Engagement metrics are quantitative methods used to track the frequency of user interaction and the value that an audience receives from a product or service.
In this customer-centric business, B2B SaaS companies need to have their finger on the pulse of the customers that fuel their revenue — from their first contact as a potential lead through to a long-term customer. This entails capturing a range of feedback and insight into how potential and current customers view their platform, how and when they interact with it, their feelings about their experience, how likely they are to share their experience with their peers and the value they derive from your product.
This concept of value is ultimately what engagement metrics are trying to measure, capturing how successfully customers are using your platform not only so they have a positive experience, but also because it leads to deeper loyalty over time.
What are some of the key user engagement metrics?
While financial, sales and marketing metrics are second nature in today’s connected economy, user engagement metrics can be a bit more difficult to understand and implement. But if you just remember that they are used to help your company focus on “winning, serving and retaining customers” so your brand has true staying power, it can be easier to wrap your mind around.
As an example, here are some initial key user engagement metrics:
- Product Engagement Score: This score can utilize a wide range of inputs (i.e., features, tools, dashboards, reports, etc.) and consolidate them to create a value that demonstrates how much a customer is using your platform. The higher the score, the better.
- Active Accounts: This figure, which tells you how many of the available users within a customer organization are actively utilizing your SaaS platform, is straightforward, but still helpful to identify trends. A drop-off over time should sound alarms.
- Product Adoption Rate: You know just how broad and deep your platform can deliver, but does your customer see it the same way? This figure tells you the percentage of product features your customer is using in a given time period.
- Usage Frequency: This is another point-in-time metric that tells you how often and when an account is used within a certain time period. A low value is a strong indication that your customer relationship is at risk.
Why are user engagement metrics important?
We have all heard the adage, “You are only as good as your last performance.” However, there is a bit more to it than that when it comes to SaaS platforms delivering for their customers.
User engagement metrics are valuable tools to provide an objective analysis of a customer’s overall experience with your platform and how ingrained your services are into the everyday workflow, especially when they are viewed together. They help to track and monitor the metrics listed earlier, identifying trends and even helping to flag when churn may occur before the thought has entered your customer’s mind.
Based on the story that the user engagement metrics are telling, your team can refine features, streamlining the user experience, and nurture new and existing relationships with customers based on detailed knowledge of how they are utilizing your products and services. Your team will be armed with data that objectively points to how, when, why and with what features your customers are using, helping to drive tactical decisions in the short term and steer long-term strategy for your products.
