Marketing Metrics to Track

most b2b marketers obsess over the wrong email metrics. tracking opens and clicks is like measuring website visits when you actually care about pipeline and revenue. here's what actually matters (and why): 𝟭/ 𝗰𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗸-𝘁𝗼-𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗻 𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗰𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗸-𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲 click-to-open rate = clicks ÷ opens. this tells you how compelling your content is *after* someone opens. campaign monitor data shows this is a better indicator of content quality than raw click-through rates. if your click-to-open rate is low, your email content isn't resonating. if it's high (10.5% is the cross-industry average), you've nailed the message-market fit. if you’re following advice to “write good content”, this is an appropriate metric to follow. 𝟮/ 𝗱𝗲𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲 (𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝘆) 95% delivery sounds great until you realise your emails are landing in spam folders or promotional tabs. what matters isn't just technical delivery, but actual inbox placement that drives engagement. 𝟯/ 𝘂𝗻𝘀𝘂𝗯𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗯𝗲 𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗮𝘀 𝗮 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿 most marketers fear unsubscribes. i'd argue its not to be feared. healthy list churn (under 2%) means you're sending relevant content to engaged people. if your unsubscribe rate suddenly spikes, it's an early warning your messaging is off-target before other metrics catch up. 𝘁𝘄𝗼 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗵𝗲𝘀: 💡 segment by engagement recency, not demographics. we've seen 3x higher conversion rates emailing "opened last 30 days" vs "job title = vp of marketing". aim to address intent. 💡 track conversion rate alongside open rates. we can borrow from b2c here: 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘪𝘧𝘺 𝘥𝘢𝘵𝘢 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘸𝘴 𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘦𝘮𝘢𝘪𝘭𝘴 (𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴, 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘢𝘣𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘰𝘯𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵) 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘵 𝘢𝘵 1-6%, 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬-𝘪𝘯-𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘤𝘬 𝘦𝘮𝘢𝘪𝘭𝘴 𝘩𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 5.84% 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘴 - way higher than broadcast campaigns. use nurture emails for contacts who have shown intent (reading your content, attending your webinars, etc.) the bottom line: measure what moves the needle. any other email metrics that you track that correlates with pipeline in your experience?

62.3% of the world uses social media, but less than 1% knows how to measure their social media success (or failure). Here are 11 KPIs to track, for you to really evaluate how well your social media marketing is doing. 1. Conversions – what sales and leads can you attribute to each channel? And what type of content creates the most revenue? 2. Impressions – how many people are you reaching and is it going up or down month over month? 3. Geography – are you reaching people in the regions you currently do business in or plan to? 4. Follower count – it can be a vanity metric, but typically the more followers you have the better off you are. 5. Engagement rate – are a higher or lower percentage of your followers liking, commenting, and sharing your content? 6. Audience growth – when you post content you gain and lose followers. What type of content helps you gain the most followers and which ones lose you the most followers? 7. Direct messages – are you gaining more or less over time? And how many of those direct messages turn into actual revenue? 8. Posting timing – does posting during different times generate you more or less engagement? 9. Mentions – what type of content is creating the most brand mentions? Which platforms do you get the most brand mentions on? 10. Comment sentiment – are most of your comments negative or positive? If they are negative, you probably won’t generate revenue from those users. 11. Retention – what percentage of people stick around to watch the whole video? The longer people stick around, the easier it is to sell them. Look at the drop-off points and adjust your content to keep people sticking around longer.

Yesterday the Head of Partnerships at a $200M health-tech company asked me how to take their partner program from being a C-suite afterthought to a mission-critical GTM strategy. My answer was simple... Data. Let me explain. Partnerships are fluffy. At least that’s what most Boards, C-suites, and Executives think. Why? Because most partner teams struggle with data. Due to unrealistic revenue targets, timelines and limited resources, partnership leaders are often scrambling from day 1. To catch up, they often skip the most important step: Setting up solid processes, KPIs and the mechanisms to track them. So when an important stakeholder asks them for a QUANTITATIVE justification for their activities they either stare back blankly or slap together some unconvincing back-of-the-napkin math. And forget about realistically forecasting more than a quarter out. This is virtually impossible for most partner teams. How can you become a mission-critical GTM strategy if your leadership can’t clearly understand what you’re doing, why you’re doing it, and what value it’s going to drive for the business. This is not the way. Partnership leaders need to start being meticulous about data. We need to take the time to set up good processes and tracking mechanisms. You must measure and track everything! - Partner lifecycle - Sourced deal funnels - Influenced deal funnels - Partner marketing outcomes - Integration adoption - Partner ROI - Revenue by partner - Revenue by partner manager - And a dozen other things The value of this should not be underestimated. Only by measuring and tracking will you be able to understand what’s working and what’s not. When you take the time to do this right, you’ll be able to prove to your C-suite the impact your partnerships strategy has driven for the business and what impact it *will* drive looking forward. You’ll be able to show the leaders of Sales, Marketing, and Customer Success how you’ve made them and their teams more successful. You’ll be able to forecast, budget, and scale a predictable partner program. As partnerships leaders we understand the value of partnerships in our blood. But up until now, we’ve lacked the operational rigor to prove it out. Let’s become data-driven operators and make partnerships an undeniable, mission-critical GTM strategy. Not just an afterthought.

