A traffic report can tell you how many people arrived. It takes another measure to tell you whether those visits supported a business goal.
Ahrefs published an example that makes this distinction worth examining.
What Ahrefs reported
In a June 16, 2025 article, Patrick Stox reported that AI search accounted for 0.5% of Ahrefs traffic and 12.1% of its signups over the preceding 30 days. Ahrefs also reported that AI visitors converted to signups at 23 times the rate of traditional organic search visitors.
The analysis used Ahrefs’ own analytics on its own website. It measured signups, not qualified service inquiries or revenue. The percentages don’t tell us the total visitor or signup counts, and the result isn’t a benchmark for other businesses. This is an independent example, not STIR client work.
STIR’s perspective
Our recommendation is to give every meaningful traffic source two questions: how much attention does it bring, and what happens after people arrive?
A source with relatively few visits may still deserve attention if those visitors take useful actions. A busy page may need work if visitors can’t find a clear next step.
For a service business, the next step might be a completed inquiry form or a booked appointment. A click on a telephone link is a different measure. It shows intent to call, but doesn’t confirm that a conversation happened.
A useful place to start
Choose the website action that best represents a prospect moving forward. Check that the action is recorded accurately, then compare it by traffic source over a consistent period.
Keep the actual counts beside the percentages. One inquiry from a handful of visits can create an impressive rate that changes quickly when more data arrives. If your team can reliably share lead quality and sales outcomes, add those measures too.
Talk with STIR
Need a clearer picture of whether visibility is producing useful visits? Contact STIR to set up an appointment and review what you can measure.
Sources
Patrick Stox, Ahrefs, Does AI Search Traffic Convert Better Than Traditional Search? For Ahrefs, Yes: 0.5% of Visitors Drove 12.1% of Signups, June 16, 2025.