{"id":4404,"date":"2025-09-11T11:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-09-11T11:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.dietdebunker.com\/?p=4404"},"modified":"2025-09-12T10:54:14","modified_gmt":"2025-09-12T10:54:14","slug":"how-to-blend-web-analytics-and-digital-marketing-analytics-to-grow-better","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.dietdebunker.com\/index.php\/2025\/09\/11\/how-to-blend-web-analytics-and-digital-marketing-analytics-to-grow-better\/","title":{"rendered":"How to blend web analytics and digital marketing analytics to grow better"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>When I started in content marketing in 2013, my <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hubspot.com\/digital-marketing\">digital marketing<\/a> analytics strategy was refreshing <a href=\"https:\/\/analytics.google.com\/analytics\/web\/provision\/%23\/provision\">Google Analytics<\/a> to check if page views were up. Traffic climbing meant we were winning; traffic dropping meant panic mode.<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"cta_button\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hubspot.com\/cs\/ci\/?pg=53e8428a-29a5-4225-a6ea-bca8ef991c19&amp;pid=53&amp;ecid=&amp;hseid=&amp;hsic=\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"hs-cta-img \" style=\"height: auto !important;width: auto !important;max-width: 100% !important;border-width: 0px;margin: 0 auto;margin-top: 20px;margin-bottom: 20px\" alt=\"\u2192 Download Now: The Beginner&#039;s Guide to Email Marketing [Free Ebook]\" height=\"59\" width=\"653\" src=\"https:\/\/no-cache.hubspot.com\/cta\/default\/53\/53e8428a-29a5-4225-a6ea-bca8ef991c19.png\" align=\"middle\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Over many B2B SaaS roles, I learned that tracking traffic alone can\u2018t answer the question every exec asks: &#8220;Is our marketing actually working?&#8221; I\u2019ve sat in countless meetings where no one had a clear answer.<\/p>\n<p>Most teams are stuck in the \u201cmore traffic is better\u201d mindset, but traffic only tells part of the story. If you want to know what&#8217;s really driving results, you need to go beyond the basics.<\/p>\n<p>In this post, I&#8217;ll share the digital marketing analytics I rely on to make smarter decisions, prove impact, and confidently answer that executive question. Bookmark this guide and jump to what you need most.<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: bold\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"#what-are-digital-marketing-analytics\">What are digital marketing analytics?<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#digital-marketing-analytics-vs-web-analytics\">Digital Marketing Analytics vs. Web Analytics\u00a0<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#what-is-digital-marketing-analysis\">What is a digital marketing analysis?<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#how-to-use-digital-marketing-analytics-effectively\">How to Use Digital Marketing Analytics Effectively<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#digital-advertising-analytics\">Digital Advertising Analytics<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><a><\/a> <\/p>\n<p>Digital marketing analytics help you make sense of what your audience is doing online \u2014 and whether those actions are helping your business grow.<\/p>\n<p>I think of digital analytics as the thing that helps me read between the lines. It\u2019s one thing to know someone clicked or filled out a form \u2014 but I want to know what that tells me about what\u2019s working.<\/p>\n<p>Web analytics mostly stick to site-level metrics \u2014 page views, bounce rates, and session times. But digital marketing analytics go further. They pull data from across your channels \u2014 email, ads, social \u2014 and help you understand how your overall marketing is performing and where it\u2019s driving genuine results.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>Digital Marketing Metrics to Know<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Early on, I was glued to page views and social impressions. They looked great in a report \u2014 but didn\u2019t tell me if we were bringing in leads, closing deals, or growing the business.<\/p>\n<p>We were pulling in traffic and checking all the usual boxes \u2014 but none of it was turning into leads. At some point, I stopped trying to make the reports look good and started asking: is any of this actually working? That\u2019s when I began focusing on <a href=\"https:\/\/academy.hubspot.com\/courses\/business-analytics?\">metrics that showed real impact<\/a>, not just movement.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" width=\"600\" height=\"359\" alt=\"illustration of a simple stick figure character looking at their reflection in a mirror, where they appear as a superhero with a cape\" style=\"margin-left: auto;margin-right: auto;width: 600px;height: auto;max-width: 100%\" class=\"lazyload\" data-src=\"http:\/\/www.dietdebunker.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/illustration20of20a20simple20stick20figure20character20looking20at20their20reflection20in20a20mirror2c20where20they20appear20as20a20superhero20with20a20cape.jpg\"><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;font-size: 12px\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blog.planview.com\/why-vanity-metrics-are-dangerous-holding-a-mirror-up-to-your-measures-of-success\/\"><em>Source<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Below are the metrics I\u2019ve found most valuable across different areas of digital marketing \u2014 starting with the basics.