Compare organic and paid performance

Compare content (organic and paid) and campaigns using social network metrics, custom metrics, and web analytics data to identify the tactics that drive your success on social.

Before you begin

Make sure you’ve connected your social accounts and ad accounts to Hootsuite. To learn more, see Connect a social account to Hootsuite.

Create a content comparison report

Define a baseline

Content comparison lets you set your own benchmark to compare against, helping identify posts, ads, and activities that drive the highest engagement, traffic, and return on your investment.

Start by defining your own baseline. A baseline provides the reference points against which you compare posts, ads, campaigns, and more. You can add up to three comparisons to analyze results side by side.

Analytics sets up a default baseline for you if you have connected at least one social network and account.

1. Select Edit baseline.
   
2. Select the social accounts and ad accounts you want to analyze, and then select Apply.
3. Select and set your date range.

• Select filters to customize the data displayed. For example, you can display results for specific post types, ad types, campaigns, tags, and more. Available filters depend on the selected social network and account.
• Select Apply.

Note: You cannot delete the baseline. To modify it, select Edit baseline, and then choose different accounts, date ranges, or filters.

Compare content performance data

You can compare the baseline against three additional sets of performance data. For example, you might want to compare results for a campaign across social networks or time frames.

1. Select Add comparison.
2. Select the accounts you want to compare against the baseline, and then select Apply.
3. Select a date range, and then select Set.

• Select filters to customize the data displayed. For example, you can display results for specific post types, ad types, campaigns, tags and more. The filters available depend on the selected social network and account.
• Select Apply.

Edit or delete a comparison

You can edit or delete any comparison in your view.

1. Select More actions.
2. Select Edit or Remove.
   

Customize your view

You can customize the data displayed in your view. For example, you can choose which metrics to compare. You can also group metrics by customer journey stage (that is, the different stages that people go through when they interact with a brand).

You also have the option to display an expanded list of all metrics or only cross-network metrics (that is, metrics that overlap across social networks).

Add or remove metrics

You can quickly search for a metric in your view. Enter a metric name into the search field to view data for it.

You can also add more metrics or remove the ones you don’t want to measure.

1. In Content comparison, select Select metrics.
2. Select the metrics to display or remove from your view. For a description of each metric, see Metrics in Analytics.
   
   Tip: You can also view Google and Adobe Analytics metrics and goals.
3. Select Apply.

Choose how to display your data

Choose the data you want to see in your view and how you want Analytics to display it so it’s easier to understand.

1. In Content comparison, select Settings.
2. Select from the following options to display your data:
   • Turn on View as charts to display your data in a line chart.
   • Turn on Group into journey stages to group cross-network metrics into the following customer journey stages: affinity, awareness, consumption, conversation, intent. Enabling this option helps you measure interaction during each stage and find out how your social strategy contributes to your business goals. To learn more about customer journey stages, see Metrics in Analytics.
   • Turn on View cross-network metrics only to display only metrics that overlap across social networks. This helps you compare similar metrics and quickly identify which accounts and content drive the highest engagement and results. See the following section for the list of cross-network metrics and their descriptions.

Cross-network metrics in content comparison

Note: If you select more than one social network, Analytics will display the total value of a cross-network metric across all of those networks.

Review the list of cross-network metrics, along with the metrics they correspond to for each social network. To learn more about each social network’s metrics and what they mean, see Metrics in Analytics.

Reactions/Likes

• Post likes - Instagram Business, X, TikTok, YouTube
• Post reactions - Facebook, LinkedIn
• Likes - Facebook & Instagram ads, LinkedIn ads, X ads

Impressions

• Post impressions - Facebook, Instagram Business, LinkedIn, X, Pinterest
• Impressions - Facebook & Instagram ads, LinkedIn ads, X ads

No equivalent metric for YouTube.

Video plays

• Post video plays - Facebook
• Post video views - Instagram Business, LinkedIn, X, TikTok, YouTube, Pinterest
• 3-second video plays - Facebook & Instagram ads
• Video plays - LinkedIn ads
• Video total views - X ads

Post engagement

• Post engagement - Instagram Business, X, Facebook & Instagram ads
• Total engagement - LinkedIn ads
• Engagements - X ads

No equivalent metrics for Facebook, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and YouTube.

Comments/Replies

• Post comments - Facebook, Instagram Business, LinkedIn, TikTok, YouTube
• Post replies - X
• Comments - Facebook & Instagram ads, LinkedIn ads

Shares

• Post shares - Facebook, LinkedIn, TikTok, YouTube
• Reposts - X, X ads
• Shares - LinkedIn ads
• Replies - X ads

No equivalent metrics for Instagram Business and Facebook & Instagram ads.

Clicks

• Post clicks - Facebook, LinkedIn
• Post pin clicks - Pinterest
• Post engagements - X
• Clicks (all) - Facebook & Instagram ads
• Clicks - LinkedIn ads, X ads

No equivalent metrics for Instagram Business and YouTube.

URL clicks

• Post link clicks - Facebook
• Post outbound clicks - Pinterest
• Link clicks - X, Facebook & Instagram ads, LinkedIn ads
• URL clicks - X ads

No equivalent metrics for Instagram Business, LinkedIn, and YouTube.

Spend (Ads only)

• Amount spent - Facebook & Instagram ads
• Cost in local currency - LinkedIn ads
• Spend - X ads

Return (Ads only)

• Purchase ROAS - Facebook & Instagram ads
• Conversion value in local currency - LinkedIn ads

Export your data comparison view

Select PDF Export to export your data to PDF. The export includes all the data in your view based on your selected options and filters.