How to Measure the ROI of Your Social Media

When it comes to an effective social media strategy for small businesses, many marketing gurus will tell you that engagement is the name of the game. The more likes, comments, and shares you get, the more successful your presence will be.

That isn’t true for professional services, especially lawyers and financial pros.

Why? It isn’t because your subject matter is dry and boring (even though you may think it is). Rather, it’s because a lot of your subject matter is very sensitive and heavy. People won’t want to engage with that sort of content because they don’t want to air their dirty laundry out in public.

So what are you to do? Abandon social media entirely? NO!

Here are three other metrics you want to focus on instead:

1. Reach

Reach refers to the number of unique views that your post received. When there isn’t much engagement, reach can tell you how well your posts ended up doing. While some platforms (FACEBOOK) limit the organic reach of content, you can boost posts for as little as $1 per day to extend that reach beyond just people who already follow your page, making it an attractive and cost-effective alternative to past forms of advertising like billboards and Yellow Pages ads.

2. Impressions

Impressions are the TOTAL number of views that your post received. This number will always be larger than reach because it counts multiple views from the same user.

3. Click-Through Rate

If your content is valuable (blogs, videos, lead magnets, etc), then you’ll be encouraging people to click through to your website to consume that content. If a particular subject is especially pertinent to your audience, they’ll click through to your website.

What About Engagement?

If you’re still hoping for a lot of engagement, mix up the kind of content you post. Share more behind-the-scenes pictures and videos of life at the office. The more you can humanize yourself and your firm, the more people will be comfortable with engaging. However, you also get what you give. Don’t just sit back and wait for people to comment. Go out and participate in the social media community as well by leaving comments on others’ posts!

A Final Note About Your Numbers

You’re likely still wondering something like, “What’s a good number of impressions or clicks for my firm?” The answer, as usual, is “it depends.”

After all, a firm in Salina, Kansas, won’t have as large of a market as a firm in Atlanta. The goal, at least to start, is to work on building your reach until you notice a plateau. That may be 5,000 people or 500,000 people. Regardless, it will take time to get there, so focus on what you’re posting and how people click through or how many impressions you can get.

Need help posting great content to your social channels? We can help with that! Contact us today to learn more.

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Spotlight Branding

Spotlight Branding is a content marketing and branding firm for lawyers and other professionals. Our goal is to help you create an online presence that positions you as a credible expert in your field, keeps you connected with your network in order to stay top of mind and increase referrals, and to become more visible online so prospects can find you!

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