Making a list, checking it twice: 7 ways to measure social media

Why do we focus on digital marketing? (with traditional thrown in for support, of course) Because of digital’s metrics and the ability to measure all campaigns.  Tie these into print ads, television, radio, mailers and now you have an integrated campaign.

But when it comes to social media measurement, you have to get your metrics in place!  What are your objectives and how does success look?  In larger organizations, there are going to be multiple levels of conversation and various levels within the organizational structure are going to measure the return on investment through different standards.  Here is a list of seven ways of measuring social media marketing.  Add more ideas to keep the list growing.  And don’t forget to check it twice!

1. URL shortener – Whether you are using a web app like Hootsuite that has tracking built-in for sites like Twitter, or something more generic that can be used on multiple platforms like bit.ly, these URL shorteners not only make your URL look pretty, they help you measure the amount of clicks and traffic your links generate.  Even Facebook and Google have their own URL shorteners (FB.me and Goo.gl, respectively)
2. Tweetreach – When you post a tweet, how deep and far does your message go?  How many retweets do you generate? Sites like Hootsuite and Tweetreach can help measure some of these metrics for you.
3. Number of comments and likes -When writing a blog, posting updates on a Facebook page or responding to YouTube videos, monitor visitors’ comments and reactions to what you post.  React and engage in a conversation with those individuals that have shown an interest in the message you are trying to drive.
4. Quality of posting – Facebook has insights for your Facebook page status and wall postings. It’s not always about frequency, but the quality of what you’re posting. Track your growth and post quality on a weekly basis to monitor growth.
5. Positive vs negative sentiment – So you’re tracking what people are saying about your company, product or brand on blogs, forums and Twitter, but are you tracking sentiment?  Are people saying good things or bad things about your brand? And how is that changing over time based on various marketing or PR campaigns you may have running? While measuring online sentiment is still pretty much a manual, human-driven job, companies like Radian6 have tools that can help you with the process.
6. Subscriptions – How many people are following your social presence? This includes RSS feeds, Twitter and Facebook pages.  Monitor the growth as you push out various campaigns across all mediums.
7. Search results – Are any of your social sites creating traffic to your blog or website? Or is your Facebook page ranking for specific search terms on Google?  Looking at search traffic can help you know where to best invest more time or emphasis.

What other ways can you measure social media?

Tagged as: bit.ly, facebook, FB.me, Goo.gl, hootsuite, measuring social media marketing, radian6, Social Media, social media measurement, Tweetreach, twitter, YouTube