The sheer volume of social media metrics available can be overwhelming. But relying on easy-to-reach data alone can easily lead you astray. The key to effective campaign analysis is balancing a mix of metrics, from the simple to the complex.
A comprehensive approach ensures the campaign stays on track. It also enables you to pivot when challenges arise and helps you fully seize opportunities when things are going well.
Influencer marketing offers enormous potential, with 63% of consumers reporting that influencers shape their purchasing decisions. But how can you be sure the influencers you’re working with are truly having an impact?
In truth, understanding which social metrics to track, when to track them, and why can be challenging. Metrics vary significantly across platforms; for instance, a view on YouTube is counted after 30 seconds, while on TikTok, it’s counted after just one.
To unlock the full potential of social media campaigns, marketers must pay close attention to the data, even before collaborating with an influencer. By analysing the influencer's effect on their audience and the broader market conversation, they can gain a realistic view of potential outcomes.
Relying solely on personal judgment can be misleading. After all, marketers’ preferences may not align with their target audience, and content that performs well on the surface may not have a lasting impact.
In short, data serves as a guide, helping you understand what worked, why, and how to replicate it. This is especially important when scaling campaigns.
For example, if you know an influencer’s content directly brings in new customers thanks to tracking the conversion rate, you can explore why through deeper qualitative analysis.
However, our State of Influencer Marketing Report found that accurately measuring campaign ROI/ROAS is a pain point for 51% of UK brands. It's likely due to the sheer amount of different metrics available, some tangible and others less so.
Let’s start with the basics: reach, impressions, engagement, and click-through rate. These metrics give you insight into how many people viewed your content, how they interacted with it, and what actions they took as a result.
Let's dig into what these important metrics mean for your social media performance:
Impressions count how many times your content was displayed, including multiple views by the same user. It's one of the key metrics for influencer marketing and gives a broader sense of exposure but, like reach, doesn't provide details on viewer sentiment.
62% of strategists, managers, and directors planned to increase their tracking of reach and impressions in 2023.
Reach is the total number of unique users who saw your content. It helps gauge how widely your content was distributed but doesn’t reveal how viewers felt about it or who they are.
Insights from Kolsquare's Report: Reach is a metric that 54% of brands running influencer campaigns think is important.
You measure reach by recording the number of unique social media users who saw your content. It may seem similar to impressions, but the difference is who is looking at the content.
For example, let's say I see an Instagram video three times, perhaps on Reels and my feed. Even though I had three impressions, the reach is just one user.
The best way to think about it is that reach is who sees a post, while impressions are how many times it's seen.
Engagement rates measure how your audience interacts with your content. It’s calculated by dividing the total number of engagements—likes, comments, shares, pins, and so on—by the number of impressions or reach, then multiplying it by 100.
This social media metric is highly valuable because it tells you how many people were inspired to act by your content. This is a good indicator of how many people resonated with it. It’s no wonder that 79% of marketers track these insightful metrics.
The click-through rate is the percentage of viewers who click tracked links in your posts. Calculate the CTR of a post by dividing the total number of clicks by the number of impressions. Then multiply the result by 100.
It’s essential to assess how effective your content is at driving web traffic. Once users are on your site, you can further track metrics like new visitors or time spent browsing.
Reach and impressions are helpful metrics. But they don’t tell the whole story.
These basic metrics are often called "vanity metrics" because they are easy to obtain and readily available with free tools like Meta Business Suite.
Other social media metrics like follower growth are also often put in the box of vanity metrics. Yes, it's beneficial that more people engage with your social media channel, but it may not help you reach your actual goals.
Similarly, likes may seem encouraging, but they don’t mean much alone. After all, people spend an average of 143 minutes per day on social media--a like is only a quick click and might be a fleeting reaction.
These metrics are so appealing because they are visible and easy to track. They often look good on a social media post and create an illusion of success. But they can only tell you how many people have seen your content not how it made users feel.
To measure true social media effectiveness, you must dig deeper into metrics that are more challenging to collect but signal genuine impact.
Engagement metrics—which likes are a part of, in combination with comments, shares, and other interactions—are also sometimes called vanity metrics. However, they do reveal the basics of how much a post or video resonates with people, and they can't easily be inflated (fake comments tend to be quite noticeable), making them more reliable indicators of influence and connection.
But in truth, a metric is made valuable by your goals. You should understand why you're collecting different types of data and what they mean.
For example, if you want to increase sales, the only way to accurately judge social media posts' success (especially if you're running a multi-channel campaign that muddies the already murky water) is through direct conversion metrics that assess revenue gains. If I want to improve brand sentiment, I will need to leverage reporting tools that dive into the intent and meaning of comments and content about my brand.
