Content and Conversation: Organic Growth Insights from Siege Media

Input Metrics in SEO: Leading Indicators in an AI World


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Tom Critchlow, EVP of Audience Growth at Raptive, joins Ross for a deep dive into how input metrics can transform SEO strategy—especially in an era of declining visibility and messy attribution from AI search engines.
They explore how input metrics improve executive reporting, unlock budget, and build cross-functional alignment by shifting focus from vanity outcomes to controllable, operational activities. Tom shares insights from his time at Raptive, lessons from Amazon’s internal frameworks, and practical tips for teams to track quality, not just quantity. If you're navigating SEO in 2025, this episode is your playbook.
Plus: scorecards, dashboards, quality benchmarks, and how input metrics can shape strategic storytelling at every level of an org.
Show Notes
0:08 – Why “getting SEO done” starts with business communication
1:14 – Executive buy-in and the underrated power of input metrics
2:06 – What are controllable input metrics? Lessons from Amazon
3:24 – Why output-only reporting drives blind decision-making
5:06 – Building reports that pair input + output for alignment
7:01 – Input metrics: weekly/monthly rhythm vs quarterly output
9:15 – Goal-setting tension: input vs output metrics for teams
11:24 – Why SEOs need to “make their work legible” to leadership
12:30 – Input metrics as a path to getting more SEO budget
14:20 – The missing business case for many SEO initiatives
15:33 – Raptive case study: measuring behavior change over clicks
18:02 – Building input metrics from scratch: the 9-month reality
19:51 – Amazon’s evolving metrics: controllability over time
21:26 – Mapping input metrics to what actually drives success
22:33 – The danger of metric sprawl—and how to refocus
23:59 – Why some SEO work becomes “invisible” without input metrics
25:13 – Three metrics per person: a practical ceiling
26:51 – How input metrics support pipeline generation in B2B
28:35 – Communicating SEO value to non-executives via unit economics
30:06 – Stop yelling “fix it”—report what’s not getting done
31:22 – Translating editorial quality into spreadsheet metrics
33:06 – Red, yellow, green ≠ strategic clarity—track actual numbers
34:08 – Attribution is broken: input metrics matter more than ever
36:43 – Benchmarking input metrics against competitors
38:03 – Don’t just track AI visibility—track the work you can control
39:02 – Why input metrics aren’t neutral—and why that’s OK
41:01 – Planning cycles: why it takes 6 months to see input adoption
42:15 – Measuring “quality”: content scores, CSATs, and rubrics
44:25 – Why you must operationalize “quality” to get promoted
46:08 – Manual scoring systems and quality baselines
47:13 – Where to find Tom and what he’s working on next
Show Links
Tom Critchlow on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tomcritchlow
Tom’s blog: http://tomcritchlow.com
Input Metrics for SEO article: https://newsletter.seomba.com/p/input-metrics-for-seo
Raptive: https://raptive.comSubscribe today for weekly tips: https://bit.ly/3dBM61f Listen on
iTunes:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/content-and-conversation-seo-tips-from-siege-media/id1289467174
Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1kiaFGXO5UcT2qXVRuXjsM
Listen on Google:
https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5zaW1wbGVjYXN0LmNvbS9jT3NjUkdLeA
Follow Siege on Twitter: http://twitter.com/siegemedia Follow Ross on
Twitter: http://twitter.com/rosshudgens Directed by Cara Brown:
https://twitter.com/cararbrown Email Ross: [email protected] #seo |
#contentmarketing
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Content and Conversation: Organic Growth Insights from Siege MediaBy Siege Media

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