Social Media Metrics: Who Cares?

I just finished reading Nate Elliott's latest blog post, Which Social Media Marketing Metrics Really Matter? (And To Whom?)  It's quite a good read, although it's most definitely written for marketers at large companies.  This makes sense since this is the audience that Forrester Research caters to.  But, I think that smaller businesses can learn from the concepts presented here.

I haven't yet met a "CEO" of a small business who is committed to social media (because the two don't always go hand-in-hand) that doesn't closely watch the number of posts put out and fan/follower counts.  In fact, when these numbers don't rise quickly enough, it's the CEO who is usually first on the phone to me.

I think there are a few big take-aways for small businesses here:

1. Social media content generation efforts should be spread around to key employees - each with a different focus.  

• Branding
• Products/Services
• Community engagement (conversing w/the fans & followers)
• Customer Service

And, so on.  Of course, in a small business one person may wear more than one hat when it comes to generating post worthy content...

2. Measurement.  Measuring your results IS an important function of a smart social strategy.  But within that, results need to be set appropriately (Rome wasn't built overnight) and too much is NOT a good thing.

3. Business owners should monitor social media results, but don't watch them like a hawk.  Let your content producers do their thing!  Build on the success they achieve and stay focused on what you do best.

Overall, I think small business owners should read this article to understand how big business handles the measurement of their social media strategy.  Just remember, the chart used is a great resource if it's condensed down to meet the resources of a smaller business.  Meaning, in a small business the community managers might also be the marketing executive and/or the marketing executive might also be the CEO.

Happy reading!

Have questions on what you've read here? Post them in the comments!