Breaking Down KPI Myths

Key performance indicators (KPIs) are great ways to quantify and evaluate the success of your campaign. Where it can get tricky is choosing which indicator is more important than another, because of the many myths out there about KPIs.
Here’s a look at three common myths about KPIs, to help you get the most from your data.

Every statistic is a KPI.

A common mistake companies make is implementing industry-standard KPIs. The data doesn’t reflect their campaigns, and results in no positive change.

Defining KPIs specific to your campaign will simplify the process. It’s important to note that KPIs measure performance against a specific target, while metrics are for measuring a range of business activities at a specific point in time.

Below is a KPI example analyzing keyword opportunity. It’s a specific target to measure. This shows where you can improve efforts on the back end, resulting in better SEO (search engine optimization) results.

Measuring KPIs is simple.

Another common myth is that tracking KPI’s is simple. This simply isn’t true. CTR (click through rate), for example, is a metric that is not considered a KPI because it’s generic in nature and can be analyzed at a glance. KPIs are more specific to your campaign and help identify the success or failure of your efforts.

KPIs provide insight into areas that are often hard to measure, such as customer satisfaction or social marketing footprint.

Identifying and tracking KPIs is a challenge, which is why many brands rely on a marketing company for help.

All KPIs are the same for every industry.

KPIs can change from industry to industry or campaign to campaign. It all depends on what you’re trying to achieve.

For instance, if you’re trying to access the success of a YouTube campaign, a KPI could be the average length of time viewers watched. However, if you’ve shared the same video on Facebook with the goal of maximizing its reach, the number of shares could be a pertinent KPI.

The point is, KPIs vary.

KPIs are important to every campaign, but if you’re having a hard time figuring out which ones matter, reach out to a skilled marketing agency to ensure a successful campaign.