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Social media hasn't always been as important as it is now for businesses. In the early days, many companies just didn't think it was worth it. In fact, they thought it would not have bottom-line results. Now, though, we know that's just not true. Social marketing is virtually a must, as we spend more and more of our lives connecting with others via social media platforms.

Can you look at a spreadsheet and tell exactly how much value social media brings to your company right now? The chances are good that you can't place a dollar amount on your social media presence as a whole right now. People spend an average of two hours a day on social media, and they do interact with brands online. Those people then purchase from those brands, but not always immediately (e.g., by clicking on social ads to "buy now"). This time delay in purchasing can make understanding social media value a bit tougher.

Creating Social Marketing KPIs

The key to getting real value out of your social marketing is to decide what to track. Often called key performance indicators, or KPIs, this kind of data can help you take a step forward toward understanding just how powerful social media can be.

It starts with reach. Your goal is to make people aware of you online, and understanding how often they see you can help with that.

Engagement is the next KPI you'll want to consider. How long are people staying with you and reading your posts? Are they downloading your eBooks and signing up for your newsletters?

Conversion rate is another KPI to think about. If you're selling online, it's any revenue you get from a social media source. It may be more complex for your company, though. Maybe it's visiting the store or signing up for that first call that leads them down the sales funnel. Whatever it is, though, that's your conversion rate from social media.

The final KPI you want to consider is loyalty rate. You want to know that those customers keep coming back and keep staying in touch. For example, loyal customers use discount codes and/or make additional purchases.

Measuring Social Marketing KPIs

Once you know what to look for, it's time to start collecting and examining that data on a regular basis. Google Analytics is the best way to do that. You can track social marketing KPIs as events and goals, if you'd rather not build out the code yourself. You can also track KPIs through revenue and dollar values. Once you've done that, you can quantify and measure your social media value.

Get started today by downloading our free social media ROI calculator: