eCommerce Metrics You’re not Looking at but Should be

August 14, 2018 / nancyrubin / Leave a comment

Nowadays, there are various ecommerce stores available to online consumers. What’s more, there are countless new ecommerce businesses being opened each day. With such a strong competition on the market, it’s difficult for businesses to truly stand out and ensure that their target audience will pick their store to do business with. That’s why many ecommerce stores are tracking their business performance, in order to determine if their store is managing to grow and develop further.

After all, the primary goal of every ecommerce business is an increase in sales and for that you need customers. However, when tracking business metrics, a lot of ecommerce stores tend to track metrics that don’t portray business performance the right way. That way, when profits start to decline, business owners are unable to understand the reason behind such a decline. Therefore, here are a few ecommerce metrics you’re not looking at but should be.

Conversion rate

Many ecommerce businesses neglect conversion rate as a primary metric that should be tracked. The goal of this metric is to show you just how many people are actually converting into customers. With that in mind, you should have a clear picture about whether or not your marketing campaigns and other efforts are actually efficient in driving business goals. As you already know, the purpose of marketing is to engage your audience in different ways and eventually encourage them to make a purchase at your store.

If your marketing efforts aren’t able to do that, then you’re simply wasting time and resources on an ineffective marketing campaign. That’s why conversion rate is such a valuable metric to look at. If your conversion rates aren’t as good as you need them to be, then it’s time to re-think your approach and improve your marketing efforts.

Cart abandonment

Cart abandonment rate is a metric that many ecommerce businesses forget to track. Still, this is one of the most important metrics you should be looking at. As a matter of fact, cart abandonment rate has reached 75.6% for ecommerce stores globally. That’s 75% of lost sales. The main reason you must track this metric is that it shows you if there’s an outstanding issue your customers have with your check out process, which makes them abandon the cart altogether.

In most cases, these issues can be high shipment costs, additional fees customers weren’t aware of, lack of security measures on the check out and so on. All of these issues force your customers to abandon their purchases, which can have a significant negative impact on your sales and revenue. Tracking shopping cart abandonment metric allows you to identify the main issues your customers are having and fix those problems. That way, you can remind customers of abandoned shopping carts, as well as inform them that the issues have been resolved.

Website traffic

Another important metric that’s oftentimes neglected is the website traffic. Website traffic shows you how many visitors you have on your ecommerce store. It also shows how good your efforts are at driving leads to your website from various media channels. The more website traffic you have the more chances of you making a sale. However, the number of website visitors itself is not as important as the origin of the website traffic.

For instance, if you’re using services, such as a Shopify agency, to endorse your ecommerce store, you’d want to know how your website visitors are finding your store. Moreover, you want to know which sources the visitors are originating from. This will show you which marketing channels are best suited for your business. Understanding your website traffic will allow you to focus your efforts on strategies and channels that will yield more qualified leads for your ecommerce store.

Customer acquisition and lifetime value

For ecommerce stores, the one of the most important factors in business success is sales. However, there are expenses you must be aware of to ensure that you’re actually making a profit. For example, if a single customer made a purchase totaling of $200 at your store, it means you made a sale and revenue. But, if it cost a $300 on average to acquire a customer, then you haven’t really made any profits yet.

That’s why it’s important to track customer acquisition cost (CAC) and customer lifetime value (CLV) metrics. Customer acquisition cost shows how much it costs your company to acquire a single new customer, while customer lifetime value shows you how much revenue your ecommerce store generates from that customer during their entire lifetime as a customer. If your CAC is higher than CLV metric, you won’t be making many profits. That means you must work on customer retention strategies to ensure that customers are actually bringing in more value than it costs you to convince them to make a purchase.

There are plenty of metrics that businesses can track in order to assess the overall performance of their company. However, it’s difficult to decide which metric will actually show viable results. That being said, metrics that are most commonly overlooked by ecommerce stores often turn out to be the important ones. That’s why it’s important to understand which metric will actually bring value to your ecommerce store and track it regularly, in order to ensure business success.

