People often ask me how they can measure the effectiveness of social media programs they are running.

The specific metrics would vary for each of the 18 social media use cases I outlined in a post earlier today, but I would usually track three sets of quantitative and qualitative metrics for any program:

1. Web metrics
2. Social metrics
3. Business metrics

Let me explain this framework using the simplest possible example.

For Gauravonomics Blog that is primarily focused on the thought leadership use cases, I track the following metrics across gauravonomics.com/ Facebook/ LinkedIn/ Twitter/ YouTube/ Slideshare:

1. Web metrics: Visitors, pageviews, time spent, search engine rank.
2. Social metrics: Registrations/ likes/ follows, comments/ replies/ retweets, mentions/ trackbacks/ embeds, recommendations/ referrals/ kudos.
3. Business metrics: Leads for clients/ press  interviews/ conferences talks/ book chapters/ advisory roles.

It’s possible to measure much more, including sentiment, themes, influence, and influence networks using sophisticated tools, but it’s possible to track all the metrics I have outlined above with Google Analytics and Google Alerts.

Finally, I also track industry rankings like the AdAge Power150 ranking of advertising and marketing blogs. Gauravonomics at #128 and Thomas Crampton at #136 are the leaders in Asia. My target is to break into the top 50.

Similar metrics would apply to any personal or agency blog focused on thought leadership.

Similarly, many of the same web and social metrics would apply across the 18 social media use cases, but you would need to consider specific business metrics for each use cases.

What do you think? What web, social and business metrics do you track for your own clients? Do share you insights in the comments below.

If you would like to interview me for a story or invite me to speak at a conference, please e-mail me at gauravonomics@gmail.com, call me at +91-9999856940, or connect with me on Twitter.

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