Let’s be real: When you’re working toward a goal—any goal (even if it’s to master making the perfect quesadilla)—it’s all about the results. So, you want to be able to visualize your progress and assess what’s working and what needs modification.  

The same goes for your content marketing goals. Tracking and reporting are essential to see whether it’s working. But just what should you track, and how?

You’re about to find out.

Key Performance Indicators

Key performance indicators, or KPIs, refer to metrics used to evaluate progress toward an objective.

In this context, the KPIs you monitor will reveal your progress toward specific goals identified within your content campaign plan. The collected data can provide insights about ways to improve and optimize your campaign.

Finding KPIs to Track

Alright, alright, we don’t have to say it; you already know that every campaign is different. Which means the KPIs you track will be different than the KPIs ol’ Hardworking Harry over there is tracking.

So, which specific KPIs do you need to track for your campaign? The answers are contained in your campaign’s goals and objectives. It’s also important to recognize that your tracked KPIs may vary depending on the type of content you’re producing.

For instance, if one of your campaign goals is to increase website traffic, you might consider KPIs such as page views and bounce rate. Alternatively, if you’re focusing on social media engagement, KPI metrics like shares and comments will be more relevant. And if your content campaign includes both goals, then you would want to track all these KPIs.

If you’re unsure which metrics to include, it’s better to err on the side of tracking too many KPIs rather than too few.

Tracking Tools and Systems

Lions, and tigers, and KPIs—oh my! Even teams at the best content marketing agencies know there’s a lot of information to track. So, with all the different trackable KPIs, how do you…well… keep track of what you’re tracking?

Don’t worry, we know the way out of the woods!

There are a variety of tools and systems that can help you track and report the progress of your content campaign. We’ll only focus on a select few in this guide.

These tools offer various features that enable you to monitor your selected KPI metrics, analyze the data, and benefit from subsequent content performance insights.

If you’re looking for a tool to help you track your content campaign, we suggest considering the following options:

• Google Analytics
• Hootsuite
• SEMRUSH
• Moz
• Hubspot

Google Analytics

One of the most well-known tools, Google Analytics is a powerful analytics platform that provides detailed insights into website traffic, user behavior, and conversion metrics. It offers a wide range of features for tracking content performance and audience engagement.

Hootsuite

Hootsuite is a social media management platform that allows you to schedule posts, monitor social media engagement, and track key metrics across multiple channels.

SEMRUSH

This is an all-in-one marketing toolkit with capabilities in SEO, content marketing, and competitive analysis. SEMRUSH provides insights into keyword rankings, backlinks, and content performance.

Moz

Moz is another popular SEO toolset that offers features for keyword research, link building, and site audits. It provides insights into website performance and helps optimize content for search engines.

HubSpot

This is a comprehensive inbound marketing platform that offers tools for content creation, lead generation, and marketing automation. Hubspot helps you gain insight into your content’s performance, lead conversions, and customer engagement levels.

The table below shows some of the pros and cons of these popular tools.

Keep A Close Eye on Your Content Campaign with a Writing Team You Trust

Tracking and reporting are the backbone of any successful content campaign, and, as you’ve seen, there are tools that can help accomplish this. But we know you and your team are busy worker bees, and sometimes a friendly hand from a content strategy service can make a huge difference in what you’re able to achieve.

Our team at The Writers For Hire is here to help with reaching your content marketing goals. When you partner with us, we’ll track and help optimize the effectiveness of your content campaign, so you can focus on running and growing your business.