Which Small Business Marketing Metrics Matter Most?
How is your marketing performing? If you are not tracking some important metrics, you may not know. The right metrics can help you determine if your approach is working and if you should continue with your current strategy or diversify. Consider the following metrics to ensure that you are on track with your marketing:
5 Marketing Metrics Every Small Business Should Track
Site visitors: How many people visit your site every day, and where are they coming from? Having a good idea of what your average traffic is allows you to measure results when you try a new approach. Tracking the amount of traffic you have on an average day allows you to measure the impact of promotions. If you see a jump in traffic after running a new ad, creating a new piece of content or sharing a fresh image on Instagram, you’ll know what is working and what to invest more heavily in.
Sales: You likely already track this one already but comparing the number of sales you have vs. the number of visitors to your site can provide insight into how well your site is converting. If you have many visitors but few sales, then you are attracting traffic but not closing the deal; an examination of your sales funnel may be needed to determine why people are not buying. Your actual sales can also confirm you are actively targeting the correct market and that your efforts are working; if you measure success in sales, you’ll know that your efforts are working.
Lead generation: How many people are downloading your opt-in materials or providing an email for you to follow up? Tracking the number of responses, you receive can help you determine which methods and materials are most effective at generating quality leads. Spikes in lead generation could mean that your target market is responding well to your opt-in; use this information to serve up more of what they like.
Customer Satisfaction: There’s only one way to find this out – you’ll need to ask. Checking your reviews on sites like Yelp, Angie’s List and other outlets can provide you with valuable feedback, so can asking for customer feedback and following up after a sale. A simple survey or follow-up could reveal more detail about what your customers think. If you have social media pages, tracking your reviews and comments can also yield valuable information and detail.
Lifetime Customer Value: Marketing is about more than just acquiring new business; your current customers may be worth far more than new ones. If you can set a dollar value on each customer you have, you’ll know where to invest your time and attention. For those brands that thrive on repeat business, the Lifetime Customer Value (or LCV) will be much higher than the initial sale, so marketing with retention in mind is a must.
Tracking these metrics provides you with valuable information about how well your efforts are performing and can help you make the most of your marketing budget.
