SEO for the CEO: How to Create Search Forecasts for Beginners

The CEO of any company must make crucial decisions every single day. One thing that makes those decisions even easier? Having a clear outlook on what’s to come.

Search engine optimisation (SEO) is also a crucial part of running any visible online business, as it’s a process that leads to more website traffic. With a good SEO strategy, companies can become more authoritative, visible, and, in turn, profitable. So, what if there were ways to predict future SEO with a clear forecast?

In this guide, learn all about SEO forecasting, from how to project SEO traffic to how to do an SEO forecast.

Understanding Search Forecasts

Before diving into SEO forecasting methods, let’s first understand what exactly SEO forecasts are and why they matter.

Search forecasting predicts the organic trafficOrganic search traffic (sometimes called natural or unpaid search) is the traffic that's driven to a website because of unpaid placement on a search engine results page. a website might receive using a mix of data, including historical data (how many searches a website previously received) and predictive SEO forecasting tools. It is very useful for any CEO, as it means anticipating the future of SEO, leading to better decision-making. With a good search forecast, you can optimise your website further, provide stakeholders with crucial information, and build stronger customer relationships. It is essentially a way of being more strategic and in control.

A Beginner’s Guide to Creating Search Forecasts

Knowing how important SEO projections are, you will likely want to know how to begin creating these forecasts. The good news is that it is more than doable for beginners.

Identify Your Aims

What exactly do you want to forecast? What are your aims with search engine optimisation? Knowing the specific numbers you are heading towards makes the organic search forecasting process with an SEO reporting dashboard easier.

Keyword Forecasting

KeywordKeywords are the words and phrases that potential customers might search for to find your business. forecasting is one of the most popular ways to predict future website traffic. So, what is keyword forecasting? It essentially predicts your keywords’ performance and how they influence your search engine rankings.

The first step here is to find all the keywords your website ranks for, which you can find using Google Search Console (although there are other SEO traffic projection tools you can use). After that, add the keywords you want to rank for in the upcoming months, which will help you rank even higher. Then, use a keyword researchKeyword research helps websites unearth the best keywords to drive traffic and visibility. This research is supported by a number of powerful web-based tools, the best of which we’ve listed here. tool to predict the future total search volume and traffic based on the keywords you will rank for.

Need More SEO Help? Check Out Our Managed SEO Services.

Use Historical Data

The traffic data you already have plays a huge role in predicting future search engine rankings. To make the most of this data, you’ll need to collect all the historical traffic data for your website, which you can do with Google Search Console. There are several useful metrics to use here, including clicks, click-through rate, organic traffic, monthly search volume, and conversion rateA conversion rate is the percentage of visitors that take a desired action on your site., all of which are important here. With all this data gathered, you can then analyse it for any trends and clear patterns, informing you of future search traffic.

Take Into Account Seasonal Fluctuations

One thing not to forget when forecasting organic traffic is seasonal fluctuations. The numbers are not the same month upon month, and that’s because users’ search habits change depending on the season. For example, there may be a spike in specific searches during holiday seasons or when summer begins. Take these into account for a more accurate forecast.

Using the Right Tools

These SEO forecasting methods cannot be completed without accessing the right SEO forecasting tools. Some of them are completely free and easy to access. We have already mentioned Google Search Console, a thorough and accessible guide to SEO forecasting, providing crucial data you can use. There is also Google Analytics, which performs website and performance traffic.

Read Next: How to Choose the Best SEO Rank Tracker Software in 2025

Click Insights

If you are looking for an automated traffic and conversion forecasting toolset, look no further than Click Insights. The Click Insights package comes with automated traffic and conversionA conversion is a desirable result on a website that leads to an action such as completing an order, filling out a form, or simply clicking on a link. forecasting, competitor content analysis, SEO auditing, and Google Analytics and Google Search Console data. It displays all the data in a clear, easily accessible manner for your ease, and the data itself is near pinpoint accurate when forecasting.

Ready to Predict Future Search Traffic?

You no longer need to ask, “Can you predict SEO results?” – the answer is: yes, you can. While forecasting may not be accurate down to the exact number, you can make educated guesses on how much traffic your website will receive if you collect and analyse data using the best tools for the job.

If you’re a CEO wanting to start forecasting search results for your website, or you’re an SEO consultant looking for the best tools for your clients, you are in the right place. Speak to one of our experts today to get started.