Obtaining these deeper metrics is the best way to assess campaigns, improve strategies to encourage user-generated content, and drive long-term business outcomes. This will result in more effective campaigns that you can better explain to stakeholders.
For many stakeholders, the most important metric for social media efforts is how much revenue is gained.
While increasing conversions and sales is a common social media goal, understanding the true impact of campaigns can be challenging. It's difficult to connect the cause and effect with influencer campaigns, and often, you'll need effective tracking software like Google Analytics.
The following social media metrics give you the best chance to assess how many sales were gained from an influencer or social media strategy:
The conversion rate tracks the percentage of viewers who complete your desired action after engaging with social media content. It usually invites people to the next stage of the marketing funnel, which could be making a purchase, signing up for a newsletter, or downloading content. Tracking can be done for sales using UTM parameters and promo codes, which directly show how many customers each creator generated.
Cost per action (CPA) tells you exactly how much you're spending for each desired action a user takes. This social media metric helps you to figure out if you're making good use of your budget.
Other similar metrics to track include cost per click (CPC), which tells you the amount you spend to gain a click. Cost per mile (CPM) refers to the cost spent for 1,000 impressions. Cost per engagement (CPE) tells you how much you spend for every engagement. With all these metrics, lower numbers are better.
Earned Media Value estimates the monetary value of organic exposure generated by influencers or user-generated content. It helps quantify the impact of unpaid mentions, shares, and tags that amplify your brand without direct ad spend.
ROI tells you whether your efforts are truly paying off. It’s a comparison of all profits against all costs. Some would argue that this is the true indicator of social media performance. It’s no surprise that 70% of brands measure the ROI of campaigns.
However, it helps to know the lifetime value of your average customer to gain a clearer picture. If customers are likely to stick around as loyal customers for years, your overall return may be higher.
Long-term, sustainable growth brings the best overall returns. To keep building your brand through influencer marketing, you need to connect with the right people, strengthen your place in the conversation, and build your reputation.
ROAS is similar to ROI, but it only focuses on the ad spend (not the additional costs.) It measures the revenue generated for every pound spent on social media advertising. This metric helps you understand the direct financial return of your ad campaigns. For instance, a ROAS of 5:1 means you earned £5 for every £1 spent. To calculate ROAS, divide the total revenue from your campaign by the total ad spend. A high ROAS indicates efficient ad performance, while a low ROAS suggests the need to optimize targeting, creative, or budget allocation.
Are the customers from social media campaigns loyal and building a strong connection with your brand? CLV measures the total revenue you can expect from a customer over the entirety of their relationship with your brand. It helps determine the long-term value of customers brought in through social media campaigns, particularly those from influencer collaborations.
Demographic data about influencers' audiences is crucial for ensuring that your social media strategy targets the right people. Instead of focusing solely on influencers with large followings, it’s more effective to choose those whose audience aligns with your target market. These influencers will save you money in the long run, as you can rely on them to develop impactful and relevant content.
Collecting key demographic factors such as age, gender, location, income, and interests, you can tailor campaigns to resonate more deeply with potential customers, improving engagement and conversion rates.
Tools like Kolsquare’s Chrome extension offer marketers free access to audience insights. This includes essential metrics like engagement rates, audience growth, and demographic information such as location and gender.
Simply download the extension, sign up for a free account, log in, and start browsing influencers on platforms like Instagram and TikTok. The extension works as a sidebar, providing you with data as you browse.
Start analysing influencer audiences from your browser today!
When diving into the complex analysis of a campaign, qualitative data becomes crucial. Although specific data points might not be available, a thorough analysis often reveals valuable trends and insights.
Brand sentiment tells you how people feel about your brand. This key metric helps you understand if your audience views your brand positively, negatively, or neutrally. Positive sentiment often leads to long-term gains and is, therefore, highly advantageous.
Brand awareness reflects how many social media users notice and reference your brand. High awareness means your brand is memorable.
Good indicators of brand awareness are the number of mentions, shares, and impressions across social media channels to see how often your brand is referenced and how well your messaging sticks in consumers' minds. This is crucial for ensuring your brand stays top-of-mind with your target audience.
Encouraging user-generated content can also enhance awareness, organically sparking additional social media activity by your followers. A strong brand awareness means customers are more likely to think of your brand when they are ready to make a purchase.
Influencer alignment is crucial for ensuring a brand's message is delivered authentically and resonates with the right audience. Marketing teams need to check that the content created by an influencer left a good impression.
