By Alan Graner
You’ve started a B2B blog.
Naturally you want it to be successful. Question is: how will you know if you’re successful?
There’s only way: set specific goals and use metrics to measure whether you reach (or exceed) those goals.
According to “The Ultimate Guide to Corporate Blogging” by OpenView Labs, there are four broad categories of blog metrics that measure performance.
1. Blogging activity metrics
These measure your blogging activity numbers:
- The number of bloggers meeting your blogging goal
- The number of blog postings created each period
- The number of firm-wide keywords used in each blog
2. Audience traffic metrics
These measure how much attention your blogs generate and where your traffic is coming from:
- The number of visitors who visit your blog each week
- The number of visitors who subscribe to your RSS feeds*
- The number of visitors from marketing channels such as search engines, social network sites, email, etc.
*According to One North Interactive (http://blog.onenorthinteractive.com/2013/03/14/google-reader-gone-is-rss-dead/#.UWJUdZOTiGQ), when Google’s announced it was shutting down Google Reader, many pundits claimed RSS was already dying or dead. Others claimed it’s already been replaced by social media outlets like Twitter and Facebook. And then there’s the great muddle in the middle who never did understand RSS’s value and are totally blasé about the whole thing. Is RSS a good metric? Darned if I know.
3. Audience engagement metrics
These measure the level of engagement your audience has with your blog:
- The average number of page views per visitor
- The time spent reading your blogs
- The number of comments you receive, both good and bad
4. Audience conversion metrics
These measure the conversion levels you get with your blog:
- The number of visitors who click through to other sections of your website
- The number of visitors who ultimately become sales leads, prospects and customers
- The amount of feedback you get from your target audience
The importance of each metric category changes as your blog matures. In the beginning, audience traffic metrics are about all you have. As your audience grows, audience traffic metrics grow in significance. Finally, audience conversion metrics become essential in determining how successful your blog is performing.
Ultimately, of course, the blogging metrics you choose to use are up to you.
Metrics are just one factor in successful B2B blogging. For the complete story, download the free eBook, “The Ultimate Guide to Corporate Blogging” at http://labs.openviewpartners.com/ebooks/page/2/
What are the most valuable metrics for your blog?
Image: Ktow’s Photostream via Flickr®
Alan Graner is Chief Creative Officer at Daly-Swartz Public Relations, an Orange County, CA marketing communications firm. When you’re ready to integrate social media into your PR campaign, email Jeffrey Swartz at jeffreyswartz@dsprel.com. Or visit www.dsprel.com.
