Is your investment in online marketing paying off? Studies show 30% of businesses don’t even measure the ROI of their marketing spend simply because they are so overwhelmed. But knowing whether your online marketing investment is paying off is vital to planning future marketing activities, avoiding missed opportunities or wasted money. Below we break down the process into 4 easy steps to follow.
- Identify Cost of Content Creation
Whether your content is created internally or externally, there is a cost associated with it. Internally your paying a salary and externally you are paying consultants or freelancers. In addition, identify how much you spend on external content like images, videos and audio. If you are creating content internally, be sure to include any costs required with the use or purchase of software and special tools required.
- Identify Distribution Cost
Any costs associated with distribution need to be calculated to identify the true cost of production. This includes:
- Paid Advertising
- Social Advertising
- Distribution through Media Channels
- Identify Sales
Sometimes the link from a lead to sale is easy to identify, other times it may not be that clear and linear. To assist, Google Analytics offers eCommerce functions that calculate the average value for pages your audience landed on before completing your call to actions.
- Calculate ROI
The simplest way to calculate your ROI is to minus your investment amount from your return, divided by your investment and converted as a percentage. For example: If you spend $1000 on advertising (investment) and receive $5000 in sales (return) then minus your investment of $1000 from $5000, you are left with $4000. Divide your sales of $4000 by thes investment of $1000, which equals 4. Multiply 4 by 100% to receive your ROI percentage.
$5000 – $1000=$4000
$4000/$1000 = 4
4 x 100% = 400%
If the cost of creating online marketing content is lower than your sales, this generally means your efforts are worth it.
- Additional ROIs
In addition to your spend there are ‘Invisible ROIs’ to consider. These include:
- Relationships (internal, external, customers)
- Audience
- Raising Awareness
These invisible ROIs are long-term objectives to help grow the business step by step. To create and maintain a successful business you should not only focus on the numbers but the factors that significantly impact all businesses. As invisible ROIs are the factors that create opportunity, create a community and promote your business in an organic way to foster longevity.
Remember your investment is not only shown through sales but also through the relationships you create, the audience you connect with and the awareness you build.
Sometimes these objectives don’t cost anything! By simply networking you are able to build relationships that can offer not only friendship but also opportunities as the relationship develops.
Need assistance measuring your Return on Investment? We can help you breakdown your Marketing campaign costs and provide tactics to enhance your business. Contact the experts at Clarity Marketing on 1300 060 204 or submit an online enquiry.