For B2B companies, part of any good e-commerce strategy is measuring key
performance indicators (KPIs). The importance of
identifying proper online KPIs
cannot be stressed enough. Time and time again I have seen organizations measure
metrics that do not accurately indicate success areas in their online campaigns
as they relate to ROI. Quite often it seems as if the online key performance
indicators are not aligned with the company’s overall KPIs being measured.
Remember that an effective KPI should incorporate the following:
1. They must reflect your business or organization’s goals.
2. They must be measurable.
3. They must be a key factor for the success of your company or organization.
In order to measure a KPI properly, it is important to understand what a key
performance indicator is, more specifically what a web or online key performance
indicator is.
Web Key Performance Indicators Defined
An
online key performance indicator
is a metric that will help your organization
define and measure progress toward your website's business objective. Key
Performance Indicators are quantifiable website measurements that reflect
whether you are successfully meeting or falling short of your websites business
goals.
Online key performance indicators should align with your company’s overall
goals. Depending on the
type of site you have, KPIs will differ. It is fair to
say that, due in part to the lengthily sales cycles that B2B sites have, most
B2B sites tend to be lead generation sites. As a result these lead generation
sites have a handful of metrics that should be measured.
Example of key
performance indicators for lead-gen sites can include:
• New Account Signups
• Page Stickiness
• Contact Us Form Completions
• Drivers to the Registration Process
Determining which KPIs to track can be daunting as there are numerous metrics
out there. For example, tracking page views and the cost per page view can be
important. Page views represent the amount of times your pages are viewed by the
people who visit your website. It can be an important measurement if you have a
very high trafficked content website looking to sell B2B advertising in the form
of banner ads or the like. The trick is to identify key (with an emphasis on
key) metrics that reflect your business or organization’s goals. As goals change
so will your key performance indicators.
Online KPI Trends in 2007
So what’s in store for online key performance indicators in 2007? I expect that
measuring online progress will become the main focus of many online campaigns.
The point needs to be made that measuring your online KPIs accurately is not an
easy thing to do. Consequently here are some expected trends and a few
predictions with regards to online key performance indicators in 2007.
• Selection of robust web analytics package(s) will become essential.
• More than ever before, organizations will be looking to analytics experts for
education on how to set up their web analytics package(s) to track proper KPIs
and conversion paths.
• Education about online key performance indicators will become a responsibility
of marketing managers as they look for ways to communicate the importance of
online marketing campaigns to management.
• Identification of proper key performance indicators will become even more
difficult as marketers look to creatively promote their organization’s web
presence. As a result secondary conversions may distract marketers and web site
owners from tracking the proper KPIs and the metrics that matter.
• Revisiting existing company KPIs so that they incorporate online performance
metrics will become more of a focus for many B2B organizations.
• Many site owners and marketers will continue to measure
overrated metrics that
do not effectively measure their site’s progress in the competitive online space
that exists.
Part of a successful online marketing campaign in 2007 means tracking and
measuring the proper key performance indicators for your websites. You may want
to re-evaluate the metrics that you are currently measuring. Are they reflective
of where you want to be in 2007 and beyond?
|
enquiro research
Jody Nimetz