When you create local content, or any content for that matter, the end goal is conversion and success. Fortunately, a thorough review of your content marketing metrics gives you insight to see if you’re achieving those goals. With so much metric information available, sorting through it all can feel impossible and overwhelming.
It’s good to know, however, that you don’t have to pay attention to all of your metrics all of the time. Some metrics are more telling and more useful than others. Read on to find out which types of content marketing metrics you should never ignore.
Identifying the Most Important Content Marketing Metrics
1. Consumption and Conversion Metrics: Who? Where? What?
One way to measure the effectiveness of your current local content marketing strategies is to see how many people are using and interacting with the content. You can monitor the number of users and page views; and especially important for local search, you can do a deep dive into location and devices.
This information lets you know where your content is consumed most and if it is regularly viewed on desktop or mobile. This data lets you tailor your local content strategy and content to a specific audience, optimized for the correct platforms.
By setting measurable objectives and clear targets, you can utilize metrics to see if specific conversion goals, like downloads, blog subscriptions or newsletter sign-ups are being accomplished. All of this gives you documentation when it the time comes to evaluate the ROI of your local content.
2. Engagement Metrics: How much time? How did they get here?
Your website may have 10,000 visitors a day, but if the majority of those visitors land on your page and quickly navigate away, that’s not really a benefit to the brand. A high bounce rate is indicative of other issues, which need to be addressed.
There is great value in monitoring the pages that are generating the most attention and click through. Once you know this, you can identify which pages need improvement.
It’s also important to note where the traffic is coming from. For paid media this will ensure your dollars are spent in the proper places and at the proper times.
3. Sharing Metrics: Who is Sharing What With Whom?
Don’t forget to take a look at your sharing metrics, which tell you whether or not your content is being shared, what social networking sites it’s being shared on and how often.
Specific tools like Google Analytics, Facebook and YouTube Insights, and Twitter Analytics can let you know if your marketing is working and, if not, figure out what you need to do to make it more effective.
Identifying which social media platforms are working best for your brand allows you to continue to meet the needs of your audience. Monitoring your sharing metrics also makes you aware of the social sites that are getting less shares, so you can focus on improving the strategy there.
4. Returning Visitors: How to Keep Them Coming Back
Be sure to take notice of how many people are returning to your site. If you have a lot of return visitors, that’s a great indicator that your local content marketing is connecting with people. This means it has what it takes to remain popular; and maybe eventually go viral!
Find ways to expand the reach of those popular content pieces; if you originally posted text, perhaps an infographic with more details presented in pictorial form can bring visitors, and their connections, back to your website. Videos are also a great way to keep the clicks coming.
For the content that is not bringing in many return visitors, consider how you need to adjust your content marketing strategy. Content, especially local content, is more than words. Maybe what was presented as general text could similarly find new life, and more visitors, with a photo slideshow story with minimal text. An interactive map of service areas, or 30-second tutorial video could breathe new life into a dead post and drive up those return visitors.
However you choose to present the content, reviewing your returning visitors will let you know what your audience truly wants to see and the best ways to engage with them.
Making the Most of Your Metrics
Review and evaluation of metrics are key parts to any local content strategy. These steps must be taken to ensure goals are achieved and to know where any adjustments need to be made. This handful of metrics will help you measure the success of your strategy and help you move forward, armed with the correct data to best serve your local audience.
Which metric tools are your favorites? How have these tools helped your local content strategies? Tell me about it in the comments!
