September 2014 | Page 2 of 2 | ariel lim consulting

5 Metrics Every Marketer Should Measure

November 6, 2020September 8, 2014 by Ariel Lim

metrics-what-you-cannot-measure-you-cannot-manage

Digital marketing not supported by any analytics is weak and ineffective. If you rely on guesswork and assumptions, then your recommendations will not hold any water. While many metrics exist, these 5 metrics will give you advantage over those who only measure beginner-level metrics or those who do not measure anything at all.

Visit-Lead Ratio

This metric involves two numbers in order to measure properly – visits of your website(s) and the number of leads you gained. The Visit-to-lead Ration is also called the Lead Conversion Ratio. Over time, this metric tells you how effective you are in converting your visitors to leads.

V-L Ratio = Leads / Visits x 100%

Visits to your web properties are the most basic metric you need to know. If you do not know how, just Google it. Of course, this means you have to install an analytics software like Google Analytics on your website.

The other number that holds key to this ratio is the number of leads generated for the period. You can include offline and online leads in your report. Over time, if you are doing effective digital marketing, your online leads will overtake your offline leads.

And just to make sure we are on the same page, a lead is a contact that you have information of. The more you know, the better you can qualify the lead. At least, you should be getting their email addresses. Lastly, just in case you are not gathering leads, well, now you know you have to.

Lead-Customer Ratio

The next metric you have to start measuring is the Lead-to-Customer Ratio. It uses the leads generated for the period and another number, the customers gained or closed for the period. Over time, this metric shows how effective is closing the leads handed off by marketing.

L-C Ratio = Customer / Leads x 100%

Customers are those whom you close for the period. To make it consistent, only count them as customers when they either pay or ink a contract with you. Just make sure you are consistent all throughout because if you suddenly change your definition, it makes you appear like you are gaming to system to make you look good.

Average Revenue per Customer

This metric is a great one especially when you get into analytics and start reporting on perceived values brought in by marketing. (HINT: Future topic)

Ave. Revenue per Customer = Total Revenues for the period / total number of customers for the same period

Depending on how your organization is setup, you might have to get the data from multiple people (or departments). In some cases, you can determine the number by yourself. But generally, the value comes from sales or accounting.

Again, it is better to define your metrics properly and be consistent. You can simply average all revenues on a given period and divide it by the total customers you have. If you want to be more specific, break it down per SKU or per product to really make sure outliers are taken out of the computation. This brings in a more accurate report.

Cost per Lead

This metric tells you how effective marketing is performing and how well they are using their budget. There is no standard here and differs from one company to another. A high cost per lead (CPL) can mean you are spending too much or not generating enough leads. On the other hand, a low CPL could mean you are not investing enough in your marketing efforts or really had a great month and got a ton of leads.

CPL = Total Costs for the Period / Leads Gained for the Period

Customer Acquisition Cost

Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) is another metric that is great to measure. It is well-known that acquiring new customers is more costly than tapping onto your existing ones. That is why this number has to be monitored to see how effective you (or your sales team) closes a customer given a specific budget. Just like the CPL, this differs depending on what happens. But as with all other expenses, the smaller the number, the better it is for you, your team and your company.

CAC = Total Expenses for the Period / Total Customers Closed for the Period

These are the basic metrics every marketer should be measuring if he wants to be considered effective. There are other metrics to look at, other ways to interpret them and how they affect your business. That is the beauty of effective digital marketing. It goes deeper and deeper. Did I miss any? Let me know in the comments!

The Secrets to a Great Career

November 6, 2020September 5, 2014 by Ariel Lim

Results and relationships — these two are the cornerstones of a great career. I learned this from Manager Tools. There are a lot of intricacies that go behind that claim, but essentially one cannot exist without the other.

Having great results can only take you so far. No matter how great you are, when you keep stepping on other people’s shoes or making other people feel inferior, you will not get so far. A time will come where you will reach a dead end.

On the other hand, no amount of schmoozing can make you likable enough to get on top. Yes, you may be liked by everyone, but at some point, you will hear “you’re nice and everyone likes you, but you haven’t done anything extraordinary either.”

One cannot exist without the other. If you want a great career, you need to have results and relationships.

