We like to go beyond soft measurements and understand the full impact – some call this “ROI” – that our content generates. Our philosophy is that it’s important to understand the impact of tactics holistically. It’s easy to get stuck in meaningless metrics, so we define what our goals early and measure against them.

Before you decide which tools you’re using, it’s important to know what you want to measure. What are your Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)? If you’re sending an email, is your KPI simply opens or clicks, or is it a full-funnel view where the user visits a landing page and chooses to hit “Download?” Knowing what you want to measure will help you discover the right tools.

Link Roundup

CONTENT MEASUREMENT

Google Analytics
If you’re managing any kind of content strategy or content marketing, Google Analytics is your home base. While it’s not the only tool you should be using, it should be the baseline, and you should spend a little time every day understanding how your content is performing.

Quill Engage
Quill Engage connects with your Google Analytics account and sends you a weekly summary of activity on your site written in plain English – ideal for anyone new to Google Analytics or for team members who want to understand what’s happening with your site content without having to dig through all the numbers.

Ahrefs
Ahrefs is a great tool that allows you to see straightforward reporting on your inbound links, and quickly and easily analyze your content based on popularity.

BuzzSumo
BuzzSumo is Google Alerts on steroids – not only can you create alerts for relevant content, you can set up alerts for shares around your brand name or URL.

Hubspot
Now we’re getting advanced. Marketing automation is a big hill to climb and one that you can’t enter into without some planning. But if you’re ready for next-level content strategy and measurement, this is the way to go. Other automation options include Marketo, Pardot, and Act-On.

EMAIL MEASUREMENT

Not all email providers are created equal. Some give you the ability to send your marketing emails, and not much more. These providers on this list not only have good reporting, but also great tools that you can test the automation waters with. Try MailChimp or Emma.

SOCIAL MEASUREMENT

Hootsuite
The grandfather of social management tools, Hootsuite also offers reporting tools that can help you measure the impact of your posts. With a $15/month plan you can generate several reports free of charge, like a link click report and engagement report.

Buffer
Buffer isn’t just a great way to schedule your social posts, it offers insights into how well those posts perform. If your team is short on time to report on social media, Buffer can stand in the gap to help you understand what content is performing and what isn’t. Buffer for Business is affordable and offers more insights beyond engagement.

True Social Metrics
True Social Metrics offers similar reporting to Buffer and Hootsuite, but really shines when it comes to competitive set monitoring and reporting.

Simply Measured
Another advanced tool. If social is a key driver for you, you won’t regret investing in a intensity tool like Simply Measured. Simply Measured gives you insights that you can’t get with every other platform, and a ton of data to back it up.

THE LAST WORD

Know what you want to measure and give yourself the time to try out a variety of tools – you never know what will work best for you and your team. Measure it, optimize it, and make good stuff.