Last week I participated in a webinar put on by HubSpot focused on the topic of Social Media Metrics – in other words, measuring actual results from the marketing and communications efforts put forth through Social Media channels. Since I’m a results oriented individual, metrics/measuring return on investment in anything I do is important. This blog post will share with you some valuable insight and principles to keep in mind taken away from their webinar. Insights to keep in mind whether you are investing heavily into Social Media, just getting started, or still deciding whether or not the investment is best for your business and ultimately your bottom line goals.
Measuring the energies put forth into Social Media Marketing and Communications is not easy - nor is there a ‘magic’ formula. There is no tool out there that will tell you how much time and money you should spend in order to meet X goal. What you need to keep in mind are a few basic principles. Some of these principles are taken from the webinar and some are simply through experience:
1. Not every business or organization should be measuring Social Media the same. Your goals and measurements should be customized just for you. For example, Dairy Queen might have a goal of hundreds of thousands of followers on their Facebook Page. Well, duh! They are catering to consumers all over the country and the world. They should be setting their #’s high. If you are a small business, don’t set goals based on huge #’s. Set a goal to add x# of email addresses to your e-newsletter subscribers instead. Today you may have 100 and by 3rd Quarter you would like to add 50 more to your list.
2. Do you have forms customers can fill out with their information on your website/blog? How many forms were filled out over the past year/quarter/month? Do you want that # to increase? Of course you do! Do you track how many customers who fill out a form actually buy a product or service from you? Track the conversion percentage rate and make it a goal to increase the %. Your sales team might have something to do with conversion rates so have that conversation with sales and involve them to help you set conversion goals.
3. Social Media efforts will constantly need to change as long as you are in business. You must try and try again and adjust. Again, there is no ‘magic’ formula. If you think you will get results in a short period of time without a long term investment in utlizing Social Media channels then I wish you good luck. Buying a ticket a couple of times in the lottery has about the same results formula.
Favorite Quotes taken from the Webinar:
The goal is to be good at business because of Social Media
The greatest tool in Social Media is the Human Brain
What are some lessons learned in your business or organization with respect to Social Media Measurement? What goals do you have and how are you measuring results? What are some additional principles do you live by?
I’d love to hear from you personally! Comment below, email or call me to have a conversation: mailto: michelle@vimm.com or (320) 587-8974 x 108.
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