<\/p>\n<h4><strong>Best Metrics for Website Marketing Analytics<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p>These are the site-level metrics I track most often to understand how content and UX are performing:<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Visitor<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>I focus on unique visitors because it shows me how many individual people are coming to the site \u2014 not just refreshes or repeat views. When I\u2019m checking content performance, this is one of the first things I look at.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Page View<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>Every page load counts as a page view. It\u2019s not the most insightful metric on its own, but it helps spot trends and identify content that\u2019s getting attention.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Session<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>A session includes everything a person does on your site in one visit \u2014 clicking around, reading multiple pages, maybe filling out a form. It ends after 30 minutes of inactivity. I use sessions to get a sense of how deep someone\u2019s engagement goes beyond a single page view.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Traffic<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>I rarely look at traffic in isolation. I track it over time and in context with other metrics \u2014 especially conversion rate \u2014 to understand if the traffic we\u2019re getting is valuable.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Traffic by Channel<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>This shows where your visitors are coming from \u2014 search, social, email, direct, etc. I use it constantly to figure out which channels are performing well and where we need to shift focus.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Traffic by Device<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>This tells me whether people are browsing on mobile, desktop, or tablet. I always check this when optimizing content layout or troubleshooting drop-offs \u2014 especially if conversion rates are low on one device type.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Ratio of New Traffic to Returning Traffic<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>This metric compares first-time visitors to people who\u2018ve been to your site before, shown as percentages. I love this metric because it shows whether you\u2019re growing your audience (new traffic) while keeping existing visitors engaged (returning traffic).<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Time on Page<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>This metric helps me figure out if people are sticking around. If the time is high, it usually means the content is useful or engaging. If it\u2019s low, I take that as a sign to revisit the intro, formatting, or value of the page.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Interactions per Visit<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>I look at how many actions people take on average during a session \u2014 clicking CTAs, downloading content, watching videos. It gives me a sense of whether we\u2019re offering enough value or opportunities to engage.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Bounce Rate<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>I track bounce rate to see how many people leave after viewing just one page. Sometimes a high bounce rate is fine \u2014 like if someone finds exactly what they need on a landing page. But when I see unexpected spikes, it usually means there\u2018s an issue with the content or the page isn\u2019t loading correctly.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Core Web Vitals<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>These are Google\u2019s signals for user experience \u2014 things like load speed, layout shift, and responsiveness. I keep tabs on them not just for SEO reasons, but because no one sticks around for a page that loads like molasses or jumps all over the place.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Scroll Depth<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>I track how far visitors scroll down our pages to understand content engagement. If people aren\u2018t scrolling past the fold, I know the opening content needs work or the page design isn\u2019t drawing them in.<\/p>\n<h4><strong>Best Metrics for Lead Generation<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p>These are the metrics I use to track my lead generation efforts:<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Call-to-Action (CTA) Click-Through Rate<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>I look at CTA clicks to gauge whether the content is doing its job. It\u2019s a quick gut check: If a post is getting solid traffic but no one\u2019s clicking \u201cGet the Guide,\u201d that tells me something\u2019s not landing \u2014 either the content didn\u2019t connect or the offer needs reworking.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Submissions<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>Submissions count the number of people who complete a form after clicking a CTA. If we have high CTA clicks but low submissions, that usually points to friction \u2014 maybe the form is too long, or the offer doesn\u2019t feel worth it.