Working out what one visit is worth

The calculation itself takes a minute. Getting the three inputs right is the part that matters, and it is where most attempts quietly go wrong.

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Revenue per visitor is revenue produced by the site divided by visitors in the same period. Take visitors from one consistent source, count only enquiries that began on the site, and use the value of work actually won. For service businesses with long cycles, use enquiries per visitor monthly and multiply by a typical enquiry value updated occasionally.

The three inputs

Everything depends on these being consistent rather than perfect. A figure that is slightly conservative but calculated the same way every month is far more useful than a precise one that changes definition.

  • Visitors for the period, always from the same tool and the same report.
  • Enquiries or orders that genuinely began on the site during that period.
  • The value of the work those enquiries produced, once it is known.

Pick one source for visitors and never change it

Different tools count differently, and switching between them creates movements that look like results and are not. Choose one, note which report you are reading, and stay with it.

Whether you use sessions or people matters less than consistency, though people is usually the more intuitive basis for this particular figure.

The service business version

For a shop, the money arrives on the day of the visit and the calculation is straightforward. For a service business it is not, because a visit in March can become a signed contract in June, and nobody wants to wait a quarter for every number.

So split it into two. Track enquiries per visitor month by month, which responds quickly and tells you whether site changes worked. Separately, work out what a typical enquiry is worth once your usual share of them converts, and update that occasionally.

Working out a typical enquiry value

Take a period long enough to include a normal mix of work, count the enquiries that came from the site, and total the value of what those enquiries eventually produced. Divide one by the other.

Use profit rather than turnover if you can, because turnover can make an unprofitable service look like your best channel. Whichever you choose, apply it consistently so comparisons hold.

  • Use a long enough period to include a normal mix.
  • Count only enquiries that began on the site.
  • Include the ones that did not convert, since they are part of the average.
  • Prefer profit to turnover, and stay consistent.

Common mistakes that inflate the figure

Three habits reliably produce a number that is too flattering to be useful. Counting all revenue rather than revenue that began on the site. Using your best month rather than a typical one. Including customers who found you by word of mouth and merely checked the site.

The third is the most tempting, because it is genuinely true that the site helped. Keep that group in a separate note rather than in the main figure, so the headline number stays defensible.

What to do with the answer

On its own, one figure means very little. Its value comes from comparison: this quarter against the same quarter last year, one page against another, one channel against another.

It also makes trade-offs decidable. When somebody proposes a change that would bring far more visitors of lower quality, this is the number that tells you whether the trade is worth making.

How Licheo calculates it

We use consistent sources, count enquiries that genuinely began on the site, and separate the supporting-role customers rather than folding them in.

Where the value side is not yet known, we report the enquiry side and say the rest is pending, rather than presenting an estimate as a measurement.

Part of a larger guide

This page is one part of Revenue per visitor. The other parts:

Questions people ask

How do I calculate revenue per visitor?
Divide the revenue produced by the site in a period by the number of visitors in the same period. Use one consistent source for visitors, count only work that began with a site enquiry, and use the value actually won.
How do I do this for a service business where sales take months?
Split it. Track enquiries per visitor monthly, which responds quickly to changes, then multiply by a typical enquiry value that you recalculate a few times a year rather than every month.
Should I use turnover or profit?
Profit gives the more useful answer, since turnover can make an unprofitable service look like your best channel. Whichever you pick, use it consistently so this quarter can be compared with the last.
Should I count customers who found me by referral but checked the site?
Keep them in a separate note rather than the main figure. The site genuinely helped, but including them makes the headline number impossible to defend and easy to fool yourself with.
What is a good revenue per visitor?
There is no universal figure; it depends entirely on what you sell and to whom. The only meaningful comparisons are your own site over time, and one page or channel against another within your own site.

Get the number, honestly

Consistent sources, enquiries that genuinely began on the site, and an honest blank where the value is not yet known.

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