In between creating content, posting, managing, advertising, and staying up to date with trends comes measurement. The most important, yet often overlooked aspect of managing a brand’s social media presence.
In 2014, it was found that the average person owns at least five social media accounts. Two years later, we’re betting that number has gone up. Where customers go, is where businesses must go. And where businesses go, accurate measurement must follow to substantiate the resources and money invested in these initiatives.
A common theme we see when clients approach us is:
They don’t know what’s working on their social feeds and what’s not
Their following is growing, but not as much as it could
They are finding it difficult to keep up with the digital trends
There are no standard measurement systems in place
As the famous Albert Einstein once said, Insanity is “doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”
Understanding what drives results on your social feeds is a crucial aspect to seeing a definitive return on investment. Posting and hoping won’t get you sales, but posting strategically will. It’s not an easy concept to implement, especially since your content strategy will vary depending on what platform you’re using, but actively questioning your social media accounts is the first step.
Questions you need to ask yourself
- Are my social media feeds structured for optimal performance?
- Am I implementing all of the newest features?
- Am I reaching my audience at the right time on the right days?
- Is my content being shared to reach more viewers?
- Am I focusing my attention on quality followers who will convert into customers?
What should you measure?
The next step is to determine what you need to measure. Below is a brief list, but keep in mind your results will change based on platform. For example, Instagram should have a much higher engagement rate than Facebook, while Twitter will most likely reach more followers organically.
- Following
- Engagement rate
- Reach
- Impressions
- Top performing media: blog post, image, GIF, video, news article
Should you measure monthly or quarterly?
This all depends on how many social channels you have and what your current growth is like. We have worked with small companies posting a few times a week with less than 2,000 followers, and they can easily get away with measuring social media quarterly.
For medium to large size companies with followers over 2,000, we have found that it’s best practice to measure monthly.
How to stay up to date
There’s a reason why social media management has become a fast growing career in the past eight years: the time investment needed to see good results is significant and it’s a full time job to keep up with this constantly changing industry!
Seek help either from an agency or hire a full-time employee. Be sure to seek someone who has been in the space since the beginning. Handing your social media over to an intern is not always a good idea as results will reflect the lack of experience. Remember: your social media accounts are your entire online presence. Ask yourself, who do I want to take on that responsibility?
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