In today’s world, more and more people are connecting and interacting with others online. Businesses that want to remain competitive need to adjust to these new ways of doing business and one way of doing this is through digital marketing and social media. The key performance indicators (KPIs) for digital marketing can vary from brand awareness to click-through rates – both online and offline.

While there are a lot of KPIs to choose from, only those that are directly relevant to a business’ objectives should be considered. Without a clear idea of what the key performance indicators are for, it can be difficult to track performance and determine whether or not the objectives have been met. That is why, as a business owner or marketer, you should focus on establishing a handful of key performance indicators that you feel are most relevant for your industry and organization.

Brand Awareness

A commonly used metric in market research, brand awareness measures the extent to which a customer is aware of a brand or product. In marketing, a brand is an identity created by and for a business. A brand is what customers think, feel, and say about a product or service – its reputation. To increase brand awareness, you could try sponsoring sports teams, holding competitions on social media, or even creating a PR campaign. The list of brand awareness strategies is endless. In general, though, these methods should increase your customers’ familiarity with your company. Depending on your target audience, you could then focus on increasing their consideration – converting them from awareness to engagement – with your brand. From there, it is up to you to convince them to become loyal customers or advocates.

Conversion Rate

Just like brand awareness, the conversion rate of a lead into a customer is also a key performance indicator for digital marketing. Usually, this rate is expressed as a percentage, however, it can be calculated in a variety of ways. The most common methods are online and offline conversion rate, while the latter includes things such as in-store sales and call conversions. Regardless, the main takeaway is that this rate should be maximized – especially if you want to grow your business. You could try increasing sign-ups, adding a calling button to your website, adding more videos, or running social media campaigns for small businesses. Just make sure you track your leads’ engagement with these strategies and determine whether or not they are converting to customers. If not, you might want to try something new.

User Retention

User retention is the opposite of conversion. While conversion focuses on getting new customers, retention focuses on keeping existing customers. Simply put, user retention is the measure of a business’ ability to retain its customers. To achieve a higher user retention rate, you could try offering added value to your customers (i.e. free shipping, special discounts, etc.), upgrading products they have already purchased from you, or ensuring their needs are met (i.e. through customer support). With more and more people searching for online businesses that provide excellent customer care, you could also try raising your customers’ expectations – and meet or exceed them.

Sales

An important aspect of any business is establishing and meeting sales goals. Just like with user retention, you could try varying the ways you measure sales. The most common method is to look at the amount of money the business has brought in in comparison to the amount of money it has spent. This comparison is usually expressed as a ratio and is known as the profit margin. For example, if you have spent $10,000 on advertising and have generated $20,000 in sales, your profit margin is 50%. You can then use this ratio to determine whether or not your marketing efforts are paying off – or if you should alter your strategy and how you are measuring the success of your efforts.

User Behavior

The last key performance indicator to discuss is user behavior. User behavior is simply how your customers act when they are using your product or service. In addition to measuring the quality of customer experience, businesses can also use user behavior to determine how, when, and where to market their products. You can measure several aspects of user behavior, such as the number of website visits, the time users spend on your website, the pages they visit while there, and the products or services they are interested in. All of this information allows you to see how users interact with your website and determine what is and isn’t working – and then, you can make adjustments and improve your marketing strategy as needed.

To summarize

While there are a lot of key performance indicators for marketers, knowing what is relevant to your industry can be difficult. Establishing a handful of key performance indicators that you feel are most relevant to your company and then focusing on increasing these numbers will help you determine whether or not your marketing efforts are paying off.