Earlier this month, Social Media Examiner’s podcast talked about how to determine your ROI. Nichole Kelly, author of How to Measure Social Media and the CEO of Social Media Explorer and SME Digital explained that there is an issue with measuring ROI in terms of ‘return on influence’ or ‘return on engagement because ultimately ROI is defined by a financial return.
So instead of measuring number of likes and retweets, Kelly recommends measuring social media like pay-per-click advertising and determining the simple cost per click on web traffic being directed back to the site from social. This concept is especially useful when you’re convincing a numbers-focused client or C-level executive to invest in social.
With this in mind, we were curious to see how the leaders in the fashion industry tackle this ROI mystery – so we joined Third Wave Fashion’s #FashionTech #SMW13 conversation during Social Media Week.
Moderated by Third Wave Fashion founder Liza Kindred, the A-list panel of fashion marketing experts included:
1. Research and find analytics tools that fit your needs and budget, and stick with them for at least six months to understand if the tools is the right fit
2. Aside from Google Analytics, try Curalate to track Pinterest and Instagram analytics, as well as Sprout Social for Social Media Management
3. Go outside the industry for inspiration. A few of the panelist’s favorites include Oreos, Skittles, and Taco Bell.
4. Use the same hashtags (make them Evergreen) from successful campaigns so they become quintessential to the brand. For example, even after Bergdorf’s #BGWindows Instagram Challenge concluded, fans continue to use the hashtag
5. Pinterest and Facebook win for driving sales for brands. Pinterest sells because users pin with the intent of getting inspired and potentially shopping. Facebook sells simply because it’s well ahead of the curve in terms of metrics and ad targeting.
6. Organic success on Facebook is all about understanding and staying up to date on the algorithm that dictates which posts are seen. At the moment, Facebook photos albums and posts without links are more engaging than posts with links or single images.
7. Allow for spontaneity. Off the cuff posts that remain true to the brand are often the most successful
8. When in doubt, panelists agree that content around shoes, puppies, liquor, beauty, the President, or wishing a popular celeb Happy Birthday are recipes for getting fans “talking about you,” particularly on Facebook
9. So what about Vine? It’s about taking offline, online. The panelists were particularly impressed with Vine user, Pinot. Think of Vine as visually authentic, whereas Instagram glorifies a moment.
For more insider tips, find the full recap of the Third Wave Fashion panel here!
