Building a new business is a lot of work. Going from idea to implementation and then tying everything together can seem equally rewarding and daunting. One thing you definitely don’t want to do is waste additional time focusing on the wrong metrics when trying to build your business.

Successful business owners are often known for one to two main things, and they don’t waste time trying to focus on everything at once. So let’s talk about creating a business that specifically highlights and utilizes your expertise to help others. Which metrics should you track when you’re building a business around your expertise?

First, own the fact that you’re a thought leader

If you’re building a business based on your experience and ability to help people get the results they want in a particular area of their lives, you’re a thought leader. Own it and embrace it. As a thought leader, the most valuable asset you have is yourself. I see too many thought leaders get caught up in the affiliate marketing or display ads game.

Yes, it’s tempting to want to earn money from your website with affiliates, but it’s also a lot of work. Affiliate marketing requires that you grow your page views and get more clicks to your trackable affiliate links. You’re essentially helping a company sell a product and getting paid when you successfully refer someone.

With a business built around your expertise, your main focus should be communicating your value and helping clients solve problems. Don’t get me wrong, I earn some money from affiliate marketing at times and tie it into my business but it’s more of an after-thought. It’s the same thing with display advertising.

You may earn a few pennies on the dollar (depending on page views and other metrics) when everything is said and done. Plus, a website littered with display ads could take away from your authority as an expert in your niche.

As a thought leader, it’s important to realize that people are buying you and your expertise. You don’t need to think about traffic, page views, or companies to promote for that matter.

Keep going

Keep Going by Austin Kleon is one of my favorite books and you can likely read it in on sitting. In it, the author shares 10 key ways to unlock your creativity and keep putting out work consistently. This is how you build authority and your business as a thought leader.

I saw on Twitter that Austin Kleon doesn’t even have Google Analytics which sounds a little crazy in this day and age. However, it credits the fact that’s he’s zoning in on the important metrics to focus on is his business and identifying that can be tossed to the wayside for now.

As someone who’s building a service-based business around my thoughts and ideas, I don’t have to play the traffic game and download tons of plugins to see which things I’m ranking for. My guess is you don’t need to do this either if your business is similar. Pageviews aren’t paying the bills.

Metrics that matter

If you want to focus on metrics, I’d recommend focusing on income and revenue. Keep creating content that you need to tell your audience to help them.

If you have an email list, this can be an important metric to track since you have more control over the messages you send out and how you interact with your list. Unlike a social media following, your email list is something that you own completely without restrictions.

Make sure you’re talking to your list and emailing clients and prospects directly. Build your list thoughtfully and don’t get caught up in metrics that don’t move the needle for you because all it does it make you feel like you’re doing work. When you’re growing a business based on your expertise and what you know is your calling, it shouldn’t have to feel like unsatisfying work.