The Social Media Measurement Problem
"How do we know if social media is working?" is one of the most common questions we get from business leaders. And the answer they usually hear from their marketing team or agency is some version of "engagement is up" or "we gained 500 followers this month."
That is not an answer. That is an activity report disguised as performance measurement.
Social media can produce real business results. But measuring those results requires tracking different metrics than most companies track, attributing results honestly, and being willing to admit when social is not producing a return.
What Social Media ROI Actually Means
ROI is a math equation: (Revenue Generated - Cost Invested) / Cost Invested x 100. For social media to have a positive ROI, the revenue it generates — directly or through measurable influence — must exceed the cost of running it.
That cost includes:
- Staff time (or agency fees) for content creation, posting, and management. If your marketing coordinator spends 15 hours per week on social media, that is a real cost — roughly $1,500-$2,500 per month in salary allocation.
- Tools and software. Scheduling tools, design tools, analytics platforms. Typically $200-$500 per month.
- Paid promotion. If you are boosting posts or running paid social campaigns, that ad spend counts.
- Content production. Photography, video production, graphic design for social-specific content.
The Metrics That Actually Matter
1. Website Traffic From Social
How many people are clicking through from your social media profiles and posts to your website? This is the bridge between social activity and business results. Traffic from social is a leading indicator — it tells you whether your content is compelling enough to drive action.
Track this in Google Analytics under Acquisition > Source/Medium. Filter for social channels. Look at not just volume but quality — what is the bounce rate? How long do they stay? Do they visit multiple pages?
If social is driving traffic but that traffic bounces immediately, the issue is either the wrong audience or a disconnect between the social content and the landing page.
2. Leads Generated From Social
How many form submissions, phone calls, or chat inquiries can you attribute to social media? This is where most companies' measurement breaks down, because they are not tracking the source of leads at a channel level.
Ways to track social leads:
- UTM parameters on every link you share on social. This tags the traffic source so you can see exactly which posts generated leads.
- Dedicated landing pages for social campaigns. Different URL than your main contact page, so you can attribute leads directly.
- "How did you hear about us?" field on your contact form. Not perfectly accurate, but useful as a secondary signal.
- Call tracking. Different phone numbers on social profiles than on your website, so you can track which calls come from social.
3. Revenue Attributed to Social
The ultimate metric. How much revenue can you connect back to social media? This requires connecting your social leads through the pipeline to closed business. These are the same essential marketing metrics that should drive every channel decision. If your CRM tracks lead source, you can run this analysis. If it does not, that is the first thing to fix.
Example: You post a case study on LinkedIn. It generates 15 clicks to your website. 3 of those visitors fill out a contact form. 1 becomes a customer worth $50,000 per year. Your social media program — at least that post — generated $50,000 in revenue. That is measurable ROI.
4. Engagement Quality (Not Just Volume)
Engagement rate alone is meaningless. One hundred likes from people who will never buy from you are worth less than two comments from decision-makers at your target companies.
What we look for:
- Who is engaging? Are the people commenting and sharing your ideal customer profile, or random internet strangers?
- What kind of engagement? Comments and shares are more valuable than likes. Comments that ask questions or start conversations are most valuable of all.
- Does engagement lead to action? Track whether engaged followers eventually visit your website, fill out forms, or reach out directly.
5. Cost Per Lead From Social vs. Other Channels
Calculate your cost per lead from social and compare it to your other channels. If social generates leads at $150 each while Google Ads generates leads at $80 each, you have useful information for budget allocation — assuming lead quality is comparable.
This comparison often reveals that organic social is expensive when you account for the labor involved, while paid social can be cost-competitive with other channels for specific audiences and offers.
How to Set Up Proper Social Media Tracking
Most companies' social media tracking is broken because nobody set it up properly. Here is the infrastructure you need:
Step 1: UTM everything. Every link shared on social media should have UTM parameters. Use a consistent naming convention (source = linkedin, medium = social, campaign = [specific campaign name]).
Step 2: Set up conversion tracking. In Google Analytics, define your conversions — form submissions, phone calls, chat initiations. Make sure the tracking fires correctly.
Step 3: Connect to CRM. Lead source should flow from the website into your CRM automatically. This lets you track leads from social all the way through the pipeline to closed revenue.
Step 4: Use unique landing pages or phone numbers. For major social campaigns, dedicated landing pages and call tracking numbers give you clean attribution.
Step 5: Build a monthly report. Social traffic, social leads, social lead cost, and social revenue — tracked month over month. This takes 30 minutes to build and 10 minutes to update monthly. No excuses for not having it.
When Social Media Is Not Worth It
Here is something most social media managers will not tell you: for some companies, social media is not a good investment. If after 6 months of consistent effort, proper tracking, and quality content, social media is not generating leads or revenue, it might be time to redirect that budget.
Signs social is not working for your business:
- Traffic from social is minimal (less than 5% of total website traffic)
- Zero attributable leads over a 90-day period despite consistent posting
- Engagement is from peers and competitors, not potential customers
- The cost per lead from social is 3x+ higher than other channels
- Your audience simply does not use social media for business decisions
When Social Media Produces Real ROI
On the other hand, we have seen social media produce excellent results for specific types of companies:
- Local service businesses using Facebook to stay visible to their community. We helped an HVAC company generate 35 booked appointments per month from Facebook alone.
- B2B companies where founders or principals post thought leadership on LinkedIn. Individual LinkedIn profiles consistently outperform company pages for B2B engagement and lead generation.
- Companies with strong visual content. Before-and-after photos, project showcases, and behind-the-scenes content perform well on Instagram and Facebook.
- Paid social campaigns targeting specific demographics or behaviors. When the targeting is precise and the offer is compelling, paid social can be highly cost-effective.
Stop Guessing and Start Measuring
If you are spending money on social media — staff time, agency fees, ad spend — you should know exactly what it is producing. Not engagement metrics. Business metrics. Leads and revenue.
Fusion Marketing builds social media programs measured by business results, not vanity metrics. If you want to know whether your social media investment is producing a return — or if that budget would be better spent elsewhere — call (704) 255-5147 or email contact@fusionmarketing.biz for an honest assessment.