As a digital publisher, you are constantly creating and distributing content to your audience. However, simply creating and publishing content is not enough to ensure success. Many digital publishers fall into the guesswork growth trap, of creating content they think their audiences want, with little to no insight into its performance. This unfortunately creates outlets that can’t push beyond their current traffic and interest. By tracking content performance, you can identify what is working well and what needs to be improved. This helps to remove the guesswork trap and helps you make informed decisions about your content strategy.

Contents: Revenue: RPMs, and ECPMs Traffic: Page views and unique visitors Activity: Bounce rate, average time on page, and pages per session Audience: Demographics, Sources, and Live Tracking Engagement: Social shares, comments, and multiple traffic sources Conversions: Subscriptions, Newsletter Signups, and Purchases

Revenue: RPMs, and ECPMs

Revenue per thousand (RPM) and effective cost per thousand (eCPM) are two key metrics for measuring the financial performance of your content. RPM is calculated by taking your total ad revenue for a given period and dividing it by the number of page views during that period. eCPM is calculated by taking your total ad revenue for a given period and dividing it by the number of ad impressions during that period. By tracking these metrics, you can understand how much revenue your content is generating and identify areas for improvement.

Your content will vary in eCPMs, as will traffic sources and even authors. eCPMs are an incredibly useful metric to use when analyzing your editorial content. With Spiny we surface your eCPMs live so you can adjust your editorial strategy to trending topics, high-performing sources, and more!

Revenue tracking is the most important metric to track as a digital publisher, as understanding your revenue, especially by source is the key to success. Unlike traffic, activity, or any of the other KPIs we will go through subsequently, revenue is the only metric to truly show the value of your content and drive growth.

Traffic: Page views and unique visitors

Page views and unique visitors are two key metrics for measuring the reach of your content. Page views refer to the number of times a page on your website has been viewed, while unique visitors refer to the number of distinct individuals who have visited your website. By tracking these metrics, you can understand the reach of your content and identify areas for improvement.

While traffic is a useful metric it is important to consider pages per session, time on site, and revenue. As a digital publisher we may create content that drives traffic, but has a high bounce rate and low time on page. Ultimately articles like this look good but provide little revenue for the overall business.

Activity: Bounce rate, average time on page, and pages per session

Bounce rate, average time on page, and pages per session are three key metrics for measuring the engagement of your audience with your content. Bounce rate refers to the percentage of visitors who leave your website after viewing only one page, average time on the page refers to the amount of time visitors spend on a given page, and pages per session refer to the number of pages viewed during a given visit. By tracking these metrics, you can understand how engaged your audience is with your content and identify areas for improvement.

Audience: Demographics, Sources, and Live Tracking

Demographics, sources, and live tracking are three key metrics for understanding your audience. Demographics refer to the characteristics of your audience, such as age, gender, and location. Sources refer to the ways in which visitors are finding your websites, such as through search engines or social media. Live tracking refers to the ability to track the behavior of individual visitors in real time. By tracking these metrics, you can understand your audience better and identify areas for improvement.

Engagement: Social shares, comments, and multiple traffic sources

Social shares, comments, and multiple traffic sources are three key metrics for measuring the engagement of your audience with your content. Social shares refer to the number of times a piece of content has been shared on social media, comments refer to the number of times a piece of content has been commented on, and multiple traffic sources refer to the number of different sources through which visitors are finding your website. By tracking these metrics, you can understand how engaged your audience is with your content and identify areas for improvement.

Conversions: Subscriptions, Newsletter Signups, and Purchases

Subscriptions, newsletter signups, and purchases are three key metrics for measuring the effectiveness of your content in driving conversions. Subscriptions refer to the number of individuals who have subscribed to your website, newsletter signups refer to the number of individuals who have signed up for your newsletter, and purchases refer to the number of individuals who have made a purchase on your website. By tracking these metrics, you can understand the effectiveness of your content in driving conversions and identify areas for improvement.

Conclusion

Tracking and measuring the performance of your content is essential for understanding the impact of your content and making informed decisions. Without effective data, digital publishers run the risk of falling into a guesswork trap.

Here at Spiny we surface all of the KPIs for your business, live in one easy-to-access place, and utilize AI to provide empowered recommendations to help you succeed. If you would like to see how Spiny can accelerate your businesses growth speak to us today.