Entrepreneurs wanting to leverage social media business data may find it difficult to compete against larger, better-financed businesses armed with analysts who acquire and interpret such information. Last December’s beta launch of SumAll Social Metrics from SumAll, a New York-based data visualization company, has helped to level the playing field. The analytics tool links companies’ Facebook fan pages, Twitter and eBay accounts, as well as five other platforms, enabling owners and managers to track social activity against web traffic and revenue. The tool enables businesses to measure the true return of their social marketing efforts.
“SumAll Social Metrics addresses both data retrieval and interpretation, not only capturing numbers and statistics, but also providing daily user insights about leveraging this information to generate higher revenues,” says Dane Atkinson, SumAll’s CEO. “Numbers themselves don’t draw a clear picture regarding website visitors’ or Facebook fans’ behavior. SumAll delivers information that establishes clear links between fans and followers, website traffic and sales data. “By measuring how, or if, social traffic converts to new users and new revenue, business owners have the actionable insights they need to make the most profitable decisions,” Atkinson notes.
Users sign up for the free beta program with a single mouse click, connecting business data with the desired platform. In minutes, their information populates an automatically generated real-time chart, giving decision makers what they need to quickly make the best choices. Small business owners don’t require engineering degrees to accurately interpret SumAll’s charts and take action based on captured data. Additionally, the program’s live news feed daily provides insightful updates about how to maximize revenues.
More than 10,000 businesses have signed up for the data analytics tool, using SumAll an average of 40 minutes per day to track more than $1 billion in ecommerce data about social media marketing effectiveness. Among other metrics, the program measures new-versus-returning customers, revenue and overall website traffic. A filtering capability highlights the most valuable types of customer groups for optimal allocation of marketing dollars. Side-by-side charts depicting revenue data and social activity clearly illustrate overall social media campaign effectiveness.
The company’s analysts, engineers and designers continue to roll out new integrations every three weeks or so. If a small business’ payment or social platform isn’t yet available, it soon could be. “Our goal is to eventually have every piece of information visible in our tool,” Atkinson stresses. “This will make SumAll the number one destination for owners to empower their business by arming themselves with the greatest tool of all: knowledge.”