how to measure saas content marketing

Last updated on September 5th, 2024 at 02:27 am

Are you finding it difficult to measure the success of your SaaS content?

You may also be wondering how to measure SaaS content marketing efforts effectively.

Many believe that simple metrics like page views are sufficient, but this is a myth.

Overcoming this misconception and understanding the right metrics can lead to more effective content strategies and higher ROI.

Continue reading to uncover the true metrics that matter in SaaS content marketing and how to measure them effectively.

TL;DR
  • Measuring your SaaS content marketing efforts is essential to know what’s working and what isn’t. Without it, you might waste time and money on ineffective strategies.
  • Tracking organic website traffic helps you see how well your content ranks on search engines and attracts visitors naturally.
  • Conversion rates show how well your content turns visitors into customers, which is key to meeting business goals.
  • Customer acquisition cost tells you how much you’re spending to get each new customer, helping you optimize your budget.
  • Monitoring the bounce rate shows if your content is engaging. A high bounce rate means visitors leave quickly, so improving engagement is crucial.

Understanding the Importance of Measuring SaaS Content Marketing

Content marketing is a game-changer for SaaS businesses. It helps attract potential customers, build trust, and convert leads into loyal users.

When you create valuable content like blogs, guides, or videos, you offer solutions to your target audience’s problems.

And for a SaaS business, earning your target audience’s trust through content is crucial in a market where there is countless competition.

The famous Seth Godin has this quote that simplifies how trust impacts the influence your SaaS product can have.

It goes like this, “Build trust and earn attention. The entity that gets the most trust will get the most customers.“

The trust you get builds relationships and positions your SaaS business as an industry leader.

So how can measuring your content help you gauge your trustworthiness?

Without tracking your efforts, you can’t know what’s working and what’s not. This means your SaaS business could be wasting time and resources on strategies that don’t deliver results.

To achieve growth in SaaS, every strategy must be centered on gaining and keeping customer trust.

Being able to measure your content is one way to ensure your SaaS content meets these objectives.

By measuring key metrics like website traffic, conversion rates, user engagement, and alike, you can understand how well your content performs.

This data lets you tweak your strategies for better results.

Accurate measurement also helps justify your marketing spend.

When you can show the return on investment (ROI) from your content, it’s easier to get buy-in from stakeholders. Plus, you can identify trends and insights that can guide future campaigns.

Are readers engaging more with certain topics? Is a particular format driving more conversions? These insights are gold.

In short, measuring your SaaS content marketing efforts ensures that you’re maximizing your impact and making informed decisions to drive growth.

6 KPIs to Measure SaaS Content Marketing Success

Tracking the right KPIs is crucial for any successful marketing strategy. In this section, we’ll dive into the six most important KPIs you need to watch.

6 KPI to measure saas content marketing success

These key metrics will help you understand your performance and guide your decisions.

Let’s get started!

1. Organic Traffic

Organictraffic or organic website traffic shows how many people visit your website from search engines.

It tells you how good your SEO work is and how relevant your content is.

More organic website traffic usually means your content is ranking well for the right keywords. Pretty cool, right?

Tracking organic traffic is crucial for understanding the success of your SaaS content marketing strategy.

Here’s a simple guide to get you started.

Step 1: Set Up Google Analytics

First, you need Google Analytics on your website. It’s a powerful tool that provides detailed insights into your traffic sources.

  1. Sign Up or Log In: Go to Google Analytics and sign up or log in.
  2. Create a Property: Add your website as a new property.
  3. Get the Tracking Code: You’ll receive a tracking code. Copy this code.
  4. Add the Code to Your Site: Place this code in the header of every page on your site.

Step 2: Identify Organic Traffic

Once Google Analytics is set up, you can identify your organic traffic.

  1. Log In to Google Analytics: Open your dashboard.
  2. Go to Acquisition: In the left-hand menu, click on “Acquisition.”
  3. Select All Traffic: Click on “All Traffic” to see a breakdown of your sources.
  4. Choose Channels: Click on “Channels” to view different traffic sources.
  5. Select Organic Search: Click on “Organic Search” to see data specifically from search engines.

