How to: Measure your marketing campaign with analytics

Measure your marketing campaign with analytics

Pete Morgan, marketing strategist at Metia, reveals the most effective way to manage your marketing campaign with big data analytics 

There’s been a seismic change in how we measure marketing activity over the last few years. We’ve all heard about big data. Advances in computing power and connectivity have driven huge increases in the data generated by marketing campaigns. The impact on marketers has been overwhelming. At times we’re drowning in data. But this data holds the key to more successful marketing campaigns – if it’s well managed.

So which data points matter? And how can you make sure they’re correctly tracked, and provide real insight for your business? Here are five tips to help you make sense of the challenge:

1. Plan ahead

‘Fail to prepare, prepare to fail’ goes the old saying, and it couldn’t be more apt here. The keystone to a successful analytics project is a solid plan.

So build a reporting plan up front, based on the goals and objectives of your campaign. Be clear about what you’re trying to achieve for your business. Then, list out the tactics you’re planning to use to reach these goals.

Next, ask questions of your plan: are the proposed tactics likely to help you reach your goals? Don’t be afraid to make tough decisions at this early stage – if a tactic doesn’t fit, then don’t be afraid to cut it. Trust your instincts and experience, and focus in on the tactics you think have the highest chance of working.

Now define your KPIs. For each tactic, what metrics will help you prove success? Don’t rely on a single metric for each tactic, but don’t go crazy either. Select a core few that will give you the best understanding of success.

Once you’ve drafted your plan, set targets and get buy-in from senior management. Agreeing success metrics up front will save significant headaches later.

2. Choose the right tools for the job

A multitude of tools exist for measuring your campaigns. Many are free, many are not. So how do you choose the right one?

The answer is common sense. You’ve built your plan, and have a handful of metrics defined for each of your tactics. Just work through your list and identify which tools can provide you with each KPI.

It should be possible to track some of your KPIs through free tools such as Google Analytics. Google’s Campaign tags can help you track users across marketing channels, and attribute success to the right sources.

Some KPIs may call for more advanced measures. If you’re a B2B marketer, you may need a detailed understanding of the leads your campaigns generate. A paid tool like HubSpot can help here, integrating with your CRM to provide valuable context on every lead. Knowing how individual customers react to content can more than justify the cost.

3. Don’t limit analytics to the end of your projects

Too often in the past, attention was only paid to analytics at the end of projects – too late to impact on the activity itself. Too often, marketers measured the success of individual tactics rather than overall strategy. This limited their understanding of ROI.

  • Advances in technology means there are no excuses for that anymore. Analytics should be present at every stage of a project to improve campaign efficacy across the board. 
  • In planning, data should inform campaign strategy – e.g. by using conversational data from social media to ensure content lands in an audience sweet spot.
  • In execution, analytics should provide insight ‘in the moment’ to improve performance as campaigns run. These days, most marketing channels report near-live: this should be exploited, not ignored.
  • When reporting, behaviour should be linked across the entire customer journey – proving which activity is generating ROI, and which is not.

It’s also essential to establish a reporting rhythm for the campaign. Which metrics should be tracked live? Which should be aggregated into a daily or weekly report? Which are only necessary at the end of a campaign? Answering these questions in advance will reduce your workload and result in more useful, insightful reports.

4. Don’t be distracted by vanity metrics

While it’s sensible to save all the data your campaigns generate (you never know when you’ll need it), it’s important to stand by your plan.

Don’t be swayed by glossy vanity metrics that claim to be a silver bullet for measuring behaviour online (I’m looking at you Klout). Successful marketing requires logic, rigour and discipline. Stick to your agreed plan, and be ready to defend it. People may have bright ideas on how to track a tactic, but if they can’t explain how a metric is formulated, or why it’s important to the campaign, then it’s worthless.

5. Act on the insight

No matter how good your intentions, reporting is pointless unless it’s acted upon. So understand what the data is telling you, and learn from it. Stop activity that isn’t working. Focus budget and effort on activity that is.

That sounds easy, but life rarely is – especially at work. Different stakeholders can have entrenched and contrasting opinions based on instinct or gut feel. Sounds familiar? It’s your job to be the data evangelist. Use the data to prove the business value your campaigns are generating. Surface insights in a clear manner that management can’t ignore. Make it a no brainer for them to make the right call.

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