Can indicators demonstrate whether awareness campaigns are working?

Awareness campaigns are very important to determine the maturity of a team and measure its results, they are essential to understand if the actions are, in fact, generating an impact on behaviors.

It is these numbers that help tell the full story and turn the information into something concrete. It is important to understand that indicators are valuable tools, but they need to be analyzed with clear context, strategy, and objectives.

A high engagement rate, for example, may not mean real change in behavior if it is not linked to an evolution in employees' understanding and response to real threats.

But we know that determining performance indicators is not an easy task. In this article, we will explain why performance indicators are essential in monitoring any objective and action of awareness campaigns.

What is the challenge of measuring the success of awareness campaigns?

Indicators or KPI is a management tool that helps institutions monitor the performance of their awareness campaigns, whether for the entire company or for a specific sector.

Through the indicators, managers can verify that their campaigns are on track with the outlined strategy.

As a result, understanding the real impact of a digital security awareness campaign has become one of the biggest challenges faced by institutions today.

This is because, more than carrying out specific actions, it is necessary to ensure that knowledge is being absorbed and, above all, put into practice by employees.

However, measuring the success of these campaigns requires more than just applying tests or checking how many people accessed a piece of content.

It is necessary to go beyond the raw numbers and see what they really say about the behavior and culture of the organization.

After all, well-defined indicators allow you to assess the evolution of knowledge, the level of engagement, and the response to simulated threats.

This data serves as the basis for strategic decisions, such as:

• Adjust the approach of a campaign;

• Reinforce determined;

• Identify risk groups.

Without this support, awareness actions can become repetitive, generic, and ineffective, making organizations vulnerable to attacks.

But for this to occur in the best way, it is necessary to interpret the data in depth and connect the indicators with real business objectives, know that this is what transforms information campaigns into cultural transformation initiatives.

Otherwise, the data loses value and security continues to be seen as the exclusive responsibility of the IT area.

What is the role of indicators in awareness campaigns?

Measuring the success of digital security awareness campaigns is a more complex task than it seems.

Although many organizations already understand the importance of investing in educational actions, there is not always clarity on how to assess whether these efforts are generating the expected results.

After all, the simple delivery of content does not guarantee learning, nor does it guarantee a change in behavior. The real challenge lies in identifying whether people are, in fact, better prepared to recognize and react to digital threats.

In this context,concrete data becomes essential to guide strategic decisions.

Indicators such as email open rates, training completion, and performance in phishing simulations help map people's level of engagement and the evolution of knowledge over time.

These metrics work as thermometers to understand the reach and effectiveness of actions, allowing route adjustments whenever necessary.

But it is necessary to understand that relying only on numbers can be a trap, because a high rate of participation in training, for example, does not necessarily mean that employees are more aware or safe.

It is necessary to interpret the data carefully, cross-referencing information, analyzing patterns, and looking for evidence of real changes in attitude.

Without this critical eye, there is a risk of continuing with ineffective campaigns, even if the reports show good superficial results.

Therefore, measuring is only the first step, the most important step is in the ability to interpret indicators and act based on them.

This involves not only adjusting the content and formats of the campaigns, but also understanding the context of the organization, the profiles of the employees and the main risks involved.

How do you know if your campaign is on the right track?

It is very important for organizations to know if their educational efforts are resulting in real changes in behavior, and not just positive numbers in the reports.

To do this, it is necessary to establish clear success criteria and have a broader view of the impact of the campaign over time.

This is because, many times, a campaign can present good initial results, but not cause a consistent transformation in the organizational culture.

Similarly, actions that seemed to have no major impact may show, over time, significant effects of knowledge retention and attitude change. Therefore, evaluating the path of a campaign requires:

• Continuity;

• Alignment with strategic objectives;

• Attention to the employee experience.

Here's how you can apply these actions when running awareness campaigns in your organization.

