Important (and simple) web metrics for entrepreneurs

Like many entrepreneurs you’ve probably set some impressive goals to accomplish in 2014.  From a web marketing standpoint, you’ve got the help and hindrance of real-time data wherever you look.

Of course you need to keep an eye on your metrics, but don’t succumb to analysis paralysis. It’s easy to waste hours refreshing reports to see how you’re going compared with five minutes ago.

When I find myself doing this I use it as a cue to focus on a more important task, like creating actual content.

However, when I do look at my metrics, here are important ones:

1. Website conversion rate

This tells you how many people have downloaded one of your premium tools relative to the amount of people who’ve visited your website overall.

This is important because these people have provided their name and email, and are opting in to receive communications from you. It’s like swapping business cards with someone.

You’re both taking the relationship to a higher level of trust by exchanging valuable information. Overall website conversion rates of 2-3% are considered high.

2. Email open rates

Email is your big chance to nurture the relationship you have with your subscribers by delivering useful content to their inbox. It’s an opportunity to serve, help and educate, not to waste their time. Obviously, the more people who are opening your emails, the better.

For newsletters, you should aim for open rates over 20% and for more targeted emails like behaviour-based autoresponders, aim for 30%.

The number of readers who actually reply and write back to you is another ‘rough metric’ that gives you an idea of how well your content is being received.

3. Online sales

We’re all in business which means we need to make sales, especially via the web. If selling online makes you queasy, simply remind yourself how comfortable we all are buying online. By selling your wares, you are merely making it easier for the right people to become customers.

If you’re not strictly transacting online, keep an eye on your online enquiries since this is the main indicator of future sales.

These three metrics are the best to focus on since they represent the major ‘know’ ‘like’ and ‘trust’ stages of your online sales funnel.

Not so important metrics

Things like social shares, new back links and blog comments are certainly ‘nice-to-have’ but they tend to be distractions from the big three outlined above. At least they are for me.

The reports we have at our fingertips make our marketing very easy to measure, so focus on the right numbers and good luck.

Get the New Year off to a good start with the latest release of the Web Strategy Planning Template – it’s a free template, and always will be.