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Writer's pictureErin Ratliff

Mastering Metrics: How To Make The Best Data-Driven Decisions As A Soul-preneur




In this ever-changing and competitive landscape of digital marketing, entrepreneurs face both incredible challenges, and opportunities. Building a strong online presence and connecting with your target audience and achieving your overall business goals all involve leveraging one crucial element: DATA.


While some soul-preneurs will prefer to make their marketing decisions based on gut feelings or intuition, tracking metrics is a more effective marketing strategy for long-term success. From website performance to email newsletters to social media campaigns, every action taken in the digital realm can be analyzed and optimized for maximum impact, allowing you to reach your full potential.


“Data is a precious thing and will last longer than the systems themselves.”

Tim Berners-Lee


What are the best metrics to track?

Objectives and Key Results (OKRs) and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) are strategic tools used by organizations to measure progress and achieve their goal. They play complementary roles in helping organizations improve their performance, but they serve different purposes and have distinct characteristics.


OKRs are strategic tools focused on setting ambitious goals and driving alignment and accountability. They......

  • are designed to set ambitious, high-level objectives and define measurable results to drive focus, alignment, and accountability.

  • focus on a few key objectives supported by measurable outcomes, encouraging adaptability and experimentation.

  • are aspirational and forward-looking, allowing for flexibility in achieving desired outcomes.


Example:


Objective: Increase customer satisfaction with product quality

  • Key Result 1: Achieve a Net Promoter Score (NPS) of 80 or higher by the end of the quarter.

  • Key Result 2: Reduce product return rate by 20% compared to the previous quarter.

  • Key Result 3: Receive positive customer feedback on at least 90% of product reviews.


Objective: Expand market reach and brand awareness

  • Key Result 1: Increase website traffic by 30% compared to the previous quarter.

  • Key Result 2: Secure partnerships with at least three influential outdoor bloggers or social media influencers.

  • Key Result 3: Increase social media engagement by 50% across all platforms.


In contrast, KPIs are tactical tools used to measure and monitor performance against specific targets or benchmarks. They...

  • track the performance of processes, activities, or outcomes against predefined targets, providing a snapshot of current performance and driving continuous improvement.

  • are more rigid and stable, set based on established processes or industry standards


Example:


Key Performance Indicator: Sales Revenue

  • Measure: Total revenue generated from the sale of outdoor gear products.

  • Target: Achieve $1 million in sales revenue for the quarter.


Key Performance Indicator: Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC)

  • Measure: Total marketing and sales expenses divided by the number of new customers acquired.

  • Target: Maintain a CAC below $50 per new customer.


Key Performance Indicator: Inventory Turnover Ratio

  • Measure: Number of times inventory is sold and replaced within a specific period.

  • Target: Achieve an inventory turnover ratio of 4 or higher for the quarter.


Key Performance Indicator: Customer Retention Rate

  • Measure: Percentage of customers who make repeat purchases within a given period.

  • Target: Maintain a customer retention rate of 60% or higher for the quarter.


Understanding Different Metric Types

Understanding the difference between leading and lagging measures is crucial for strategic goal setting and performance management.

  • Lagging KPIs reflect past actions and outcomes, showing how well strategies have worked. Examples:

    • revenue

    • profit margins

    • customer retention rates

  • Leading KPIs, on the other hand, are predictive measures and proactive indicators that provide insights into activities driving future success, allowing businesses to make informed adjustments to their strategies. Examples:

    • customer satisfaction scores

    • employee engagement metrics

    • pipeline conversion rates.


It's also important to understand the fundamental categories of KPIs. Consider these five main categories.

  1. Process KPIs – Measures operational efficiency, quality, and technology, including Project Management, Technology, Quality, and Supply Chain.

  2. Financial KPIs – Economic and financial measures, such as Topline Revenue, Bottomline Profit, Cash Flow, Debt, and Risk Management.

  3. Sustainability KPIs – Environmental impact measures, including Resource Usage, Carbon Footprint, Recycling, and Reuse Ratios.

  4. Client Experience KPIs – Product and services-related measures, including Sales, Marketing, Customer Loyalty, and Lifetime Value.