Guest author, Raul Harman, is a B.Sc. in Innovative entrepreneurship and has a lot to say about innovations in all aspects of digital technology and online marketing. While he’s not enjoying football and great food, you can find him on Technivorz.com

Into the Future: Leveraging Customer Data to Grow Your Business

July 20, 2018July 20, 2018 / nancyrubin / 1 Comment

When it comes to getting information, there is no lack of data available. In fact, the amount of data available on every individual in the country, not to mention the world, is growing by leaps and bounds every day.

Gathering data is one thing, but actually processing that data into a useful, coherent picture is a whole other issue. With AI, however, even that is becoming more and more possible. The final step is understanding how to take interpreted data to grow your business. Here are 5 ways in which you can leverage customer data to secure growth and success.

1. Identify holes in the market

Some of the most profitable businesses in the world leveraged a gap in the market. They found product or service that was not currently available and made it so. There are two ways to go about this, however.

The first is to listen to clients and consumers to identify their needs. The second is to come up with a product idea and try to sell the public on its merits. Needless to say, creating a product people are already looking for is a far easier sell than trying to convince them they have a genuine need for your product.

This is where big data can help. It can analyze hundreds of sources, from social media to customer surveys and questionnaires to customer feedback on competitor’s websites to determine what the common themes are. What are they commenting about, complaining about or requesting again and again?

Armed with this information, you can tailor your product line or service to meet the needs of a consumer base not yet currently getting its needs met.

2. Market testing

Perhaps one of the most frustrating aspects of marketing has been the lack of truly comprehensive feedback about what marketing materials or campaigns were working and which weren’t.

While you may have noticed an increase in sales after a particular marketing campaign or drive, getting truly detailed information about where specifically your campaign was having the most impact was next to impossible.

Today, however, with advanced analytics, you can get detailed insights into exactly which campaigns are working and which are not and in what sectors.

Analytics can tell you what efforts are resulting in likes or clicks and which are actually being converted into sales. In addition, analytics can give you detailed information about demographic responses to determine if you have actually appropriately identified your target demographic or not.

It may turn out that the teens you initially targeted your campaign towards are not the actual consumers buying your product, but rather their moms. This information can help you find better tools to get your marketing to the right groups.

Analytics allow you to tweak, tailor and fine-tune your marketing efforts on-the-fly to supercharge their effectiveness mid-campaign.

3. Targeted product offerings

Data doesn’t just tell you what products people are buying, it tells you who is buying them. Buying preferences not only tell you a lot about your consumers, but they can also help you make specific product offerings that they may be interested in.

This can also be a good way to build good relationships with partner businesses that offer products that are complimentary to yours. If someone buys a certain pair of shoes or a bag, you can offer a cleaning or storage solution for them. If someone buys an electronic device, you can recommend a case or a charger for it.

Data can also tell you how to target market products for certain consumers. For instance, if 5 out of the last 7 products they purchased were all purchased in red, then when you send them product offerings, you can make sure the product offered is always pictured in red.

AI, analytics and automation are designed to work seamlessly together. By utilizing each tool, even the smallest of businesses can tailor their marketing to an individual and specific client or consumer.

4. Keep up with minute-by-minute changes in the market

You’ve probably noticed that almost all gas stations now have digital price boards. This is because gas station owners had to manually go out and change gas station prices every day based on current market prices.

In a market where prices are constantly in flux, however, digital boards allow an automated system to change prices numerous times each day to keep pace with fluctuating market prices. Analytics offer the ability for other businesses to adapt this same model.

Every day, events around the world can have a direct impact on your business and predictive analytics helps you stay on top of moment-by-moment events that can be so significant for the future of your business.

Say a revolt in China leads to the shutdown of a factory that make a component you depend on to create your own product. AI can alert you to this immediately so you can in turn immediately find another supplier so there are no delays in production.

In some cases, having this information first can help you lock down a contract before a competitor jumps in and starts a bidding war. Having necessary components while your competitor does not may lead to them no longer being able to offer product that you now can.

While targeted product offerings and analytics are nothing new, AI is growing by leaps and bounds to allow even the smallest of businesses the ability to take advantage of some of the tools giant corporations have been using for close to a decade.

