Calculating ROI of Moving Your Blog to a Subdirectory
Moving a blog to /blog is an SEO play, but the decision hinges on ROI. Here’s a simple model to estimate payback and what to measure after launch.
Table of Contents
- Why ROI improves in a subdirectory
- Inputs for the model
- Simple payback calculation
- Attribution and conversion lift
- Risk and sensitivity analysis
- How to validate in 90 days
- Dashboard and instrumentation
- Internal linking revenue impact
- Advanced FAQ
- Why choose BlogPath.io
- Related posts
Why ROI improves in a subdirectory
- Higher organic sessions from consolidated authority.
- Better attribution accuracy (no cross-domain noise).
- Increased conversion rates when content sits on the main host.
Inputs for the model
- Current organic sessions and CVR on the subdomain.
- Expected traffic lift (e.g., +10–25%) after move.
- Average order value or LTV.
- Implementation cost (proxy + setup) and monthly OPEX.
Simple payback calculation
- Incremental revenue = (sessions × lift) × CVR × AOV/LTV.
- Payback period = implementation cost ÷ incremental monthly margin.
- Many teams see payback in 1–3 months when traffic lift exceeds 10%.
Attribution and conversion lift
- Consolidated host reduces referral loss; assisted conversions are clearer.
- Faster pages (better TTFB/LCP) typically raise CVR 5–15% for blog-to-product flows.
- Track assisted conversions in analytics; include content touchpoints.
Risk and sensitivity analysis
- Run low/medium/high scenarios for traffic lift and CVR change.
- Consider temporary ranking volatility in month 1–2.
- Keep DNS TTL low to enable rollback; this lowers downside risk.
How to validate in 90 days
- Move to
/blogvia reverse proxy with minimal template changes. - Ship 2–3 fresh posts with strong internal links to product pages.
- Measure: organic sessions, rankings, CVR, assisted conversions, Core Web Vitals.
- Refresh content if growth stalls; add more internal links.
Dashboard and instrumentation
- Create an analytics dashboard with: organic sessions, average position, CTR, CVR, assisted conversions, and revenue per session.
- Annotate the migration date; compare pre/post windows (30/60/90 days).
- Track Core Web Vitals and cache hit ratio to tie performance to conversion improvements.
- For channel-blended sites, segment by landing path
/blog/*to isolate impact.
Internal linking revenue impact
- Add 4–8 internal links from each new post to product pages and high-converting articles.
- Update top 10 legacy posts to link into
/blogcontent; this often lifts assisted conversions. - Build a pillar for “Subdirectory SEO” and cluster migration, caching, and ROI posts underneath.
- Use partial-match anchors (e.g., “blog ROI model”, “reverse proxy uptime”) to keep anchors natural.
Advanced FAQ
How conservative should the model be?
Run low/medium/high cases. Use 5% CVR lift as conservative, 10–15% as aggressive when speed and attribution improve.
What if traffic dips initially?
Temporary volatility is normal. Keep 301s clean, monitor 404s, and add fresh content plus internal links to accelerate recovery.
Do I need multi-touch attribution?
If sales cycles are long, yes. Track assisted conversions to capture the blog’s influence on pipeline.
Why choose BlogPath.io
- Faster time-to-value: DNS-only, no rebuild.
- Global CDN caching and origin shielding that directly improve TTFB → higher CVR.
- Observability for cache hits, errors, and Web Vitals to prove ROI.
- Reliability and uptime SLAs so growth teams aren’t blocked by infra.