{"id":90736,"date":"2022-04-14T16:28:25","date_gmt":"2022-04-14T06:28:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/problogger.com\/?p=90736"},"modified":"2022-04-14T16:28:25","modified_gmt":"2022-04-14T06:28:25","slug":"blog-metrics-vanity-stats","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/problogger.com\/blog-metrics-vanity-stats\/","title":{"rendered":"Blog Metrics: Why You Need to Stop Focusing on ‘Vanity’ Stats"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Photo by olieman.eth on Unsplash<\/p><\/div>\n

While having lots of page views, sessions, fans, followers and even email subscribers may feel good, they don\u2019t actually tell you anything about the health of your blog.<\/p>\n

At a previous ProBlogger Mastermind<\/a><\/span>, I shared a slide that seemed to hit a nerve with the group.<\/p>\n

\"Blog<\/p>\n

I included this in my Mastermind session after having several conversations with bloggers that all started something like this: “Traffic is growing, and so is my social following and email list. But I’m not making any money\u201d.<\/p>\n

For many, the monetization emptiness came from focusing on certain results and metrics (such as those I just mentioned) that sounded great, but had very little bearing on actual monetary return.<\/p>\n

Vanity over actionable metrics isn’t a new thing.<\/h2>\n

The idea of measuring the metrics that matter has been around for a while. People like Neil Patel<\/a><\/span>\u00a0have made their names and built successful companies<\/a><\/span>\u00a0through challenging us to think more deeply about the \u2018Why?\u2019 behind our numbers. Today, action-driven data is available to everyone doing business online \u2013 including bloggers \u2013 so there’s no excuse for not using it.<\/p>\n

But rather than leaping into the depth of data, I recommend you begin with small steps.<\/p>\n

Define your North Star Metric, and what might influence it<\/h3>\n

Time is the enemy of most bloggers just starting out, and so focus is critical. A North Star Metric gives you one thing to care about above everything else.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo uncover your North Star Metric you must understand the value your most loyal customers get from using your product. Then you should try to quantify this value in a single metric.\u201d \u2013 Sean Ellis<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Your North Star Metric should be a metric that will directly improve the health and prosperity of your blog.<\/p>\n

Start asking better questions<\/h3>\n

It\u2019s time to start ignoring what Google Analytics thinks you want to know. Instead, think about the real value you\u2019re trying to give a reader (your North Star), and what observable actions they might take that will show how good a job you\u2019re doing getting them there.<\/p>\n

For example, if your blog teaches others how to run a successful blog, what short- and long-term behaviors would you expect to see from someone you\u2019re actually<\/span>\u00a0teaching?<\/p>\n

They could be basic things such as, how does someone…<\/p>\n