It might be considered heresy to suggest to communicators that not everything needs to be measured, particularly when it comes to social media. But Marcia DiStaso, assistant professor of Public Relations, College of Communications, Pennsylvania State University, says that when crafting social media strategy it helps to be selective with what you intend to measure.
With myriad social channels and measurement tools now available, PR pros have to learn to be more discriminating in picking what to measure; otherwise they end up throwing good money after bad.
DiStaso will share some best practices in this area during the “Trends in Measuring User Engagement in Social Media” session at PR News’ Measurement Conference, which takes place November 20 in Chicago.
Below, DiStaso provides 3 PR tips on measurement of social media efforts.
1. Move beyond simply tracking engagement—analyze it. Measure what content drives desired actions such as purchases, positive sentiment, and website visits.
2. Set a strategy for social media content, but remember that your brand does not exist in a bubble. Be sure to track industry, community and world events—along with influencer activity—to help explain your results.
3. Not everything needs to be measured, so set clear objectives and realistic goals. If you hit these, then you know your efforts are working, and if you don’t, you need to assess where and why they fell short. Make sure you are using the right platforms, engaging the right audiences and using the right tools measurement tools.
To learn more about PR measurement trends, attend PR News’ Measurement Conference, which takes place November 20 at the Hyatt Regency Chicago.
Follow Matthew Schwartz on Twitter: @mpsjourno1
These are some nice and direct points. I always thought that all the measurements would help. I think the only way to finding out what content helps you reach your goal is to be consistent about it and keep testing and trying. A main problem for me is always finding the purpose.