I think we’re measuring the wrong stuff… and it’s quietly killing momentum. 2026 has to be the year we fix it. Impressions. Clicks. MQLs. “Engagement.” The real game is happening in DMs, Slack threads, forwarded newsletters, and meetings. Here are 6 metrics I’d focus on in 2026 GTM (and why they matter). 1) Conversations → conversions What it is: Of the conversations your content starts, how many turn into a real next step (intro, meeting, opp). Why it matters: Content doesn’t “generate leads.” It generates conversations. Pipeline comes from what you do next. How to track: Tag every inbound convo (DM/email/reply) and mark the outcome: no fit / nurture / meeting / opp. 2) REAL ICPs engaging with content What it is: Not “engagement.” Engagement from the right people (titles, seniority, company tier, intent). Why it matters: 1 CFO at a target account > 1,000 random likes. How to track: Maintain an ICP list (titles + account tiers) and measure: % of engagers who match ICP of target accounts engaged per week repeat ICP engagers (X touches in 30 days) 3) Brand mentions inside ICP-relevant conversations What it is: How often your brand comes up when your ICP is discussing the problem you solve (not when you post). Why it matters: This is the difference between “content that performs” and a brand that gets recommended. How to track: Collect signals: customer calls (“we heard about you from…”), community moderators, partner chatter, dark social screenshots, and sales intel. Even a simple monthly “mention log” works. 4) Conversation velocity What it is: The speed from publish → first qualified conversation, and from convo → meeting. Why it matters: Velocity is the earliest indicator your messaging is landing. If it’s slow, you’re not sharp enough yet. How to track: time-to-first-ICP-convo after a post/report time-to-meeting after first touch “conversation depth” score (comment → DM → problem share → meeting ask) 5) Brand + category position What it is: Are you being associated with a clear “lane” (category/point of view) or just “a vendor who posts”? Why it matters: In 2026, positioning is distribution. If people can’t summarize your POV in one sentence, you’re invisible. How to track: Quarterly “message recall” check: ask prospects/customers: “What do we do?” “What do we believe?” “What are we known for?” 6) Dark social + word-of-mouth What it is: The off-platform sharing that actually drives deals: forwards, screenshots, Slack drops, “my friend sent me this.” Why it matters: A huge percentage of B2B buying happens in private. If your GTM can’t see dark social, you’re flying blind. How to track: “How did you find us?” (mandatory field) inbound screenshots / Slack mentions private replies after posts If your 2026 GTM dashboard doesn’t include conversations, ICP quality, dark social, and category position, it’s going to keep optimizing for attention… while someone else captures intent.