Step 3: Analyze Key Metrics

Pay attention to these key metrics to understand your organic traffic:

  1. Users: Number of unique visitors from organic search.
  2. Sessions: Total visits, including repeat visits.
  3. Bounce Rate: Percentage of visitors who leave after viewing one page.
  4. Pages per Session: Average number of pages viewed during a session.
  5. Average Session Duration: Average time spent on your site.

Step 4: Track Landing Pages

Understanding which pages attract organic traffic can help you improve your strategy.

  1. Go to Behavior: In the left-hand menu, click on “Behavior.”
  2. Select Site Content: Click on “Site Content” and then “Landing Pages.”
  3. Filter by Organic Traffic: Use the secondary dimension “Default Channel Grouping” and select “Organic.”

Step 5: Monitor Keyword Performance

Knowing which keywords drive traffic can help you refine your content.

  1. Use Google Search Console: Link your Google Analytics with Google Search Console.
  2. Open Google Search Console: Go to the “Performance” report.
  3. Check Queries: Look at the queries that bring visitors to your site.

Step 6: Set Up Goals

Goals help you track conversions from organic traffic.

  1. Go to Admin Settings: In Google Analytics, click on the “Admin” tab.
  2. Select Goals: Under the “View” column, click on “Goals.”
  3. Create New Goal: Click on “New Goal” and set up your desired actions, like sign-ups or downloads.

Step 7: Regularly Review Reports

Consistently reviewing your reports helps you stay on top of your organic performance.

  1. Set Up Custom Reports: Create custom reports in Google Analytics for a quick overview.
  2. Regular Analysis: Review these reports weekly or monthly to spot trends and make adjustments.

By following these steps, you’ll get a clear picture of your organic website traffic and how to optimize your content marketing strategy.

2. Conversion Rates

Conversion rates show the percentage of visitors who do what you want on your site.

This could be signing up for a newsletter, downloading something, or buying a product. Why is this important?

It links your content efforts to business goals, proving how well your content drives actions that matter.

Tracking conversion rates helps you understand how well your SaaS content marketing efforts is turning visitors into customers.

Here’s a simple, easy-to-follow guide:

Step 1: Set Up Google Analytics

First, you need Google Analytics on your website. It’s a powerful tool that provides detailed insights into your traffic sources.

  1. Sign Up or Log In: Go to Google Analytics and sign up or log in.
  2. Create a Property: Add your website as a new property.
  3. Get the Tracking Code: You’ll receive a tracking code. Copy this code.
  4. Add the Code to Your Site: Place this code in the header of every page on your site.

Step 2: Identify Organic Traffic

Once Google Analytics is set up, you can identify your organic traffic.

  1. Log In to Google Analytics: Open your dashboard.
  2. Go to Acquisition: In the left-hand menu, click on “Acquisition.”
  3. Select All Traffic: Click on “All Traffic” to see a breakdown of your sources.
  4. Choose Channels: Click on “Channels” to view different traffic sources.
  5. Select Organic Search: Click on “Organic Search” to see data specifically from search engines.

Step 3: Analyze Key Metrics

Pay attention to these key metrics to understand your organic traffic:

  1. Users: Number of unique visitors from organic search.
  2. Sessions: Total visits, including repeat visits.
  3. Bounce Rate: Percentage of visitors who leave after viewing one page.
  4. Pages per Session: Average number of pages viewed during a session.
  5. Average Session Duration: Average time spent on your site.

Step 4: Track Landing Pages

Understanding which pages attract organic traffic can help you improve your strategy.

  1. Go to Behavior: In the left-hand menu, click on “Behavior.”
  2. Select Site Content: Click on “Site Content” and then “Landing Pages.”
  3. Filter by Organic Traffic: Use the secondary dimension “Default Channel Grouping” and select “Organic.”

Step 5: Monitor Keyword Performance

Knowing which keywords drive traffic can help you refine your content.

  1. Use Google Search Console: Link your Google Analytics with Google Search Console.
  2. Open Google Search Console: Go to the “Performance” report.
  3. Check Queries: Look at the queries that bring visitors to your site.

Step 6: Set Up Goals

Goals help you track conversions from organic traffic.

  1. Go to Admin Settings: In Google Analytics, click on the “Admin” tab.
  2. Select Goals: Under the “View” column, click on “Goals.”
  3. Create New Goal: Click on “New Goal” and set up your desired actions, like sign-ups or downloads.