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Conversion Rate<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>Conversion rate tracks how many people take a desired action (like signing up or downloading something) compared to total visitors. I track this across content types and channels to see what\u2019s converting \u2014 not just what\u2019s getting attention.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Cost Per Lead (CPL)<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>CPL tells me how much we\u2019re spending to generate each lead. I break this down by channel and campaign to figure out which ones are efficient and which ones are draining the budget without results.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Lead Velocity Rate<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>This measures how quickly leads move through the funnel \u2014 from new lead to MQL, or from MQL to customer. If the pace slows down at a particular stage, I know it\u2019s time to revisit our nurturing strategy or look for friction.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Free Trial Conversion Rate<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>If you&#8217;re running a free trial model, this one\u2019s critical. It shows how many people who start a trial become paying customers. I use it to connect top-of-funnel content to actual revenue and flag where prospects might be falling off.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Pop-Up Conversions<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>Pop-up conversions track how many visitors fill out forms triggered mid-browse. While pop-ups can be annoying, I\u2019ve found that well-timed, relevant ones can move the needle \u2014 especially when tied to intent.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Ratio of Generated Leads to Marketing-Qualified Leads (MQL)<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>This metric compares total leads to those that are actually a good fit. I track this to evaluate the quality of leads we\u2019re bringing in and how well our content aligns with our ideal customer profile.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Leads to Close Ratio<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>The leads to close ratio shows what percentage of your leads turn into paying customers. It\u2019s one of the clearest ways to gauge content effectiveness \u2014 if a certain offer or campaign brings in leads that never close, it\u2019s time to pivot.<\/p>\n<h4><strong>Best Metrics for Email Marketing<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p>Email\u2019s been one of the most consistent performers in every role I\u2019ve had. It\u2019s straightforward, flexible, and still delivers when done well. These are the metrics I look at to figure out if an email campaign is doing its job.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Open Rate<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>This tells me how many people opened an email out of everyone I sent it to. I use it to test subject lines and timing. If open rates dip below our usual baseline, I dig into whether the content felt relevant \u2014 or if it even made it to the inbox. For B2B SaaS, I generally aim to hit at least 20%.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Opens by Device<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>This shows which devices (mobile, desktop, tablet) people are using to read emails. Most folks check email on their phones, so I always make sure our design works well on mobile first.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Click-Through Rate (CTR)<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>CTR tracks how many people clicked a link inside the email. I\u2019ve seen huge differences here based on personalization and list segmentation. The more targeted the message, the better this number usually looks.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Bounce Rate<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/knowledge.hubspot.com\/marketing-email\/what-is-the-difference-between-a-hard-bounce-and-a-soft-bounce?\">Bounce rate<\/a> tracks how many emails didn\u2019t make it to someone\u2019s inbox. I watch it to catch list issues early. If it spikes, I remove outdated or bad addresses.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Unsubscribe Rate<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>If more people are leaving than joining, I take it as a sign we\u2019re either sending too often \u2014 or just not giving folks a good enough reason to stick around.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>List Growth Rate<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>This metric shows whether our list is trending up or down. If more people are unsubscribing than signing up, I take a closer look at our content or our sending frequency.<\/p>\n<h4><strong>Best Metrics for Social Media<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p>Follower counts might look impressive in a slide deck, but they don\u2019t pay the bills. Here are the social media metrics I track to understand whether our efforts are working:<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Engagement Rate<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>I calculate this by taking all the likes, comments, shares, and clicks, then dividing by our total followers. A high engagement rate tells me people aren\u2019t just seeing our content \u2014 they care enough to interact with it.