As Neal Schaffer puts it, “Perhaps the biggest advantage of using influencers is that you have the opportunity to choose people who are part of your target market, or who appeal to your target market.”
User-generated content is organic content that social media users share unpaid due to your Track the number of posts, mentions, or shares generated by your audience as part of a campaign. UGC metrics provide insight into how effectively your campaign inspires organic participation.
Virality rate measures how often your content is shared relative to its impressions. This metric indicates the content’s potential to spread organically and reach new audiences.
Impactful influencers will put your brand at the forefront of industry conversations. Share of voice tracks the number of times your brand is mentioned by social media users versus how often competing brands are referenced.
Share of voice goes beyond just brand awareness by also encompassing customer engagement, reflecting how frequently your brand name is seen and how well customers interact with your content. It is crucial for understanding how visible your brand is compared to its competitors and how the influencers they collaborate with are impacting the conversation.
Social listening provides valuable insights into audience sentiment, brand perception, and emerging trends through the analysis of real-time conversations on social platforms. It helps identify which influencers truly resonate with your audience, allowing you to analyse your share of voice by assessing metrics such as Earned Media Value (EMV), audience size, and engagement. Tools like customisable dashboards enable brands to track data by specific regions, ensuring relevance and accuracy.
Social listening offers numerous benefits for influencer marketing. It keeps brands aware of trending topics, helping them collaborate with influencers who are aligned with their industry. This approach also reduces advertising costs as influencers manage content creation and directly engage the target audience. Moreover, it helps brands monitor their reputation in real-time, addressing negative comments to improve public perception.
Brands can identify influential individuals discussing relevant topics to create more effective partnerships that enhance their ROI.
Conducting social listening and getting it right is time-consuming. In fact, 57% of brands rely on tools to guide their influencer marketing campaigns.
To measure social listening, brands should first define clear objectives, such as brand positioning, campaign performance, or identifying sales opportunities. Next, determine your data sources by selecting the most relevant social networks and digital media.
Kolsquare’s social listening module streamlines the process by enabling brands to:
Book a free demo today!
You can transform these insights into strategic decisions that inform strategies and improve your reputation.
Marketing teams need a comprehensive approach to run a data-driven social media strategy. Here is a list of social media metrics and how you can track them:
We've covered many of the most crucial metrics, but this is marketing! There's always more data to dive into. Let's explore it.
Surveying your audience on social media is an effective way to gather insights, understand customer preferences, and refine your strategies. Social media platforms make it easy to engage your audience through tools like polls, surveys, and reward-based participation. By including targeted questions and incentivizing responses, brands can gain valuable data while fostering engagement.
There are a few different ways to ask questions on social media without being invasive.
First, there are polls. Polls are short, interactive questions with multiple-choice answers.
Platforms like Instagram Stories, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook allow you to post polls directly to your feed or stories. It's easily accessible for shoppers and non-invasive.
Best practices for social media polls:
For example, you could ask: “Which product feature excites you most? 🛍️
A) New designs
B) Improved quality
C) Discounts”
Second, there are surveys. These are longer forms for gathering detailed feedback. Share links on social media that connect to surveys hosted on platforms like Google Forms, Typeform, or SurveyMonkey.
Best practices for surveys:
For example you could add a link in an Instagram bio: “Share your thoughts with us and receive 10% off your next purchase! Complete this quick survey: [Link in bio]”
Customer Satisfaction Score (CSAT) can be attained from surveys. It's a key metric for evaluating how happy your customers are with your brand’s social media interactions, products, or services. It’s one of the most straightforward ways to gauge customer experience and pinpoint areas for improvement.
CSAT is typically measured by asking customers a simple question, such as: "How satisfied were you with your experience?" Customers respond using a scale, usually ranging from 1 to 5, where:
The CSAT score is calculated as the percentage of positive responses (4s and 5s) out of the total responses. For example, if 80 out of 100 customers rate their experience as 4 or 5, your CSAT score would be 80%.
CSAT data can tell you how your content is really performing.
It will provide:
But remember to follow best practices, such as:
Conversion metrics like the CTR are essential. But not all conversions are created equal.
Conversion quality goes beyond the quantity of conversions to assess the real value of the leads. This ensures that your campaigns are driving the right actions from the right audience.
Conversion quality is typically assessed using a combination of quantitative and qualitative metrics that assess the depth and long-term value of each conversion:
CLV tracks the total revenue a customer is expected to generate over their relationship with your brand. High-quality conversions often come from customers with high CLV.
Calculate the average revenue generated per customer and compare it across segments acquired through different campaigns. If you find your influencer campaign is only bringing in short-term custom, you may need to tweak your approach.