Step 7: Regularly Review Reports

Consistently reviewing your reports helps you stay on top of your organic performance.

  1. Set Up Custom Reports: Create custom reports in Google Analytics for a quick overview.
  2. Regular Analysis: Review these reports weekly or monthly to spot trends and make adjustments.

By following these steps, you’ll get a clear picture of your conversion rates and how to improve them.

3. Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC)

Customer Acquisition Cost tells you how much it costs to get a new customer through various SaaS content marketing efforts.

This helps you see if your SaaS content marketing strategy is worth it and figure out how to spend your budget better.

Tracking your customer acquisition costs (CAC) helps you understand how much you’re spending to gain each new customer through your SaaS content marketing efforts.

Here’s a simple, straightforward guide:

Step 1: Define Your Total Marketing Costs

Calculate all expenses related to your content marketing. Include:

  1. Content Creation Costs: Payments to writers, designers, and videographers.
  2. Promotion Costs: Money spent on ads, sponsored posts, and SEO.
  3. Tools and Software: Subscriptions for analytics tools, CMS, and other software.
  4. Salaries: Portion of your in-house team’s salaries dedicated to content marketing.

Step 2: Determine the Time Frame

Choose a specific period to measure your CAC, like a month or a quarter. This helps you see trends and make adjustments over time.

Step 3: Track the Number of New Customers

Count how many new customers you acquired during the same time frame. Use your CRM or sales records to get accurate numbers.

Step 4: Calculate Your CAC

Use this simple formula:

CAC = Total Sales and Marketing Cost / Number of New Customers Acquired

Breakdown:

  • Total Sales and Marketing Costs: This includes all expenses related to acquiring new customers, such as advertising spend, salaries of the marketing and sales team, software costs, and any other related expenses.
  • Number of New Customers Acquired: The total number of new customers gained over a specific period.

Step 5: Analyze Your CAC

  1. Compare Over Time: Look at your CAC over different periods to spot trends.
  2. Benchmark Against Industry Standards: See how your CAC compares to industry averages.

Step 6: Optimize Your Marketing Efforts

  1. Identify High-Performing Content: Use analytics to see which content drives the most conversions.
  2. Adjust Budget Allocation: Shift more budget to high-performing channels and content types.
  3. Improve Efficiency: Streamline content creation and promotion processes to reduce costs.

Step 7: Regularly Review and Adjust

  1. Set Up Monthly Reviews: Regularly check your CAC to stay on top of changes.
  2. Adjust Strategies: Make data-driven decisions to optimize your content marketing strategy.

By following these steps, you can effectively track and manage your customer acquisition costs, helping you make better decisions for your SaaS content marketing strategy.

4. Bounce Rate

Bounce rate is how many visitors leave your site after checking out just one page.

A high bounce rate might mean your content isn’t interesting or useful to them. Want to fix it?

Lowering the bounce rate shows you’re doing better at keeping visitors engaged, and your content is hitting the mark.

Tracking your SaaS content’s bounce rate is key to understanding how engaging and relevant your content is.

Here’s a simple guide to help you get started:

Step 1: Set Up Google Analytics

  1. Sign Up/Log In: Go to Google Analytics and sign up or log in.
  2. Create Property: Add your website as a new property.
  3. Get Tracking Code: Copy the tracking code provided.
  4. Add Code to Site: Place the code in the header of every page on your site.

Step 2: Access Bounce Rate Data

  1. Log In: Open your Google Analytics dashboard.
  2. Go to Audience Overview: Click on “Audience” in the left-hand menu, then choose “Overview.”
  3. Find Bounce Rate: You’ll see the bounce rate displayed as a percentage.

Step 3: Analyze Bounce Rate by Page

  1. Go to Behavior: Click on “Behavior” in the left-hand menu.
  2. Select Site Content: Click on “Site Content,” then “All Pages.”
  3. View Bounce Rate: Look at the “Bounce Rate” column for each page to see how individual pieces of content are performing.

Step 4: Segment Your Audience

  1. Create Segments: Click “Add Segment” at the top of the report to create custom segments (e.g., new vs. returning visitors, mobile vs. desktop users).
  2. Analyze Segments: Compare bounce rates across different segments to identify patterns.

