How do you measure the performance of a campaign with an artist?
A campaign is not judged by a single metric. The right metrics depend on the goal, the format, the channel and the data actually available.
Measurement starts before publication. If the goal is not defined, teams risk cherry-picking the most flattering figures afterwards without knowing what they actually prove.
Tie every metric to a goal
For an awareness campaign, reach, impressions, on-target coverage and frequency can be useful. For an attention campaign, look more at watch time, completion rate or qualitative interactions. For an action campaign, traffic, sign-ups, sales or the use of a code become more important.
Distinguish the families of KPIs
Visibility
- reach;
- impressions;
- views;
- frequency;
- coverage by platform.
Attention and engagement
- watch time;
- completion rate;
- likes, comments, shares and saves;
- story replies;
- live participation.
Action
- clicks;
- visits;
- sign-ups;
- use of a code;
- attributable sales when measurement is available.
Creative and relationship value
- quality of the content produced;
- reusability;
- comments and perception;
- learnings;
- potential to extend the partnership.
Do not add up incompatible metrics
A TikTok view, an Instagram impression and an average Twitch viewer do not describe the same thing. Metrics must stay attached to their platform, their definition, their period and their source.
You must also distinguish missing data from a nil result. If a platform does not provide a metric, or if the data was not collected, you cannot conclude that the campaign produced zero results.
Factor in paid media
An amplified campaign must separate organic from paid performance. The media budget, the targeting, the creative used and the distribution account strongly influence the results. Attributing all performance to the artist alone would give a misleading reading.
Compare with caution
Benchmarks are useful if the format, platform, period and goal are comparable. A short conversion piece should not be judged like an awareness film. A first collaboration also does not have the same recognition capital as an established partnership.
Turn the review into learning
The review should answer three questions: what did we expect, what did we observe, and what should we change next time? This structure avoids confusing a signal, a hypothesis and a conclusion.
NOWAVE defines the metrics with the client based on the goal and the accessible data, then places the results back in their creative, media and commercial context.