Facebook has always given a wide variety of metrics for advertisers to analyse and improve their results.
However, there are some powerful metrics they missed off their list – some of which even had to be measured on external reporting softwares such as Google Analytics or System X.
If you haven’t used them before, don’t worry.
In this article, we will show you how to access these secret ad metrics, what they mean for your business, and why we use them in our campaigns.
What Are Custom Metrics?
Custom metrics help you analyse your data and diagnose issues within your facebook ad funnel. They are used in the same way that standard metrics are, however, we can get really specific with the type of data we want to see.
How to create your custom metric:
- Open Ads Manager
- On the right hand side, click columns
- In the drop down menu, click customise columns
- At the top of this menu, click Create Custom Metric
Once you are here, you’ll be able to see the interface in which you can create the custom metrics shown in this article.
When your columns and custom metrics are in place, you’ll be able to:
- Measure the conversion rate of an event
- Measure how much you earn for every click
- Measure what your average order is worth
Plus the many more situations where custom metrics are useful, but you get the jist.
6 Facebook Ads Custom Metrics
If you’re in ecommerce, you know how important it is to have a deep understanding of your performance and spend efficiency across your funnel. From the moment the customer sees your brand for the first time, until the moment they make a purchase, the data you have on these users’ behaviour can reveal some issues that could be a bottleneck to your business.
So what are some of these metrics you can create?
Click Drop Off
Facebook allows us to see data on click activity such as Click Through Rate and Cost Per (Unique) Click. But of what use is a click if the user does not arrive at the landing page?
Calculating the Click Drop Off allows you to see what percentage of clicks reach your landing page. If this is too high, it can point towards issues in your tracking or page load speed[Link].
Think about this, if only 30% of all clicks actually reach your landing page then the other 70% is ad spend completely wasted.
This metric will tell you what percentage of clicks do not reach the landing page.
Average Order Value
The Average Order Value is one of the most important KPIs to track in any ecommerce business. It shows you, on average, the amount that each customer spends at your store.
So be aware of how much you spend in total per sale. If the average order value is lower than the average cost per sale, you’re most likely not making a profit.
You can combine this data with the knowledge of your breakeven CPA to ensure your profitability in the long run. Calculate your breakeven metrics here for free.
However you can easily create the custom metric for Average Order Value as shown below.
Cart Drop Off
Another great metric to use to monitor website performance is the Cart Drop Off Rate.
As an agency, we’ve all had those clients that make website changes without telling you. If you spot a sudden increase in this rate, you may want to dig deeper with your client to find out why and what’s changed.
And as an ecommerce business owner, it’s always a good idea to know how your website changes affect the performance of your website.
It could also indicate there are issues with your page, message, or offer.
Revenue Per Click
Facebook has a built-in metric for Cost Per Click, it tells you how much it costs each time a user clicks on your ad. On the flip side, we can find out how much we earn for every click.
Used alongside other metrics, this can be a really useful piece of data that can help you decide whether you are in the position to scale your ads.
Conversion Rate
This metric is on every ecommerce store owner’s radar, yet it surprisingly isn’t part of Facebook’s built-in metrics.
This metric will tell you what percentage of website visitors became customers and we can calculate it by dividing the number of page views by the number of purchases.
It is best practice to use Unique Page Views, however with the new updates to the Facebook Advertising platform, this can be harder to track.
If you’re not sure what a good conversion rate looks like, you can see the industry average here
What’s Next?
Custom Metrics are a powerful feature that enables you to view data you wouldn’t normally be able to through built-in metrics on Facebook. They can help you gain a deeper understanding of your website and funnel and give you clues as to where you can improve and when you can scale.
What’s your favourite metric from this list?
