that answer the only questions that matter:
Is the blog generating revenue today?
Is the blog improving the business over time?
That’s it.
Everything else—pageviews, time on page, impressions—can be helpful diagnostics, but they’re not the scoreboard.
A real blog revenue dashboard has two sections:
Direct money metrics (clean, trackable outcomes)
“Intangibles made tangible” metrics (the compounding lift most people ignore)
When you track both, your blog stops being “content.”
It becomes a measurable system.
Below is a simple dashboard you can run monthly, plus what each metric tells you, why it matters, and how to interpret it when you’re making decisions.
The Goal: One Dashboard That Makes Decisions Easy
Here’s what a great blog dashboard does:
It tells you which posts are producing money
It tells you which posts are building future leverage
It tells you what to update, what to scale, and what to stop doing
It turns “blogging” from a guess into an investment
If your dashboard doesn’t help you make decisions, it’s not a dashboard—it’s trivia.
So we’re going to keep it clean.
Section 1: Direct Money Metrics
These are the metrics that show clear, trackable revenue from blog traffic.
They answer: “Did the blog create measurable conversions and dollars?”
1) Conversions From Blog Traffic (Purchases, Calls, Forms)
This is the baseline.
A conversion is any action you can count.
Depending on your business, that might be:
ecommerce purchase
add-to-cart (if you want to track micro-conversions)
call clicks
quote request forms
booking confirmations
“get pricing” form completions
email captures (if email is part of your conversion path)
Why this matters:
If conversions are zero, revenue attribution will always be fuzzy—because you have no measurable outcome tied to blog sessions.
How to interpret it:
Conversions up = your blog is driving action, not just traffic.
Conversions flat = either the topics are low-intent, the CTAs are weak, or the path is unclear.
Conversions down = rankings dropped, traffic changed, or conversion friction increased.
Operator note: Track conversions both “total” and “per post.” One post can carry your pipeline.
2) Revenue From Blog-Assisted Conversions
This is where people underestimate the blog.
Not every buyer reads one post and purchases immediately.
Some read, leave, come back later, then buy.
That’s a blog-assisted conversion.
Why this matters:
If you only measure last-click conversions, you’ll under-credit your blog and eventually starve the content that’s doing real work.
How to interpret it:
High assisted revenue means your blog is influencing buying decisions even when it’s not the final step.
Low assisted revenue might mean you’re attracting the wrong stage of buyer—or your content isn’t connected to the offer path.
What you should do with it:
Identify which posts repeatedly appear in customer journeys (first touch or early touch). These are “trust builders.” Refresh and protect them.
3) Click-Through Rate From Article → Offer Page
This is one of the most useful metrics because it tells you whether your content is doing its “handoff” job.
If a blog post is meant to lead to:
a product page
a category page
a booking page
a quote request page
a pricing page
…then the post should send a percentage of readers there.
Why this matters:
A post can rank and get traffic but still produce no money if it doesn’t move readers to the offer.
CTR tells you whether the post creates momentum.
How to interpret it:
High CTR = the post is aligned with intent and has a clear next step.
Low CTR = the post is informational without a job, CTAs are weak, or the offer isn’t a logical next step.
Actionable upgrade:
If CTR is low, don’t rewrite the whole post. Often the fix is:
add a stronger CTA block mid-post
add a “recommended options” section
improve internal links to the offer
make the next step obvious (“here’s what to do next”)
4) Average Order Value From Blog Traffic
This is a profit metric disguised as a marketing metric.
Blog leads and blog buyers often have higher AOV because:
they trust you
they understand the tradeoffs
they choose the right solution the first time
they buy bundles instead of single items
they’re less likely to bargain shop
Why this matters:
If blog traffic produces a higher AOV, then blog traffic is more valuable than other traffic—even at lower volume.
How to interpret it:
Blog AOV higher than site average = your blog is attracting better-fit buyers.
Blog AOV lower = your content may be attracting early-stage readers without purchase intent, or recommending low-ticket items.
