For small businesses, conversion rate is one of the most critical marketing metrics to determine whether your marketing spend is resulting in paying customers.
A conversion happens when someone completes a desired action after engaging with your marketing. Examples include:
- Filling out a contact form
- Making a purchase
- Calling your business directly
- Signing up for a newsletter or loyalty program
- Booking an appointment
The conversion rate is calculated as:
Conversion Rate (%) = (Number of Conversions ÷ Total Visitors) × 100
Our research team analyzed conversion rate benchmarks across industries and marketing channels to help small business owners understand what a good conversion rate looks like, which channels tend to perform best, and how to improve results over time.
Here is a table that we broke down to outline all different types of lead generation channels, their average conversion rate, and the use case for small businesses.
Average Conversion Rates by Channel – Small Business (2025)
Channel | Avg. Conversion Rate | Best Use Case for Small Businesses |
Google Ads (Search) | 4.4% | Capturing high-intent leads actively searching for your products/ services |
Google Business Profile | 5-7% | Local service-based businesses getting calls, direction requests, and form fills |
Paid Social (Facebook/ Instagram) | 0.9% | Brand awareness, retargeting past site visitors |
Organic Search (SEO) | 2.6% | Long-term lead and sales growth with lower acquisition costs |
Email Marketing | 3.2% | Retention, upsells, and seasonal offers |
Display Ads | 0.35% | Remarketing and brand exposure |
*Sources: WordStream, BrightLocal, Mailchimp, internal industry analysis (2025)
Achieving a High Digital Marketing Conversion Rate
For small businesses, conversion rate is the bridge between marketing spend and ROI. By prioritizing high-intent channels like Google Ads and Google Business Profile, layering in email for retention, and continually optimizing landing pages, you can significantly increase the number of customers generated without increasing your budget.
For small businesses, the most effective path to local SEO success is optimizing your Google Business Profile, as it directly boosts visibility in the Map Pack, where high-intent local customers are searching.
To download a copy of this report, contact us here.
