18 Marketing KPIs for Non-Analysts

Even if you don't directly handle marketing and analytics, understanding the basics of marketing and how key performance indicators (KPIs) are measured can be useful for anybody who works closely with marketing professionals.

So, why are KPIs for marketing so important, and what are some of the most essential ones to be aware of in your work? We're diving into this and more to help you gain a better grasp on analytics and their role in your company's next marketing campaign.

The Role of KPIs in Marketing 

Specifically, a KPI refers to any measurable indicator that allows a business to accurately determine how well a particular marketing campaign is performing. KPIs can cover just about every imaginable aspect of marketing, from email and organic search to social media and everything in between. 

The Importance of Regular Monitoring 

Any experienced marketing professional will utilize a wide range of KPIs to optimize the success of individual campaigns. KPIs are essential for regular monitoring and marketing goals for many reasons. 

First, KPIs for marketing can measure progress, determining which campaigns or strategies are working and which may not be as successful. KPIs allow marketing teams to adjust and adapt as needed to optimize their campaign budgets and make informed decisions. 

How to Choose the Right KPIs 

Ultimately, the best way to choose the right KPIs for a given campaign is to work backward. To do this, you’ll need to identify the primary goals of your campaign and then select the KPIs that will help you best determine whether it is meeting those goals. For example, if your business is looking to improve conversion rates, you might want to look closely at KPIs such as sales, contact form submissions on your website, and even content downloads. 

The Most Crucial Marketing KPIs 

Several general marketing KPIs can benefit your business most from tracking, so be sure that these are on your list. 

Sales Growth 

Sales growth refers to your sales team's ability to increase revenue within the company over a chosen period, such as each month or each quarter. To measure the sales growth of your marketing team, you can track total revenue growth by campaign, by month, or even by quarter. From there, you can compare growth to previous periods that have been measured. 

Customer Leads 

A customer lead simply refers to a person or another business that has the potential to become a new customer. Tracking the number of leads brought in by a marketing campaign can help you better determine which campaigns and channels are bringing in the most (and highest quality) leads. 

Conversion Rate 

A conversion rate refers to the total percentage of users who act after encountering your marketing materials. The conversion rate might include the percentage of users who reach out using a contact form on your website. You can calculate conversion rates by dividing the total number of conversions by the number of users who interacted with the marketing source. 

Return on Investment (ROI) 

Return on investment refers to the amount of money your business makes in new sales or profits compared to the amount of money spent on the campaign. You can calculate ROI by subtracting any marketing expenses from your total sales growth. From there, divide that number by the total cost of the marketing campaign to determine ROI. 

Engagement 

There are plenty of ways to calculate engagement, but one of the most used in marketing is to average engagement rate. This simply looks at the percentage of users who liked, shared, or otherwise interacted with your content relative to the total number of users. Measuring engagement is crucial for determining how relevant or share-worthy your target audience finds your content. 

Exploring Email Marketing KPIs 

Common email marketing KPIs to track include open rate, click-through rate, and subscribers. 

Open Rate 

Knowing the percentage of recipients who open a marketing email compared to the total number of emails sent out can help you sharpen your email marketing campaigns. Higher rates mean that your subject line is compelling enough to get users to open the email, so be sure to monitor this metric for each message you send. 

Click-Through Rate 

Click-through rate (CTR) refers to the ratio of users who click on a link in your email compared to the number of email recipients. A higher CTR may mean that users are more engaged by your marketing, which can help you optimize your email content. 

Subscribers 

In email marketing, your subscribers measure the number of users who have opted into your email list. Maximizing your subscribers is vital because more subscribers give you a larger potential audience to reach with each campaign. 

Unraveling Organic Search and Content Marketing KPIs 

Important organic search and content marketing KPIs worth tracking include page traffic, time on page, impressions, and keyword rankings. 

Page Traffic 

Page traffic refers to the number of people who visit your website or a particular page on your website. Tracking traffic is a significant metric because it can help you reveal which pages on your site need more search optimization or new content. 

Time on Page 

As the term suggests, this metric literally tracks how long the average user stays on a page on your website. This metric matters because the longer a user spends on a page, the more likely they are to convert. 

Impressions 

In the advertising world, impressions refer to how many times an ad is displayed to web users. Higher impressions mean that more potential leads are seeing your ads, so this KPI is paramount to monitor. 

Keyword Rankings 

Keyword rankings refer to where your website stands on the search engine results page for a relevant keyword or query. Higher rankings increase your chances of website visitors, which can increase conversions and boost leads. 

Social Media Marketing 

KPIs Explained Social marketing KPIs like page likes, followers, and engagement should be tracked across all relevant channels (such as Facebook, X, and Instagram). 

Page Likes and Followers 

Page likes and followers are metrics that refer to the number of likes or followers you have on your brand's social media page. More followers or likes give your brand more chances to engage with potential customers. 

Engagement Metrics 

Tracking the number of engagements your brand receives on social media (i.e., likes, shares, or comments) can help you determine which posts are performing well and attracting the most attention from your target audience. 