  5. Employee Experience KPIs – People and culture-related measures, such as Retention, Turnover, Engagement, and Productivity.


Stop chasing metrics that don't matter. Most are simply distractions that are draining your most valuable asset:Your Time.

Why are Metrics Important?

Tracking performance metrics plays a crucial role in contributing to a holistic marketing strategy in several ways:


We live in an age where consumers interact with brands across various channels so tracking performance metrics allows marketers to measure the impact of their work, but also ensures a cohesive and consistent customer experience.


Data gleaned from your website, social channels or email CMS can enable and empower solopreneurs to

  • Understand your audience or customer better, especially their behaviors and preferences

  • Identify strengths, weaknesses and areas for improvement

  • Make informed decisions

  • Evaluate performance

  • Measure success

  • Optimize your online presence

  • Monitor your progress toward a goal

  • Continuously adjust and adapt your marketing efforts to keep up with the competition or changing consumer trends



From a more practical stance, metrics also help you measure the effectiveness of your marketing campaigns and determine the return on investment of your time and effort. Over time it can allow you to allocate resources and budgets more effectively, focusing on the strategies and initiatives that deliver the best outcomes and results.


And of course, monitoring is a best practice because it is a form of quality assurance and crisis prevention, allowing you to detect problems early on so you can respond and mitigate before it affects your bottom line.


If you’re not tracking progress toward clear goals, you are playing a guessing game and making blind assumptions.


In other words, Knowledge is POWER! And what you measure, you grow.


"What gets measured gets managed. If you can't measure it, you can't improve it."

Peter Drucker


Which Metrics Really Matter?


Email and website metrics are the most important to measure because they provide direct insights into how your audience engages with your owned platforms, where you have full control over content and data. Unlike social media, which is subject to algorithm changes and limited reach, email and website metrics reflect deeper, intentional interactions—such as clicks, conversions, and time spent on your site. These metrics help build long-term relationships, drive measurable results, and offer more reliable data to guide your strategy.


The Big Three

  1. Open Rate - demonstrates the effectiveness and engagement of subject line copy, send timing, brand recognition, brand likeability

  2. Click Through Rate- how relevant, resonating and compelling the content in your email is to your audience

  3. Conversion Rate - the effectivenes of your email to drive meaningful action


When measuring content success, it’s essential to align the metrics with your goals. The best metrics to track will vary depending on your specific goals and objectives. Having well-defined goals will help you identify the relevant metrics to track. Which are most important for you?


Here are the types of metrics to track for improving each of these common business goals:


Boosting Brand Awareness

  • Reach: Number of unique users who have seen your content.

  • Impressions: Total number of times your content is displayed.

  • Mentions: Number of times your brand is mentioned online.

  • Engagement: Likes, shares, comments, and followers.

  • Website Traffic: Total visits, unique visitors, and page views.

  • Coverage: Number of press mentions and media articles.

  • Search Volume: Frequency of searches for your brand name or related keywords.


Improving Client/Customer Retention

  • Customer Retention Rate: Percentage of customers who continue to use your product or service over a given period.

  • Churn Rate: Percentage of customers who stop using your product or service.

  • Customer Satisfaction Score (CSAT): Average score of customer satisfaction surveys.

  • Net Promoter Score (NPS): Measure of customers' willingness to recommend your product or service.

  • Repeat Purchase Rate: Percentage of customers who make another purchase.

  • Customer Lifetime Value (CLV): Total revenue expected from a customer over their relationship with your company.

  • Engagement Metrics: Usage frequency, login frequency, and feature utilization.


Generating New Leads

  • Lead Generation Rate: Number of new leads generated in a given period.

  • Conversion Rate: Percentage of visitors who become leads.

  • Cost Per Lead (CPL): Cost to acquire a new lead.

  • Lead Source: Origin of the leads (e.g., organic search, paid ads, referrals).

  • Lead Quality Score: Assessment of lead potential based on criteria like engagement and fit.

  • Landing Page Conversion Rate: Percentage of visitors who convert on a specific landing page.

  • Email Opt-in Rate: Percentage of visitors who subscribe to your email list.


Increasing Sales or Conversions

  • Conversion Rate: Percentage of visitors who complete a desired action (e.g., purchase, sign-up).

