What does a Performance Manager do?

A Performance Manager needs a combination of technical and business skills as well as relevant experience to succeed in the field. Here are some of the most important skills and experiences that a Performance Manager should possess:

Digital Marketing: A solid understanding of digital marketing strategies, channels and tools, such as SEO, SEM, PPC, social media and email marketing.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO): Expert knowledge of SEO principles and best practices, including on-page, off-page and technical SEO, as well as experience in implementing and monitoring SEO strategies.

Data analysis and reporting: Ability to collect, analyze and interpret data from various sources, such as Google Analytics, and use it to make data-driven decisions and optimize performance.

Conversion Optimization: Experience in using A/B testing, user behavior and web analytics to identify and implement improvements that increase conversion rates.

Project management and collaboration: Skill in leading and coordinating projects, and working together with different departments and teams to ensure that performance goals are achieved.

Budget management and ROI optimization: Experience in managing budgets and resource allocation to maximize the return on investments in digital marketing initiatives.

Technical skills: Understanding technical aspects such as website speed, responsive design, security and web development languages (t.ex. HTML, CSS och JavaScript).

Communication and presentation: Strong communication and presentation skills to effectively report results, explain strategies, and collaborate with colleagues and management.

Creativity and problem solving: Ability to think creatively and solve problems to find new and innovative ways to improve website performance and conversion rates.

In addition to these skills and experiences, it is important for a Performance Manager to be up-to-date about the latest trends and best practices in digital marketing and SEO. This includes participating in industry training, networking and conferences, as well as following leading industry experts and publications.

A Performance Manager uses a range of tools and techniques to perform its tasks efficiently and ensure that digital strategies and campaigns perform optimally. Here are some of the most useful and popular tools and techniques in the field:

Web Analysis Tools: Google Analytics, Adobe Analytics and other web analytics tools are used to collect and analyze data about website traffic, user behavior and conversions. Tools such as Ahrefs, SEMrush, Moz and Google Search Console help perform keyword research, analyze competitors, monitor rankings, and optimize site structure and content for search engines.

Conversion Optimization Tools: Platforms such as Optimizely, VWO and Google Optimize are used to create and implement A/B testing, multivariable testing and personalization to improve conversion rates.

Advertising platforms: Google Ads, Facebook Ads Manager and other advertising platforms are used to create, optimize and monitor paid search and display campaigns.

CRM systems: Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems such as Salesforce, HubSpot and Microsoft Dynamics are used to manage customer information, segment target audiences, and measure performance for marketing and sales initiatives. Platforms such as Marketo, Pardot and HubSpot are used to automate and optimize email campaigns, lead nurturing and customer communication.

Social media management tools: Tools such as Hootsuite, Buffer and Sprout Social are used to schedule, monitor and optimize social media posts and campaigns. Solutions like Hotjar and Crazy Egg help visualize user behavior and identify areas of the website that can be improved to increase conversions and engagement. Trello, Asana and Monday.com are used to organize and track projects, tasks and collaboration between teams and departments.

Reporting and visualization: Tools such as Google Data Studio, Tableau and Microsoft Power BI are used to create custom reports and dashboards to visualize and present data and insights.

It is important for a Performance Manager to have good knowledge of these tools and techniques and to be able to adapt to new and changing platforms and practices to maintain high efficiency and improve the performance of digital channels and campaigns.

A Performance Manager measures and analyzes a range of metrics to evaluate and optimize the performance of digital channels and campaigns. Here are some of the most common metrics used in the field:

Organic traffic: The number of visitors coming to the site via organic search results, which is an indicator of the site’s visibility and ranking in search engines.

Paid traffic sources: The number of visitors coming from paid ads such as Google Ads and social media ads to evaluate the effectiveness of paid campaigns.

Click Rate (CTR): The percentage of people who click on an ad, search results or link in relation to the total number of views, indicating how engaging and relevant the content is.

Conversion Rate (CVR): The percentage of visitors who perform a desired action, such as making a purchase, registering for a newsletter or filling out a contact form, which is an important indicator of the website’s efficiency and user experience.

Cost per click (CPC): The average cost of each click on a paid ad, which helps to monitor and optimize the budget for paid campaigns.

Cost per conversion (CPA): The average cost of acquiring a customer, lead or other desired action through paid ads, which is a key metric for measuring the return on investment (ROI) in digital campaigns.

Average Order Size (AOV): The average amount a customer spends on each purchase, which helps measure sales performance and identify opportunities to increase revenue.

Customer acquisition cost (CAC): The total cost of acquiring a new customer, including marketing and sales costs, which is an important indicator of the effectiveness of marketing strategies and customer relationships.

Lifetime Value (LTV): The total revenue that a customer generates throughout their lifetime as a customer, which helps to measure the profitability of customer relationships and balance investments in customer acquisition and maintenance.

Bounce rate: The percentage of visitors who leave the site after viewing only one page, indicating user experience, page relevance and engagement levels.

A Performance Manager often collaborates with different competencies and teams within the organization to ensure that the digital strategies and campaigns the desired goals and are well integrated with the company’s overall goals. Here are some of the key skills and teams that a Performance Manager works with:

Marketing team: Performance Managers collaborates with marketing colleagues, including content creators, social media managers and email marketing experts, to ensure that digital campaigns are coordinated and effective. They work closely with SEO and SEM experts to optimize the content and structure of the website, as well as to improve visibility and ranking in the search engines.

Web developers and designers: Performance Managers works with web developers and designers to ensure that website technical aspects, such as speed, responsive design and user experience, are optimized to drive traffic and conversions.

Product Team: They work with product managers and developers to ensure that digital campaigns and strategies are tailored to the company’s product range and that they meet customers’ needs and expectations.

Data analysts and BI specialists: Performance Managers collaborates with data analysts and business intelligence (BI) experts to collect, analyze and interpret data, as well as to make data-driven decisions and improve performance.

Sales team: They coordinate with the sales team to ensure that digital campaigns and strategies generate leads and customer conversions, and that they support the company’s sales goals.

Customer Service Team: Performance Managers works with customer service teams to ensure that customer feedback and insights are taken into account when designing and optimizing digital campaigns and strategies.

Management and decision makers: They report to management and decision makers on performance measures, insights and recommendations to ensure that digital initiatives are aligned with the company’s overall goals and strategies.

To succeed in their role, a Performance Manager must have strong communication and collaborative skills as well as the ability to work effectively across departments and with different competences and teams. This means being able to understand and communicate the unique requirements and goals of each team and coordinate efforts to common performance goals.