For many entrepreneurs, understanding how to measure and assess the success of their marketing efforts is a bit of a mystery. You post on Facebook, send emails, go to networking meetings – but how do you know which marketing tactic is working the best? Big brands have sophisticated tracking methods to measure their marketing effectiveness, but you don’t need drop a bundle to do the same.

Here are some ways you can track and measure how effective your marketing is working for your business:

#1: Ask people where they heard about you

When a potential customer is asking about your products or services, be sure to ask him where he heard about you. You can document these responses in a simple spreadsheet and assess on a regular basis. It’s better to ask your potential client verbally rather than on a form. If you do ask on a form, make sure to give them a lot of options but do not include an “other” blank. Most people will just select “other” because it requires the least amount of thought.

#2: Use tags

Many email marketing programs, such as Constant Contact, allow you to “tag” each contact. The concept’s the same if you are using customer management software (like Infusionsoft). As you enter each contact individually, or are importing them from a file, assign a tag to each contact that designates where you “met” this person. For example, when I enter email addresses from guest speaking gigs, I create a tag for that presentation and date, and then each person gets this tag. This tag becomes part of the contact’s record, so you can trace the referral source as they make purchases from you.

You don’t have to spend money on an elaborate software system, though. Use the systems you are currently using. Many have functionalities you may not be aware of!

#3: Use unique URLS

Creating unique URLS is a great way to track the effectiveness of your marketing. You can purchase a unique domain name and then hook it into your Google Analytics. This is a great low-cost way to see traffic and conversions from your unique URLS.

Don’t have a budget for this? Then check out a URL shortener, such as bit.ly. With bit.ly, you can customize your bit.ly link (bit.ly/JillCelesteWebinar ). Through bit.ly’s dashboard, you can see total clicks by date and time, as well information on where your link was shared (e.g. Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus).

To drill down on this method even further, create a unique URL for each marketing medium you choose for your campaign. For example, if you are promoting a free webinar, create a unique URL for your Facebook posts, tweets, email campaign and flyers. Then, you can compare the stats from each unique URL to see how they fared against each other. This will help you determine which marketing medium worked the best for you.

Measuring the effectiveness of your marketing efforts is essential. It helps you determine the return on investment (ROI) for your marketing activity. You don’t want to waste time and money on marketing tactics that don’t work for you. With the right information, you can fine tune your marketing messages and mediums, selecting the right tactics to reach your audience at the lowest cost possible.

Post navigation

2 thoughts on 3 Ways To Measure Your Marketing Effectiveness