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Follows and Subscribes<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>This metric tracks how many people choose to follow your social accounts because they want to see more of your content. While follower count isn&#8217;t everything, I track growth to understand whether our content strategy is attracting the right audience.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Shares<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>Shares are one of the strongest signals of content value. If someone\u2019s willing to repost something under their name or brand, that means it hit the mark.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Audience Growth Rate<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>I use this to track how quickly our following grows over time. I calculate it by dividing new followers by total followers, then multiplying by 100. It\u2019s a more honest view than just watching the number tick up.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Post Reach<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>Post reach tells me how many people saw a piece of content. I track this as a percentage of total followers to get a sense of how well we\u2019re navigating platform algorithms and timing.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Potential Post Reach<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>This metric estimates how far our content could go based on who shared it and the size of their audiences. I don\u2019t put too much stock in this number alone, but it helps measure brand amplification. Potential reach is typically 2-5% of this total.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Share of Social Voice<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>This metric compares how often people mention us versus competitors. I track both direct mentions (with @handles) and indirect ones (brand name only) to see how we\u2019re showing up in conversations that matter.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Approval Rate<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>Likes are the simplest form of validation, but they still matter. I use this metric to track positive reactions across campaigns and make sure our tone is landing as intended.<\/p>\n<h4><strong>Best Metrics for Ecommerce<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p>Even if you\u2019re not running a full-on online store, these metrics still matter if you\u2019re selling anything through your website:<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Shopping Cart Abandonment Rate<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>I track how many people add items to their cart but don\u2019t complete the purchase. When this number creeps up, it usually means something\u2019s off \u2014 maybe the checkout process is clunky, or the pricing catches people off guard at the last step.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Sales Conversion Rate<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>This shows me how many site visitors become customers. I also pay attention to micro-conversions \u2014 like product page views or add-to-cart actions \u2014 to see where people are dropping off or getting more serious about buying.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Email Marketing Opt-in<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>I track how many people sign up for emails while browsing or checking out, and I break that down by traffic source. It\u2019s an easy way to spot which channels are bringing in subscribers who want to hear from us again.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Customer Acquisition Cost<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>Customers don\u2018t always come cheap. I calculate our total marketing spend divided by the number of new customers acquired to understand our actual cost per customer. The higher the number, the more we\u2019re spending and the narrower our <a href=\"https:\/\/getjobber.com\/free-tools\/profit-margin-calculator\/\">profit margins<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Average Order Value<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>This one\u2019s simple: total revenue divided by number of orders. I use it to see if people are buying more expensive items or adding extras to their cart. Sometimes, just tweaking bundles or offering free shipping thresholds can help bump it up.<\/p>\n<h5><strong>Revenue by Source<\/strong><\/h5>\n<p>This metric tells me which marketing channels are driving sales \u2014 not just traffic. Social might bring in volume, but if search or email drives more purchases, that\u2019s where I double down.<\/p>\n<p>These metrics cover the most important digital marketing analytics across different channels. Depending on your marketing tools and channels, you might track additional metrics specific to your business.<\/p>\n<p>But why are digital marketing analytics so much more powerful than basic web analytics?<\/p>\n<p><a><\/a> <\/p>\n<h2 style=\"font-weight: normal\">Digital Marketing Analytics vs. Web Analytics<\/h2>\n<p>The most significant difference between web analytics and digital marketing analytics comes down to scope.<\/p>\n<p>Web analytics tell you what\u2019s happening on your website \u2014 page views, bounce rate, time on page. That\u2019s helpful, but it doesn\u2019t tell you whether those visits are turning into leads or customers.<\/p>\n<p>Digital marketing analytics go further. They help you connect all your marketing efforts \u2014 email, social, ads, blog content \u2014 and see how they work together to drive results. Instead of just looking at what people do on your site, you get a clearer view of how they found you, what influenced their decisions, and what led to revenue.