Source: ComScore via Ad Age

In the graph above, shown on AdAge Digital we find that YouTube views are falling.  But how can this be? After all "60 hours of video are uploaded every minute." Well, it looks like in an effort to monetize the service further, YouTube is becoming more channel driven and changing it's metrics away from views. "On March 15, YouTube altered its recommendation system to make the time spent with a video or channel a stronger indicator than a click in determining which videos to surface to a user," says Ad Age. It's no competition for Hulu yet in terms of long-form viewing, but perhaps HBO's decision to air their new programs on YouTube could be a foreshadowing of growth in this area.

So, YouTube is moving away from clicks and towards engagement. How else are we measuring our new media?

A post on Ad Age says of Web Video "You still have a large subset of the ad-buying population that is either overwhelmed by the data itself or don't think it's measurable. People do not have [video] built into their media-mix models, and I think some still don't believe there is a [gross rating point]-equivalent number they can get to. A number of different providers have been pushing GRPs, but most of the media-buying population has not been educated yet on how to plan around them. "

Social Media Today says "We are currently in the third iteration of social media, and adoption is quickly becoming more measurement-focused," noting that "An Altimeter Group report found that 70% of businesses believed social media could meet business objectives, but only 43% had a formalized strategy for how social would meet their specific business goals."

Shared on the Community 2.0 LinkedIn group was the following Infographic: User Activity on Social Networks via Web100 blog. (In keeping with our last post from Millennial Mega Mashup, we see that 26 – 44 year olds make up 50%+ of Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn & Pinterest users.) Time spent and unique users are the two key elements tracked for these stats.

A recent BIA/Kelsey U.S. Social Media Advertising Forecast predicts social ad revenues climbing from $3.8 billion to $9.8 billion citing "improvement in ad unit performance" as one of the reasons for the growth.

One of the easiest ways to see success with this social media ad spending is on the local front. As Forbes pointed out "The numbers also explain why local merchants keep coming back to the daily deal model, despite its numerous drawbacks." The mixing of social and mobile drive sales directly to stores in a very measurable manner.

The key take-aways here? Measure what matters to you (conversion rates, referrals, engagement? Find what matches your overall strategy.) Go beyond clicks to a deeper level of engagement. Play to the strengths of the medium.

What are you measuring in social media?

Michelle LeBlanc is a Social Media Strategist at IIR USA with a specialization in marketing. She may be reached at mleblanc@iirusa.com