Why is it Important to Monitor Social Media Analytics

Almost every business now knows the power of social media and has some strategy in place to make optimum use of social media platforms. However, many have not yet grasped the importance of monitoring the performance of their strategies through social media analytics and making the required changes to derive optimum benefits. Many companies have recently allocated resources and drafted policies for implementing social media strategies, and are not keen to allocate further resources or time to monitor their progress. This could be a big mistake, as ROI many not be as expected and in some cases, certain campaigns might in fact be counterproductive. Therefore, it is very important for a company to integrate social media analytics as well, into their strategies.

Analytics can Reveal What You are Doing is Effective

Many companies focus on generating stream of good content and posting it on various social media platforms to get message out. However, this does not ensure "Likes", and even if you have managed that, you may not be successful in engaging your audience. Good content is very important, but engagement is what ultimately delivers. You may think you have posted excellent content, but you need to know if it is resonating with the public. Secondly, who are these people, who seem to be impressed by your content? Hence, analytics is the only way you can find out whether your content is being appreciated, whether you are making headway with the right crowd, and whether the right audience is engaging.

How to Initially Use Social Media Analytics

Monitoring and reviewing your social media performance might seem daunting and complex task, but it is not so, especially when you have tools like HubSpot, HootSuite, or Google Analytics, to help you. For instance, firstly find out simple things like how many people are visiting your website in a month. How much traffic is generated from your postings on social media platforms? This will help you create a baseline, and then you can think of making changes in your strategy to see the outcome. Alter some content or post differently to see if you are able to get more comments, shares, likes, or improved traffic. Most social media platforms have their own analytics tools, which can provide important insights into your strategies. For instance, on Facebook you can find out the number of people that read your post, what was the level of engagement, and how much has gone viral. Secondly, when are your posts being read, which will tell you when the best time to post your content is?

Monitoring Progress and Allocating Resources

A professional approach is needed while managing social media campaigns, as opposed to simply waiting to see whether your content is being read by the public. Social media analytics will not only reveal the tactics that have been effective, but also show the source of the leads, contacts, and visits. You can gauge which platform is working best for you, and whether you need to allocate further resources to make your strategy successful. For instance, by monitoring social media analytics you might find many of your visits are from LinkedIn rather than Facebook. In such instance, it would mean LinkedIn is best suited for your niche or industry, and you should try to allocate more time and resources on this platform. However, you cannot give up fully on Facebook, as that might still yield important contacts. The main thing is analyzing results and performances, as that will give you vital information about how to proceed further. Without having any system to monitor social media analytics you will be wasting a lot of time and shooting in the dark.