In an increasingly social landscape, sales are generally made as a result of influence and messaging across multiple channels. This can confuse analytics and cause marketers to give up on the goal of creating truly data-driven strategies.
Don’t let these challenges discourage your new data-based approach. Instead, learn to determine the value of online marketing investments through both tangible and intangible benefits.
First of all, set goals for your digital marketing. This should of course include sales leads and conversions, but don’t stop there. Consider additional benefits from online marketing, including improved brand recognition and reputation, search engine ranking, public relations and client loyalty.
Some of these goals are more easily measured than others, but be sure to include all of these in any assessment of your brand’s digital strategy. Get creative: it’s easy to count website visits and page likes, but other metrics may help quantify things like brand image. For example, try monitoring your mentions on social media sites for a sense of how clients and potential clients perceive the brand.
Next, audit the tools you have available to track your brand’s digital engagement. Include website analytics, data from social networks and digital ads, and any other data collection tools your brand uses. Compare these tools. What metrics does each one allow you to track? If there are classes of data you would find useful for marketing purposes but do not yet track, explore applications that will allow you to gather this information.
Choose programs to analyze your digital data. These programs will help reveal patterns of interest among the people who interact with your brand at each online touchpoint.
When engaging with a client or potential client, track your interactions across digital channels. Just as your brand must maintain a uniform brand character across platforms, work to create and maintain an integrated digital experience for individual B2B clients when they connect with your business on multiple channels. One simple example is sending automated email contacts when a potential buyer interacts with certain features of your website. How else might you create a smooth and enticing multi-channel experience for clients?
Photo Credit: Simon Cunningham via Flickr Creative Commons
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