Analytics Software Company Bounces Back to Achieve Highest New MRR in a Decade

From Content Overload to SEO Overhaul — How a Strategic Shift Led to a Record-Breaking Comeback

Summary

• Baremetrics is a SaaS subscription and financial analytics platform that helps SaaS companies better understand key performance indicators to make better strategic decisions and ultimately increase profit
• They came to PureSEM with an extensive library of content, and despite continuously producing new content, traffic had dropped and then remained stagnant for two years 
• After implementing the PureSEM Topic Cluster Technology and SEO framework, Baremetrics saw a 67% increase in Monthly Organic traffic on their most targeted traffic
• In the months that followed, revenue increased to the second-highest month of New MRR in the company's history

The Challenge

The Baremetrics team has a deep understanding of complex topics surrounding SaaS performance and financial KPIs. They spent years writing at least four posts a month, resulting in an enormous library of content. 

While a small segment of the content performed fairly well, most of it wasn’t driving traffic or conversions. The incumbent playbook was based on the idea that more new content would equal more traffic, and traffic would result in more software trials.

While that worked well for years, their site traffic and new trials had declined and then remained stagnant for two years. They were no longer seeing the payoff they needed for the investment they’d been making in SEO and content marketing. 

Baremetrics considered stopping their SEO campaigns when we recommended a complete shift in their SEO and content marketing approach. 

"Not only was the new content taking forever to rank well and generate leads, we learned new content was often a close duplication of existing content, and we were fighting against ourselves for keyword rankings."

- Luke Marshall, CEO

The SEM Solution

PureSEM delivered transformative results for Baremetrics by addressing their content challenges, technical barriers, and internal linking opportunities. We used our proprietary topic cluster technology, intent attribution, DECODR framework, and strategic services to achieve this. 

Our services were completely customized for Baremetrics while remaining focused on our three pillars of SEO: Content, Links, and Code, backed by data-driven insights and systematic execution.

Technology and Frameworks:

• Topic cluster technology: We used our software to analyze the entire body of existing content and traffic sources to identify and categorize content and keywords by topic and subtopic. We then used that information to identify underperforming, overlapping, and underrepresented content. 

• Full-path attribution: Using our integration with HubSpot, we were able to identify and connect the most qualified trials to the original subtopics that brought the visitors so that we could focus on improving and expanding the content that was working.

• DECODeR Content Framework: We provided a systematic approach to assess, organize, and enhance Baremetrics’ content.

Content: Turning Duplication into Opportunity

Challenge: Baremetrics had over 700 pieces of competing content, diluting their SEO performance and leading to internal competition for the same keywords. The lack of a coherent organizational strategy hindered their growth.

Actions:

• Conducted a full audit of all content using our DECODR content assessment process to identify underperforming, duplicate, and under-represented content.

• Prioritized updates to high-value existing content instead of creating new assets, aligning with users’ search intent.

• Optimized for featured snippets and search features to maximize visibility and click-through rates.

Outcome: Increased traffic and new MRR by transforming their content into a growth engine.

“PureSEM didn’t just help us clean up our content — they gave us a clear, actionable strategy that turned existing assets into growth engines. Seeing our traffic and MRR skyrocket has been incredibly rewarding, proving that quality beats quantity every time.”
— Allison Barkley, COO

Code: Technical Optimizations for Long-Term Gains

Challenge: Technical issues on Baremetrics’ site, such as crawlability problems and outdated code structures, were limiting their SEO potential.

Actions:

• Optimized for featured snippets and search features to maximize visibility and click-through rates
• Implemented over 1,600 technical optimizations, including internal link restructuring, updating redirects, schema code changes, title tag and meta improvements
• Used our software to identify and prioritize the changes that would have the highest impact on performance

Outcome: Improved crawlability, site performance, and ranking potential, creating a strong foundation for sustained growth.

“With PureSEM, we get access to a whole team of experts who specialize in every aspect of SEO and content strategy. Their ability to analyze our existing content, pinpoint areas of opportunity, and execute with precision has been a game-changer for us. We’re no longer guessing about what works — we’re seeing tangible results month after month.” 

— Allison Barkley, COO

Links: Hub-Focused Internal Linking

Challenge: Baremetrics lacked a structured internal linking strategy and topic-focused hubs, which weakened their topic authority and search engine visibility.

Actions:

• Organized all the content into distinct hubs around significant topics of interest, which included SaaS metrics, pricing strategies, and churn. 
• Completely overhauled the internal linking structure by implementing a new navigational strategy, linking the new content hubs in the navigation, and related pieces within hubs to enhance user experience and boost topic authority.
• Compared the domain authority and inbound links against the direct competitors for high-intent keywords identifying link-building gaps and opportunities.

Outcome: Improved navigation, user engagement, and search rankings for priority topics, resulting in greater visibility and conversions.

Refining PPC Campaigns for Testing and Profitability

In addition to organic content restructuring and technical optimizations, we also worked with Baremetrics to refine their existing PPC campaigns.

The most competitive keyword spaces are dominated by advertising and it’s important to have visibility in the paid and organic sections of the search results. Additionally, paid testing of new keywords helped us find new areas for Organic targeting. 

Ultimately, we used our attribution technology to identify keyword targets where we could drive a new sales pipeline with a positive ROI and worked to scale these areas to the maximum. 

Reversing a Declining Trend Leads to Record MRR

After implementing PureSEM’s SEO framework and Topic Cluster Technology, Baremetrics saw an immediate 67% bump in organic traffic on the important traffic. 

This directly impacted lead generation and client conversion efforts, producing the highest new monthly recurring revenue in a decade. 

“PureSEM has been helping us stay ahead of the curve since we started working with them. The attention to detail, collaboration, and recommendations backed by evidence allowed me, as a very hands-on CEO, to feel comfortable enough to step away and let them do what they do best”
– Luke Marshall, CEO

Ready for SEO Strategies That Drive Results?

At PureSEM, we combine our proven SEO Framework and Topic Cluster Technology with a personalized approach, crafting strategies that fit your unique needs.

Baremetrics is a great example of why that’s so important. 

With a vast library of content, they faced the challenge of their existing material and processes holding them back. By pivoting their strategy, we turned their existing content into a more powerful asset—and the results speak for themselves.

Is your content underperforming? Let’s change that. 

Schedule an introductory call with us today and start unlocking your site's full potential.