<\/p>\n<p>I\u2019ve seen teams get stuck optimizing for web metrics that look good on paper, but don\u2019t lead to any business outcomes. I\u2019ve done it myself \u2014 spending months trying to improve blog performance based on time on page, only to realize those posts weren\u2019t attracting the right audience or creating meaningful engagement.<\/p>\n<p>If we\u2019d been using digital marketing analytics from the start, we would\u2019ve seen that we hadn\u2019t aligned our content with our goals \u2014 or the buyer\u2019s journey.<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s why I always come back to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hubspot.com\/flywheel\">marketing and sales flywheel<\/a>. It\u2019s not just about top-of-funnel traffic. It\u2019s about how everything works together \u2014 attracting, engaging, and delighting people at every stage. Digital marketing analytics make it easier to track that cycle and figure out what\u2019s legitimately helping your business grow.<\/p>\n<p>Web analytics gives you the puzzle pieces. Digital marketing analytics help you put them together.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" width=\"400\" height=\"400\" alt=\"inbound marketing flywheel\" style=\"margin-left: auto;margin-right: auto;width: 400px;height: auto;max-width: 100%\" class=\"lazyload\" data-src=\"http:\/\/www.dietdebunker.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/types-of-marketing-3-20250218-4266968.png\"><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;font-size: 12px\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hubspot.com\/flywheel\"><em>Source<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n<p><a><\/a> <\/p>\n<p>A digital marketing <em>analysis <\/em>is the first step to developing a strong digital marketing analytics strategy. I use this process to structure a business goal into outcomes based on three broad categories:<\/p>\n<ol start=\"1\">\n<li>The relationship between different marketing channels<\/li>\n<li>People-centric data on the buyer&#8217;s journey<\/li>\n<li>Revenue attributed to specific marketing efforts<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/offers.hubspot.com\/intro-to-inbound-marketing-analytics?_ga%3D2.232010143.1811446236.1605460010-780402443.1605460010\">Download our free ebook on inbound marketing analytics \u2014 the key metrics your executives really want to see.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Let&#8217;s highlight these main differentiators.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>1. The Relationship Between Marketing Channels<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Digital marketing analytics provides a solid look into the direct relationships between your marketing channels. It\u2018s great to be able to see how each of your channels (e.g., social media, blogging, email marketing, and SEO) is performing. Still, the true power of analytics comes into play when you can easily tie the effect of multiple channels\u2019 performances together.<\/p>\n<p>For instance, let&#8217;s say you sent an email to a segment of your database. Digital marketing analytics not only tells you how many people clicked through from your email to your website, but also how many of those people converted into leads for your business when they got there.<\/p>\n<p>Furthermore, you can compare the impact of that individual email send with other marketing initiatives. Did that email generate more leads than the blog post you published yesterday? Or was the content you shared via Twitter more effective?<\/p>\n<h3><strong>2. People-Centric Data on the Buyer&#8217;s Journey<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>As we mentioned earlier, a key differentiator between web analytics and digital marketing analytics is that the latter uses the <em>person <\/em>\u2014 not the page view \u2014 as the focal point.<\/p>\n<p>Digital marketing analytics enables you to track <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fullstory.com\/resources\/the-definitive-guide-to-session-replay\/\">how your prospects and leads are interacting<\/a> with your various marketing initiatives and channels over time. How did the lead first come to find your website? From Google? Facebook? Direct traffic? Is that lead an active part of your email subscriber base, clicking and converting on marketing offers presented via email? Do they read your blog, and have they downloaded any content offers that could indicate an interest in your products\/services?<\/p>\n<p>Full-stack digital marketing analytics can tell you all of this and more, providing you with extremely valuable lead intelligence that can help inform the direction of your future campaigns.<\/p>\n<p>Looking at all of this information in aggregate can help you understand trends among your prospects and leads and which marketing activities are valuable at different stages in the <a href=\"https:\/\/blog.hubspot.com\/sales\/what-is-the-buyers-journey\">buyer&#8217;s journey<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Perhaps you find that many customers&#8217; last point of conversion was on a certain ebook or white paper. Having this data makes it possible to implement an effective lead management process, enabling you to score and prioritize your leads and identify which activities contribute to a marketing-qualified lead (MQL) for your business.