B2B Marketing KPIs: What to Look For 

In B2B marketing specifically, it is vital to track a few additional KPIs. Check them out below: 

Cost per Lead 

Cost per lead (CPL) refers to customer acquisition costs related to your marketing efforts. You can calculate the cost per lead by dividing the total marketing spend by the number of new leads you acquire. 

Landing Page Conversion Rate 

The landing page conversion rate refers to the percentage of users who act after visiting your site's landing page (usually by contacting your business). You can calculate this by dividing the total number of conversions by the number of clicks, then multiplying by 100 to get a percentage. 

PPC KPIs: Guiding Your Online Advertising 

If you're doing PPC marketing, you'll also want to measure the return on ad spend and quality score. Let’s dive into that: 

Return on Ad Spend (ROAS) 

ROAS measures the revenue your brand brings in directly from money invested in advertising. Calculate this metric by dividing the revenue from a campaign by the total amount spent on the ad itself. 

Quality Score 

Quality score is measured based on factors that range from content relevance and page quality to click-through rates. Google tracks this score (and reports it on a scale from 1 to 10), but it can help you determine the effectiveness of your PPC campaigns. 

Overcoming Challenges in Marketing Analytics 

Measuring KPIs is one thing, but gaining valuable insights from these metrics is another. In fact, marketing teams may face numerous challenges in tracking and making sense of analytics. 

Dealing With Data Overload 

Perhaps the most common problem that even the most experienced marketing teams run into is dealing with data overload. These days, it's easier than ever to collect marketing data — and that's usually a good thing. However, in some cases, your teams can end up with so much data to sift through that it can be difficult to make any sense of the data or gain any actual insights from it. 

The best way to avoid this problem is to choose and track only the most essential KPIs for each campaign. This way, you'll not work with more data than you need, and your teams will be less likely to get overwhelmed. 

Making Sense of Complex KPIs 

It's also worth noting that some KPIs are more straightforward than others. Conversion rates and click-through rates, for instance, are simple. However, some KPIs are a little more complex and require a more in-depth understanding of marketing analytics to calculate or even understand. One prime example of this is the customer lifetime value (CLTV), which requires you to calculate the average purchase value per customer and multiply it by the number of purchases. There are a myriad of KPIs that have more complex algorithms and thus can be more challenging to work with. 

Adjusting Strategies Based on KPIs 

Finally, even when tracking and interpreting KPIs isn't too much of a hassle, it's not always easy to adjust entire marketing strategies based on these metrics. Marketing teams may often have a hard time getting other company members on board with recommended changes and pivots. Getting all team members to agree is especially challenging when some don't necessarily understand the data.

Are You Ready to Decode Your Marketing Data? 

Believe it or not, this list of marketing KPIs is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the analytics your marketing team deals with on a regular basis. Having a basic understanding of these critical KPIs can help you better understand your company's marketing campaigns and collaborate more effectively with your marketing team. That said, if you really want to take your knowledge to the next level, it may be time to consider a master's degree in marketing analytics for yourself. 

Champlain College Online is proud to offer a 100% online master's in marketing analytics that can be completed in as little as five terms, with courses combining both theory and practical application of foundational marketing principles and methodologies. Learn more about this program and how it can help you advance your career by requesting information today. 

Frequently Asked Questions 

This section of common questions aims to unravel the intricacies of marketing metrics for those less familiar with data analysis. Explore answers that simplify key performance indicators, making your journey through marketing strategies more informed and effective. 

What Are KPIs in Marketing? 

KPIs in marketing refer to key performance indicators, which are metrics that can be measured and tracked to gauge the effectiveness or success of a specific campaign. Common examples of KPIs in marketing include customer leads, cost per lead, conversion rate, and return on advertising spend. 

Why Is It Important to Track Marketing KPIs? 

There are a wealth of reasons why tracking marketing KPIs is imperative, starting with the fact that these metrics can help marketing teams make more informed decisions about their campaigns. Some of the benefits of tracking KPIs include the ability to identify strengths and weaknesses while adjusting or adapting strategies as needed. In this sense, tracking KPIs and using this information wisely can also help businesses optimize their marketing budgets and achieve their goals. 

How Often Should You Review and Update Your Marketing KPIs? 

While this can vary greatly depending on the size of your company and your specific marketing/branding goals, most businesses should review and update KPIs on a quarterly or even monthly basis. This way, you can make sure that you're tracking metrics in the way that makes the most sense for your company. In some cases (especially when businesses are growing and scaling quickly), it may be necessary to review KPIs even more often. 

What Tools Can Be Used to Track and Analyze Marketing KPIs? 

There are a slew of useful tools that can make tracking and analyzing KPIs easier and more efficient for marketing teams. Some examples include HubSpot, Google Analytics, and Salesforce. Ultimately, the tools and resources best for your marketing efforts will depend on which KPIs you need to track, your marketing budget, and other factors.