How is traffic potential calculated for specific keywords or webpages, and what factors influence it?

Traffic potential for specific keywords or web pages is calculated by looking at several key factors that influence the potential search volume and ranking opportunities.

One of the biggest factors is the search volume itself - what's the average monthly number of searches for that particular keyword or phrase? The higher the search volume, the higher the potential traffic. We look at data from search engine tools and third-party keyword research tools to estimate this volume.

Another crucial factor is keyword difficulty - how competitive is it to try and rank for that keyword based on the strength of the current top-ranking pages and websites? Less competitive keywords with more opportunity tend to have higher traffic potential, especially for newer or smaller sites.

We also consider the current rankings and typical click-through rates from those ranking positions. Top rankings that get a high percentage of clicks mean more potential traffic. And we look at keyword intent - whether it's a more commercial, transactional keyword that users are ready to buy versus an informational query.

Some other factors that go into the calculation are seasonality trends if it's a seasonal keyword, whether there are SERP features like featured snippets or knowledge panels that could influence clicks and the quality and relevance of the actual landing page content itself.

Essentially, traffic potential estimates weigh things like high search volume, low keyword difficulty, good ranking potential based on intent and current rankings, and a relevant, high-quality landing page. Algorithms combine and score all these factors to calculate the potential.

Of course, it's an estimate at the end of the day - you'd still need to test things out for the real-world traffic numbers. However, those are some of the biggest factors that go into the traffic potential calculations.