Actionable upgrade:
Introduce scenario-based bundles in posts:
“If you’re in saltwater, get this kit.”
“If you’re in heavy-duty use, get this option.”
“If you want the long-life setup, get this package.”
This increases AOV without being salesy.
The Simple “Direct Money” Scorecard
If you only tracked four things, track these monthly:
conversions from blog sessions
assisted conversion revenue
article → offer CTR
blog AOV vs site AOV
That alone will tell you if the blog is paying you.
But the blog’s real power isn’t just direct money.
It’s compounding leverage.
That’s where the second section comes in.
Why I Wrote The Marine Blog Sales Engines
Most marine businesses treat their blog like a marketing accessory.
A “nice-to-have.” A place to post updates. A box to check so the website feels complete.
I wrote The Marine Blog Sales Engines: How Blogs Drive Parts, Service, and High Dollar Marine Sales because I’ve watched that mindset quietly cost marine businesses real money—every week, every season, for years.
And it’s not because those businesses are lazy or clueless.
It’s because the marine industry has its own buying reality, and most marketing advice ignores it.
Section 2: “Intangibles Made Tangible” Metrics
These metrics show whether your blog is creating compounding lift that improves the whole business.
They answer: “Is the blog making everything else work better?”
This is where most businesses fail to measure, and therefore fail to invest.
1) Backlinks Earned Per Month (Referring Domains)
Backlinks are one of the strongest compounding forces in organic growth.
When your blog earns links naturally, your entire site gets stronger.
Why this matters:
One link-earning article can lift:
product pages
service pages
location pages
new posts (they rank faster)
What to track:
new referring domains per month
which posts earn the links
ranking improvements after link growth
How to interpret it:
Referring domains rising = your content is becoming a reference source in the niche.
Flat = your content may not be “linkable” (too generic, not definitive, not structured).
Actionable upgrade:
Write posts that people cite:
pricing breakdowns
comparison guides
checklists
troubleshooting decision trees
“what changes the answer” variable sections
These earn links because others don’t want to explain them.
2) Time-to-Close for Blog Leads vs Non-Blog Leads
This is one of the most underrated metrics in the entire business.
If blog leads close faster, you get:
better cash flow
fewer follow-ups
less sales labor per deal
more capacity
Why this matters:
A shorter cycle means each rep (or you) can close more deals with the same time.
How to interpret it:
Blog leads close in fewer days = your content is creating pre-trust.
No difference = either you’re not capturing blog as a source or the content isn’t addressing decision friction.
Actionable upgrade:
Create “send-this” articles:
what’s included
timelines
pricing variables
common mistakes
what to expect
These compress time-to-close fast.
3) Close Rate for Blog Leads vs Non-Blog Leads
This metric proves the “easier to convert” effect.
Blog leads often convert at a higher rate because:
they’ve educated themselves
they trust you
they’ve seen your process
they’re a better fit
Why this matters:
Even a small increase in close rate can produce huge revenue lift without increasing lead volume.
How to interpret it:
Blog close rate higher = content is doing the heavy lifting of persuasion and objection handling.
Blog close rate lower = blog content may be too top-of-funnel (curiosity traffic) or the CTA/offer mismatch is attracting the wrong people.
Actionable upgrade:
Write fewer “general interest” posts and more “decision posts”:
“best X for Y”
“X vs Y”
“how to choose X”
“X cost”
“common mistakes buying X”
These pull in buyers, not browsers.
4) Sales Team Time Saved Using Article Links
This is direct operational ROI.
Every repetitive question your team answers manually is wasted time.
A blog post turns repetitive explanations into a reusable asset.
How to measure it (simple):
Identify top 5 repeated questions
Track how often reps answer them per week
Create “send-this” article links
Estimate time saved per use (even 5 minutes matters)
Example math:
30 uses/week × 5 minutes saved = 150 minutes saved/week
That’s 2.5 hours/week of rep time you just bought back.
Multiply across a month and multiple reps, and content becomes payroll leverage.