Step 5: Identify High Bounce Rate Pages

  1. Sort Pages: Click on the “Bounce Rate” column to sort pages from highest to lowest bounce rate.
  2. Investigate Further: Focus on pages with a high bounce rate to understand why visitors leave quickly.

Step 6: Optimize Content

  1. Improve Relevance: Ensure the content matches what visitors expect when they click on your link.
  2. Enhance User Experience: Check page load times, readability, and mobile-friendliness.
  3. Include Clear Calls to Action: Make it easy for visitors to know what to do next.

Step 7: Regularly Review and Adjust

  1. Set Up Regular Reviews: Check your bounce rate weekly or monthly.
  2. Make Data-Driven Changes: Adjust your content strategy based on what works and what doesn’t.

By following these steps, you can effectively track and manage your SaaS content’s bounce rate, helping you keep visitors engaged.

5. Average Time on Page

This metric shows how long people stay on a page, telling you how interesting and useful your content is to them.

A higher average time on the page usually means visitors find your content engaging and helpful.

Tracking the average time on page helps you see how engaging your SaaS content is.

Here’s an easy guide to get you started:

Step 1: Set Up Google Analytics

  1. Sign Up/Log In: Go to Google Analytics and sign up or log in.
  2. Create Property: Add your website as a new property.
  3. Get Tracking Code: Copy the tracking code provided.
  4. Add Code to Site: Place the code in the header of every page on your site.

Step 2: Access Time on Page Data

  1. Log In: Open your Google Analytics dashboard.
  2. Go to Behavior Overview: Click on “Behavior” in the left-hand menu, then choose “Overview.”
  3. Find Average Time on Page: You’ll see the average time on page displayed.

Step 3: Analyze Time on Page by Content

  1. Go to Site Content: Click on “Site Content,” then “All Pages.”
  2. View Average Time on Page: Look at the “Avg. Time on Page” column for each page to see how long visitors stay on individual pieces of content.

Step 4: Segment Your Audience

  1. Create Segments: Click “Add Segment” at the top of the report to create custom segments (e.g., new vs. returning visitors, mobile vs. desktop users).
  2. Analyze Segments: Compare average time on the page across different segments to identify patterns.

Step 5: Identify Pages with Low Engagement

  1. Sort Pages: Click on the “Avg. Time on Page” column to sort pages from lowest to highest.
  2. Investigate Further: Focus on pages with low average time on page to understand why visitors leave quickly.

Step 6: Optimize Your Content

  1. Improve Relevance: Ensure the content matches what visitors expect when they click on your link.
  2. Enhance User Experience: Check page load times, readability, and mobile-friendliness.
  3. Use Engaging Formats: Include videos, infographics, and easy-to-read text to keep visitors interested.

Step 7: Regularly Review and Adjust

  1. Set Up Regular Reviews: Check your average time on the page weekly or monthly.
  2. Make Data-Driven Changes: Adjust your content strategy based on what works and what doesn’t.

By following these steps, you’ll gain valuable insights into how engaging your SaaS content is and how to keep visitors on your pages longer.

6. Retention Rates

Retention rates show how well your content keeps your customers coming back.

This number is key for building long-term relationships and boosting customer loyalty.

Tracking retention rates for your SaaS content marketing strategy helps you understand how well you’re keeping users engaged over time.

Here’s a simple guide to help you get started:

Step 1: Set Up Google Analytics

  1. Sign Up/Log In: Go to Google Analytics and sign up or log in.
  2. Create Property: Add your website as a new property.
  3. Get Tracking Code: Copy the tracking code provided.
  4. Add Code to Site: Place the code in the header of every page on your site.

Step 2: Set Up User ID Tracking

  1. Enable User ID: In your Admin panel, go to the “Tracking Info” section and enable User ID. This will help track individual users across sessions.
  2. Implement User ID in Code: Update your tracking code to include User ID for logged-in users. This typically requires help from a developer.

Step 3: Define Your Retention Metrics

  1. Go to Audience Overview: Click on “Audience” in the left-hand menu, then choose “Overview.”
  2. Select Cohort Analysis: Under “Audience,” select “Cohort Analysis.” This report shows user retention over time.

