Tip #13: Measuring Action over Attention

Vanity vs. Success Metrics

Happy Thursday!

The newsletter is looking a little different. Every newsletter from now on will be a Frontamentals, as I was already providing fundamental insights every week. This week's topic is #TipTuesday 13: Tracking Success Metrics to Drive Revenue.

As a social media manager for various small businesses throughout my career, with follower counts ranging from a couple of hundred to several thousand, that count never mattered if the engagement wasn't there. I managed an account with 30,000 followers, and fewer than 1% of them interacted with the content. Sales were at an all-time low when I took over.

It was then I learned: vanity metrics measure attention, not action.

The Feel-Good Numbers Trap

These give you a boost in dopamine, but don't pay the bills:

• Followers and likes (unless they're buying)
• Website visitors (if they're not taking action)
• Email opens (without clicks or purchases)

They make you feel busy without making you profitable.

What to Track Instead

Focus on three categories:

Getting Noticed

• What you spend to attract each potential customer
• How many website visitors become email subscribers
• How many leads turn into actual buyers

Building Interest

• How many people click through your emails
• How much time visitors spend on your key pages
• How often people act on your calls to action

Making Sales

• Whether customers are worth more than they cost to acquire
• Your rate of turning prospects into paying clients
• Which marketing activities generate revenue

Keep It Simple: 3-2-1 Method

Pick 3 to focus on (one from each category). Check 2 times monthly. Make 1 change based on the results.

Example: Interested people who become customers, people who engage back, and marketing activities that generate revenue. Check twice monthly, adjust one thing.

Reality Check

Can you connect each number directly to income? If 100 people joined your email list, do you know what that means for revenue?

If not, you're tracking feel-good numbers instead of business-growing ones.

I know it can be as small as a single-digit number, but believe me, by focusing on your smallest viable audience, they are the ones who will bring in revenue.
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Until next Thursday,

P.S. Share this with the leader of an emerging brand!