View counts do not pay the bills. I have watched founders celebrate a million-view video that generated zero sales, and I have watched a 3,000-view video pay for the entire marketing team that month. The metrics that matter are boring and specific.
Here are the only four numbers I track for video marketing.
1. Click-through rate from video to landing page
Of everyone who watched your video, how many clicked the link in the description, caption, or bio? This is the single best predictor of whether your video is actually persuading people to take action.
Average CTR from video to landing page: 1-3% is normal, 5% is good, 10% is exceptional. Below 1% and your video is entertaining but not converting.
The way to improve CTR is not to add more calls to action. It is to tighten the offer at the end of the video. Say exactly what they get and exactly where to click.
2. Conversion rate on the landing page
Of the people who clicked through from the video, how many actually bought or signed up? This number tells you whether your video is attracting the right audience.
If CTR is high but conversion is low, your video is attracting curious people but not buyers. Probably means your hook is too broad or entertaining without being specific about what you sell.
If CTR is low but conversion is high, your video is attracting serious buyers but not enough of them. You need to work on the hook.
3. Cost per acquired customer
Add up what you spent making the video (your time + gear + editing) and divide by the number of customers it has brought in so far. Compare that to your average customer lifetime value.
If CPA is lower than LTV, your video is making you money. If CPA is higher than LTV, it is losing you money — kill it or fix it.
Do not measure this after 7 days. Videos compound. Give it 90 days minimum before judging.
4. Compounding view rate
A video that gets 10,000 views in week one and then dies is a firework. A video that gets 500 views every week for a year is an asset. The second one is worth more.
Check your old videos every 90 days. The ones still getting views are your evergreen winners. Make more like those and let the fireworks die.
What to ignore
Likes. Comments. Shares. Subscriber count. Engagement rate. Average view duration (unless you are optimizing for the algorithm specifically — for business outcomes it is almost meaningless).
These are vanity metrics. They feel good. They tell you nothing about whether the video is driving revenue.
The simplest measurement
If you want to measure one thing: use a unique UTM link in every video description. Then every 90 days, check how many sales came from videos versus other sources. That is your video ROI in one number.
For the content that actually drives these numbers, see How to Shoot a Product Demo Video That Sells.