We like this “Five Easy Steps To Measure Your Social Media Campaigns” by Jenn Deering Davis which originally appeared on KISSmetrics and have summarized the five steps below. The use of social media for business should always be accompanied by a measurement of these social activities. Measurement tools provide information on whether what you do is successful or not and how you can improve your use of social media.

There are two types of measurement:

  • Ongoing analytics involves constantly monitoring /tracking your activity over time.
  • Campaign-focused metrics is a way of measuring campaign/event analytics with a clear beginning and end in mind.

Ongoing analytics are helpful for keeping up with the general pulse of conversation about your company, while campaign-focused metrics help you understand the effectiveness of targeted marketing that varies from campaign to campaign.

If, for example, you are starting a new marketing push, accompanied by a Twitter party for people to discuss an issue, there are several things to do that measure the effectiveness of the Twitter initiative in your marketing plan.

First, make a list of what you want to get from your media efforts.  Then follow up by matching your goals with actual behaviors to be measured. For example, to measure awareness you should try to track tweet volume as well as the number of people using your hashtag.

Once you’ve decided on your metrics you then need to use a program to gather the data that you need.  SocDir is a great source to use when looking for a tool to use on a social media channel.

Data collection takes time, so ensure your program is working as you want it to and then monitor and report.  You can then make your report based on your initial numbers, but be careful to focus your attention on two questions: how do your numbers compare to what you expected, and how do they compare to the numbers of your competitors?

The completion of your media measurement (fifth and final step) comes as you analyze your program/efforts and look for things you could have improved or done differently. These five steps can provide you with the tools needed to make sure you utilize media for the biggest possible benefit.

If you’re in healthcare, insurance, technology or other professional services industries, and need help with a PR, marketing or social media campaign, contact Scott Public Relations.

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