  • Average Order Value (AOV): Average amount spent per transaction.

  • Sales Growth: Increase in sales over a specific period.

  • Cart Abandonment Rate: Percentage of users who add items to their cart but do not complete the purchase.

  • Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC): Cost to acquire a new customer.

  • Revenue Per Visitor (RPV): Average revenue generated per website visitor.

  • Time to Purchase: Average time taken for a visitor to make a purchase.


Sustaining Profits

  • Gross Profit Margin: Percentage of revenue remaining after deducting the cost of goods sold.

  • Net Profit Margin: Percentage of revenue remaining after all expenses are deducted.

  • Operating Expenses Ratio: Operating expenses as a percentage of revenue.

  • Revenue Growth Rate: Rate at which revenue is increasing.

  • Return on Investment (ROI): Measure of the profitability of an investment.

  • Customer Lifetime Value (CLV): Total revenue expected from a customer over their relationship with your company.

  • Break-even Point: Point at which total revenue equals total costs


More...

For driving sales and revenue --> focus on lead conversions

For building community --> look at engagement rates

For increasing visibility ---> prioritize SEO rankings.

For understanding overall effectiveness/resonance --> customer feedback


Combining these metrics will give you a well-rounded understanding of your content’s success.


Common Channel-based Metrics

Regardless of what your specific goal is there are certain universally-valuable KPIs (key performance indicators) that will help you unlock your potential and allow your biz to thrive.


Below are some commonly tracked metrics for the most popular online platforms and channels:


Your Website

Here’s how you can measure your website’s performance to check if your SEO and UX efforts are working towards your business goals:

  1. Traffic: The total number of visitors coming to your website over a specific period.

  2. Traffic Sources: The channels through which visitors find your website, such as organic search, social media, direct visits, or referrals.

  3. Bounce Rate: The percentage of visitors who leave your website after viewing only one page without taking any action. A high bounce rate may indicate that your content or website experience needs improvement.

  4. Time on Page: The average amount of time visitors spend on individual pages of your website.

  5. Conversion Rate: The percentage of visitors who complete a desired action, such as making a purchase, signing up for a newsletter, or filling out a contact form.

  6. Click-through Rate (CTR): The percentage of visitors who click on a specific link or call-to-action on your website.

  7. Pages per Session: This metric shows how many pages a user views during a single visit. Higher pages per session often correlate with engaging and valuable content.

  8. Exit Pages: The pages from which visitors leave your website most frequently. This can help you optimize those pages to retain visitors.

  9. Page Load Time: The time it takes for your website pages to fully load for visitors. Faster page load times contribute to better user experience.

  10. Crawl Errors and Indexing Status: Regularly check for crawl errors and ensure that search engines are properly indexing your website's pages.

  11. Average Session Duration: This metric measures the average time visitors spend on your site. Longer session durations suggest that visitors find your content informative and engaging.


SEO

  1. Organic Traffic: This is the number of visitors coming to your website from search engines, indicating how well your website is ranking for relevant keywords.

  2. Impressions: These should start to increase first as an indication that your website is showing up in more the SERPs. You should notice an increase in the number of pages ranking on Google after several months, even if they aren’t ranking close to the top spot yet.

  3. Keyword Rankings: Monitor the positions of your target keywords in search engine results pages (SERPs). Tracking keyword rankings helps you assess your visibility and competitiveness.You might not be very high up for these keyword searches, but your increasing impressions on Google should align with the keywords you want to target.

  4. Click-Through Rate (CTR): CTR measures the percentage of people who click on your link in search results compared to the total number of impressions (times your link is shown). A higher CTR indicates that your title and meta description are compelling.

  5. Backlinks and Referring Domains: The number and quality of backlinks pointing to your site.

  6. Local Visibility: Local search ranking

  7. Google Business: page engagement, and online reviews.

  8. Authority: Domain Authority (DA) and Page Authority (PA) is a score that predicts how likely a website is to rank in search engine result pages (SERP


Your Email Newsletter

  1. Open Rate: The percentage of email recipients who open your email.

  2. Click-through Rate (CTR): The percentage of email recipients who click on links within your email.

  3. Conversion Rate: The percentage of email recipients who take the desired action after clicking on links in your email.