Smaller businesses also have an advantage in that they often have smaller consumer bases, which allows them to use AI and automation to personalize their marketing and product offerings in ways big businesses can’t touch. This means that today’s small business has an opportunity like never before to compete with corporate giants.

Jasmine Williams covers the good and the bad of today’s business and marketing. When she’s not being all serious and busy, she’s usually hunched over a book or dancing in the kitchen, trying hard to maintain rhythm, and delivering some fine cooking (her family says so). Reach out to her @jazzymin88

6 Common Reasons Your Marketing Plan Isn’t Generating Leads

July 16, 2018July 16, 2018 / nancyrubin

Marketing has never been easier according to the experts. Today, an entrepreneur with zero experience and an internet connection can learn the tricks of the trade. All of the info is available online at the click of a button. As a result, businesses and blog and the platform of your choice can compete. Forget about the size as it doesn’t matter. Whether big, small or medium, there is nothing you can’t achieve concerning marketing.

So, if this is the case, why are you struggling to generate leads? It isn’t as if you don’t use modern techniques such as search engine optimization. And, you also invest in paid marketing such as pay-per-click. Still, the amount of leads coming back to you is poor, and you can’t figure out the problem. It’s a head-scratcher.

Without a steady flow of leads, it’s challenging to make conversions and increase sales. Sadly, failure is always an option in business so it’s essential to fix the issue as soon as possible. Without knowing the details, it can be very tricky. The good news is that there are six common reasons for lack of leads underneath. Hopefully, these will be able to help you reverse your fortunes.

Your Aim Is Off

Regardless of the plan, it isn’t going to work if it is aiming at the wrong people. There is no point throwing darts in the dark because it’s a waste of time and energy. Oh, and don’t forget the money either. The key is to optimize every feature to give it the best chance of succeeding. The first step then is to find a base of people who are going to be interested. That way, there is more of a chance that it will grab their attention and make them curious.

You may have an idea of the base, but there’s also a chance that you don’t fully understand the demographic. Are women or men more likely to buy the product or land on the site? What age range? Why do your services seem to resonate with this group? Delving into the specifics should help you find your perfect customer/visitor. Once that person is in your sights, aiming at him or her, and millions more like them is straightforward.

A buying persona should keep you on the right track. For those that don’t have one, visit Lead Forensics now and check out the post for more info.

And So Are Your Methods

The people aren’t the only thing to consider; there’s the method too. Every individual has a preferred contact setting depending on their tastes. For example, the older generations are advocates of speaking on the phone. Some hate cold-calling because it’s annoying, yet they like the directness of talking to a human advisor. Your job is to figure out which people like which platform and then use the info to target them.

Although it sounds like mind-numbingly long work, it’s not too tricky. Use age as a factor to break the base down into groups. The baby boomers have already gotten a mention, so now focus on the other subsections. Young customers are easy because they love to interact via social media. To optimize their experience, try and figure out which account is their favorite: Twitter, Facebook, Instagram or Snapchat. The trickiest people are the inbetweeners. Middle-aged men and women are retro and modern at the same time, which makes them awkward. An excellent tip is to use their personal info. For instance, entrepreneurs and business-oriented people will respond to email blasts. A housewife or husband may prefer an app because it suits their lifestyle.

Whichever one you choose, be sure to engage and interact when possible. Adding value often sticks in a person’s mind and encourages them to follow up.

The Tone Is Wrong

It’s essential to speak to people politely and respectfully. Still, there is no need to be boring. Boredom turns people off and makes them want to run a mile. So, finding a balance is a must to ensure there is value in the interaction. There is nothing worse than picking up the phone to listen to a sales rep babble on without pausing. When the other party can’t speak or ask questions, there is bound to be frustration which will result in them bouncing. This is one sales error to watch out for, but you can visit ej4 today for lots more.

Tailor the experience to the platform. Calls should have a consistent tone and shouldn’t be out of the blue. Cold calling is a sure-fire way to get them to hang up without a word. Emails are less formal and can use a chatty, colloquial voice. Also, there’s lots of room for multimedia such as photos, videos and gifs, so don’t be scared to get creative.

