Maximizing Ecommerce Content Marketing ROI

August 22, 2024

What is the ROI of content marketing in e-commerce?

For marketers, this is their North Star. It guides their strategy, lights up their path, and gives them a destination to reach.

But how do you measure it?

Did you know that only 43% of B2B companies measure content marketing ROI?

Around 27% of marketers don’t even know how to measure ROI while 21% feel the process is just too time-consuming.

So how do you know if your content is really driving sales or just getting likes on social media?

This blog post will unravel these mysteries for you.

We’ll explore ways to measure ROI from different angles such as organic traffic and social media shares, and learn how to anticipate future ROI based on company history and business goals.

You’ll also discover the power of case studies in evaluating your content performance metrics, understand the importance of incorporating customer journey into your strategy, and get tips on refining digital marketing plans based on ROI results.

It’s about time you learn how to measure ecommerce content marketing ROI.

What is Content Marketing ROI?

“ROI” literally stands for “return on investment.”

The e-commerce content marketing ROI measures how much revenue you gained from your content marketing efforts compared to what you spent. It’s a key indicator of your content marketing success.

To calculate content marketing ROI, it’s essential to track specific metrics that reflect customer engagement and conversions. These include organic traffic, social media shares and engagement, conversion rates, email open rates, and click-through rates.

The Importance of ROI of Content Marketing in eCommerce

Measuring e-commerce content marketing ROI helps businesses understand which parts of their strategy are working well — and which aren’t — so they can make data-driven decisions about where to invest their time and resources in future campaigns.

Without measuring ROI, it would be impossible for you to know if your marketing activities are having any impact or if you’re simply wasting money.

Finding Your Formula: Calculating E-commerce Content Marketing ROI

The basic formula for calculating ROI is:

(Gains from Investment - Cost of Investment) / Cost of Investment x 100 = Return on Investment

This formula can help you measure performance across various aspects like SEO rankings or lead generation results from blog posts or case studies shared on social media platforms.

Google Analytics, an invaluable tool for anyone looking to measure the effectiveness of their digital campaigns, allows you to monitor important metrics such as website visits generated by different types of content, bounce rate, etc. This will give insight into how effectively your content resonates with existing customers while attracting new ones along the buyer’s journey.

Screenshot from OptinMonster

Measuring E-commerce Content Marketing ROI: Metrics to Track

You’re pouring time, effort, and a chunk of your marketing budget into content marketing activities.

How do you determine if these activities are yielding any results?

The answer lies in measuring content marketing ROI.

Why is there a need to measure the results of your content marketing strategy?

To justify the spend, for starters.

Beyond that, understanding your return on investment can help evaluate the impact of your strategies and guide future decisions.

So which metrics are most important to measure when it comes to content marketing for e-commerce?

Consumption Metrics

When measuring content marketing metrics, we start with consumption numbers like unique visits from social media or organic search results.

Measure the total number of visitors to your website and track how much of that traffic is driven by your content marketing efforts. This metric helps you gauge the overall reach and visibility of your content.

Engagement Metrics

Monitor metrics such as time spent on page, bounce rate, and pages per session. These metrics indicate how engaging and valuable your content is to your audience. High engagement metrics suggest that visitors find your content compelling and are more likely to convert.

Conversion Rate

Track the percentage of visitors who take a desired action, such as making a purchase, subscribing to a newsletter, or filling out a form. Conversion rate indicates the effectiveness of your content in driving desired outcomes.

Lead Generation

Measure the number of leads generated through your content marketing efforts. This includes metrics such as email sign-ups, form submissions, or downloads. Tracking lead generation helps you assess the quality and quantity of leads generated by your content.

Social Media Metrics

Monitor metrics such as likes, shares, comments, and followers on social media platforms. These metrics reflect the level of engagement and brand awareness generated by your social media posts on different channels.

Search Engine Rankings

Keep an eye on content performance in search engine results pages (SERPs). Find out where your content ranks for certain keywords and phrases to assess the impact of your search engine optimization strategies.

Backlinks and Referral Traffic

Measure the number of external websites linking to your content and the amount of traffic they generate. Backlinks and referral traffic indicate the credibility and authority of your content, as well as its ability to attract attention from other websites.

Customer Feedback and Reviews

Pay attention to customer feedback, comments, and reviews related to your content. Positive feedback suggests that your content resonates with your target audience and is valuable to them.

Return on Investment (ROI)

Evaluate the financial impact of your content marketing efforts by measuring the ROI. Calculate the revenue generated versus the costs incurred in creating and promoting your content. This metric helps you determine the overall effectiveness and profitability of your content marketing strategy.

Customer Lifetime Value (CLV)

Measure the long-term value of your customers by calculating the average revenue generated by a customer over their entire relationship with your brand. Content marketing can contribute to customer retention and repeat purchases, so tracking CLV helps assess the impact of your content on customer loyalty and revenue.

Remember that the importance of specific metrics may vary depending on your goals and objectives. It’s crucial to align your measurement strategy with your content marketing goals to gain meaningful insights into the effectiveness of your efforts.

Here’s an infographic from Semrush on the top content metrics to track in 2021 that are still relevant today:

Source: Semrush

Calculating Your Content Marketing ROI

Crunching numbers may not be your cup of tea, but it’s crucial for measuring content marketing success.

So what is the ROI formula in e-commerce content marketing? Let’s do a deeper dive into the calculations.

To measure content performance and calculate ROI, you need a simple formula: divide the benefit value by the cost investment.

Step 1: Identify all costs related to creating and promoting content. This includes salaries for your content marketing team, software subscriptions, advertising spend — everything that goes into making and sharing high-quality content.

Step 2:: Determine the monetary benefits gained from these activities. Look at direct sales resulting from specific campaigns or organic traffic increases leading to conversions.