Assessing progress over time

Measuring results in awareness campaigns should not be a one-off exercise, because these rates help in continuous monitoring and allow the identification of patterns of behavior and progress.

A good example is to observe the evolution in phishing simulations, a drop in click-through rate over three campaigns can indicate learning retention.

The repetition of mistakes, on the other hand, points to the need to reinforce certain themes. In addition, progress should be analyzed in a segmented way.

That's because the company's overall results are important, but looking at specific areas, such as leadership positions, or teams with critical functions can reveal more relevant gaps.

In this way, by understanding where the greatest risks are and which groups show the least evolution, the organization can apply targeted training with greater impact.

It is also important to track the progress of these campaigns, these KPIs help justify the investment made in the campaigns.

After all, when concrete advances are demonstrated in terms of behavior and response to threats, it becomes easier to show senior leadership that awareness is a security strategy, and not just a communication action.

Crossing indicators with safety objectives and organizational culture

There is no point in measuring participation or success rates if these numbers are not aligned with the organization's strategic objectives.

This is because awareness should not be an isolated activity, but part of a broader strategy to build a safety culture. Therefore, it is essential to cross-reference campaign indicators with concrete goals, such as:

• Reduce incidents caused by human error;

• Increase the ability to respond to attacks.

This connection between data and goals is what allows you to assess whether the campaign is contributing to the reduction of real risks.

For example, if the goal is to reduce the number of hits to malicious links, the click-through rate should be carefully monitored.

But if the goal is to strengthen the reporting culture, the number of employees who signal messages becomes a key fact.

In addition, it is important to remember that organizational culture is built in the long term, so behavior change is gradual and requires constant reinforcement.

Therefore, crossing the indicators with cultural goals also requires patience and consistency, it is necessary to establish evolution milestones, such as greater voluntary participation in training or increased engagement in internal campaigns.

These actions help recognize advances even when they are not yet completely visible in cold numbers.

The importance of qualitative analysis and employee feedback

The numbers tell part of the story, but the true understanding of the effectiveness of a campaign comes from active listening.

Qualitative analysis allows you to understand how people are perceiving the messages, if the content is clear, if the format is appropriate, and if there are cultural or technical barriers preventing engagement.

This type of analysis brings up issues that quantitative indicators do not capture, an effective way to obtain this qualitative look is through surveys, conversations, suggestion boxes and interviews with employees from different areas.

Knowing how they interpreted a campaign, what they learned, and what still raises questions gives them valuable insights for future adjustments. More than measuring what was done, it is a way of understanding how the action was received and assimilated.

In addition, when employees perceive that their feedback is considered, there is a natural increase in engagement.

They start to feel part of the process of building a safety culture, and not just as training targets, this appreciation of feedback contributes to more relevant, humane campaigns with greater potential for impact.

What is the role of PhishX in the strategic use of indicators?

PhishX plays an essential role in the strategic use of indicators in digital security awareness campaigns.

Because our ecosystem integrates behavioral data, interactions with content, and responses to threat simulations, the platform offers a complete, real-time view of the organization's digital maturity level.

More than collecting data, PhishX structures these indicators to reflect the specific objectives of each company, whether it is reducing human risks, strengthening the safety culture or increasing employee engagement.

With smart dashboards and custom reports, the platform translates metrics into actionable insights.

The dashboards are designed to facilitate the reading and cross-referencing of information, allowing security leaders and partner areas to quickly identify bottlenecks, risk groups, and opportunities for improvement.

This approach turns data analysis into a strategic stage of the campaign, helping in decision-making about thematic reinforcements, new content formats, or more targeted actions.

In addition to technology, PhishX's Customer Success team offers continuous support in defining and reading the most relevant indicators for each reality.

The team works with clients to align campaigns with business and culture objectives, ensuring that data is being used in the most effective way.

Do you want to promote real changes in behavior, with greater risk perception and a proactive attitude of employees in the face of digital threats? Contact our experts and schedule a conversation.

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