The engagement numbers in the Post Performance Report and the Profile Performance Report can differ because each report counts engagement in a different way.
Post Performance Report
- Counts engagement only on posts published within the selected date range.
- Assigns all engagement to the post's original publish date, even if it happens later.
- Includes post interactions only: likes, comments, shares, and clicks.
- Example: A post published on January 1 gets 2 likes on January 1 and 3 likes on January 2. The report counts all 5 likes on January 1.
Profile Performance Report
- Counts all engagement that happened within the selected date range, no matter when the post was published.
- Can include interactions that aren't tied to a post, such as messages and other profile actions.
- Example: The selected period is January 1 to 7. Someone messages your profile on January 1, and a post published before January 1 gets a like on January 3. Both actions count in this period.
Summary
- Post Performance Report: engagement is based on when the post was published, and only includes post interactions.
- Profile Performance Report: engagement is based on when the action happened, and can include non-post interactions. Totals are often higher.
Important Engagement in Vista Social may not exactly match Meta's native analytics. Meta doesn't send third-party tools retroactive updates for some metrics (for example, when someone unlikes a post), and some data is captured at different times. For Facebook metric definitions, see Facebook Page metrics & report definitions. |
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Which report should I use to measure a specific post?
A: The Post Performance Report. It ties all engagement to the post's publish date.
Q: Why are totals higher in the Profile Performance Report?
A: It counts every action in the date range, including messages and engagement on older posts.
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Related Reading:
Why your data in Vista Social might differ from your native analytics
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