[Video] Using Matomo Effectively for SEO

ENGLISH TRANSCRIPT: Yes, wonderful. I would have simply said, “We are starting now.” From my side also, first of all, welcome to MatomoCamp. This is the first MatomoCamp that we have organised, and aside from the fact that Lukas handled almost everything, I also have the honour of holding my own lecture here.

We decided in advance to record this workshop. This means if you have your video on or decide to say something, that’s not forbidden—but please keep in mind it will be recorded. We’ve structured the workshop so that I’ll begin with a presentation, and we’ll hold questions until the end. Fortunately, we have until 11:45 a.m., followed by a lunch break. That means if we run a little over with questions, it’s not a problem since you won’t miss any other sessions—just a minute or two of lunch.

So, welcome once again. My lecture today is about using Matomo effectively for SEO. The question is: how can we combine these two systems to extract helpful SEO-related data from Matomo?

A bit about myself: my name is Thomas Zeithammel. I’ve been working in online marketing and SEO since 2001—back when we didn’t even call it SEO. I’ve worked with various clients and tools, including Google Analytics and Matomo. Since 2009, I’ve also been using Matomo for personal projects. I now offer training and consulting on it.

The key in SEO is interpreting metrics correctly. Matomo collects a lot of data—IP addresses, screen resolutions, browser language, etc.—via the data layer or tag manager. But not all metrics are useful for SEO. For example, an anonymised IP address isn’t actionable. That’s why I’ve selected 10 key metrics you should focus on for SEO:

• Search terms: Even though Google hides most keywords, I’ll show you how to retrieve some.
• Time spent on site: Often underrated, but crucial. You want users to stay longer.
• Bounce rate: A high bounce rate might indicate poor content or relevance, signalling to Google that your page isn’t valuable.
• Web Vitals: These have been top of mind recently. Performance and loading times are now SEO signals.
• Entry pages: Knowing where visitors land is vital.
• Traffic sources: Look beyond search engines; referrals matter too.
• Technical issues: 404s, server errors—Matomo can help detect them.
• Internal search: Great for editorial insight. Was the article actually read?
• Conversion tracking: Crucial to understand how SEO contributes to outcomes.

Let’s dive into bounce rate and time on site. If the bounce rate is 100%, Matomo shows a session duration of 0.0 seconds because the exit page isn’t counted in visit duration. Matomo calculates time by subtracting the timestamp of the first page from the second. So, if there’s no second page, the time is zero. That’s why exit pages never show time spent.

You’ll want to understand the implications: a high bounce rate doesn’t always mean the page is bad. For example, a user might spend a long time reading, be satisfied, and leave—resulting in a bounce with long engagement. But if bounce rate is high and time is short, that’s a problem. Think of users jotting down a phone number and leaving. Context matters.

Matomo averages can also be misleading. One high-performing page can skew the overall bounce rate. Always analyse on a page level. Use segmentation—divide by channel (direct, search engine, campaign, referral) and by device type (desktop vs mobile). Different users behave differently. Comparing these segments helps interpret time, bounce rate, exit rate and more accurately.

On to data collection: events are underutilised but vital. Tag Manager makes event setup easier. You can track things like 404 pages, errors, sold-out items, or even when no search results are found. Scroll depth tracking is especially valuable—it shows if users reach the bottom of an article. Use custom dimensions to enrich data: release date, article type, page type, category, indexing status, or word count. This lets you analyse how SEO performance varies by content type.

Use structured data and filters wisely. If, say, product pages load slower than overview pages and show high bounce rates, it might indicate performance issues. Matomo segments and custom dimensions help pinpoint such issues.

Google no longer shows full keyword data, but the Google Search Console still does. Matomo has a must-have plugin that integrates this data, allowing you to connect keywords with conversions. That makes your reporting far more powerful.

Let’s talk improvement strategies:

• Identify thin content: Use bounce rate and session time to identify poor pages. Focus on entry pages, not just pageviews.
• Segment carefully: See what’s working for search users vs direct vs campaign users.
• Track internal search: Use it to surface editorial topics, fix typos, and understand what users can’t find.
• Focus optimisation: Don’t try to improve 50,000 products. Start with the 25 that generate the most revenue.
• Use visitor flows: Matomo’s plugins can show how users move through your site. If most users exit early or loop back to the homepage, it may indicate navigation issues.
• Measure performance: Matomo’s Performance plugin and the Web Vitals plugin are both helpful. But also use external tools like WebPageTest or PageSpeed Insights for more consistent results.
• Detect bad referrers: Find referral sites sending poor-quality traffic. If bounce rate is high and session time low, investigate.

Always interpret bounce rate and session time in context. Enrich your data with events and dimensions. Segment your users by device and channel. Use scroll tracking to infer reading engagement. Monitor the visitor journey using flow visualisations and transition reports.

The heartbeat timer is another useful feature. It sends signals every 15 seconds to show user presence on a page—even if there’s no second page. Be cautious, though—it increases data volume and can’t backfill old data. WordPress users can activate this with a simple toggle.

To conclude, SEO improvements in Matomo come down to proper segmentation, data enrichment, detailed page analysis, and using the right plugins and tools. Always evaluate whether the numbers tell a true story, and use those insights to guide structural or editorial changes.

Thank you very much for your attention. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out on social media or other platforms. I hope this session was helpful.