The Studio Source.com

Image by Clyde Robinson

Once upon a time, I had a day job in a cubicle in a marketing department. The company that owned the cubicle sold professional training programs and boasted a stellar placement rate for its graduates.

What wasn’t immediately evident was the definition of placement—a six month contract or better. You’d have to read the fine print to discover that.

So you could have a gig for six months and be left pounding the pavement for the next two years. It still counted in the stats as a successful placement.

Metrics. A set of measurements that quantify results. We rely on numbers for proof—of success, credibility, or popularity.

And if you don’t know what to do with them, those numbers can really hang you up.

Avoid the metrics trap
There is a famous quote often attributed to either Mark Twain or Benjamin Disraeli. Ironically, the true origin of the quote is unknown:

“There are lies, damned lies and statistics.”

You don’t have nearly as many Twitter followers as that successful person in your stream. You don’t have thousands of subscribers to your email list or blog. You don’t have as many clients, or exhibitions, or awards as someone you admire (or resent). You don’t make as much money as that famous guy you read about everywhere.

None of that matters.

Understand what the numbers really mean
It can be tough to shrug off what appears to be hard evidence. But you have to look beyond statistics the same way you look beyond sensational headlines.

You have to think about what those metrics really represent. You need the whole story, and most importantly, how it applies to you.

As I write this, Facebook claims 500 million active users, and the average user reportedly has 130 friends. What does that mean? How active is active? Of all the Facebook fan pages, how many of those friends are clients and how many are colleagues? Who’s buying what? Do your people even use Facebook?

The numbers alone are just numbers.

Etsy allows you to favorite items and shows how many people like what you have for sale. If your buyers are moved by hearts on Etsy, you might have your eye on that number. But as a potential buyer, those little hearts mean nothing to me, because I don’t care who else likes what you sell. I care if I like it.

Make the numbers work for you
If you want to be rich, the success and reported earnings of people in your industry will be important to you. Those metrics will inspire your creativity, push you to make the best work you can, and move you to do some serious marketing. On the other hand, if they trigger feelings of “I’m not worthy,” forget them. They’ll make you crazy, and they don’t apply to you.

It’s true that a small percentage of people who read blogs will leave a comment. It’s true that only a certain number of people in your audience will become die-hard fans. Only a certain number will become repeat customers. Not all of them will buy, period.

That’s a simple fact of business. It applies to businesses everywhere.

Ultimately it’s not the grand total that counts—it’s the people those numbers represent. Instead of focusing on gathering a large herd, work on understanding your market, where to find your best buyers and how to engage them.