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>3. Revenue Attributed to Specific Marketing Efforts<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>One of the most valuable functions of marketing analytics is its ability to attribute specific marketing activities to sales revenue. Sure, your blog may be effective in generating leads, but are those leads turning into customers and making your business money? Closed-loop marketing analytics can tell you.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/offers.hubspot.com\/sla-template?_ga%3D2.142677429.1811446236.1605460010-780402443.1605460010\">Download our free ebook on closed-loop marketing and take your digital marketing analytics to the next level.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>The only requirement here is that your digital marketing analytics system and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hubspot.com\/products\/crm?\">customer relationship management (CRM) platform<\/a> are connected.<\/p>\n<p>Having this closed-loop data can help you determine whether your marketing initiatives are contributing to your business&#8217;s bottom line. Through it, you can decide which channels are most critical for driving sales.<\/p>\n<p>Perhaps your blog is your most effective channel for generating customers, or conversely, you see that social media is only as powerful as an engagement mechanism, not a source of sales.<\/p>\n<p>You\u2019ll set better, more outcome-driven goals when you measure how your channels work together, track behavior across the buyer\u2019s journey, and connect revenue back to specific marketing efforts.<\/p>\n<p>Now, let\u2019s talk about how to use these marketing analytics effectively.<\/p>\n<p><a><\/a> <\/p>\n<h2 style=\"font-weight: normal\">How to Use Digital Marketing Analytics Effectively<\/h2>\n<p>I\u2019ve had campaigns with solid traffic and decent engagement \u2014 but nothing to show for it. That\u2019s when I realized surface-level metrics weren\u2019t telling me what I truly needed to know.<\/p>\n<p>I\u2019ve been there. The dashboards look fine, but when someone asks, \u201cIs it working?\u201d \u2014 I don\u2019t always have a clear answer.<\/p>\n<p>For me, it usually means one of two things: the goals are fuzzy, or we\u2019re measuring things that don\u2019t matter.<\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s how I\u2019ve learned to cut through the noise and use analytics to make better, more confident decisions.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/offers.hubspot.com\/how-to-determine-your-smart-marketing-goals\">Master SMART Marketing with our free, goal-setting Excel template.<\/a><\/p>\n<h3><strong>S.M.A.R.T. Goals<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>I\u2019ve spent way too much time staring at dashboards without really knowing what I was supposed to take away from them. Traffic\u2019s up \u2014 so what? If I can\u2019t explain what that means for the business, the number doesn\u2019t help me much.<\/p>\n<p>Before diving into data, I try to get specific about what I\u2019m aiming for. \u201cMore traffic\u201d isn\u2019t a real goal \u2014 something like \u201cgrow organic visits from X pages by 20%\u201d gives me a direction and something I can check back on.<\/p>\n<p>I use the S.M.A.R.T. framework to shape goals that are actually useful:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Specific <\/strong>\u2013<strong> <\/strong>Instead of \u201cget more traffic,\u201d I\u2019ll set a goal like \u201cincrease organic traffic from our target keyword group by 25%.\u201d<\/li>\n<li><strong>Measurable <\/strong>\u2013 If I can\u2019t put a number on it, I won\u2019t know if I\u2019m making progress. I always establish a baseline first.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Attainable <\/strong>\u2013 I try to stretch, but not to the point of setting myself up to fail. Past performance helps me stay realistic.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Relevant <\/strong>\u2013 I tie every goal to a bigger outcome \u2014 whether it\u2019s generating pipeline, improving retention, or increasing revenue.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Timely <\/strong>\u2013 Every goal gets a deadline. Otherwise, it\u2019s just a wish list.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>A good goal gives me something to measure, something to optimize toward, and something to share when someone asks, \u201cHow\u2019s that campaign going?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In my experience, most marketing goals fall into one of three buckets:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Traffic growth and channel diversity<\/strong> \u2013 Bringing in consistent visitors from multiple sources<\/li>\n<li><strong>Lead generation <\/strong>\u2013 Turning that traffic into real prospects<\/li>\n<li><strong>Revenue attribution<\/strong> \u2013 Tracking which marketing efforts contribute to actual sales<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Getting to those insights isn\u2019t always easy. Most teams \u2014 mine included \u2014 are pulling data from five or six different platforms: email metrics from one tool, social stats from another, blog performance from the CMS, and so on.<\/p>\n<p>When everything\u2019s scattered across different tools, it\u2019s tough to connect the dots \u2014 or figure out where to spend your time.<\/p>\n<p>I\u2019ve found it way easier to get clarity when I use an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hubspot.com\/products\/marketing\">all-in-one marketing and reporting platform<\/a> that brings all our reporting together. Instead of bouncing between tools, I can see the full picture and make quicker calls about what\u2019s worth doubling down on \u2014 or ditching.