Beyond Klout: Social Media Metrics

Rhonda Hurwitz January 4, 2012

The Truth AboutSocial Media Metrics

“What’s the ROI of your Mom?”~ Gary Vaynerchuk,author of Crush It, in response to the question “What’s

the ROI of Social Media?”

Klout: What and Why

• “Social Scoring”: 1 number that measures online influence

• Algorithm of 50+ factors• Who influences others ONLINE? i.e., => Who curates/creates great content

that moves virally and drives people to action?• Negatives: can be gamed, – no correlation to

influence IRL

What does it really mean?

Name 2012 Iowa Caucus Result KLOUT Score

Mitt Romney 24.6% 78

Rick Santorum 24.5% 66

Ron Paul 21.4% 73

Newt Gingrich 13.3% 45

Rick Perry 10.3% 75

Michele Bachman 5% 66

Jon Huntsman 1% 70

Kathy Griffin NA 75

Warren Buffett NA 31

Social Media Metrics:Beyond Klout

• Is It Working? What happens after you post?• Conversion: The Real Goal– Macro Conversions and Micro-Conversions

• Social Impact:– Quality Engagements– ACTIVE fans and followers, across all platforms

• Website Impact: Google Analytics -- Traffic Sources, Backlinks, Keyword rankings

What Are The Best Social Media Metrics?

• “Holy Grail”: One tool to measure it all (doesn’t exist!)

• Why You MUST Measure

• 4 Hybrid Metrics: • Conversation Rate: “understanding”• Amplification Rate: “awesomeness”• Applause: “understanding/connection”• Economic Value: adds $ to bottom line

– (Source: Avinash Kaushik, Occam’s Razor blog … http://www.kaushik.net/avinash/best-social-media-metrics-conversation-amplification-applause-economic-value/ )

3 Social Levers: “Conversation, Amplification,

Applause” (C, A, A)Components:• Blog: ……..…. Comments, Shares, RT’s, Likes, +1’s • Facebook …... Comments, Shares, Likes• Twitter …….… @replies, RT’s, Favorites• Google + ….… Comments, +1’s• You Tube ….… Comments, Shares, +1

*************************************• Linked in .…. Profile views? Best Answers?

Contact IRL?

Social Media Metrics:How To Track

• Track 3 Social Levers (C, A, A) + 1 Economic Measure (conversion)

• Create Custom Dashboard: -- Mash-up platform metrics plus Google Analytics

(see excel example)-- Update Monthly

• DIY, or Use Hubspot or $$$ Paid Platform

• Misc. Metrics: Traffic Sources, Backlinks, Keyword rankings, etc.

Facebook Metrics

• Newsfeed Optimization: – What content performs best?– Goal: Engaged Fans (Likes, Shares, Comments)

• New Facebook Insights

• Paid Tools: Pagelever.com, Edgerankchecker.com

Twitter Metrics

• Goal: Engaged Followers – Favorites, @Replies, R/T’s

• What Twitter tools to use?– expensive paid measurement tools, hootsuite,

count by hand, bit.ly, etc.– optimization tool: timely.com

• Shortcuts to Manually Count?– For Favorites: favstar

Using Blog Metrics:

• Traffic Volume and Sources: – Linked in, Facebook, SE’s, Twitter, G+

• Referring Keywords• Most Viewed Post • Most Commented on post

Barry Diller: The Original Social Media "Expert"! (Rand Fishkin v. Peter Shankman) *

• Most Active Commenter's, etc.* http://shemeansbusiness.wordpress.com/

How to Improve Your Metrics

• Goal Is Human Connection: What’s Resonating?• Are your posts/updates designed for engagement?– Call to action? “Action” words?– Titles? topics? keywords? – Frequency, consistency, or timing– How are you promoting your content?– Bloggers: actively commenting on other blogs/pages? – Learn from most successful posts/status updates!

• ROI: Return on Investment vs. Return on Influence– Best Practice: assign $ goal values and calculate ROI …– Still … most “influence” can’t be measured!

Resources• Hubspot’s 83 page ebook on how to measure: website, landing

pages, paid search, business blogging, social media, email, marketing automationhttp://blog.hubspot.com/Portals/249/docs/ebooks/introduction-to-marketing-analytics.pdf

• Mashable: 10 New G. Analytics Features You Need to Start Using (Better social metrics, keyword cloud, etc.)

http://mashable.com/2011/11/30/google-analytics-new-features/

• New FaceBook Insights: http://www.simplyzesty.com/facebook/updates-to-new-facebook-insights/

• Misc. Dashboards & Tools: – Sproutsocial ($9/mo)

Connect With Me!

Linkedin: http://www.linkedin.com/in/rhondahurwitz

Twitter: http://twitter.com/rhondahurwitz

Email: Rhondahurwitz1@gmail.com

… if you have any questions, post them on my facebook page!Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/helpmerhondamarketing

Blog 1: http://www.shemeansbusiness.wordpress.comBlog 2: http://blogs.forbes.com/rhondahurwitz/