How Can Data Analytics Lead to Smarter Marketing and Business Decisions?   🔵 Numbers don't lie.   🔵 And if you choose to ignore them, you're setting your business on a downward spiral.   🔵 Here's why digging deep into your data can be a game-changer for your business:   1. 𝐃𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐀𝐛𝐧𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐥 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐭𝐡 𝐨𝐫 𝐃𝐞𝐜𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞: ➡️ Imagine you're a beverage brand, and your coffee sales are suddenly skyrocketing. ➡️ Seems great, right? But before you celebrate, ask yourself: Is this a fleeting trend? ➡️ Has your barista unlocked a secret recipe? ➡️ Is there a market shift you need to capitalise on? ➡️ Understanding the 'why' behind the surge is crucial for maintaining and replicating this success. 2. 𝐈𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐠𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐔𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐃𝐞𝐜𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬: ➡️ Sometime back one of my client's top selling hot beverage sales plummeted by 40% in one month. ➡️ 𝐈𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: It's seasonal. A typical sales team’s immediate response to the decline. ➡️ 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐚-𝐝𝐫𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐢𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐠𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: No similar dip in previous years. A much needed check to  validate ➡️ 𝐑𝐨𝐨𝐭 𝐜𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐞: This particular product had a special takeaway container, which had run  out of stock at the start of the month, impacting the online delivery sales. And somehow got msised by both the procurement team and the store operations team. ➡️ 𝐒𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: Restocking containers reversed the decline within a month.   What does this mean? Look beyond the obvious. While sales and operations teams might rush with their rationalisations, the truth often lies deeper in the data.   3. 𝐍𝐚𝐯𝐢𝐠𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐚 𝐃𝐞𝐥𝐮𝐠𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐎𝐧𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠: ➡️ In today's digital landscape, we're drowning in data. 𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐞'𝐬 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐭��𝐲 𝐚𝐟𝐥𝐨𝐚𝐭: 𝐚) 𝐃𝐞𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐌𝐞𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐬: Identify what you need to measure. Impressions, clicks, conversions - each plays a crucial role. 𝐛) 𝐔𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐌𝐞𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐜 𝐑𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩𝐬: Don't isolate metrics. Impressions, click-through rates, and frequency all contribute to your campaign's 360-degree impact. 𝐜) 𝐀𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐲𝐬𝐞 𝐇𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲: → Compare campaign performances. →  Scrutinise creative elements. →  Don't underestimate CTAs - often overlooked, always crucial.   Data analytics isn't just about collecting numbers - it's about asking the right questions and digging deeper for insights that drive smarter, more profitable decisions.   What's your experience with leveraging data for business insights? Share your stories in the comments below!   #DataAnalytics #SmartMarketing #BusinessIntelligence #DataDrivenDecisions

The best marketers I know are constantly questioning the scoreboard. Years ago, Uber did something most companies would never dare to try. They shut off all Meta ads for rider acquisition across the US and Canada. Three months later, nothing changed. Signups stayed flat. Growth didn’t slow. The result? Uber saved $35 million and uncovered a truth most teams ignore: If your channel isn’t incremental, it’s not really driving growth - it’s simply collecting credit for what would’ve happened anyway. That’s what incrementality really is. It’s not a metric or a buzzword. It’s a reality check. It forces you to ask the uncomfortable question: Is this spend actually creating new customers, or are we just paying for the ones we already had? Uber took that lesson and redirected spend into Uber Eats, driver acquisition, and brand - other areas that could still move the needle. It’s a reminder for every marketer at scale: dollars spent, meetings conducted, or creatives generated that aren't truly incremental are simply pure waste.

CFO: We hit 4 ROAS at a 5 MER. Acquisition offer incoming? Acquirer: Those numbers mean nothing. You have zero fundamental asset value. CFO: What? Our growth is 40% year-over-year! Acquirer: And what happens when you turn off the marketing spend? CFO: We'd never do that. Our funnel is optimized to perfection. Acquirer: That's exactly my point. You're dependent on constant ad spend to survive. CFO: But we're incredibly efficient at converting traffic! Acquirer: I don't care about conversion efficiency. I care about building something that lasts. CFO: Our LTV:CAC is 3.5. That's industry-leading! Acquirer: Looks good on paper, but it ignores discounts, ad spend, and variable costs. What's your contribution margin? CFO: So what metrics actually matter for acquisition? Acquirer: Three things. First, revenue resilience - can you maintain sales when marketing stops? CFO: Our customers are loyal... Acquirer: If that were true, you wouldn't need to spend 30% of revenue to keep them coming back. CFO: Fair. What's the second thing? Acquirer: Distribution breadth. DTC-only is a strategic chokepoint. CFO: But wholesale dilutes our margins and direct relationships. Acquirer: Which brings me to the third pillar - margin structure strong enough to support multiple channels. CFO: Our gross margins are healthy. Acquirer: But not healthy enough to maintain profitability in wholesale while still investing in brand. CFO: You keep saying "brand" like it's some magic solution. Acquirer: It is. Brand is what lets you command premium pricing, enter new channels, and acquire customers organically. CFO: But how do we measure brand impact? Acquirer: Track the percentage of revenue from unpaid channels. That's your brand strength. CFO: So you're saying our perfect ROAS and MER are... Acquirer: Signs you're overly dependent on paid marketing. True asset value lives beyond ad spend. CFO: Our investors love our efficiency metrics though. Acquirer: Smart investors know sustained profits beat temporary growth. Marketing efficiency means nothing if revenue vanishes when ads stop. CFO: So we need to build resilience, distribution, and margins? Acquirer: Exactly. And a strong brand is the only way to achieve all three. CFO: I've been chasing the wrong numbers my entire career. Acquirer: Most D2Cs are. That's why they're dropping like rocks when they try to become profitable. CFO: Like Taylor Swift said - we had the numbers, but we were missing the whole story. Acquirer: And now you're ready to build something with Reputation and not just folklore.