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>Campaign Reporting<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Instead of looking at each traffic source or channel in isolation, I use <a href=\"https:\/\/knowledge.hubspot.com\/articles\/kcs_article\/reports\/a-quick-tour-of-reports?\">custom reporting capabilities<\/a> to build campaign-level views. That way, I can see how a campaign performs across all platforms \u2014 not just how one blog post or email did. I want the whole picture, from first touch to final conversion.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" width=\"650\" height=\"391\" alt=\"HubSpot Marketing Hub reporting dashboard\" style=\"margin-left: auto;margin-right: auto;width: 650px;height: auto;max-width: 100%\" class=\"lazyload\" data-src=\"http:\/\/www.dietdebunker.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/b2b-marketing-kpis-2-20240923-9844147.jpg\"><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;font-size: 12px\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hubspot.com\/products\/marketing\/analytics\"><em>Source<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n<p>I\u2019ve used <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hubspot.com\/products\/marketing\">HubSpot&#8217;s Marketing Hub<\/a> to create campaign-level views that combine data from blog posts, emails, CTAs, landing pages, and ads. These reports have helped me spot what\u2019s driving results and what needs adjusting.<\/p>\n<p>Here are a few I rely on most:<\/p>\n<h4><strong>Web Traffic by Original Source<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p>I use this to see where visitors are coming from \u2014 search, email, social, etc. \u2014 and how those sources perform over time. It\u2019s invaluable for spotting which channels are most effective at turning traffic into leads or customers.<\/p>\n<p>For example, I might discover that while social media drives a lot of traffic, search engine traffic converts to leads at three times the rate. That insight completely changes how I approach content distribution strategy.<\/p>\n<h4><strong>First Conversion by Original Source\/Persona<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p>This report shows me which content offers or CTAs led to someone\u2019s first conversion \u2014 and where they came from. I also segment by persona when I can. That helps me understand which audience groups respond to different types of content.<\/p>\n<h4><strong>Contacts Funnel Report<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p>This report helps me track how leads progress through the funnel \u2014 from contact to MQL, SQL, and eventually customer. If a large percentage of leads are stalling at one stage, it usually means something\u2019s missing \u2014 like a nurture email, better content, or a clearer handoff.<\/p>\n<h4><strong>Marketing Contribution to Revenue<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p>This report is key to connecting the dots between marketing and closed revenue. I use lifecycle stages to see which leads became customers and their value. If I can tie a blog series or campaign to revenue, that\u2019s the kind of stat leadership pays attention to.<\/p>\n<h4><strong>Customer Acquisition Cost<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p>You can track customer acquisition cost in HubSpot using <a href=\"https:\/\/knowledge.hubspot.com\/properties\/create-calculation-properties\">calculated fields<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/knowledge.hubspot.com\/properties\/create-and-edit-properties\">custom properties<\/a> to show total marketing spend per new customer.<\/p>\n<p>Content marketing often comes with higher upfront costs, but over time, I\u2019ve found it leads to lower acquisition costs compared to paid channels. These closed-loop reports help me track business outcomes \u2014 not just vanity metrics. But all the insights in the world don\u2019t mean much unless you use them.<\/p>\n<p>The real value of digital marketing analytics isn\u2019t just <a href=\"https:\/\/offers.hubspot.com\/the-six-marketing-metrics-your-boss-actually-cares-about\">proving marketing\u2019s worth to leadership<\/a> \u2014 it\u2019s using those insights to <a href=\"https:\/\/community.hubspot.com\/t5\/Customer-Success-Team-Resources\/Use-HubSpot-Analytics-to-Optimize-Your-Marketing-Campaigns\/ba-p\/1117302\">optimize your performance<\/a> across every part of your system.<\/p>\n<p>With closed-loop reporting, I can also show how marketing supports sales \u2014 by delivering leads that are more likely to convert.<\/p>\n<p><a><\/a> <\/p>\n<h2 style=\"font-weight: normal\">Digital Advertising Analytics<\/h2>\n<p>I\u2019ve worked with companies that poured serious budget into paid ads \u2014 but couldn\u2019t say whether those ads were bringing in qualified leads or just clicks. And I get it. It\u2019s easy to report on impressions or cost-per-click. It\u2019s a lot harder to track what happens <em>after<\/em> someone clicks.<\/p>\n<p>According to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.businesswire.com\/news\/home\/20250602746568\/en\/Gartner-Survey-Finds-Digital-Channels-Account-for-61.1-of-Total-Marketing-Spend\">Gartner 2025 CMO Spend Survey<\/a>, digital channels now account for 61.1% of total marketing spend, with seven out of 10 sectors investing more than 60% of their budget in online channels.