When it comes to creating a media kit, promoting your blog with potential advertisers, or even just considering what social media platforms are really worth your time, numbers talk. This is where tools that measure your social media influence can come in very handy.
Why Measure Your Social Media Influence?
Confession: I admit it right now. I don’t like statistics. Statistics can stress you out because you feel you don’t measure up. They can put an unfair amount of pressure to do, act, or write a certain way on your blog. And they are not always accurate.
However, in the right context statistics can be very helpful in deciphering where to spend your time and whether or not you are in the right niche. It can also help potential marketers determine if YOU and YOUR social media platforms are worth THEIR time. Probably one of the statistics I get asked most by marketers is either my number of social media followers or my Klout score. Why? Because potential marketers want to know that: a) you have a strong following and b) you have a strong influence over that following. Without those, then marketing with you may not be worth their time.
6 Free Ways to Measure Your Social Media Influence
- Klout–Probably the top standard at the moment, Klout incorporates most major platforms in their social media score although Twitter remains the strongest player of the list. A Klout score of 20 is about average while those in the marketing business try to aim for somewhere between 50 and 75.
- Google Analytics–While often forgotten when determining social media influence, Google Analytics does help with determining which networks are working best for you and your blog. There is no score but by looking at your Google Analytics numbers you will have a good idea which platforms provide you with the best referrals. From you dashboard go to acquisition>social>network referrals to begin your social media analysis.
- TweetStats–Focused primarily on Twitter activity, this service does a great job of showing your twitter involvement from the number of tweets per day to the followers you engage with the most. Very insightful information.
- Kred–Kred also focuses primarily on Twitter and Facebook for its stats but the nice thing about this service is it provides two numbers–an in reach and an outreach number. On top of that, you can see how influencial you are based on specific categories or topics which comes in very handy when analyzing whether you are truly reaching your desired niche.
- PeerIndex–I also like PeerIndex because its measures influence by specific categories, but again it only measures its influential score on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
- CircleCount–Circle Count’s service lets you know more about your G+ influence, follower stats, profile rank, etc. Most other statistics do not include this upcoming social media giant.
Also, don’t forget the statistics provided from within a social network such as YouTube Analytics, Facebook Insights, or Pinterest Analytics. Each of these can help you gauge your involvement on a network as well.
How Often Should You Check Your Social Media Influence?
The choice is up to you. Usually, I only check a few of the above scores once a month when I do my routine statistics analysis. Other than that I only check them if I am considering changing my social media focus or a business has requested an up-to-date score.
Have any other tips for measuring your social media influence?
Let us know in the comments!
Take it to the next level with these resources:
- 14 Free Tools to Measure Your Social Media Influence on Socialbrite
- My Social Media Pinterest Board which includes tips for everything from Instagram to G+ and more.
This post is the 8th of 12 in the 144 Plan to Social Media Smarts. To learn more about the 144 Plan or catch up on a missed post, check out the complete 144 Plan Training Log.
Therefore do not be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows. (Matthew 10:31)