What is Marketing Reach

November 6, 2020September 4, 2014 by Ariel Lim

Marketing reach is a term used in digital marketing to describe how many people can see/hear any single type of “communication” your organization does.

For example, you have digital assets in the form of a website, a blog, a Facebook page, and a Twitter handle.

You just started your blog so you don’t have any email subscribers yet. Your Facebook page has 1,570 fans and your Twitter handle has 435 followers.

Your marketing reach is simply the sum of all those numbers.

In this case, your marketing reach is 2,005.

But what about the friends of my followers on Facebook or retweets on Twitter? That is called amplified reach. It’s impossible to do something about that, so measuring it will just give you more work without adding any value.

Measure your marketing reach on a monthly basis if you are just starting out. You will gain valuable insights like which channels you are currently focusing on or where your audience is more engaged.

If you have Google Analytics installed and you’ve set up goals correctly, that will give you the ability to determine which sources are working and which are not.

But remember, marketing reach is one of the vanity metrics you should be wary about. They make you feel good, but increasing this number doesn’t necessarily mean it’s good for your business.

3 Reasons Why Your Digital Marketing Efforts Suck

November 6, 2020September 4, 2014 by Ariel Lim

Digital marketing is young. If you plot this against a Product Lifecycle Stage, it will be in its early growth stage. Now, what does that mean for you as a marketer of today?

Since digital marketing is in its early growth stages, no one has that extensive research and data to say that a certain set of practices are, in fact, the best. However, if you are keeping track of the big players in the internet (in the likes of Google and Facebook) and where they are moving towards, you should have noticed that they give priority to searches or updates that is helpful to the user. Their algorithms have changed to only show those which are relevant to them, burying those they do not care about.

If you still do not get it, sorry to say but you are not cut out to be an effective marketer. But if you do, and want to know why your efforts do not bring in the numbers you think you should be getting, start by changing the way you use digital marketing.

Reason 1: You transferred your traditional activities to digital — literally

Don’t you hate it when you go to the malls and you see a group of people handing out flyers? They follow you, ask if you have credit cards already, or if you are looking for an investment, or what not. When I see them, I get so irritated. They are forceful, obtrusive, and you know they only want to get that sale.

There are two options for you at that point — either you want it or not. 99% of the time, you don’t want it. And because you are busy, you (1) go through the herd, appear busy and don’t mind them at all, or (2) go out of your way to avoid them altogether. And because Filipinos are such nice people, you fake a smile, take the flyer to not offend the person, then throw it in the trash at the next corner (of course, if you really want the flyer, you would go and get it).

Now you, the recipient, gets irritated. You go out of your way because of them. You’re busy. You have other things to do. Every second matters.

Imagine those efforts carried out digitally. You are browsing Facebook and you see tons of ads. You go through websites, you see popups. You check your email and see ones from people you don’t know or companies you don’t even recognize. Instead of handing out those flyers physically, you receive them via social media sites and your personal email. Yes, as the company, you cut down costs of printing and payroll. But at what expense? Irritating your market? Not a good return on investment.

Reason 2: Keep posting about your products, services, promos and discounts

People’s behaviors have changed. They are no longer swayed by your company’s efforts to make them buy. People buy when they want to buy, not when you want them to buy. If the only thing people see about your brand is promos and discounts, you will end up getting a dissatisfied audience. Your brand will be thought of as cheap and incapable of generating revenues without inducing a short-term demand. If this persists, you will not build any credibility. Your audience will not trust you. At some point, you will no longer be able to sell anything at a regular price. People will learn that every other week you are on sale so they will just wait for it. In turn, you get lower margins. Or worse, you will be known as a cheap brand that they no longer want to associate themselves with.

Reason 3: Not Being Personal

The internet has turned what used to be a one-way communication into a two-way street. Billboards, tv and radio ads are examples of the former. Social media, if done right, is a great example of the latter. People want to talk to people. B2B and B2C does not matter that much nowadays. The buzz now is P2P or person-to-person. If your email newsletters still come from [email protected] then you are way behind. When people asks you a question on Twitter or comments on your Facebook posts then your reply is “Thank you for your comment. Please send us an email so we can answer your questions” — OMG — you have so much to learn.

