Choose video marketing metrics before the shoot. Start with the action you want from the viewer, name the report that can measure it, and agree who will check the result. Give the production team a specific question to work on, such as whether viewers reach the product demonstration or follow the link to the next step.
This worksheet is for brand teams and agency partners preparing a video brief. Use one copy per placement or version you need to assess. It contains planning prompts, not performance benchmarks or client results.
Give each video a clear job
Write the audience, the message and the next action in one sentence. “Help buyers understand how the product works before they request a demonstration” is a usable starting point. Then decide what evidence would help your team judge that job.
Separate what you can observe from what you still need to find out. Watching a product explanation does not establish that someone understood it. A recorded form submission does not establish that the enquiry is suitable. Pair the video report with a comprehension check or a review of the actual enquiries when those are the questions you need answered.
For a social campaign, name the platform, placement and versions in the brief. Our social media video production page explains how those choices shape the shoot and delivery files.
Choose a metric that answers the question
Keep the platform's metric name and definition beside the number. Before comparing two reports, ask the reporting owner to confirm what each counts and which audience it includes. A percentage needs its denominator: clicks divided by impressions and enquiries divided by website sessions answer different questions.
| Question to investigate | Evidence to request | What to check before using it |
|---|---|---|
| Did the placement deliver the video? | The platform's delivery or view report | Exact definition, paid or organic placement, audience and date range |
| Did viewers stay for the main point? | A retention report for that video, where available | The time of the demonstration or message, traffic mix and comparable video length |
| Did people take the next step? | The relevant link-click report and website event report | Destination, event trigger and which traffic source the report describes |
| Did useful enquiries arrive? | Actual enquiry records reviewed by the responsible team | Test or duplicate entries, qualification criteria and the limits of source attribution |
On YouTube, the audience retention report shows how attention changes through an individual video. A dip can indicate skipping or leaving; a spike may involve rewatching. Watch the corresponding section before deciding what to change. The graph alone cannot tell you why every viewer acted.
In Google Analytics, an event must measure the intended interaction and be marked as a key event to appear as one. Google's key event guidance also explains that marking an event does not change historical data. Ask the analytics owner to test the intended action before release and record when measurement started.
Complete the measurement worksheet
Copy this blank worksheet into your project brief and fill it in with the people responsible for publishing and reporting. Keep an unanswered field visible until someone owns it.
| Field | Your entry |
|---|---|
| Video version and final filename | [Complete with your team] |
| Audience, platform and placement | [Complete with your team] |
| Viewer action or question to investigate | [Complete with your team] |
| Primary metric, definition and denominator | [Complete with your team] |
| Report, filters and person responsible | [Complete with your team] |
| Tracking check and measurement start date | [Complete with your team] |
| Baseline or comparison, including its limits | [Complete with your team] |
| Reporting window, time zone and review date | [Complete with your team] |
| Known gaps or other campaign changes | [Complete with your team] |
| Decision the result will inform | [Complete with your team] |
If there is no suitable baseline, write that down and treat the first release as an initial observation. Do not fill the space with an unsourced industry average. Agree with the reporting owner what volume and observation period would support the decision, and mark early or incomplete results as provisional.
Make the comparison fair enough to use
Record the video length, audience, placement, spend and dates alongside each version. Keep paid and organic results separate when the question requires it. If several things change between releases, list them before attributing a difference to the edit.
Google Analytics distinguishes first-user, session and event scopes in its traffic-source reports. Confirm which scope you are reading. The channel that first brought someone to the site and the source of a later session can answer different questions.
Keep reporting credit separate from a claim that the video caused a sale. If proving an incremental effect is the objective, ask the measurement team to design the comparison before production. This worksheet does not establish a causal test.
Turn the review into a production decision
Bring the report and the exact video version to the review. Watch the opening, demonstration and call to action together. Describe what the data shows, what remains uncertain and the change you want to examine next.
- If viewers leave before a useful demonstration, consider a version that introduces it earlier. Keep other planned differences documented.
- If clicks lead to few recorded enquiries, ask the website and reporting owners to check the destination and event collection before rewriting the video.
- If enquiries arrive but do not fit the offer, review their actual questions with the team handling them before changing the message.
Name the additional edit, length or opening you need and add it to the production scope. The video pricing and scope guide provides a worksheet for comparing those requirements in an estimate.
Assign owners for production, posting, media buying and analytics. Viva Media's social production scope covers the agreed videos and versions; account management, media buying and tracking are separate unless included in writing.
Originally published under Matthew Watts's byline on November 23, 2023. This substantive revision was prepared and checked by Viva Media with AI assistance. The original publication record is retained; the revision does not imply Matthew personally reviewed it.