Social media is where the most informal interactions take place. When people log-in to their accounts, they don’t want to see forced, pointed, corporate tweets and posts. The most successful marketing plans center on organic conversations full of witty banter.

You’re Jumping The Gun

From the beginning, the end goal is in your sights. If the strategy can get them to convert or make a purchase, then everything will be hunky-dory. It’s important to keep the result in mind but it shouldn’t be at the forefront of the plan. Otherwise, you run the risk of jumping the gun and peaking too soon. Users hate this because it feels as if they are being forced into doing something rather than making the decision naturally.

Focus on providing the right info at the right time. To do this, analyze the process and where everyone stands on the spectrum. Are they at the beginning, in the middle, or at the end? The answer is essential because what you offer should be totally different for all three. At the start, an interested party wants as much info as possible so that they can compare and contrast. The middlemen and women love to hear about solutions to their problems. And, the guys and girls at the end want a sweetener to seal the deal.

By all means, get in front of them early to catch their eye but don’t be pushy. Everyone knows being clingy is a huge turn-off.

Patience Isn’t Your Strong Point

There is lots of activities available and not enough time to get through every single one. As a result, it’s tempting to discard the ones which don’t seem to work. After all, what’s the point in wasting time and money? Although changes can be positive, they can also be a hindrance. In this scenario, a lack of patience may cause you to throw away a feature which will work in the future. There is no way to tell if it is a failure until enough time has passed.

With that in mind, don’t get anxious when something appears not to work. Instead, let it grow and prosper until you are sure. Otherwise, there may be a lot of money left on the table. Take content marketing as an example. It takes a while to build up a reputable portfolio. Some of the market leaders have been doing it for decades and are still learning.

So, the aim isn’t to throw out as much content as possible and hope for the best. Instead, you need to focus on quality over quantity and build a core brand to get results. However, don’t assume they’ll appear out of thin air overnight because it takes hard work and endurance.

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You’re Not Number-Driven

Some people don’t believe in stats and they have a good reason. If you are unable to speak the language, then a lot of info can get lost in translation. Lots of businesses have developed strategies they thought would work yet they tanked. Why? It’s because they read the numbers wrong and didn’t understand the nuances. Still, marketing is a numbers game.

The reason is analytic software. Today, it’s easy to see who is doing what and why without basic math skills. The program does it all for you and prints the info in easy-to-understand chunks. More importantly, it shows you where there are flaws and what needs fixing. It’s incredible the number of strategies that have glaring flaws yet continue regardless. To put it into simple terms, it’s because the people in charge don’t use the analytic software.

Reverse engineer the data to locate the solutions. For example, go back and see where the leads came from in the first place. Then, compare the different sources to the success rate. Are there some which provide better conversions than others? Use this to figure out what gets you the best quality results, which in turn should reveal the best quality leads. Although it’s easy for analytic software to take a backseat, you need to keep on top of it on a regular basis.

Do any of the above seem like mistakes you are making currently? Could they be the reason lead generation is suffering?

Let’s Play Ball: Gamification For Businesses

July 10, 2018July 10, 2018 / nancyrubin

Gamification – have you heard the term? The odds are high that if you haven’t, then you will soon. Recently, this method of increasing customer participation has taken off within the industry. It’s the process of using video game-style features to boost the customer experience. For the most part, it tends to make marketing more fun and enjoyable. The same also goes for the products and services themselves.

People who have never heard the term before won’t have a clue regarding implementing it into their business plan. That’s why this post is here – to give you a helping hand. The following are the things to take into consideration.

Valued Learning

Duolingo is a language app which helps its users to learn words and phrases. The way it does this is simple: it starts off small and works higher and higher. Anyone who needs to get to the next level has to unlock the one they are on first. Otherwise, they plateau until they get it right. Adobe Photoshop has a similar strategy with its LevelUp campaign. The competition is the part which engages customers and makes them come back for more as humans hate being beaten. Plus, it helps users take a complicated goal and break it down into bite-size chunks.

