You can measure content performance in multiple ways, but gauging its effectiveness can be another challenge altogether. 

When starting to work on your content, it’s critical to set up your  internal metrics for the success of your planning, because relying solely on numbers from aggregators may not show you the full picture of where your content is getting you:

• Traffic sources. It’s crucial to know how readers have encountered your content. Your content needs to be able to attract new customers while keeping up with past customers or on-the-fence potential customers, so taking advantage of tools like Google Analytics can help you get a better understanding of this.
• Impressions. You may feel that you’re able to reach your customers, but the only way you can tell is if you’re the “answer,” to the searcher’s problems. A tool for this is Google Search Console, which allows you to find out how many impressions your content has received–the more impressions you have, the more people you’ve reached as the “answer,” for what they’re searching for.
• Bounce rate. This refers to the percentage of people who land on a page on your website, then leave, without clicking on anything else; it could be due to a poor user experience, different content than what they expected, or a slow-loading rate, so this helps you determine challenges with your website’s development. 

Aside from these metrics, it pays to be mindful of what specific goals you set out to achieve when building your content strategy, as these can help you establish other ways to measure.

Questions your content strategy needs to answer

A bunch of ideas for content cobbled together in a document or a slideshow doesn’t make for a content strategy that builds the engagement and brand awareness which property brands need. Content builds awareness because your audience gets to know your brand before making a purchase, by answering questions upfront and providing value ahead of time. 

The more value you’re able to provide over time, the more trustworthy your brand becomes, and your audience is more likely to make a purchase–when this is a purchase that meets (and in some cases exceeds) their expectations, they’re likely to come back again then refer your business to others. Enough people do this and you’re establishing yourself as a key resource.

This is why brand awareness matters; you want to be that brand that people think of and stand out as reliable based on how dependable your product or service has been, and how valuable your content has been. Lofty as this goal may seem, when you’re reviewing your content strategy, you need to be able to answer a few key questions that guide it.

• Why are you creating this content? Generating leads is important, but a deeper answer to the main purpose for your brand’s content can keep you anchored to your purpose as your brand grows.
• Who do you help with your content? This goes back to what you know about your target audience, which you need to have identified when you were developing your strategy, but you can always go back to this question later when your audience may have undergone a significant change that can affect how they’ll receive your content.
• How do you help your audience? The kind of content you’re producing is likely to be determined by the audience’s needs, so it pays to mind the time they need to read or the information they look to you for, as your approach to content will be affected too.

When guided by the following questions, you are better equipped to measure and take note of the performance of your brand and content strategy. These questions kick off the conversation that gets you started on finding the markers of your content strategy’s success and prepares you to adjust your plans for succeeding content accordingly.

3 signs your property content is effective

Checking that property content is performing well comes in many forms aside from any increase in sales. We’ve shortlisted a few ways that you may not have noticed your property content is bringing in leads and helping you create more opportunities for likely conversion.

1. You’re getting more personal interactions

When you’re able to reach your target audience with compelling and valuable content, it can translate in surprising ways, like comments or messages on your website by people who may have encountered your property brand before and express more interest in working with you now, or new connections. 

It’s important to leverage existing connections in expanding your customer base. You never know if an existing client can bring in a new one through word-of-mouth recommendations.

Hearing from peers, people in your neighbourhood or even acquaintances you’ve run into online can inform your content. A well-placed and value-adding piece of content can tip the odds in your favour when converting that on-the-fence customer. 

Localising your content by highlighting your area, neighbourhood or surrounding areas can spark a deep interest in your community. Since your customers can already access the wealth of broadly applicable, often generic content, they’re more likely to stop and linger on content that responds to their needs.

2. There are more eyes on your e-newsletters

As you build your content on your website and social media platforms, you will attract visitors who want to keep getting information from your brand. This can result in higher email subscriptions as your readers seek access to your more exclusive content. 

Subscribers are a sign that your audience trusts you enough to provide their contact information with you. To keep them engaged, you need to make sure you’re constantly providing value in the content you send. 

You can boost your e-newsletter strategy by sharing your insight and expertise about the following topics:

• Latest news and trends in housing, mortgage and property investment
• Market updates
• Homeownership advice
• Promotion of local events and businesses
• Property how-to guides

Demonstrating your authority in your field can make you (and by extension, your brand) more trustworthy and credible, encouraging your subscribers to support your businesses and come to you when they need your products and services.

3. Your posts are getting shared

Whether you’re posting related property memes to keep your page alive or sharing in-depth explainers, it matters if your posts are getting shared because it means your audience has found it valuable or funny enough to tell their own network about it. Repeated shares like this can speak to the trust that you’ve already established and need to sustain with your content.

You can track your content performance, specifically your social media activity, by monitoring the following metrics:

• Brand mentions – You can check references to your brand, product or service on the internet on social media platforms. This can give you a look into your customers’ feedback and use it as an opportunity to engage with audiences directly.
• Follower and subscriber growth – This refers to measuring the percentage of newly acquired followers or subscribers you gained on social media over a specific period of time. This can pinpoint the effectiveness of time-sensitive marketing campaigns.
• Social media engagement – This includes likes, shares and comments you get from audiences on your social media posts. Direct interactions with your followers can increase engagement.

Effective property content begins with a strategy that tells the story of your brand and provides value to everyone from prospective customers to existing clients. Contact us and we’ll develop content that makes your story stick.