Step 3: Subtract your costs/investment in content marketing from the returns you received. Then divide that number by your investment and multiply it by 100.

Here’s the formula again, broken down:

(Gains from Investment – Cost of Investment) / Cost of Investment x 100 = Return on Investment

Google Analytics, a tool every marketer should have in their arsenal, can help with this process. It provides insights like conversion rates tied directly to certain pieces of content or channels. This data is gold when trying to measure ROI.

Want to predict future returns based on past performance? It’s possible, but take into consideration other factors such as company history and business goals which will influence anticipated ROI.

Remember, you’re playing a long game here. Content marketing isn’t about quick wins — it builds trust and generates leads over time, so don’t get discouraged if you don’t see results right away.

10 Strategies to Increase E-commerce Content Marketing ROI

When it comes to e-commerce, content marketing is a powerful tool that can significantly increase your brand’s visibility and ultimately conversions.

Here are 10 strategies you can implement in your content marketing campaigns for better results and better ROI:

Create a harmonious blog setup: Create a well-designed and user-friendly blog that aligns with your brand’s aesthetic. Organize your blog posts in a logical manner, making it easy for visitors to navigate and find relevant content. A harmonious blog setup enhances the user experience and encourages visitors to stay longer on your website.
Build a content hub: A content hub is a centralized location on your website where you publish and curate valuable content related to your industry or niche. It serves as a resource hub for your audience, establishing you as an authority in your field. By consistently creating and promoting high-quality content through your hub, you can attract and retain a loyal audience, driving more traffic and conversions.
Publish video content: Video content is highly engaging and can effectively convey your brand’s message. Create videos that showcase your products, provide tutorials, or share valuable information. Video content has the potential to go viral and reach a wider audience, increasing brand visibility and driving more traffic to your e-commerce store.
Show off your product photos: Incorporate high-quality product photos within your blog posts and other content. Visuals help grab the attention of your audience and make your content more appealing. By showcasing your products in context or demonstrating their features, you can increase interest and drive more conversions.
Create buying guides: Develop comprehensive buying guides that help your customers make informed purchasing decisions. These guides can include product comparisons, reviews, and detailed information about different options available in your niche. By providing valuable insights, you establish trust with your audience and position yourself as a reliable source of information, increasing the likelihood of conversions.
Create visually engaging content: Beyond product photos, utilize visually engaging content such as infographics, charts, and graphs. Visuals make complex information more digestible and shareable. They also enhance the overall aesthetics of your content, making it more appealing to your audience.
Make your content shareable: Incorporate social sharing buttons and encourage your audience to share your content on social media platforms. By making it easy for visitors to share your content, you increase its reach and potential exposure to a wider audience. This can result in increased website traffic, brand awareness, and potential conversions.
Build comparison pages: Create dedicated comparison pages that compare your products with similar offerings in the market. These pages help potential customers understand the unique selling points of your products and make informed decisions. By highlighting the advantages of your products, you increase the chances of conversion and differentiate yourself from competitors.
Integrate shopping into CTAs: Incorporate calls-to-action within your content that directly links to relevant product pages on your e-commerce store. For example, if you mention a product in a blog post, provide a CTA that takes the reader directly to the product page. This seamless integration between content and shopping can streamline the customer journey, reducing friction and increasing the likelihood of purchases.
Provide an FAQ page or Help Center: Create a dedicated FAQ page or help center where you address common questions, concerns, and issues related to your products or services. By providing clear and helpful information, you enhance the customer experience and reduce barriers to conversion. This also helps improve customer satisfaction and loyalty, leading to repeat purchases and positive word-of-mouth referrals.

Implementing these strategies can help you optimize your content marketing efforts in e-commerce, driving higher ROI by increasing traffic, engagement, conversions, and customer satisfaction.

Refining Your Digital Marketing Plans Based on ROI Results

You’ve done the math, and you have your content marketing ROI.

Great.

But what’s next?

Use Your Findings to Guide Future Strategies

Your content marketing efforts shouldn’t stop at calculating ROI.

Nope.

The real work begins now: using these results to refine your digital plans and allocate resources towards effective strategies for improved business growth.

Identify what worked and what didn’t.

Analyze which of your content marketing campaigns were successful in terms of engagement metrics or conversion rates.

Determine where there is room for improvement — maybe some blog posts didn’t resonate with readers as expected, or a social media campaign failed to generate buzz.

This analysis will help guide future decisions about how best to spend that precious marketing budget.

FAQs – Ecommerce Content Marketing ROI

What’s the ROI of content marketing?

The ROI (Return on Investment) for content marketing can vary, but it’s generally high – measuring the revenue gained from your content efforts compared to what you spent creating and promoting that content.

What’s the best ROI for e-commerce?

The ‘best’ ROI varies by industry, but a good benchmark for e-commerce could be an average 5:1 ratio — $5 in sales for every $1 spent on advertising according to WordStream.

How do you calculate ROI for a content marketing campaign?

To calculate your content marketing campaign’s ROI, subtract the cost of producing and distributing your content from its earned revenue. Then divide this by its total costs and multiply by 100%.

What’s the average ROI on e-commerce ads?

The average return-on-ad-spend (ROAS) across all industries in Google Ads is around 200%, meaning a $2 return for every dollar spent as per data shared by WordStream.

Conclusion

Measuring ecommerce content marketing ROI can be tricky, but focusing on the important metrics we listed here can give you some serious insights.

By incorporating the customer journey into your content strategy, you can create targeted and impactful content that resonates with your audience, leading to more conversions.

So, don’t just throw content out there like spaghetti on the wall. Refine your digital marketing plans based on ROI measurement results and watch your business grow.

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