Let me explain with an example.
Let’s imagine that a project to sell services is promoted using a website and social media.
There are organic activities on social media (posts, communication, shares), paid advertising on the same social media and with the help of Google.
The main goal of promotion is to sell services.
That is, we receive requests from all of the above sources, which the customer’s sales department then converts into closed orders.
It’s a fairly standard average example.
All activities are on the side of the contractor: SMM, initial work with comments, setting up and optimizing advertising campaigns.
To evaluate the effectiveness of the project, the contractor primarily relies on the data from the advertising accounts. Impressions and reach, clicks and visits to the site, consumption, and conversions.
Conversions are applications and requests. They will be different depending on the source. On the website, for example, submitted forms and calls. On social media, dialogues and comments started.
Then the contractor submits all this data in reports to the customer. We spent this much, reached this many, received this many requests.
But let’s remember the goal of the project. It is sales!
And orders, requests, and even calls are not sales yet.
Sales are the result of processing requests. The conversion of requests into sales is equally influenced by the skill of the Customer’s sales department and the quality of those requests that come through the Contractor’s activities.
Advertising activities are almost constant tests. To evaluate these tests, information about the results should be as comprehensive as possible.
I’m telling you all this because I still sometimes encounter projects where it is very, very difficult to extract data from the Client.
And I, as the Contractor, have to convince, prove, persuade the Client that I really need the data.
That with it, the effectiveness of promotion will increase. And therefore, the project’s economy will improve.
And it does work. But not always.
A well-configured CRM or perfect analytics (for e-commerce) is also not present in all projects.
Unfortunately. But if I can convince at least one business to change its attitude to the issue of mutual reporting with the Contractor with this material, the day has not been wasted!