The Big Catch: Tracking Your Results

Written By : Clifford Blodgett

A good fisherman doesn’t chalk up his success to mere luck. He notes the equipment he used, the fishing hole he chose, and the size of his catch, and compares this information to past fishing trips. Analyzing his methods and results tells him what works and where he can improve, and increases his chances of further success in the future.

Once your online marketing efforts begin to pay off, and you’re seeing increased lead generation and profits, now it’s time to analyze the results. This helps you to see what works, what doesn’t work, and where you could improve your methods. You’re never really “done” with online marketing, as you should continue to refine your methods and respond to changing trends. This keeps the leads – and your profits – flowing.

Once you’ve implemented your internet marketing strategy, use a program like Google Analytics to track the results of your efforts. Focus on criteria such as:

• Website visitors – An effective marketing strategy can obviously increase your number of website visitors. You should be able to see a clear upward trend in website visitors resulting from your greater online exposure. However, your analysis shouldn’t stop there. Track which blogs or videos brought in the most visitors, and which ones brought in the fewest. This helps you to hone your material according to reader interest.
• Track your traffic sources –  Also analyze the source of these website views; did viewers click through from Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn? This information tells you which fishing holes are working best for you.
• Page views – Are your visitors clicking in to read one blog or watch one video, and then quickly leaving your site? Or are they checking out more of your material and discovering your lead capture page? If you aren’t retaining your visitors in this way, that’s a clue that you should continue to refine your tactics.
• Time the visitors spend on the site – Attracting more fish to your hook won’t help much if they quickly swim away before biting. Use your analytics program to discover how much time visitors actually spend on your site. Are they staying long enough to read the entire blog that attracted them, or did something cause them to lose interest? This information provides clues on the value of the material you’re providing, and helps you to make changes accordingly.
• Percentage of new visitors – Continuing to attract loyal readers or viewers indicates some amount of success, but you also need to attract new visitors in order to ensure steady turnover in your business. Utilizing this tool can tell you whether you need to alter your strategy to gather a fresh audience.

This step in the process can be thought of as the “trial and error” phase of your marketing efforts. Analyzing your results helps you to learn more about your audience, determine which methods are effective, and discover potential problems with your tactics. Continue to hone your methods in response to these results, and you may develop an effective and profitable marketing strategy.

FOR INSURANCE PROFESSIONAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR USE WITH THE GENERAL PUBLIC 14210 – 2015/3/5

Filed under: Financial Advisor Marketing, Social Media for Financial Advisors