My Great Aunt Nettie couldn’t keep a secret to save her life. Most of the time, it seemed as though she knew things about me before I did. Which means, so did everyone else within a five-block radius. She always had opinions (she called it advice) handy, too. For everything.
“You should always wear lipstick in public.”
“You are too young to date.” (I was 20 when she said that)
It was both annoying and irritating, especially since I preferred to keep my personal business just that – personal. But when it comes to my actual BUSINESS, business, I need a blabbermouth like Great Aunt Nettie, getting the word out, and gathering “dirt” on the world around her. Enter Analytics Tools, the handy online data collectors that will tell you everything you need to know about YOUR business. Analytical tools are useful ‘big mouths’ when it comes to exposing relevant data about what’s working and what isn’t in your Social Media marketing. Here are five awesome Social Media analytics tools every business should be using.
The most widely used analytical service on the internet is Google Analytics. Google Analytics offers data collection and management, data analysis, visualization and reporting, and data activation. It was created for small- to medium-sized businesses. Google 360 is for larger enterprises. The beauty of the Google suite is its interconnectivity (which is why I’m such a fan) and mobile friendly capabilities. Whether you’re looking to see how many clicks per day, checking your audience’s geographics, or making sure your following is clicking on more than one page of your website, Google Analytics will help you improve your business across all of your online doorways.
Chances are a Twitter account exists somewhere in your marketing strategy to keep your audience engaged. We live in a world where everyone Tweets, including President Trump, who gained recent popularity (or laughs) after tweeting “covfefe”. Aside from tweeting classified words, Twitter can be exceptionally helpful in customizing your marketing strategy for your specific audience.. Next time you log in, make sure to activate Twitter Analytics. The user-friendly dashboard shows your Tweet impressions, profile visits, followers, top tweets and monthly summaries. If your hard work is invested in building your Twitter account, the retweets, clicks, followers and hashtags can lead the way for a potential new following, and with analytics on your side, tweeting codes won’t need to be an option.
Pinterest (or as my mother says, “Pin-Interest”) seems to be the mecca for recipes, DIY projects, fashion, workout routines and hundreds of other subjects. Its intuitive platform and visual nature enable users to create files (called “Boards”) for saving ideas, discovering new things and setting goals. Pinterest is a great network to attract movement, gather new followers, and initiate action. Like Twitter, Pinterest Analytics can show you who your account is engaging, and if your pins are of interest to others by the number of saves and repins. Pinterest Analytics also enables users to view the boards of their customers to understand what they are interested in. Pinterest is 100 percent free – all you need is a business account to gain exclusive feedback.
We all know it, we’ve all seen it and most of us have one, but did you know the iconic ‘F’ in the middle of a blue square has much more to offer for your business? Facebook Page Insights is a tab built right into your Facebook homepage. This analytics tool is divided into seven sections: Overview, Likes, Reach, Visits, Posts, Video, and People. Each section gets down to the bare bones of how your page is performing, according to your followers. You can monitor what works, dissect the people that are liking your page, and execute better ways to reach your audience based on your results. Facebook Page Insights is a free analytical tool that can only benefit and build your brand’s online presence.
I’m sure you’ve probably said to yourself “I wish I could get my reports on all of my social media platforms in one app.” Well, such an app exists! Fanpage Karma is an online social media monitoring program that tracks the performance of Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, Youtube and Google+. It is used worldwide and is presented in four languages: English, German, Spanish and French. Aside from observing how your fanpage is performing, Fanpage Karma also checks in on your competition so you are able to see where you stand in your marketplace.
Using analytical tools is a crucial part of successful marketing. I guess sometimes blabbermouths come in handy.