Distractions

There are bound to be times when customers lose interest in, well, anything. Whether it’s a marketing ploy or a product itself, people will get bored. Distractions exist and it is your job to find the major ones and deal with them as soon as possible. The reason this is essential is that gamification can lend a hand and make it less monotonous. Then, the level of focus should bounce back and no one will disengage. Use analytics to figure out where people are running out of patience and then gamify the area. Alternatively, you can use your gut.

Tracking And Reporting

Putting a gamified version of the brand out into the world is only a baby step. Those who want to go to the next level need to track results and report on the data. Again, analytic software is available so there is no excuse. And, IT support is accessible across the world regardless of location. Anyone who wonders why this is important should remember two things. The first one is that you can analyze whether the feature is achieving the goals you set out in the beginning. Secondly, it allows the customers to improve, which is added value.

Offline Synchronization

Never forget about mixing virtual and real elements. For example, Foursquare is a program that rewards its users for checking-in to places and events. It also offers incentives for frequently using the app. Anyone who owns a “retro” high street store can use this to merge their strategies. Get your customers to check-in to Foursquare when they are in the store to receive their rewards. Once they start to link the two, they will shop with you more often.

So, the question is: are you game for gamification?

7 Ways to Measure ROI for Marketing Activities

June 6, 2018 / nancyrubin

In the dynamic marketing world, it all comes down to doing what works, not what other businesses are raving about. And you do not know what kind of approach bears fruit until you try it and measure its results. Therefore, marketers are under increased top-down pressure to demonstrate the value of their activities. Drawing this picture of success has nothing to with empty promises and big ideas and everything to do with facts and figures. Note that nowadays, there are tools powerful and diverse than ever. Thus, you cannot afford to forgo the opportunity to fine-tune your marketing efforts.

Revise the basics

In a nutshell, measuring ROI revolves around the process of quantifying the business impact of marketing. Of course, ROI stands for the ratio of net revenue and cost and marketers use various tools and techniques to link their campaigns to improved revenue and performance across different KPIs. There are many challenges linked to this equation that looks simple on paper. One has to determine the methodology for calculating multiple variables and then tie them to a tangible result.

Establish a basic formula

The first part is rather straightforward. You use simple arithmetic to subtract the cost of the campaign from its net profit. Next, you divide by the campaign cost to come up with ROI in its rudimentary form. Thus, the formula looks like this: ROI = (incremental Profit – Campaign Cost) / Campaign Cost. With advanced analytics tools of today, you can make short work of any calculation. It has really never been simpler to keep track of and report ROI. Alas, moving on, we face various obstacles.

Take a long view

The problems arise when you have to deal with marketing initiatives that have a longer timeframe. Then, the dollars-in vs. dollars-out formula falls short. Take the example of content marketing campaigns, which usually stretch on for months. A single post does not immediately produce a sale or subscription. What drives sales is a stream of cumulative interactions that occur over a longer haul. To make it even more complicated, there could be a number of elusive and unaccounted variables at work.

See the big picture

Factors that often get overlooked are brand awareness, touchpoints, and customer lifetime value. So, let us start with brand awareness. If a company decides to measure it on a short time frame, it could fail to detect any ROI. Even if there are spikes in engagement right away, such as the increase in clicks and comments, it is hard to attribute it to revenue. That does not mean ROI benefits will not kick in later on. The takeaway is that one has to learn to look beyond immediate avail and set up the system for gauging ROI that builds up further down the road.

Play the numbers game

Do not fall for fads and focus just on digital marketing. The traditional school still does the trick and it is possible to prove it with numbers. For instance, in countries like Australia, inbound 1300 numbers are associated with lower, local-like costs. Many companies rely on them to come across as professional and also launch cost-effective marketing campaigns. Here, it is sentential to figure out the response rates see who most suitable targets are. You can evaluate factors like time and location, make inquiries and produce inbound call reports.

Cyclical and cumulative

The whole process of evaluating ROI is not linear as much as it is cyclical. Businesses that realize this are in a better position to quantify and optimize vital metrics and use them as early indicators of success or failure. So, if you really mean to elevate your marketing strategy, improve your ability to track and predict cumulative effects of marketing activities. Avoid the pitfalls of having a tunnel vision when driving traffic and converting it into sales. Employ metrics like customer lifetime value that forecast the total future value.

