Are you aware that we must evaluate the efficacy of our local directories?
Entries in a business’ directory have recently undergone a resurgence in popularity as a means to attract new customers. However, this positivity may be misplaced – not all entries are equally effective at generating leads or sales. In fact, some can even impede growth!
To achieve success with your local search efforts, it is essential to grasp the metrics associated with them.
When to collect and analyze Local Directory Metrics
If you’re new to collecting local directory listing data, then it might take some time before your campaign starts seeing measurable results. In the early days of your enterprise’s entry into this space – often referred to as ‘early adopters’ or ‘early adopters’ – you should not rest contented with incomplete efforts!
Even though the vast majority of listings on directories are free and readily available online, there remains a small contingent that is reserved exclusively for paying customers.
If you haven’t yet amassed any data about local directories, making them an integral part of your marketing strategy will allow for more informed decisions about future activities. Ultimately, having fully analyzed the data generated from your operating model can help you optimize efficiency while providing a better sense of how to best enhance its operation in the future!
The Top 5 Local Directory Metrics to Watch
Visibility is a crucial element in the success of any online venture, and local directories are no exception.
The objective of local directories is to provide customers with pertinent information regarding businesses in their area, helping them locate establishments that may be of use to them. This can be achieved by providing an array of ‘relevant’ local listings that demonstrate how useful they could be.
To ensure visibility, you must come up with a listing format that’s pleasing to the eye, engaging content for consumers and monitoring all performance aspects across channels. That necessitates diligent monitoring – and here are five key metrics to keep tabs on!
1. Local Directory Submissions Per Campaign
Revisit the campaign-level information for your Local Directory listings, and then assess the number of submissions you received.
A low number of entries may indicate that people are not happy with their current local directories or conversely, they may accept any submission as viable. If you discover that there are several directories in contention, it could be prudent to select one and give it a whirl; however, before doing so it would still be prudent to compare Local Directory results from this new directory against those from the last one taken into consideration.
2. Mail Return Rate
The mail return rate represents the total amount of items that reached their destination after being sent through the post office. This is an important metric to keep an eye on; it indicates your level of success with local directories as well as potential areas for optimization.
If you notice an upward trend in your mail return rate, this could be an indication that something may be amiss. In such a case, consider taking immediate action to rectify any issues before it’s too late!
3. Open and Click Through Rates
You can ascertain the success of your local directory website with an open or click through rate. This metric measures the number of users who click on a given ad and subsequently make contact with its sponsor.
Local directories that provide businesses with targeted leads are often more successful than websites that indiscriminately throw out many ads in an attempt to attract interest from visitors. That is, when you advertise in places like Facebook, it’s common practice for businesses to incur a cost per click (PPC) as opposed to local directories which can sometimes be free; however, if there are no clicks on their ads then the potential revenue could quickly diminish .
4. New Business Contact Rate
This metric provides insight into the extent to our prospects’ propensity for establishing new business contacts with you.
The formula for calculating this statistic is quite straightforward: (New Business Contact Rate) / (Number of Listings in Directory).
To gauge your progress, consider monitoring this indicator regularly. If it shows steady growth, that’s a strong indication that your local directory listings are garnering more attention and success. If it remains static over time – while still providing reliable information on the matter – then you may need to revamp them!
5. Follow Up Rate
The rate at which you follow up with leads may be a critical factor in determining whether or not your local directory listing is successful.
Pro Tip: When it comes to establishing rapport and unlocking conversions, follow-up is the most crucial element! Ensure that you’re sending personalized messages to those on your list – even after they have visited your website or app – in order to ensure that they remain engaged and make a purchase.
Bonus Metric: Local Directory Traffic Acquisition Cost (LTVAC)
When considering the success of your local directory listing, one important economic aspect is to consider its LTVAC – which stands for Local Directory Traffic Acquisition Cost. This figure represents all the costs associated with acquiring new leads from that particular channel and how much value they will provide to your business.
Since local directories are typically a limited resource and can’t be repurchased after use, it’s safe to say that a higher LTVAC indicates that you are obtaining the most bang for your buck when managing them.
Local directories can be evaluated based on the dollar amount spent while optimizing their placement in search engines, creating content and even monitoring user activity – all of which contribute to an accurate estimate of traffic acquisition cost (TAC).
Conclusion
The metrics you’re tracking can vary substantially, from the number of leads your business has processed and closed to daily sales figures – all the way down to the number of customers who have patronized your establishment.