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" width=\"650\" height=\"566\" alt=\"a bar chart breaking down digital channel investment allocations in paid media, owned, and earned\" style=\"margin-left: auto;margin-right: auto;width: 650px;height: auto;max-width: 100%\" class=\"lazyload\" data-src=\"http:\/\/www.dietdebunker.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/a20bar20chart20breaking20down20digital20channel20investment20allocations20in20paid20media2c20owned2c20and20earned.jpg\"><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;font-size: 12px\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.businesswire.com\/news\/home\/20250602746568\/en\/Gartner-Survey-Finds-Digital-Channels-Account-for-61.1-of-Total-Marketing-Spend\"><em>Source<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n<p>But surface-level metrics like click-through rate only tell part of the story. You can\u2019t measure actual performance unless you connect ad data to outcomes \u2014 leads, customers, revenue.<\/p>\n<p>To avoid that blind spot, I always make sure our ad data connects directly to the CRM.<\/p>\n<p>One thing that surprised me early on was how differently various ad types behave. <a href=\"https:\/\/blog.hubspot.com\/marketing\/ppc\">Paid search and social media ads<\/a> might drive fast conversions, but display ads are more about visibility and long-term brand awareness. People might not click at all \u2014 but later, they\u2019ll search for your brand or come back directly. If you\u2019re only measuring direct clicks, you\u2019re missing the impact.<\/p>\n<p>The biggest shift in my <a href=\"https:\/\/blog.hubspot.com\/marketing\/digital-strategy-guide\">overall digital marketing strategy<\/a> came when I stopped treating ads as a silo. Now, I look at them as just one part of a larger, integrated marketing system. When I measure them in context \u2014 alongside content, email, and everything else \u2014 I get a much clearer picture of what\u2019s working and how to spend smarter.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"font-weight: normal\">Grow better with digital marketing analytics.<\/h2>\n<p>After more than a decade in marketing, I\u2019ve learned that traffic and clicks only tell part of the story.<\/p>\n<p>What I care about now is whether our work is creating momentum \u2014 bringing in the right leads, shortening the sales cycle, and supporting the bigger business goals. That\u2019s where digital marketing analytics come in.<\/p>\n<p>I use them to spot what\u2019s working, what\u2019s not, and where to focus next. It\u2019s less about building perfect dashboards and more about having enough clarity to make good decisions and explain them to the team (or your boss).<\/p>\n<p>For me, it starts with clear goals, simple reporting, and metrics that actually tie back to outcomes I care about \u2014 like leads, revenue, or customer retention.<\/p>\n<p>And once I can see how our efforts connect across channels, it\u2019s so much easier to plan our next steps.<\/p>\n<p><em>Editor&#8217;s note: This post was originally published in February 2019 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" alt=\"\" width=\"1\" height=\"1\" style=\"min-height:1px!important;width:1px!important;border-width:0!important;margin-top:0!important;margin-bottom:0!important;margin-right:0!important;margin-left:0!important;padding-top:0!important;padding-bottom:0!important;padding-right:0!important;padding-left:0!important\" class=\"lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/track.hubspot.com\/__ptq.gif?a=53&amp;k=14&amp;r=https%3A%2F%2Fblog.hubspot.com%2Fmarketing%2Fdigital-marketing-analytics&amp;bu=https%253A%252F%252Fblog.hubspot.com%252Fmarketing&amp;bvt=rss\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When I started in content marketing in 2013, my digital marketing analytics strategy was refreshing Google Analytics to check if page views were up. Traffic climbing meant we were winning; traffic dropping meant panic mode. Over many B2B SaaS roles, I learned that tracking traffic alone can\u2018t answer the question every exec asks: &#8220;Is our&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4406,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4404","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-marketing"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.dietdebunker.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4404","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.dietdebunker.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.dietdebunker.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.dietdebunker.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.dietdebunker.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4404"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/www.dietdebunker.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4404\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4411,"href":"http:\/\/www.dietdebunker.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4404\/revisions\/4411"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.dietdebunker.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4406"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.dietdebunker.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4404"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.dietdebunker.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4404"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.dietdebunker.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4404"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}