This tactic scores leads based on factors such as demographic alignment, behaviours (time spent on the site), and intent (signing up for a demo, purchasing). Higher scores indicate better-quality conversions.
The best way to evaluate the potential of leads is to use a CRM or marketing automation tools,
This is the number of times a converted user makes repeat purchases. High-quality conversions often come from customers who engage with the brand repeatedly. It's similar to lifetime value.
Measure it by analyzing repeat transactions in your CRM or e-commerce platform to identify trends by source.
High-quality conversions often result in higher order values. Tracking AOV from social media conversions helps gauge the financial impact of your campaigns.
The best way to calculate AOV is by dividing the total revenue by the number of purchases within a specific campaign or platform.
High-quality conversions are often followed by active engagement with your brand, such as email opens, social media interactions, or loyalty program sign-ups.
You can use analytics tools to track post-conversion behaviours and segment audiences based on engagement levels.
High churn rates (customers who stop interacting or purchasing) often indicate lower-quality conversions. This means that your brand didn't fully align with the customer or build a relationship.
Measure it by analyzing the retention rate of customers acquired through specific campaigns or platforms.
Not all conversions are equally valuable, depending on your objectives. For instance, a B2B brand might prioritise high-quality leads over product sales, while a retail brand might focus on direct purchases.
Discern the level of alignment by defining conversion goals and assessing how closely acquired conversions match these objectives.
Ensuring high conversion quality is essential for maximising the effectiveness of your campaigns. While quantity is important, focusing on the relevance and long-term value of your conversions can lead to better business outcomes. Here are some key strategies to improve the quality of your conversions:
One of the most effective ways to attract high-quality conversions is through precise targeting. Utilise audience segmentation tools to break down your audience into specific groups based on demographics, interests, or behaviours. Additionally, leverage lookalike audiences to find new users who share similar traits with your existing high-value customers. This approach helps ensure your ads reach people who are more likely to take meaningful actions.
The messaging and visuals in your campaigns play a critical role in attracting the right audience. Ensure your content speaks directly to high-intent users by addressing their specific needs, challenges, or aspirations. Focus on creating clear and compelling calls-to-action (CTAs) that guide users towards your desired outcomes. Regularly A/B test different formats, copy, and designs to identify what resonates most with your target audience.
Understanding the user journey is key to improving conversion quality. Monitor each stage of your sales or marketing funnel to identify where users drop off. Use tools such as heatmaps, analytics, and session recordings to pinpoint potential barriers, such as unclear CTAs, slow-loading pages, or complicated checkout processes. Addressing these issues can help retain high-quality leads and improve the overall user experience.
If your campaigns involve influencers, it’s important to ensure their audience aligns closely with your target demographic and purchasing behaviours. Examine metrics such as engagement rates, audience demographics, and past campaign performance to determine whether an influencer is a good fit. This ensures the conversions they generate are both relevant and valuable for your brand.
Personalised marketing can significantly improve conversion quality. Tailor your ads, emails, and follow-ups based on specific user behaviours, preferences, or purchase history. For example, you might send product recommendations based on a user’s browsing activity or follow up with exclusive offers for abandoned cart items. Personalisation creates a more engaging and relevant experience, increasing the likelihood of meaningful conversions.
Kolsquare is Europe’s leading Influencer Marketing platform, offering a data-driven solution that empowers brands to scale their KOL (Key Opinion Leader) marketing strategies through authentic partnerships with top creators.
Kolsquare’s advanced technology helps marketing professionals seamlessly identify the best content creators by filtering their content and audience, while also enabling them to build, manage, and optimize campaigns from start to finish. This includes measuring results and benchmarking performance against competitors.
With a thriving global community of influencer marketing experts, Kolsquare serves hundreds of customers—including Coca-Cola, Netflix, Sony Music, Publicis, Sézane, Sephora, Lush, and Hermès—by leveraging the latest Big Data, AI, and Machine Learning technologies. Our platform taps into an extensive network of KOLs with more than 5,000 followers across 180 countries on Instagram, TikTok, X (Twitter), Facebook, YouTube, and Snapchat.
As a Certified B Corporation, Kolsquare leads the way in promoting Responsible Influence, championing transparency, ethical practices, and meaningful collaborations that inspire positive change.
Since October 2024, Kolsquare has become part of the Team.Blue group, one of the largest private tech companies in Europe, and a leading digital enabler for businesses and entrepreneurs across Europe. Team.Blue brings together over 60 successful brands in web hosting, domains, e-commerce, online compliance, lead generation, application solutions, and social media.