Step 4: Analyze Retention Data

  1. Choose Time Period: Select the period you want to analyze (e.g., by day, week, or month).
  2. Review Retention Rate: Look at the percentage of users who return over different periods. Focus on the data that shows how many users return after their first visit.

Step 5: Segment Your Audience

  1. Create Segments: Click “Add Segment” to create custom segments (e.g., new vs. returning users, mobile vs. desktop users).
  2. Analyze Segments: Compare retention rates across different segments to identify patterns.

Step 6: Identify Content That Drives Retention

  1. Go to Behavior: Click on “Behavior” in the left-hand menu.
  2. Select Site Content: Choose “All Pages” to see which content keeps users coming back.
  3. Review Engagement: Look at metrics like average session duration and page views for high-retention content.

Step 7: Optimize Your Strategy

  1. Improve High-Retention Content: Invest more in topics and formats that keep users engaged.
  2. Enhance User Experience: Make sure your site is easy to navigate and loads quickly.
  3. Personalize Content: Use insights from your retention data to tailor content to your audience’s interests.

Step 8: Regularly Review and Adjust

  1. Set Up Regular Reviews: Check your retention rates weekly or monthly.
  2. Make Data-Driven Changes: Adjust your content strategy based on what works and what doesn’t.

By following these steps, you’ll gain valuable insights into how well your SaaS content keeps users coming back. Ready to start tracking?

Top 3 Challenges and Solutions in Measuring SaaS Content Marketing

Measuring your SaaS content marketing efforts can feel like solving a puzzle. SaaS companies face challenges like inconsistent data, tool limitations, and ensuring accurate attribution.

These hurdles can make it tough to see what’s really working.

3 common challenges in saas content marketing

But don’t worry; understanding these issues and knowing how to tackle them can make all the difference for your SaaS business.

Let’s explore the top three challenges and how you can remedy these hurdles and measure SaaS content more efficiently!

1. Dealing with Inconsistent Data

Inconsistent data is a big problem for marketers. When data sources don’t align, or engagement metrics vary, it becomes hard to draw reliable insights from SaaS content marketing efforts.

This inconsistency can lead to poor decision-making and wasted resources.

Imagine trying to figure out what content works best but getting different answers from your analytics tools. It’s frustrating, right?

To measure SaaS content effectively, you need to:

  • Check your tracking setup to ensure all analytics tools are correctly installed and working. Inconsistent data can often be traced back to issues with how tracking codes are implemented on your site.
  • Define clear and consistent metrics from the start. Make sure everyone on your team knows what you’re measuring and why. This helps avoid confusion and makes your data more reliable.
  • Use multiple sources of data to cross-verify results. Checking figures from different tools, like Google Analytics and your CRM, can help identify discrepancies and give you a more accurate picture.
  • Audit your data regularly. Set up a routine for checking your analytics reports and looking for anomalies. If something looks off, investigate it immediately to understand the cause.
  • Clean up and standardize your data. Remove duplicates, correct errors, and ensure all entries follow the same format. Consistent data entry practices make it easier to measure and analyze your results accurately.

2. Overcoming Tool Limitations

Tools are always a part of every content marketing strategy, but all tool has its limits.

Some might not track certain engagement metrics, while others may offer inaccurate data.

These limitations can leave gaps in your analysis, making it tough to get a complete picture of your marketing efforts and measure SaaS content.

For instance, if your tool doesn’t track mobile engagement well, you might miss key insights.

Marketers should regularly review and upgrade their tools to ensure they meet current needs.

In addition:

  • Use a combination of tools to get a fuller picture. No single tool does everything perfectly, so using multiple analytics platforms to measure SaaS content can cover gaps and provide more comprehensive data.
  • Customize your reports as much as possible. Most tools offer ways to create custom dashboards or reports, helping you focus on the engagement metrics that matter most to your strategy.
  • Export your data for more detailed analysis. Tools like Excel or Google Sheets can help you dive deeper into your numbers, allowing for advanced calculations and comparisons that basic tool interfaces might not support.
  • Utilize integrations whenever possible. Connecting different tools can streamline your data flow and reduce manual work. Many SaaS tools offer built-in integrations that can sync data across platforms.
  • Stay updated on tool features and upgrades. Software is always evolving, and new features can help overcome limitations you’re facing. Subscribe to updates or join user communities to stay in the loop.