Attribution across touchpoints

It is of the utmost importance to keep an eye on main touchpoint and recognize how the shape the customer journey and influence purchase decisions. After all, it usually takes more than one touch to seal the deal. The only problem is how to relate separate touch points that led to the sale to ROI. The way to pull it off is via single-touch or multi-touch attribution. These methods refer to the branching of attribution across multiple touchpoints. They complicate the ROI calculation, but the alternative is relaying inaccurate ballpark figures.

For good measure

Every company wants to spend the marketing dollars where they count the most. Consequently, marketers are preoccupied with justifying the short-term and long-term effects of marketing spend on the bottom line. They have to optimize ROI pursuit across different channels and touchpoints. So, if you mean business, account for every marketing activity that contributed to the tangible financial outcome. Gain data-backed insights to support the decision-making process. Grasp how a matrix of interwoven marketing efforts generates resonance, value, and traction in the long-term.

Guest author, David Webb, is a Sydney-based business consultant,online marketing analyst and a writer. With six years of experience and a degree in business management, he continuously informs the public about the latest trends in the industry. He is a regular author at BizzmarkBlog. You can reach him on Twitter or Facebook.

4 Ways Surveys Can Help Build Your Startup Company Strategy

June 4, 2018June 4, 2018 / nancyrubin / 1 Comment

Running a startup business is, in fact, quite difficult. Aside from trying to find a way to make it on the market, there are also a lot of challenges and obstacles startup owners face. It’s also quite complicated to fully understand whether or not your business idea will succeed on the market and if there’ll be any demand for your products or services. What’s more, startup businesses usually lack the sufficient funds to conduct extensive and thorough market research.

Luckily, where there’s a will there’s a way – and that’s conducting surveys. That way, startup owners can obtain the necessary information that will help them create a good strategy, without investing too many resources into it. In addition, you can rely on relevant data you’ve obtained directly from your target audience and potential customers. Simply put, you’ll be able to make more strategic and smart decisions. Here are a few ways surveys can help you build a startup company strategy.

Identifying your target audience

As mentioned before, startup businesses are generally not funded enough to conduct in-depth market research. You can assume who is most likely to be interested in your products and services, but you can’t know for sure nor do you know anything important about those potential customers. However, the key to success is knowing all there is to know about your target audience. Fortunately, surveying people doesn’t involve a hefty investment at all.

When creating a survey for your research purposes, make sure you include questions that will shed light on your audience’s demographics, overall interests, preferences and expectations. This will help you familiarize yourself with your target audience and understand their needs as consumers. That information will help you improve your products or services, so that you’ll have a better product/market fit for your startup. You can conduct the surveys both online and in person. Just make sure you analyze the data properly in order to extract vital information from it.

Tracking customer satisfaction

If you’ve started to build an online presence for your startup and also started making sales, it’s important to know how your audience perceives you so far. Customer satisfaction is essential for business success. The main reason is that if your customers aren’t happy, your reputation, bottom line and chances of success may drastically decline. That’s why it’s important to follow-up with your customers after interactions, sales and other activities.

Therefore, don’t be afraid to ask your customers for feedback. You can offer a simple incentive to your customers and ask them to participate in paid surveys online. That way, in exchange for their feedback, your customers will gain something of value in return. This will help you gain information that will assist you in improving your customer service and support. Not only that, but it will show your customers that you’re making an effort and that their opinions matter to you.

Testing products and features

Every business looks to grow and develop further by introducing innovation. Adding features to your products or services may be a good way to boost engagement with your customers, but it may also backfire if not done properly. If you want to add something new, it’s safer not to surprise your customers, but instead, ask them for their opinions. You can conduct a survey where you’ll describe new features to customers in detail and ask them what they think about it.

If your audience is generally pleased with the improvements, you can move on to the implementation stage. If not, you should avoid it altogether. That way, you not only show your customer that you care and that their best interest comes first when designing new features, but it also saves you time and resources on developing features that might fail from the start.

