Creating and implementing strategy in order to achieve objectives and goals is the bread and butter of digital marketing. Goals vary from business to business, however, most will be along the lines of: increasing following and engagement, increasing brand or campaign awareness, increasing clientele or sales, finding great talent, etc. These goals should be limited by a time frame, whether that be a monthly, quarterly or yearly basis, and should have a concrete target.
- Reach “X” followers by [Date]
- Increase engagement by “X%” in 2020
- Bring in “X” more clients by [Date]
Setting concrete goals like the ones outlined above provide a clear intention for the campaign with timeframes, and allow you to reflect on and measure against those goals easily in the future.
Reflecting and reporting on key metrics throughout a campaign’s duration is extremely important for achieving your goals, and setting new ones. Periodically checking in puts you in the position to stay on track and to adjust your methods as you go.
Here’s how you can use metrics and reporting to set yourself up for success:
Decide on the measurement method.
Deciding on a measurement method at the time of setting your goals is a vital step in being able to reflect on those goals in the future.
Your measurement method will of course depend on the nature of your objective. If you’re looking to gain followers on a social platform, set up insights within the platform or through a social media dashboard like Hootsuite. If your objective is focused on website traffic, be sure to set up a tool like Google Analytics.
Whichever platforms or tools you decide to use, make sure to be consistent with them. Different tools may use different units of measurement or may collect the data in different ways. For the most accurate reporting, try sticking to the same tools for the duration of your campaign.
This is also a great time to decide which key metrics to track. What pieces are most important to track for your campaign? Is it followers gained? Impressions made? Post engagement? Website traffic? Reflect on these metrics prior to your campaign launch in order to get a full picture of your starting point.
Check in periodically.
What you don’t want to do when setting goals is ‘set it and forget it’. For quarterly or yearly goals, check in monthly. For monthly goals, try checking in weekly.
Record your metrics and take into account what worked and what didn’t in terms of achieving your goal. Did your posts receive the engagement you were hoping for? Did your ads translate into the site traffic you wanted?
Make adjustments.
These check ins will not only keep you on top of your goals, but are also a great time to reassess and evaluate your tactics. If you find you’re off track with your goal, this is a great time to reevaluate your strategy and make adjustments. By making impactful tweaks throughout your campaign’s timeframe, you’re giving yourself the best chance at reaching your intended audience and your desired outcomes.
Report and reevaluate.
Once you reach the assigned deadline of your goal, create your final report and reflect on these questions:
- Did you achieve your desired outcome?
- What tactics did you use and which worked best for you?
- What would you do differently next time?
The more you set and work towards these goals with metrics and reporting in mind, the more successful you will likely be in your future campaigns due to your continuous tracking of your progress and your ability to quickly change tactics in response to data.
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