Using analytics to understand your fanbase
Analysing your social media analytics is one of the most effective ways out there to learn more about the demographic of your fanbase. Through looking into the kind of people who are engaging with your content, you can discover exactly who you should be targeting when advertising. One of the best ways to analyse your fanbase is to look at the analytics behind your social channels. Each individual platform can tell you a lot of information about the people engaging with your page, and they all offer different statistics. We’ve taken a look at the three major social media platforms and the analytics they offer behind the scenes.
Facebook offers a wide array of statistics, enabling you to really understand your demographic. The general overview displays data on the total number of page views and previews, showing a graph to detail whether your views are on the rise or decreasing. With all of the data, you are also able to see a percentage increase or decrease, allowing you to see whether or not your page is improving over time. You will be able to see your page likes and reach, and whether these have increased or decreased. If you are promoting any posts, you will be able to see which proportion of the engagement generated originated from paid content, and which was gained organically (without any spending). Further down the page, Facebook also offers a detailed list of the engagement on your recent posts, giving a clear view as to which of your posts performed well, so would benefit the most from an input of budget.
To look closer at the demographic of those who like your Facebook page, clicking on the ‘people’ section will give you an overview. The page offers statistics on which gender your followers are, how old they are, where they are from and what language they speak. These details are enough to have an impact on how you market your content, and should enable you to understand your fanbase slightly better. If a high majority of your fans speak a certain language, you may want to consider posting specifically in that language, or involving that region in a promotion. The data surrounding which country most of your followers are from is valuable when scheduling posts. If most of your followers are from the US, you will want to choose a posting time that is suitable for their time zone. Looking at the gender of your followers and the most common age range is also invaluable when tailoring your content to your audience. You should constantly keep your audience in mind, and always be specifically targeting your content towards their specific needs.
Twitter offers an even more in-depth view on your demographic. The level of detail you can find out about your following is truly staggering, and can help you a great deal in understanding your fanbase. Like Facebook, Twitter also allows you to see the split between male and female followers, language spoken, and country/region of origin. However, Twitter does not offer data around the age of your followers, most likely due to users not needing to give their age when signing up.
As well as the basic details, Twitter even offers data on the interests of those who follow you. You can track what percentage of your following likes a variety of subjects including; ‘comedy’, ‘celebrity fan and gossip’, ‘fashion’, ‘sports news’, ‘music news and general info’. You can even track the household income of your followers, which may be helpful when deciding whether to market high-end merchandise to your fans or affordable items instead. Although this may not be helpful data for musicians, you can also see which TV genre is the most popular with your audience. Lastly, you can see which food items are most commonly purchased by your following. Although this is not musically relevant, it may aid you in better understanding your fanbase.
Out of the three platforms, Instagram definitely has the most limited insights to offer when looking closer at your demographic. Instagram offers data on the gender breakdown, most popular age range, and most common location. Although this data is not in-depth, it still could prove useful when planning a campaign. Looking at which gender most commonly follows your account is helpful for knowing who to target your content towards, and knowing the location of your followers is ideal for scheduling posts. Always make sure to schedule your most important content for when most of your followers will be online and active. Instagram offers further data on when your followers are most active, offering a graph to illustrate the times of day and days of the week that are most fruitful times to post.
Looking at your analytics is a vital aspect of planning a successful campaign. Researching your demographic and ascertaining exactly who to target your content towards can prove invaluable in generating more engagement. Prior planning is key, and knowing exactly who to target will make your content even more successful. It is also vital to go back and look at how much engagement previous posts generated, this can give you a key insight into what works and what doesn’t. Analysing previous response rates can also prove vital in ascertaining which time of day you should be posting. Looking back at your demographic and your previous engagement levels can be key in optimising your content, so always make sure to do prior research in order to generate the best results.