Assessing ROI from different inbound marketing strategies is not particularly complicated. It can, however, be time-consuming. Various programs exist to make this job easier, but at this point, performing manual analysis is the best way to ensure you do not overlook any piece of vital information. You should review your sales conversions, participation, organic and viral reach, new leads, and overall analytics throughout the life of any marketing strategy.
Sales Conversions
Hard sales figures are a very good indicator of marketing success. Also, most business managers understand these straightforward statistics more easily than the ROI indicators gleaned from digital marketing. As you look at sales conversions on your website, evaluate where the sales leads came from. Did the visitors come from your social media channels, your blog, an organic search, or a backlink? Establishing where your sales originated will help you determine the areas that are providing you with the greatest ROI. Identify particular days when sales tended to spike. Did you run a campaign or a sale on that day? Did you offer a giveaway? Make note of the incentives that galvanize your communities most.
Participation
One of the easiest ways to determine and demonstrate the success of a strategy is to monitor community participation. You should monitor each Like on each post, whether it is on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, or a niche social media channel. Carefully read all posted comments and respond accordingly. Look for retweets to determine which of your posts the community found meaningful, and look at repins to establish which photos your community enjoyed more than the others. It is important to analyze all these elements to ensure you are listening to and engaging with your community.
Reach
Examining your organic and viral reach is also incredibly useful. You want to know how many people you might potentially reach through your social media channels at any given time. As this number increases, the number of visitors to your sites should also increase, resulting in greater sales conversions. Determine how many people are returning visitors and how many are unique visitors. These figures can help you decide whether you need to change your strategy in order to gain more repeat business.
New Leads
Marketing strategies should constantly create new leads. You want people to interact with your channels and sites. Each time someone Likes your page or Follows you, these people become new leads. Every time a person signs up for a newsletter or to receive updates pertaining to blog posts, he or she becomes a new lead. Each time people create an account on your website, they become the ultimate new lead. New leads generated from among your target audience are highly likely to become loyal customers.
Overall Analytics
Assessing your ROI also requires an examination of your overall analytics. Make sure you are attracting your target audience to your communities and sites.
If you are not, approach the situation in one of two ways. Either adjust your marketing strategy to try to reach your desired target audience more effectively, or reassess your target audience to increase sales opportunities in your existing community. Both options have value; however, both will not necessarily work for all products and services.
Assessing ROI from different inbound marketing strategies takes time and commitment. Successful marketing strategies do not come to fruition overnight. You must be willing to invest the time and analyze the results in great detail to experience optimal returns.
