We want to delve deeper into what you should include in your reporting to make your inbound marketing funnel deliver. Closed-loop reporting is essential for startups as it helps identify where the conversion funnel falls short and whether marketing spend is providing returns.
What I usually find challenging when I sit down to build my reporting is that I get distracted. When trying to build a clean overview of my funnel I see all the cracks and issues but the key here is to take note of those and leave them for what they are (for now!) and focus on reporting.
To achieve effective closed-loop reporting, you need to follow the steps below:
Define a Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-based goal. For instance, you can set a goal to increase your customers tenfold, from six a week to 60 a week, by the close of the financial year.
Determine the time span for measuring change. The timeframe should be closely tied to your goal.
Use Google Analytics to measure the number of visits to your website during the timeframe you’ve set. Choose either sessions or users as a metric and stick with it.
Define what constitutes a lead for your startup and ensure marketing and sales are on the same page. Calculate the conversion rate from visit to lead and measure it over time.
Calculate the number of closed new customers in the timeframe and the conversion rate from lead to customer.
Add up the total sales value from all customers closed in the timeframe.
Calculate the percentage increase in total sales value based on the timeframes you are comparing.
A quick note about customer reporting. If you are currently not using a CRM system I can highly recommend implementing the free HubSpot CRM and utilizing Lifecycle Stages in your Marketing setup to automatically report on your customers and track them across the funnel.
To get the entire team on board, make sure you include the numbers you want to achieve and by when. Closed-loop reporting works best when you measure change over time, so decide on a suitable timeframe. If you have past data, include it in your analysis to gain a better understanding of trends. By measuring and tracking these metrics, startups can identify areas for improvement, optimize marketing spend, and maximize the return on investment.