Navigating the Metrics Maze of Social Media
- Ilana
- Sep 2, 2017
- 3 min read
In this day and age and with the digital explosion, marketers have more data at their fingertips than ever before. But the question is, what does the data tell you? When companies use their data metrics well, they can potentially catapult their digital and social media marketing strategy to a whole other level. Let's explore this further....
As we have seen so far, Social Media Marketing gives us a platform and accompanying data vastly different to what existed a decade ago. Not only that, every day things are changing at a very fast pace. Each demographic, geographic and psychographic uses social media very differently and the savvy marketer needs to be completely up to date and on top of the ever-changing face of social media and how it bests suits the overall marketing mix.
In the social media realm, the customer is now in the drivers seat, so marketing managers need "real time" analytics to track and monitor social media activity. Not only that, for marketers (like myself) who are less “numbers” and “technically” focused, having the right data platform is essential. With various tools available at your fingertips, which measure the impact of your social media, this has effectively been a game changer in the way we do business.
For companies and organisations, the essential ingredient is not just having the right data, but being able to use it effectively to incorporate into your overall marketing objectives.
For example, did the social media marketing have an impact on the sales? Did you meet or exceed targets/KPI's? Did the results add value to the bottom line corporate, marketing and business objectives? Was there increased exposure to your brand? Were the sentiments and comments positive or negative? Most importantly, did the investment in the digital channel translate into a strong return on investment or ROI vs other traditional marketing channels (TV/Magazines, etc)?
Jan Rezab, Founder & Executive Chairman of Socialbakers, a company focused on social media marketing and measurement shares some pearls of wisdom in this vid:
Another game changer for many smaller companies with limited budgets, is that they can easily access their data using social media metrics for their business, and in some cases use it to cut into the bigger and deep pocket spending competition of large corporates. Smaller businesses with tighter budgets can run targeted campaigns, and collect and process data at much lower costs. This has empowered many innovative and smart start-up competitors to chip into the market share over bigger and more established brands.
In addition, SMM Metrics provide the ability to conduct market research without the huge cost outlay of market research companies. The data is there – it can be put into various formats, be presented and then analysed. Check out the Klipfolio’s social media analytics dashboard. It is one of the many platforms available to measure their reach and impact across social media channels/platforms, customers, and devices.
Sujain Thomas, a well-respected Database Analytics (DBA) Consultant offers SIX easy steps for getting the best out of your analytics in her article:
Utilise Goal Driven Metrics, e.g. know your targets before you try and delve into analysing or monitoring our social media metrics
Identify your lead indicators, e.g. click through rates (CTR), page views, likes, comments, and shares and set your KPI’s accordingly
Utilise a social media metrics dashboard to monitor across a variety of social media platforms such as Kissmetrics, Google Analytics, Cyfe or Klipfolio (above).
Experiment and use sample groups – Divide your metrics into pre and post campaign, and know where/when to change things up when required.
Invest in Database Management – Know how to curate the data you have, and how to best use it to your advantage.
Create an effective feedback mechanism to capture the information and know where to improve for future campaigns.
So….What’s the bottom line for the savvy and effective marketing manager?
All the metrics available can help further improve marketing goals and objectives and create awareness and reach that we would otherwise not have. It also gives little players wiggle room to take a bite out of the market share of the big players, through the ease of measurement and the low cost of use.
Check this short, cheeky and candid vid by successful entrepreneur Gary Vee ( Vaynerchuk) on his thoughts about Data Metrics:
Where do we go from here? Data metrics cannot be used as a standalone to measure success. As marketers we need to look at the big picture, keep up with technological and cultural changes, and continue to evolve.
References:
https://www.kaushik.net/avinash/biggest-web-analysts-mistake-how-to-avoid/
http://serialmarketer.net/2009/11/six-questions-for-100-metrics/
https://www.businesscomputingworld.co.uk/social-media-is-the-present-and-the-future-of-marketing/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JbXNS3NjIfM&list=PLI5YfMzCfRtZ8eV576YoY3vIYrHjyVm_e&index=2
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