Assessing your marketing performance

When launching a marketing campaign that has a purpose of promoting your startup business and inspiring your audience to engage, it’s always a good idea to track important metrics and key performance indicators (KPI). However, without a general input from the customers themselves, you can’t be absolutely sure how well-received your marketing campaign actually is. It’s very risky to keep an ineffective marketing campaign running.

That’s why you should turn to surveying your audience once again. Ask for feedback on your marketing efforts and encourage customers to speak up. Make sure you ask the right questions, so that you can gather the most valuable information from the answers. Their feedback will provide you with information on how to improve your content, promotions and offers. In short, it will help you improve your marketing campaigns, so that they become more efficient in delivering value to both your customers and your startup.

It’s no secret that many startup businesses have difficulties maintaining their growth while trying to figure out the best approach to stand out on the market. That being said, surveys can be quite beneficial to startup owners, especially when they lack the means and the funds to conduct proper research. If you ask the right question from the right people, you’ll gain valuable information that will help you develop an exceptional startup company strategy.

4 Social Media Metrics Your Business Needs to Track

May 4, 2018 / nancyrubin / 1 Comment

Simply having a social media account is not enough to grow your business. Just like everyone else, you probably want to get more followers, more likes, more retweets, more click-through, etc. But are all of these things going to help you boost your business?

In this jungle of social media metrics, it could be confusing for you to choose which metrics are actually important for your company. But don’t look at this in a bad way. You have a lot of data in your hands, so use this data in order to understand your audience.

Luckily there is a solution. Take a look at these four metrics that will help you achieve growth.

Engagement: Do people actually like your content?

How many times did someone take action on your posts? Sharing, clicks, comments, reactions – all of these things matter.

These actions validate your content and they will show you if your posts are important to your target audience. If you keep tracking these metrics, they will help you plan your content strategy and see what kind of post you should create, but also which post you should avoid.

The simple step is to use average engagement rate that will take your metrics a step further. It will show you a true value of your content and how it impacts your followers. You can also identify optimal time for engagement. Knowing when your audience is most active will raise your engagement, so keep tracking and post when they are online.

Never underestimate your competitors because you can learn from them. See what kind of content works for them by tracking their engagement rates.

Mentions: Does anybody talk about your brand?

All mentions are important, whether they are written in a positive or negative manner. Your goal is to promote actual online conversations and discussions, but try to give your best to induce positive reactions.

For starter, you should become a part of that conversation and show people you care about their opinion. But when it comes to monitoring mentions, you should use these metrics in order to find out how many people are talking about your brand and more importantly – who is talking. A simple step that can inspire you to boost your mentions is to take a glance at your competitors’ mentions. Don’t steal their idea, just let yourself be creative. People will value your uniqueness.

Nevertheless, if you are having a trouble with social mention monitoring, you can always hire a professional to do the job for you.

Conversion: Do you have enough traffic to your website?

How many people took an extra step and visited your site via your social media page?

Tracking a total number of conversions will show you if your social media strategy achieves its purpose. To convert, you need to engage people by giving them a strong call-to-action. You can use analytic tools such as Google’s URL builder and collect all important data about the specific link. This will help you realize what kind of social media content is attracting the greatest amount of traffic to your page.

So, track the number of conversions that happened within a month or a week and match the data with particular content. These valuable metrics will tell you how fast your business is growing. So, if your conversion numbers aren’t where you want them to be, you can do something about that immediately. Start looking for new trends and change something in order to improve your strategy.

Sentiments: Do people like your products?

You can actually get into the mind of your customers while you are online. With a little help of sentiment and emotional analysis, you can track online conversation from all social networks and see how people feel about your products.

You would probably love to see just positive comments, but tracking negative ones will help you improve your business. A sudden spike in negative sentiment will show you what you should change. Moreover, you will be able to resolve this problem and calm people down. Maybe your brand is well-liked, but there is always a room for improvement.

These metrics bring as to a whole new level of marketing. Sentiments and emotional analysis will help you create a positive social media presence your business needs.

Track What Matters

Everyone obsesses over how many followers they have. Yes, it’s nice to have a large number of followers, but that doesn’t matter as much as you may think. What you want is for people to become familiar with your brand and your message. You want them to go to your website and buy your products. So, use these metrics in order to get to know your audience and grow your business.