When it comes to social media, it’s natural to fixate on likes, comments, and shares. We’ve all been there – watching the numbers tick up (or down) can be addictive! But these ‘vanity metrics’ are just one part of a much bigger picture.
In fact, they only tell half the story. Did you know that around 50% of LinkedIn users are silent? They may not ‘engage’ with your content, but they see it, absorb it and retain it. And it’s precisely these ‘lurkers’ who can go on to become your most faithful clients.
Ambassadors or customers?
That’s not to say that active users, the ones who like and comment on every post, don’t play a valuable role in promoting your business – they really do. They can become your ambassadors, boosting your posts and bringing your content to wider attention. In other words, they are your biggest fans!
But this doesn’t mean they’ll automatically become customers. They may love your brand and want to amplify your voice, but what you’re offering may not be exactly what they need. What they can do, very effectively, is help you reach that silent majority: the potential clients you won’t even know about until they reach out to make an enquiry.
These social media lurkers may never interact with a single post. But over time, silent viewers are often the ones who are paying closer attention than you’d think, quietly forming opinions and, sometimes, quietly deciding to buy. They could also be boosting you in ways you’ll never see, whether that’s emailing a link to a friend or talking about your latest post with colleagues.
Why vanity metrics aren’t reliable
This isn’t to say vanity metrics aren’t useful. They’re important indicators of your overall performance – but resist the temptation to overanalyse. Focusing too much on individual engagements can create unnecessary stress and cause you to lose sight of the bigger picture, misleading you about your content’s real impact. How can you avoid the trap of relying solely on likes and comments?
One way is to focus on tracking trends. Any one post might go viral or sink into obscurity, depending on a host of factors way beyond your control: timing, visibility in the feed, image appeal, and more. So what’s the best indicator of success? Consistent growth in impressions and engagement, regardless of individual spikes or dips in activity – and ultimately, whether you’re experiencing business growth. These are the things that show your strategy is working.
Impressions, engagement, and engagement rate
So what are you looking for when you review your social analytics? Whichever social media platform you’re using, there are three key terms you need to know.
Impressions tell you how many times a specific post has been displayed. The higher the number, the more people you’ve had the opportunity to reach, whether they’ve engaged or not. This includes ‘lurkers’.
Engagements are precisely those vanity metrics we’ve been talking about: likes, shares and comments. They’re an important indicator, but don’t show the full picture. They often don’t come from potential customers, and they tend to be higher in response to more light-hearted, non-business posts (such as the posts I share from time to time of Arthur, our gorgeous black Labrador!).
Engagement rate is a quality metric, giving you an indication of how much engagement your posts are attracting as a percentage of the posts’ total impressions. This can give you a clearer view of your content’s performance, but obviously doesn’t take into account the impact you’re having on silent viewers.
The problem of attribution
Tracking metrics over time will give you an overall view of how your content is performing, and whether your reach and engagement is growing, declining, or remaining static. What it can’t tell you is how those interactions convert into sales.
Yes, someone might see your post, drop you a direct message and make an enquiry. In that case, you’ve got a pretty clear pipeline from post to engagement to sale. But it’s way more likely they’ll see your post, remember it, and then maybe look at your website later on before sending you an enquiry email. This kind of sales lead will never show up in your analytics.
Let’s look at a real-life example. One of our clients recently shared a success story: they were approached by a client who had clearly seen their LinkedIn content and referenced specific posts, even though they’d never engaged directly. It’s clear LinkedIn had played a role in their being contacted, even though there’s no way analytics could have captured it.
Speaking to the silent majority
So what’s the main lesson? Pet photos and fun posts may attract a lot of engagement, but meaningful, value-added content is what builds credibility. And as we’ve seen, it can attract potential customers, even if they never engage. Maintaining a balance between light-hearted and more serious, value-added content will keep your posts visible while also appealing to the silent majority.
At BrandWorks Social, we specialise in providing ‘done for you’ social media management and lead generation for B2B organisations. We take the stress out of social media management, while delivering consistent content that drives real results. To find out what we can do for you, get in touch today to book a free discovery call.