3. Ensuring Accurate Attribution

Accurate attribution is crucial but often tricky. Misattribution can mislead your understanding of which channels drive conversions.

For example, attributing a sign-up to the wrong campaign can skew your ROI calculations.

This impacts your budget allocation and strategic decisions.

To tackle this, use multi-touch attribution models and ensure your tracking codes are correctly implemented.

This helps you understand the true drivers behind your marketing success.

To ensure accuracy, there are more measures you can take:

  • Use UTM parameters to track the source of your traffic. Adding these tags to your URLs helps you see exactly where your visitors are coming from and which campaigns are most effective.
  • Set up multi-touch attribution models in your analytics tools. These models give credit to multiple touchpoints, helping you understand the complete customer journey rather than just the last interaction.
  • Regularly review and update your conversion tracking setup. Make sure all goal conversions are accurately tracked in your analytics tools to ensure you capture all relevant data.
  • Integrate your marketing and sales systems. Connecting your CRM with your analytics platform ensures that leads and conversions are attributed correctly, providing a seamless flow of data between departments.
  • Consistently monitor and adjust your attribution settings. Review your reports to spot any discrepancies and make necessary tweaks to improve accuracy. This keeps your data reliable and actionable.

8 Best Practices for Achieving SaaS Content Marketing Success

Measuring the success of your SaaS content marketing strategy starts with focusing on the right KPIs. But it’s not just about tracking numbers; it’s about making your content better and more efficient.

8 Best Practices for SaaS Content Marketing

Here are some best practices to help you nail it:

  1. Set Clear Goals
    Before diving into metrics, know what you want to achieve. Is it more leads, increased traffic, or better engagement? Clear goals guide your strategy and make it easier to measure success.
  2. Focus on Quality Over Quantity
    Don’t just churn out content. Ensure each piece is valuable and relevant to your target audience. High-quality content keeps visitors engaged longer and has a better chance of converting them into leads.
  3. Use Data-Driven Insights
    Analyze your performance data regularly. Look at which content performs best and why. Use these insights to refine your content strategy. What works? Do more of that. What doesn’t? Tweak it or drop it.
  4. Optimize for Search Engine Optimization
    SEO isn’t just about keywords. Make sure your content is easily discoverable by search engines. Use clear headings, include internal and external links, and write meta descriptions that attract clicks.
  5. Test Different Formats
    Don’t stick to one type of content. Blog posts, videos, infographics, and case studies all have their place. See what resonates most with your target audience and focus on those formats.
  6. Engage with Your Target Audience
    Encourage comments and shares. Respond to readers to build a community around your content. Engagement boosts visibility and helps you understand what your target audience cares about.
  7. Leverage Controversial Strategies
    While some consider it baiting, headlines with strong hooks can drive traffic—if used sparingly and backed by solid content. Similarly, gated content (e.g., whitepapers) can boost lead generation, even if it turns away some visitors.
  8. Regularly Update Old Content
    Content can become outdated. Regularly update older posts to keep them relevant. This can improve your SEO and provide ongoing value to your target audience.
My Take

Remember, creating customer avatars can help tailor your content to your ideal target audience. Before working on any content, I always ask myself, “Who is this content intended for?”

By understanding demographics, psychographics, pain points, and goals, you can craft content that truly resonates. This targeted approach boosts engagement and relevance.

Use the Customer Avatar Canvas to build detailed profiles and address specific needs. This method not only enhances content quality but also refines your marketing strategies, leading to better results.

Learn from this by focusing on who your audience is and what they need.

Follow these best practices, and you’ll create content that’s effective, engaging, and relevant. The types of content that will surely get you to your SaaS content marketing success faster.

Key Takeaways

Measuring the success of your SaaS content marketing is crucial for understanding what works and what doesn’t.

By tracking key metrics such as organic traffic, conversion rates, customer acquisition cost, bounce rate, average time on page, and retention rates, SaaS companies can optimize their strategies for better results.

Implementing these steps will not only improve your SaaS content marketing efforts but also help you achieve higher ROI and more meaningful engagement with your target audience.

Don’t wait to start measuring your content’s effectiveness.

Apply the insights from this blog to measure SaaS content today. For more valuable tips and insights, read our other blogs on digital marketing, business, and mindset.