Yesterday I wrote a blog post that “worked.”  It immediately got feedback on social media.  People engaged and commented and shared the blog.  Today I looked at the numbers on Google Analytics and they told the same story.  The numbers were measurably better than the day before.  It was a success…I think.

The numbers were up.  But did it serve anyone?

It’s one of the challenges I have with the ego-driven metrics around content and social.  If the numbers are up, then it must have been a good post.  In a vacuum that is great.  But if we obsess over the metrics (and I admit that I sometimes do) it makes us chase the wrong thing.  I might start to think, “Okay, that post worked.  So how can I create another like that one?”  If that one was popular, then a similar one might be popular too.

That is the wrong question.

A different way to view it might be “That topic served my audience.  Can I write something similar that will serve as well?”  It’s not a huge shift, but I think it’s an important one.  In addition, does that make my other posts bad?  The numbers on the blog before (or this one) will not be as high.  Does this mean they suck?  It’s easy to get caught up chasing the metrics, but I think that moves you away from the goal.

Regardless of the goal, reconnecting to the mission is important.  Why are you doing this?  What are you trying to do?  Who are you trying to serve?  When we are frustrated or lost, those questions can reconnect us to the mission.

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Kirby Hasseman is the CEO of Hasseman Marketing, a full-service marketing agency located in Ohio.  Learn more about Hasseman Marketing here.  And if you are interested in having him speak at your next event, you can learn more here.