The Minefield of Social Media Metrics

Measuring social media can be a minefield.  For some businesses it seems to be an obstacle that is challenging to overcome.  Without tangible outcomes, it is difficult to justify increasing the social media budget so SMEs are overwhelmed on how to move forward.

Every day millions of people around the world are interacting and engaging on social media.  And as more people do so, not utilising social media is no longer an option for businesses.

So can social media ROI be measured?  The answer is yes and no and it depends on what you see as your return.  Here are a few things for business to remember:

There is no Silver Bullet

Just like everything in life there is no one key solution for anything.  For business they need to communicate their measures of success and formulate strategies and tactics to attain this success.  This requires strategic planning and comprehensive knowledge of your business agendas and audience.

What is the True Value of Social Media?

When it comes to social media ROI it really comes down to first impressions.  It is the opportunity to let people know about your brand and develop the possibility to create a new relationship where there wasn’t one before.  Engaging and having a conversation with the audience is where the true worth of social media is.

Social Media Metrics don’t Show the Full Picture

The benefit of social media is in the conversation so listen and engage in the exchange of dialogue.  Business tends to forget that social media is first a ‘social’ and ‘communication’ channel which has become a business marketing tool. It is not traditional media so stop using it as such.

What is important to note is that not every referral or relationship can be measured and not everything fits into a nice sales funnel but this doesn’t make social media any less effective!  So experiment and see what works for your business.

Thanks for reading!

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Tags: Measuring Social Media • SMEs • social Media