Using Web and Social Media Metrics to Measure Success and Drive Digital Strategy

Michael Pastore, Senior Communications Manager, New Media & Technology Alyssa Swander, Communications Project Manager

Introduction

Mission of the Center on the Developing Child: To drive science-based innovation that achieves breakthrough outcomes for children facing adversity. Communications work focuses on the translation of scientific knowledge into accessible formats to inform innovations in child development policy and practice. Activities include producing a wide range of publications and multimedia products to give audiences multiple ways to engage with and understand the science of early childhood development.

Web

site

Yo

uTub

e Tw

itter N

ewsletter

Our Web Presence

Overview: What? So What? Now What?

WHAT? What are metrics and how do they relate to a web & social media strategy? SO WHAT? What can metrics tell you about your progress in achieving your organization’s goals? NOW WHAT? How can you use this data to identify improvements to your website & drive your strategy moving forward?

Web Traffic Audience Demographics

Publication Downloads & Video Views Sharing via Social Media

Metrics: What We Collect

Metrics: Analysis and Reporting

3 Key Elements of Web & Social Media Strategy

1. Goals •  How would you define a successful website for your organization? •  What does success look like? How will you know when you have been

successful?

2. Target Audiences •  How would you define your target audiences? What are their

characteristics? •  What are your assumptions about why each segment will come to the

site? (User needs, interests, and goals) •  When, where and how will users access the site? (environment and

context, technology, etc.)

3. Measurable Usability Objectives •  What do users come to your site to achieve? •  Which tasks are most important to users? Which features of the site

do you assume users will use the most? •  What will compel users to return to the website?

Step 1: Define Goals of Web Presence

Effectively communicate the science of early childhood development in a variety of formats and styles Provide information and education to various audiences about using science to drive innovation in policy and practice Effectively communicate who we are and why we’re a credible source of content

Step 2: Define Target Audiences

Policymakers & policy advisors: to find out what the science says and how to use it to back up policy-related decisions Academics/scientists: to find out who we are, what we do, and how they might learn from, add to, or benefit from being involved with us Students: to find out who we are, what we do, and how they might get involved Funders: to find out who we are, what we are doing, what impact it’s having, and to determine whether we are worth investing in

Step 3: Identify Measurable Usability Objectives

Subscribe to receive updates about the Center’s work (sign up for mailing list, follow us on Twitter, subscribe to our YouTube channel, etc.) Search for or view content aggregated by keywords/topics Find the Center’s contact information and the appropriate staff member to contact

USABLE

USEFUL

6 Key Elements to Providing a Meaningful &

Valuable User Experience

DESIRABLE

CREDIBLE

ACCESSIBLE FINDABLE

User Experience Honeycomb Source: http://usability.gov

Using the UX Honeycomb to Identify Measurable Objectives & Key Performance Indicators

CREDIBLE

USEFUL

FINDABLE

Media coverage of the work of the Center & its affiliates Academic citations of the Center’s work

Users sharing the content with their peer networks via social media channels Users actively requesting to receive information about the Center’s work

Top keywords and search traffic patterns (both in-site and off-site)

 

                                 

The amount of data available through services like Google Analytics can be overwhelming. Therefore, focusing on analysis of metrics related to specific goals can help in identifying ways to use this data to inform decision-making: 1. Driving targeted traffic to the site 2. Understanding which content visitors find most useful 3. Persuading visitors to take desired actions (e.g. signing up for mailing list or download a publication)

Analyzing Metrics to Inform Decision-Making

Tip: Join the P.A.L.M. Club

Source: http://www.kaushik.net/avinash/actionable-tips-web-data-metrics-analysis/

People Against Lonely Metrics Example: Using “Secondary dimensions” in Google Analytics, compare pageviews to: •  “Traffic Source/Medium” to learn which traffic

sources are most effective in driving visitors to a specific page

•  “Bounce Rate” to identify instances where users are exiting a page without clicking links to other relevant pages

•  “Time Spent on Page” to identify instances where users are not staying long enough to engage with content on a specific page

 

                                 

1. Driving Targeted Traffic to the Site

SEARCH TRAFFIC

DIRECT TRAFFIC

REFERRING TRAFFIC SOCIAL MEDIA

EMAIL CAMPAIGNS

Example: Using Metrics to Identify & Leverage Sources of Targeted Traffic

Source: https://media.twitter.com/best-practice/news-the-impact-of-tweeting-with-photos-videos-hashtags-and-links

Tweets containing photos, quotes, and numbered lists have been most effective in driving traffic to the site

Home page is by far the most visited page for traffic from Twitter

2. Understanding Which Content Visitors Find Most Useful

More than just looking at most visited pages (e.g. top pages with extremely low averages for time spent on page are not what we would consider effective) Key performance indicators we collect: Examples of users incorporating the site’s content into their own work (i.e. usage of the Center’s videos and publications; requests for permissions to use the Center’s materials in their work or to schedule a presentation by a Center affiliate) Users sharing and discussing the site and its content within their peer networks (i.e. social media activity related to the site’s content)

Examples: Using Metrics to Understand Which Content Visitors Find Most Useful

Proactively gathering more specific data about user needs

Content development based on effective formats & popular keyword searches

3. Persuading Visitors to Take Desired Actions

Examples of actions we aim to encourage: Subscribing to receive information about the Center’s work and updates about new and/or relevant content available on the site (i.e. signing up for the Center’s mailing list, following the Center on Twitter, and subscribing to the Center’s YouTube channel) Sharing the site’s content via social media Staying on the site to view related content

Encouraging sharing of content via social media: Ease of viewing & sharing via social media channels. Promotion of related content: Reduction of “exit rate” by prominently featuring related content. Retention of visitors: prominent links to sign up for Center’s mailing list, Twitter feeds and YouTube channel

Example: Using Metrics to Persuade Visitors to Take Desired Actions

What’s the simplest change you think might fix it?

Start with a problem.

Try a different tweak.

Do you still think this tweak

might work?

Did it fix the problem?

Make the change.

You’re done!

Try the same tweak again, only louder.

Make sure you didn’t break

anything else.

YES NO

NO YES

Identifying Site Improvements: “Tweak, Don’t Redesign”

Source: Rocket Surgery Made Easy: The Do-It-Yourself Guide to Finding & Fixing Usability Problems by Steve Krug

Analytics tell you what people are doing on your site (example: “42% of all visitors left the Home page after less than 5 seconds”) The problem: analytics can’t tell you why users are doing those things. Usability Testing: observing real, representative users of the site as they complete specific tasks. Goal is to identify usability problems and generate potential solutions to improve the design, architecture and navigation of the site.

Limitations of Metrics

Questions? Comments?

developingchild.harvard.edu