The first push back regarding social media is the dreaded ROI question, right?
There’s also been a lot of talk about how conversation and dialogue can’t be measured in terms of revenue too. Maybe that’s true. Or, maybe we’re measuring the wrong things or we’re only capturing part of the picture.
Since I come from a communications background I never learned much about web analytics until I took it upon myself to learn. It becomes much easier to have the ROI conversation when your piece fits into the overall sales or cost savings equation. However, understanding how ROI is measured in other online marketing disciplines can definitely come in handy.
Mind you, I don’t have all the answers and I know each situation is unique, but I think this fact is worth highlighting. Most conversion analytics credit the final click, with credit for a conversion or sale. This means that the last ad, or affiliate link or referring site gets credit for the sale or conversion. Each one of these types of click installs a cookie in the browser that determines which referrer gets credit. Most links shared in social networks do not come with cookies, but Google Analytics will still pick up the traffic from the referring site.
Why is the last cookie question important for measuring social media ROI?
I have been thinking about this for awhile since having a conversation with Angel Djambazov on the way to Blog World Expo (he and I were on the same flight from Seattle to Las Vegas for the conference). He explained to me how the final cookie, or final click, practice can often skew data. Then a recent post from Rob Birgfeld inspired me to share this information with you here.
Rob’s post on the “myth of the last click” cites a study by the Microsoft Advertising Institute that states, “users interact with an average of 2.2 other ads from the same brand over two days before the conversion.” This study includes a sales funnel of 14 days. Rob then asks what if we were to extend the sales funnel to 90 days?
“…let’s expand the conversion funnel to 90 days, in which case the user is exposed to an average of 18.5 ads over a three-month period… [the] operating theory is that all of these interactions play a role in the final conversion, and they should not be discounted when quantifying ROI. According to Strong, 94% of touch points in today’s “last click model” are thrown away and not given any credit for a sale.”
Several of the touchpoints cited in the above quote could definitely include interaction in social networks and social media channels.
The answer isn’t who gets monetary “credit” for the sale, but rather, doing what it takes to fund, maintain and foster the truly valuable channels that bring customers and that final click into perfect alignment. Maybe one way to examine the data is to look for correlations between social media mentions and actual click-throughs from other online marketing channels.
The idea that clicks trump views and impressions may have been overplayed in social media to give the appearance of substance and business prowess. However, the problem with the final click metric is that it will often discount valuable channels like those in social networks if they do not generate a money-shot style click upon the first impression.
Based on this information provided in this study, my advice to anyone searching for the ROI of social media is:
- Question how online conversion is being calculated and whether it’s a final click metric. If so, recommend an alternative view to accompany final click metrics based on engagement and look for correlations between the data.
- Don’t be so quick to abandon outreach efforts that appear to be underperforming based on a final click model.
- Track engagement on your site from referring sites. Drill down time on site and number of page views by each referring blog, community or social network.
- Examine the number of return visits generated by social networks.
- Examine the bounce rate from visits referred by social networks.
- Look for trends between mentions, sentiment and conversion that attempt to identify the real time it takes most customers to complete the sales cycle.
Social media has the potential to generate a valuable first impression, but it may not ever generate a final click. Aligning outreach efforts in social networks with other types of online marketing and SEO efforts can give a much more holistic view of what networks and channels are adding the most value to your entire sales funnel.
By the way, one of the best presentations on determining the ROI of social media is by Olivier Blanchard, aka @thebrandbuilder on Twitter. Check it out here on SlideShare.
What other types of analytics do you use to determine the true ROI of social media beyond fluff and without giving too much weight to the final click and worrying about who gets the last cookie?
Image of Google’s homage to Cookie Monster and Sesame Street posted by COG LOG LAB.
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September 7, 2009
Don’t Take This the Wrong Way
Identifying and Responding to Criticism Even When it’s Dressed to Look Like Feedback
Criticism and feedback are not synonyms. They each have very different meanings and implications and require a different approach if you’re responding in a professional capacity within the social web.