Stop acting behind the company name. Treat your audience the way you want to be treated. Engage with them by answering their questions directly by replying to them. That is the whole purpose of social media — ENGAGEMENT. Only discuss over email if the conversation demands private details like username and credentials.

Stop hurting your business’ digital marketing efforts. Understand that people behave differently online. Just like you, they like to be treated as humans. They love talking to other people. People are demanding. It’s time to change your marketing.

7 Essential Tools for Effective Digital Marketing

November 6, 2020September 3, 2014 by Ariel Lim

Businesses need to have an online presence if they expect to be successful in today’s fast-paced world. You hear this over and over again. But what is it what you exactly need to be effective?

You will get different answers from different people. Most of them are correct. In this post, I listed 7 essential tools that cover the basics of digital marketing. If you don’t have them, get them now!

1. Website

The website is the most basic digital asset you should have. If you do not have this, get one quickly!

Buy a domain name now to reserve your online presence. Just as an example, I bought my domain using GoDaddy. I am hosting my site (and all the files you can see here) through InMotion Hosting.

I used WordPress.org for the “design” of this site.

There are others you can use like Shopify, Blogger, SquareSpace, and Wix. It’s really up to your preference.

2. Blog

This cannot be stressed enough. Remember the cardinal rule in digital marketing? If you are not found online, you do not exist.

How do you get found online? Search engines.

The biggest, most popular and most-used search engine here in the Philippines is Google. If people cannot find you on Google’s Search Results Page, you don’t exist.

Why is a blog important?

The way search engines work is it “indexes” your website to see if there are new content, then rank it to other web pages depending on keywords and a lot of other technicalities. The takeaway, if you do not produce new content, your website would not be indexed regularly; therefore, it will not improve its ranking.

Still too technical? Imagine this situation.

You’re an administrative clerk who processes a lot of paperwork. You receive hundreds of documents you have to rank order of priority for your boss.

Jack and Jill give you some documents on a daily basis. You see him, smiles at you, hands you his files. On the other hand, Jill comes in only once a month to bring in 1-2 documents. Who do you think gets priority?

That’s how Google works. Google loves fresh, new content.

3. Social Media Accounts

This is also mandatory for businesses. But do not jump into all available ones out there.

A strategy has to be set in place if you want to put this to your advantage. For starters, create accounts on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Google+.

Lastly, avoid literally transferring your offline marketing activities to digital. It won’t work. People behave differently online.

4. Analytics Software

What you cannot measure, you cannot manage.

If you do not have any means of measuring your efforts, then there is no reason for you to undertake digital marketing. You are simply wasting company resources.

The most popular and free software is Google Analytics. All you need is a Google account and you install the code to your website and blog, then you are good to go.

5. Email Marketing Software

Email is still the best way to communicate if you want to engage your customers — if done right. It has a longer shelf life unlike a tweet or a status update on your social media accounts.

Email is also more personal. It does not need to be read or actioned upon now.

One rule in email marketing is if you can’t segment your list, you are not doing it right.

Start building your list now. Again, there are dozens of email marketing software out there. I’m a fan of ConvertKit so that’s something I strongly recommend you get as well.

6. Word Processor, Spreadsheet, and Presentation Tool

These tools might already have this on your computer, but your efforts as a marketer are not the end of its own.

You have to report on results and activities to your manager. You have to let other people (your teammates) know what is happening. Yes, you are busy. Everyone is busy.

Just think of it this way, if your boss does not know what she is spending for, do you think you will get that support for an additional budget increase? If she does not see the results of your efforts (note the highlight on results, not on the efforts), she will think you are crazy for asking additional funding because you have presented any results.

7. Calendar / Scheduler

Finally, a calendar is the seventh tool you need to have. Deadlines are called deadlines for a reason. Keep track of your commitments to show your professionalism. It makes you look good and lets other people know you are on top of what you are doing.

Content creation, brainstorming, iterating, presenting, designing, analyzing, proofreading, strategizing — all these should reflect in your calendar.

These are the 7 tools that are essential for effective digital marketing. Master them and incorporate them into your workflow. Eventually, you’ll want to get into more advanced tools that will help you automate the work you do.

Did I miss any of the basics? Let me know in the comments.