The Why and How of Social Media Strategy and Metrics

It seems as though the entire world is all abuzz about how social media is changing how we use the Internet. It’s particularly chatty about how SM can enhance aspects of the business, ranging from marketing to customer/client relations. That’s all well and good, but what good is using it for business if you don’t track what it’s doing for you? Sure you may get increased sales and traffic, but how can you really measure its effectiveness in regards to your marketing efforts?

Enter social media metrics.

Measuring a campaign’s effectiveness is paramount to other areas of marketing, so why not put the same standards to use for your social media efforts? Don’t get me wrong here, I’m not talking about how many re-tweets you got for your last tweet or how many Facebook fans you have. I’m talking real results! Anybody can rack up a long buddylist if they put forth the time to do so…the question is, are they visiting your site and making purchases or are you just another face on their friends list?

Contrary to what many believe (or would have you believe), a lot of followers does not equate to a lot of sales, in the majority of cases. Some useful information on the difference between quantitative and qualitative results can be found on Taylor Pratt’s article, which also covers strategy and offers a link to a detailed report on the subject.

Speaking of strategy, it plays a direct role in whether or not you see the results you’re looking for. Going in with a plan can provide a focus for your efforts and help prevent the burnout many face when writing about the same topic over time. It also helps to determine what you want to know about your target audience/consumer, which in turn determines the metrics you will need to measure against. Once you know who your target audience is and how you want to reach them, a major hurdle has been overcome and you can get started on designing your strategy, with the end goal in mind.

Deciding what to measure can be tricky, because what works for one company may not work for another. The answer largely depends on what you want from your social media efforts. Are you looking for sales, qualified leads, increased brand awareness or referrals/backlinks from key Influencers in your industry? Identifying your main motive will determine your main metric, though it will pay to use more than one to see the best results.

Once you have your metrics figured out, it’s a good next step to measure them before creating a profile or, if you’ve already made them, measure where they currently sit. This will determine where your starting point is and what you need to improve on moving forward. Now you can begin implementing your plan. For more on developing your strategy, check out Jason Mikula’s article on the steps to a solid social media metrics plan.

There’s more to social media than setting up a page, adding some content and waiting for the visitors (or sales) to roll in. From making the decision to use it to actually using it, going in with a plan of action is your key to quality, long-term results.