Yes, feedback can be critical and it’s possible someone will deliver criticism when you ask for feedback. This is where it gets tricky, but what matters here is that your response is appropriate.
Bear with me – I’ll get to the tactical part very soon, but in this instance, I think it’s important to note the differences in the definitions of each of these words:
crit⋅i⋅cism –noun
feed⋅back –noun
See how the definition of criticism implies judgment and intellectual assessment while feedback has more to do with resonance and reaction (both literal and figurative) than with judgment?
Feedback gives information that allows us to assess the quality of our own product.
Criticism judges the quality of the product.
See the difference?
Why This is Important
If you’re looking to represent a brand or company online and engage in comment marketing or any one-on-one outreach, it’s extremely important to understand which one you’re dealing with in order to respond in a way that builds and sustains relationships.
Feedback helps customers and stakeholders feel they have a voice that can affect the quality of future experiences. Feedback can also help inform companies as to how best to grow into better, more profitable companies.
Criticism can also be helpful when you’re dealing with assessing the value of some type of product or service, but when criticism is levied against individuals in organizations, or a general manner of doing business, it’s important that it be addressed differently.
Personal criticism, or criticism that attacks a company’s way of conducting business indicates a deeper issue than the particular instance or grievance noted in the language.
If companies take criticism at face value and respond to the specific argument rather than the underlying issue, they miss the chance for real communication and relationship building at best, and devolve into angry discourse at worst.
Steps For Identifying and Responding to Criticism Online
1. Listen CAREFULLY – look for words that indicate judgment of merit – positive or negative (criticism can be positive, or neutral, too)
2. Sort Statements – Criticism is often buried in feedback and vice versa. Feedback can be taken at face value, but criticism should be addressed on par with what is actually being communicated below the surface.
3. Extract Meaning – What is really being stated here? Make sure you’re clear on what about your business is being criticized. Don’t be afraid to ask questions that seek clarification – this is perhaps a new development with social media – take advantage of this. Try your best to retrace the steps to discover this person’s pathway to judgment. Connect the dots between his/her experience and the resulting judgment.
4. Respond with Empathy – Even if the person doing the criticizing has a legitimate point, arguing specifics will only cause trouble and strengthen the firmness of the criticizer’s position. Empathize with their judgment: put yourself in their shoes and they’ll likely return the favor.
REMEMBER: Criticism always says more about the criticizer than it ever does about the criticizee. This is the nature of judgment. Our own experience provides a lens through which we view the world and everything in it.
5. Dodge Dogma – When you find the origin is a dogma that conflicts with the mission of your business, it may make sense to agree to disagree. Vegetarians will likely criticize manufacturers of meat products, those who feel strongly about environmental preservation will likely remain critical of the mining industry and so on. When dogmatic differences arise, own them. In most cases it will behoove you to be respectful of their beliefs, but don’t feel the need to placate them. Your critics with opposing dogmas will remain your critics and sharpen your appeal to others more aligned with your mission.
Don’t Just Say What You Mean, Explain
I had a realization recently about how the Internet encourages us to find information and derive meaning as an independent activity. The good part news is that this breeds a lot of diversity of thought. The bad news is we’re relying less on real definitions and instead relying on context and a general intuitive sense of what a word actually means.
If we’re confusing basic concepts in communication, what else are we confusing? Think about this the next time you talk with people about social media.
If familiar concepts like feedback and criticism can become confused, just think how different your definitions of terms related to social media or the social web in general can seem to your clients and colleagues… chances are, your definition of a blog isn’t theirs.
Your Feedback and/or Criticism Welcome Here!
Does knowing the definition of each of these words help you understand how to interpret and respond to critics, or am I simply splitting hairs?
Photo by andyi
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Filed under communications, social media
Tags: comment marketing, marketing, Negative feedback, Positive feedback, Public relations, Responding to Criticism, Social Media for Business