Managing online metrics by exception
An editor behind a Mequoda System has both downstream and upstream metrics. Downstream metrics are ones that the editor has the ability to impact by doing more intensive work. Upstream metrics are ones that the editor cannot directly impact.
When looking at the big picture, the most important metric in any content marketing system is total revenue. It’s the metric that has the overall say on how the business is doing.
In order to keep organization behind your metrics, we suggest setting up a dashboard where all of your information can be found and stored easily. There is great importance behind your reporting, you won’t want to misplace any vital metrics.
How metrics are being driven
Drivers are metrics that the editor has some degree of control over. They are tasks that are worked on daily in some form. Email circulation and revenue per subscriber are two main drivers of interest for a managing editor.
On the editorial side, the editor is working to create content, or have other writers create content, that is interesting to the readers. That content is the driving force behind building email circulation. If you provide great information that an audience is looking for, they will sign up for a free newsletter in order to receive that information.
Beyond that, those audience members who do sign up for your newsletter will be the same people comprising the majority of your total revenue. If you are creating good content and offering related products, your revenue per subscriber will grow as your email circulation does the same.
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Google Visibility Report (GVR)
The GVR shows the cumulative impact of the editor’s work. This is a downstream metric because the editor can impact these statistics by publishing more posts, building more links and running more SEO campaigns.
After compiling current data for your GVR, you can then see how traffic for the website is impacted. More visibility typically yields more traffic, so if you are consistently adding posts and running SEO campaigns, the traffic your website experiences should increase.
To consider the entire flow of impact when it comes to metrics for a content marketing system, it would look like this:
Visibility impacts traffic > Traffic impacts conversions > Conversions impact email circulation > Email circulation impacts revenue per subscriber.
The total of the revenue generated from each subscriber yields the total revenue for this component of your business.
The value of a subscriber
The value of subscriber is generally monitored over the course of a 12-month period. This information tells you not only the overall economics behind your system, but it also gives you an idea on the amount of money you can afford to spend while working to build your circulation.
Subscribers converted to buyers
We have been asked before, “What kind of conversions to sales do you receive from your email subscribers?”
From what we have seen, anyone who is going to become a buyer, about 80% of them will buy from you within the first 90 days of their subscription if you’re a B2C focused company. If you’re B2B, then it will probably take place within the first 90-180 days. Often times, first revenue occurs relatively quickly.
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