  4. Bounce Rate: The percentage of emails that were not successfully delivered to the recipient's inbox.

  5. Unsubscribe Rate: The percentage of email recipients who unsubscribe from your email list after receiving a specific email.

  6. Forward Rate: The number of times your emails are forwarded to others by recipients.

  7. Spam Complaint Rate: The percentage of recipients who mark your email as spam.

  8. Engagement Over Time: How your email engagement metrics change over different periods (daily, weekly, monthly).


Your Social Media Channels

  1. Audience Size: Indicates the size of your audience or network

    • Followers

    • Likes

    • Connections

    • Subscribers

2. Reach: Measures the number of unique users who see your content.

  • Impressions

  • Views

3. Engagement: Includes metrics showing how users interact with your posts or links.

  • Likes

  • Comments

  • Clicks

  • Saves

  • Shares

  • Mentions


Remember, these metrics provide a general starting point, but aligning your tracking with YOUR specific marketing goals is essential. If you find that any of these metrics aren’t budging by the time you’ve reached 6 months of dedicated marketing work, it’s time to rethink your strategy.


Public Relations

  1. Output: Tracks the volume of PR activities (e.g., media interviews, pitches sent, press releases).

  2. Volume: Measures the reach of media coverage (e.g., impressions, geographical mentions).

  3. Quality: Assesses the value of media placements (e.g., message resonance, tone, prominence).

  4. Impact: Evaluates how PR efforts contribute to business goals (e.g., conversions, brand awareness, lead generation).



“The bottom line KPIs — key performance indicators — are what your CEO, your C-suite and key stakeholders care about. Because that’s where the money is.”

Liz McGee




What Tools & Systems Should I Use?

To track and analyze your metrics, you need to use the right tools. There are many options available for measuring the success of outsourced content writing


Free Tools

  • Google Analytics provides insights into website traffic, behavior, and conversions.

  • Google Search Console helps monitor and optimize website performance and visibility on Google search results.

Paid Tools

  • SEMrush offers comprehensive features for keyword research, SEO audit, content analysis, and competitor analysis.

  • BuzzSumo helps discover and analyze the most engaging content in your niche and on social media.

  • HubSpot offers a complete solution for inbound marketing, sales, and customer service, including content creation, management, and optimization.


"Numbers have an important story to tell. They rely on you to give them a clear and convincing voice."

Stephen Few


Your Holistic Marketing Approach


1. IDENTIFY WHERE YOU ARE. Before implementing any changes or campaigns, it's important to establish benchmarks based on historical data or industry standards. These numbers will serve as a baseline to measure the success of your efforts. Look at your own metrics, as well as your top competitors.


2. WATCH WHERE YOU'RE GOING. Continuously monitor the selected metrics to track the progress of your digital marketing initiatives. Use the tools within each of your channels and platforms to gather data and gain insights into user behavior and campaign performance. Regular analysis will help you identify patterns, trends, and areas that require improvement. Don't forget to keep an eye on your competitors' metrics to see how your channels compare and identify areas for improvement.


3. ADJUST YOUR ROUTE ACCORDINGLY. Use the data and insights gathered from performance metrics to make informed decisions. If a particular campaign or strategy is not yielding the desired results, analyze the data to identify the reasons behind it and make necessary adjustments.


4. TEST & EXPIREMENT. Conduct A/B tests to compare the effectiveness of different elements in your digital marketing campaigns. Test variations of email subject lines, website design, ad copies, or landing pages to determine which version performs better based on the selected KPIs.


4. FOCUS & PRIORITIZE. Based on the insights from performance metrics, optimize your marketing strategies. If a specific channel or tactic is yielding positive results, allocate more resources to that channel.


Remember, digital marketing is an ongoing process. You can use performance metrics as a feedback loop to continuously adjust your strategies, refine your tactics, improve your content, and re-evaluate your efforts.


"When a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure."

Charles Goodhart


How to Communicate Metrics Effectively

Your analytics and assessment MUST be easy to understand. These 3 bullets are all you need to know for your 3-5 key areas. Each should roll up to a top-level number.

