KPIs Matter: How Can A #BrandNewsroom Help?

The words "measurement" and "KPIs" seem to be dominating the PR and comms space these days, but do any of us really know why we're measuring our work and what we should be reporting on?

Well ultimately, the purpose of measuring your PR and comms is so that you can answer this pretty important question: what should we do differently next time?

You need SMART KPIs...

The long and short of it is, your KPIs need to be SMART, and by that we mean Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time-bound. 

When setting specific goals you need to be asking yourself why? Why is that your goal? Why is it important? And what impact does it have on your company? 

Start out by aligning your objective with each stage of SMART; if they don't match-up then you might want to re-examine your KPIs and goals! Always get to the root of the goal and assess whether or not it's ACTUALLY important before cracking on with any activity relating to it.

But which metrics matter?

Quite simply, the metrics that should matter to you will differ greatly to other brands. Why? Because it all depends on what YOU want to achieve.

When it comes to key performance indicators, the newsroom presents you with an abundance of stats. But which ones should you be looking at and reporting on? It's going to differ from brand to brand, depending on your goals and objectives, but here's a quick overview of the information each stat will tell you...

Email open/click through rates

If you're the type of brand who likes to run email campaigns and promotions, then this one's for you. Are people receiving your emails? Are they opening them? And which ones are performing best, in terms of open rates (note: the industry average is 18-22%)? There's a lot to be learnt from this stat; it can really help you identify the subject lines and topics that your audience are most interested in, as well as dictate your future send-outs. 

Pages per visit

For companies who primarily focus on content (for example, an online magazine or news site) then you're going to want people to stay on your site for as long as feasibly possible, surely? But is your content keeping them there? Linking your blogs/news stories to other related pieces on your site will help people stick around. For this, we'd suggest linking to at least 2 other pieces of content in your newsroom.

Minutes per page

Google likes engaging content. So do internet-goers. And so should you.

Is your content interesting enough to keep people reading the whole thing?  Do you want people to read they entire post?  What are you doing to accomplish this goal?  In our experience, at least 2 minutes on a page is a pretty good indication that people like what you're writing!

Social shares

When humans can relate to an article or image, the modern day instinct is to share it socially. And when they share your content across LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and beyond, your audience and reach becomes much wider. Analysing where your content is being shared and picked-up can help you figure out who your audience is and what they're truly interested in.

Aligning goals & your newsroom

Once you've looked at your SMART goals, look at the data that is available to you - and right there is where the magic happens!

It can be tempting to just look at the most impressive or lofty data you spot in the newsroom or analytics, but it's important to keep in mind the figures you should be looking at in order to assess whether or not you're achieving your goals. 

But, as always, if you need a second opinion or bit of guidance on your KPIs and newsroom analytics then of COURSE we're just at the end of the phone and here to help - just give us a call!

Angela, Heather & Emilia

Customer Success Managers