Web Analytics and Measurement-Based Marketing
Why Should I Measure Marketing?
When it comes to marketing, every business has a different strategy – some engage in print media, other interact with customers through social media, and yet others rely on face-to-face interactions. With so many different channels of communication available today, it can be very easy to lose track of what’s best for YOUR business. The good news is that there is a solution available – and it’s not the gut feeling in your stomach. It is measurement-based marketing.
Oftentimes, companies spread themselves too thin – they put a lot of money into a lot of activities. The problem is not necessarily the number of activities, but rather the type of activity. Every marketing activity, whether it is attending a networking event or creating postcards to send to a customer’s home, holds potential to bring in another sale. Value of that activity, however, is determined by several factors – not just the dollar amount of the cost. The return on investment is a strong indicator of value and therefore must be measured.
How Can I Measure Marketing?
Measuring return on investment for your marketing activities can be a daunting task. Many people may think that end-of-the-year- figures are a sufficient indicator of whether or not a business was successful for the fiscal year. Measurement goes much deeper than annual reporting, however.
With web analytics and tracking, you have the ability to track and measure every single marketing activity that takes place. No longer do you have to guess that customers aren’t responding to that mail piece you mailed out two weeks ago. No longer do you have to wonder how many people opened your last email. No longer do you have to guess what the return on investment was for the monthly checks you send to your SEO company. With analytics and tracking, you can see the numbers – black and white evidence – that proves whether or not the marketing activity is worth the effort and investment.
The key to making improvements is this: measure, learn, improve, maintain. First, you must measure what activities are taking place. Place tracking telephone numbers on your website, print materials, business cards, and anything else you can think of! Install Google Analytics on your website to see how many visitors you attract each month! RemoteLink’s Smart Analytics can even help you track people’s actions within your website.
Once you have the information, then analyze the information and learn from people’s behavior – what times of the day do people read your tweets? How many people opened that email you sent yesterday? How many people from that networking event actually called for a follow up conversation?
Knowledge is power. Knowing that 80% of people leave your website after they visit your services page may help you realize you need to redesign your services page! Knowing that only 2 people found your business from Facebook may help you reevaluate how you engage in social media. Learn where your weaknesses are and improve them – one small step at a time.
Maintenance is Key!
Once you have improved your current marketing efforts, the key to success will lie in the ability to maintain such efforts. Continuous tracking is vital to managing a strong marketing strategy. Making small adjustments as needed is always easier than trying to fix many problems all at once. Micro managing your marketing with analytics and reporting is a great way to increase your return on investments.
To learn more about RemoteLink’s Analytics and Tracking, please visit our