→ Metric one: {Numbers}

→ Metric explanation: {Why you chose it}

→ Metric forecast: {What you expect to get}



A note for coaches & consultants:

It's ok not to guarantee specific results in your work. You can still have a steady flow of clients by emphasizing the importance of trust, consistency and authenticity over making grand promises.


It's all about focusing on delivering quality content, providing structured support, and offering genuine care and compassion. There is so much value in collaboration, as well as managing realistic expectations realistically. Ultimately the relationship with your clients matters more than flashy claims or unrealistic guarantees.


Of course, some jobs are more difficult to generate metrics and impact data for, especially creative or administrative support roles.


But that doesn’t mean you can’t communicate the value you’re adding. If you are being paid by a company to do work, you should be able to describe why that work is worth the pay


There are so many other quantitate or qualitative ways to measure impact, besides the standard metrics of followers or engagement:

  • Dollars saved

  • Hours reduced

  • Work-flow tasks reduced

  • Processes or controls improved

  • Schedule progress made

  • People hired or promoted

  • Employee satisfaction or customer feedback ratings

  • Tasks accomplished at/ahead of schedule

  • Patents generated

  • Productivity increased

  • Quality increased (reduced errors)

  • On time delivery percentage

  • Positive public relations stories/posts

  • Milestones delivered early

  • Number of accounts or team members you managed.

  • Customer experience enhanced (ie wait-time decreased)

  • Innovative ideas generated

  • New initiatives launched

  • Cross-department collaborations enhanced

  • Executive operations streamlined


“If the statistics are boring, you’ve got the wrong numbers.”

Edward Tufte


Remembering The Big Picture

Reducing people to mere numbers in a spreadsheet can simplify your job, but it won't add meaning.


Stop fixating on clicks and start focusing on impressions and impact. If your content solely aims to drive traffic to your website, you’re not truly marketing; you’re merely playing a numbers game.


Marketing is not about shepherding people to your website like livestock. It’s about leaving a lasting impact. Your content should linger in people's minds long after they've scrolled past it.


Sure, measuring that impact is important. But the goal should not be about tracking for the sake of tracking and report. It's not about short-term vanity, its about the long-term bottom line.


If every marketing effort is confined to your metrics, you’ve missed the essence of marketing.


Marketing isn’t about crunching analytics, constant metrics and measurement; it’s about...

  • creating something memorable.

  • connecting, resonating, and evoking emotions.

  • telling stories that stay with consumers.



If you fear that without a trackable metric, you can't prove your worth, either you're doing it wrong, or you're working for someone who doesn’t truly understand marketing. Either way, your job will feel empty.


"Does a speech at a conference lose value because there’s no “click here” button at the end? Do you think a killer billboard, a handshake at a networking event or a word-of-mouth recommendation is worthless because there’s no neat little metric to slap on it? Don’t let your strategy become as soulless as the clicks you’re chasing. "

Ashley Amber Sava


Wrapping it all Up

Free yourself from metrics that no longer serve you. Don’t measure just for the sake of it. Make sure each marketing metric aligns with something greater.


Tracking performance metrics is a fundamental aspect of a holistic marketing strategy, empowering solopreneurs to have greater clarity and vision, ease and flow.


There's no use in wasting your precious time and energy. It's essential to track and measure your performance metrics regularly to...

  • gauge the effectiveness of your marketing efforts

  • justify your investments

  • demonstrate your value

  • make informed decisions

  • identify areas for improvement

  • ensure alignment with your org's strategic goals

  • make sure everything is working synergistically to contribute to the overall success of your biz.


By leveraging data, small businesses can create a more efficient and effective marketing strategy that delivers tangible results and allows for continuous progress, improvement and growth. Furthermore, the iterative nature of these data-driven insights allows businesses to adapt, evolve and keep up in the dynamic digital landscape.



"Without data you’re just another person with an opinion.”

Edwards Deming


Ready to harness the power of data and elevate your digital marketing strategy? I can help you propel your passion and bring your small biz to new heights. Let's connect!


 

Erin Ratliff is a certified feng shui consultant, holistic business coach and organic growth marketer for earth-loving, heart-centered soul-preneurs.



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