Analytics aren't just for enterprise businesses looking for high-level data insights. In today's business world, the importance of data analysis extends all the way down to small mom-and-pop shops serving their local communities. Part of this trend is due to the broad availability of analytics tools. Google Analytics offers free insights to any company or user, and other, low-cost tools make it easy to reveal simple but influential insights about how your company does business. But it's also a matter of staying competitive.

There are a lot of ways performance can be measured, and the metrics can get confusing and misleading fast. For small businesses focused on building a presence within a region, the importance of data analysis can be distilled down to a few keys data points that shed light on how well you're reaching an audience.

Businesses in every industry must adhere to certain universal best practices when building a digital presence, but there are differences in how specific companies can effectively deliver certain products online.

For instance, in the automotive industry, consumers often use the Internet to research cars, browse dealership inventories and get more information before making a purchase. To target consumers shopping for cars online, advertisers are refining their strategies and monitoring certain metrics that have a strong correlation to digital advertising success among dealerships and automotive brands.

When building digital campaigns, focus on these automotive advertising trends to uncover the true value of your automotive ad strategy.

Measuring digital campaign performance has come a long way since the days when, as Ad Age notes, nineteenth century merchant John Wanamaker declared, "Half my advertising is wasted; I just don't know which half." These days, digital tools exist to give you the information you need to optimize your campaign performance — if you know where to find them.

Users are exposed to an overwhelming amount of information each day, so they have become very selective about what they'll click on and when. They'll only pay attention to a message if it's intrinsically valuable to them. To determine if your message is reaching the right audience, you'll first need to determine your objectives, then marry them to the right metrics. Here are 10 metrics to help you decide what's working and what needs to be retooled or dropped.