From follower counts right down to post engagement percentages, the ever-changing world of social media metrics may be confusing to wade into. On top of that, a new and significant important metric seems to be established on a weekly basis.
As a social media professional, social media metrics are your chance to demonstrate the value of your work as well as the impact of the decisions you’ve made. If your boss asks you to ‘talk data’, take the opportunity to be a true pro and go beyond the shallow, “vanity” metrics—the likes, shares and retweets. Rather, focus on the data which matters — the numbers which prove that your effort has had a positive, bottom-line impact on the company.
The correct data will assure executives that their investment in social media is paying off. It’ll also assist you with continuing to make smarter, more data-driven decisions moving forward.
Here are some of the social media metrics that you need to focus on in terms of reporting on social media performance.
Volume
The first – and simplest – social media metric that you need to measure is volume. Put in another way, what is the size of the conversation about your brand or – alternatively -your campaign?
Volume is a great first indicator of interest. People have the tendency to talk about things which they either love or hate, however they don’t often talk about things they simply don’t care about at all.
While volume could seem like a simple counting metric, there’s a lot more to it than merely counting tweets and wall posts. It’s important to evaluate the number of messages about your brand and the number of people who are talking about your brand. Track how both of those numbers differ over time.
Learn when volume is elevated – are there days or times when more individuals seem to be talking about your brand? You will then be able to use this information in order to focus more of your own posts throughout these times to get more engagement.