Why this matters:
Time saved becomes either:
more deals handled
better follow-up
faster responses
less burnout
All of which increases revenue.
5) FAQ Reduction (Fewer Repeated Questions / Support Tickets)
FAQs are objection-handling.
When your blog answers common questions clearly, you reduce:
support tickets
basic calls
pre-sale uncertainty
post-sale confusion
What to track:
number of repetitive questions logged
support tickets by category
pre-sale call reasons
refund/return/cancellation reasons
How to interpret it:
Repeated questions declining = your content is removing friction at scale.
No change = your content isn’t addressing the real objections or isn’t easy to find/link.
Actionable upgrade:
Turn your top objections into posts:
“What’s included?”
“What changes the price?”
“What to expect step-by-step”
“When to DIY vs when to call a pro”
“Fitment guide: how to confirm before ordering”
This reduces both pre-sale and post-sale problems.
The 10-Metric “Blog Revenue Dashboard” (Keep It Simple)
If you want one clean dashboard, track these monthly:
Direct Money Metrics
conversions from blog sessions (purchases, calls, forms)
revenue from blog-assisted conversions
article → offer page click-through rate
average order value from blog traffic
Intangibles Made Tangible
backlinks earned (new referring domains)
time-to-close: blog leads vs non-blog leads
close rate: blog leads vs non-blog leads
sales time saved using “send-this” article links
FAQ reduction (repeated questions/support tickets)
refund/return/cancellation rate for blog-sourced customers (optional but powerful)
That’s enough to run your blog like a measurable revenue system.
How to Use the Dashboard (So It Actually Improves Results)
A dashboard is only useful if it drives action.
Here’s the monthly workflow:
Step 1: Identify winners
Posts with:
high conversions
high CTR to offer
high assisted revenue
Double down. Refresh. Add internal links. Protect rankings.
Step 2: Identify leaks
Posts with:
high traffic but low offer CTR
Fix CTA placement, add “recommended options,” strengthen the path.
Step 3: Identify compounding assets
Posts that:
earn backlinks
are used in sales follow-ups
reduce questions
Keep updating them. These are your “infrastructure posts.”
Step 4: Kill or repurpose low-value posts
If a post gets traffic but doesn’t:
convert
assist
build authority
reduce friction
…it’s not an asset. Turn it into one or stop producing that style.
Final Takeaway
If you want a simple blog revenue dashboard, track two categories:
direct money (conversions, assisted revenue, CTR to offer, AOV)
intangibles made tangible (backlinks, close rate/time-to-close, sales time saved, FAQ reduction)
Because a blog isn’t just a traffic engine.
It’s a trust engine, a sales enablement engine, and a compounding authority engine.
Track the right things, and your blog stops being “hard to measure.”
It becomes one of the most measurable—and scalable—assets in your business.
Why Colby Uva Is Qualified To Talk About This Topic
1) 15+ Years Driving Buyer Traffic That Converts
Colby Uva has generated millions of high-intent visitors through Search Everywhere Optimization—focused on turning attention into real revenue, not empty impressions.
2) Operator Experience in Fishing Media + DTC
He owned and operated a direct-to-consumer fishing line brand and a fishing magazine for over a decade—so he understands the marine audience and how enthusiasts buy.
3) 6,000+ Blog Posts and Content Refreshes
Colby has created and edited 6,000+ blog posts and refreshes, giving him deep pattern-recognition on what ranks, what drives inquiries, and what moves buyers toward a decision.
4) Proven Revenue Impact Beyond Traffic
He helped increase his family business’s average order value by 20%, tying content and visibility directly to conversion and purchase behavior.
5) Built Recognition Across Social From Scratch
Colby has driven millions of views and grown 100,000+ subscribers across Instagram, YouTube, and Facebook—supporting “search everywhere” discovery across the platforms marine customers actually use.
If you tell me your location + fleet type + trip offerings, I can turn this into a 90-day content plan with exact titles, page structure, and CTAs mapped to your booking flow.
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