If someone asked you to prove that your blog content was actually resonating with readers, what would you show them? Page views? That just means the page loaded. Engagement rate? That's a session-level metric, not a page-level one. We pour time into creating content, but the default metrics in most marketing analytics platforms can't answer the most basic question: did anyone actually read it? That's why I built content consumption tracking. It combines two signals: dwell time (were they there long enough to read it?) and scroll depth (did they make it to the end?). If both conditions are met, the content was consumed. What I love most is how it breaks down into four behavior types: Consumers (they read it), Skimmers (scrolled fast but didn't read), Tab Collectors (stayed but never finished, you know who you are), and Bouncers (neither stayed nor scrolled). My guide includes full steps to implement this on your website, including a WordPress plugin and a GTM approach for any other platform. If you've ever wondered whether your content is actually working, this one's for you! #ContentMarketing #GA4 #Analytics

Day 9 of teaching A to Z of LinkedIn .Today I = Impressions .Because likes feel nice, but impressions tell the real story. Let’s talk about the most misunderstood metric on LinkedIn: IMPRESSION COUNT. We’ve all been guilty of this: 👉 Obsessing over likes 👉 Complaining about low comments 👉 Getting discouraged when engagement drops But here’s what most creators forget: 📌 Impressions = silent power Every impression is a pair of reading your story, absorbing your voice, forming an opinion. Even if they don’t engage, they’re watching. Even if they don’t like it, they’re learning. Even if they don’t comment, they might connect later. Let’s break it down: 📌 An impression is counted every time your post appears on someone’s feed whether they like it or not. 📌 Example:A post with 50 likes might have 10,000+ impressions.That means 10,000+ people saw your name, message, and value. 📌 Visibility > Virality 📌 Impressions Build Recall: Let’s say you post consistently.Even if your content gets low engagement, it might reach 5,000–20,000 people per week. That’s 20,000 reminders:That you exist That you’re in this niche.That you show up with value and when an opportunity comes up, they’ll remember you. You’re not forgotten. You’re silently remembered. ✅✅✅How to Boost Impressions (Without Begging for Likes) 📌 Create relatable formats: Lists, frameworks, carousels, stories 📌 Use strong hooks: First 2 lines decide if they'll scroll 📌 Add native value: Teach, don’t tease 📌 Post at your audience’s active time: Morning > random noon 📌 Use relevant hashtags: 3–5 per post only 📌 Stop focusing only on aesthetics. Start focusing on substance. ✅ How to Track & Read Your Impression Data Go to: Me > Posts & Activity > Analytics ✅Observe: 📌Reach over time: Which content formats perform better? 📌Demographics: Are you reaching people in your target industry? 📌Impressions vs engagement ratio: High reach but low likes = you need better CTA or more relatable content. ✅Add a spreadsheet tab tracking impressions every week.In 4 weeks, you’ll spot a pattern. 📌Impressions are invisible footprints. They don’t clap, they don’t comment but they carry your voice forward. And the person who didn’t like it today, might be the one who offers you a career-changing opportunity tomorrow. So show up, even if it feels like nobody’s watching.Because they are. Is this series helping you? Comment your views: #LinkedInAtoZ #IForImpressions #RiyaGadhwal #LinkedInGrowth #ContentMarketing #linkedin

In all of my roles across social analytics & social listening, I’ve noticed one thing: Most teams are measuring too much—and still missing what matters. Social is changing. People are watching more. Talking less. Saving content instead of liking it. Sharing to group chats, not comments. It’s more private. More intentional. And yet... most brands are still chasing likes and calling it insight. The truth? The most meaningful metrics are the quiet ones. → Save Rate → Share Rate → Sentiment (yes, read the comments) → Click-Through Rate → Share of Voice These are the metrics that tell you if your content mattered. If it stuck. If it moved someone enough to share it, save it, or speak on it. are you currently measuring against these?