One of the questions we often get is: “How will I know my social media marketing is successful?” There’s no easy answer, because it depends on what you’re trying to achieve. There are thousands of numbers you can track, but we like to look at the numbers that demonstrate momentum, content value, and website activity. We do this by monitoring the following metrics, and suggest you do the same.
Comparing numbers month-to-month will help you detect trends, identify high-performing content, and adjust your approach to better serve your audience and reach your goals.
Social Metrics
Fan/Follower Numbers are the basic metric to monitor. You want to see continual growth—that’s the sign of a healthy social media account. If you start losing a lot of fans/followers over the course of several months, that’s a big wake-up call. However, a dip one month and a rebound the next is normal.
Engagement numbers are one of the most important metrics. Engagement lets you know how your content is resonating with your audience. If you post and post, and your engagement remains under 1%—the benchmark for success on social media—that’s a sign you need to adjust either the type of content you’re posting or the language you’re using.
This year, engagement has been tough on both Twitter and Facebook. While there are no silver bullet solutions, adding more images, videos, live content, or ephemeral content will often help boost engagement numbers.
Website Analytics
Website activity is an important way to determine how your social media efforts are working. We like to track (via Google Analytics), from month-to-month, which social platforms are driving the most website traffic. It’s a great bit of information to help you adjust your social media strategy and discover more about where to find your most engaged social community.
We also like to see where the website visitors are going. Tracking behavior on your site can give you ideas for future blog posts and/or videos by spotlighting the content your web visitors are consuming.
You may have noticed these metrics don’t touch on ROI. That’s because social media is the top of the marketing funnel—it’s the place to build awareness of your work and brand. If you’re seeing social growth, and an increase in awareness about you and your work, then your social media efforts are paying off.
Keep an eye on these numbers throughout the year, and you’ll constantly be evaluating and tweaking your approach—so when you do an annual review, you’ll be able to focus on creative ideas for the coming year!
How do YOU measure success on social media?
Christy Kirk, Vice President of Client Services, is a social media strategist, writer, and former television journalist, who’s done everything from launch a news department to create social content and strategy for Fortune 500 companies and brands including Pampers Diapers, Pantene, Luvs Diapers and Carlson Rezidor Hotels. Now, Christy manages marketing projects for Weaving Influence, with an emphasis on social media marketing. She is also a wife and mother of three children, one dog, and one cat. She loves reading, baking, running, hiking and exploring new places.