Measuring influencer campaigns: how to read KPIs and ROI

You measure an influencer campaign by comparing the results with the goal you set beforehand. For awareness, reach and views in the right audience count; for sales, redeemed codes and purchases through dedicated links – and for ROI you weigh both against the total costs.

Influencer marketing KPIs: which number fits which goal

There’s no single metric that applies to every campaign. If the goal was awareness, look at reach and views, ideally together with whether the audience was in the right country and age group. If the goal was interest, engagement such as comments, saves and clicks counts. If the goal was sales, redeemed codes, purchases through a dedicated link and new customers during the promotion period count. If the goal was ad content, you measure how the content performs later as an ad. If you try to optimize every number at once, in the end you won’t know what actually worked.

Which numbers you get from the creator

Many metrics are visible only to the creator in their insights, such as the reach of a Story or where the viewers are located. So ask in the brief that they send you an excerpt after an agreed period, as a screenshot for example. Specify which numbers you need and at what point, because numbers keep growing in the first days after publishing. That way you compare all creators on the same cutoff date. Publicly visible numbers such as likes and comments you can record yourself, but they tell only part of the story.

Estimating influencer marketing ROI honestly

Return on investment compares what a campaign brought in with what it cost. Everything belongs on the cost side: fees, surcharges for usage rights, products and shipping, service fees and your own working time. On the return side are measurable sales through codes and links. What’s hard to measure, such as later purchases by people who saw the post but didn’t buy right away, shouldn’t be used to pad the numbers but noted separately. Content you reuse afterwards as an ad also has value.

Comparing creators and formats

The biggest benefit of analysis lies in comparison. Which creator brought the most views in your target audience relative to their price? Which format led to more clicks, a short video or a Story with a link? Which code was redeemed most often? Calculate the cost per result for this, such as cost per thousand views or per redeemed code. These numbers say more than absolute figures because they make large and small channels comparable. Record the results so the next campaign can build on them.

Keeping track of campaigns on creatordeal

On creatordeal you group related bookings under one campaign name. The campaign overview shows the time period, number of creators, bookings and spend, gross and net, for each campaign – so the cost side of your analysis is already there. After publishing, the creator sends the link to the post; the delivered links stay attached to the booking. The post’s stats themselves come from the platform in question, which is why asking for an excerpt belongs in the brief. When the job is done you rate the creator, and you put candidates for the next round on a wishlist.

Questions

Frequently asked.

Key answers at a glance. Everything else is in the guides and in the FAQ.

How do I measure an influencer campaign?

Measure the results against the goal you set beforehand, and compare creators by cost per result, such as per thousand views or per redeemed code.

Which KPIs matter in influencer marketing?

That depends on the goal: reach and views for awareness, engagement and clicks for interest, redeemed codes and purchases for sales.

How do I calculate influencer marketing ROI?

Weigh the measurable return, such as revenue through codes and links, against the total costs: fees, usage rights, products, shipping, service fees and working time.

Where do I get the stats for an influencer post?

From the creator, because many numbers are visible only in their account. Agree in the brief which numbers they’ll send you and when.

When should I collect the numbers?

On a fixed cutoff date after publishing, the same for all creators. Posts keep picking up views in the first days, so early numbers aren’t comparable.

Pick a better lineup for the next round

Search creators by audience and engagement rate – and collect them on your wishlist.

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