Publisher growth tactics for election season | WEBINAR

Learn More

SODP

SODP Media

  • Insights
    • Articles
      • Audience Development
      • Content Strategy
      • Digital Publishing
      • Monetization
      • SEO
      • Digital Platforms & Tools
    • Top Tools & Reviews
    • Opinion
    • Podcast
  • Education
    • Publisher SEO Course
    • Events
      • Monetization Week 2025
  • Resources
  • Community
    • Slack Channel
    • Newsletter
  • About
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Editorial Policy
  • English
sodp logo
SODP logo
    Search
    Close this search box.
    Login
    • Insights
      • Podcast
      • Articles
        • Audience Development
        • Content Strategy
        • Digital Publishing
        • Monetization
        • SEO
        • Digital Platforms & Tools
      • Top Tools & Reviews
        • Articles
        • Top Tools & Reviews
        • Opinion
        • Podcasts
        • Audience Development
        • Content Strategy
        • Digital Publishing
        • Monetization
        • SEO
        • Digital Platforms & Tools
        • Headless CMS Platforms
        • Digital Publishing Platforms
        • Editorial Calendar Software
        • Magazine Apps
        • Email Newsletter Platforms
        • More Best Tools Lists
    • Education
      • Publisher SEO Course
        • Publisher SEO Course
        • Events
        • Monetization Week 2025
        • View all
    • Resources
    • Community
      • Slack Channel
      • Office Hours
      • Newsletter
        • Slack Channel
        • Newsletter
    • About
      • About Us
      • Contact Us
      • Editorial Policy
        • About Us
        • Contact Us
        • Editorial Policy
    placeholder
    SODP logo
    Become a Brand Partner

    Home ▸ Digital Publishing ▸ Measuring user engagement with RFV scores  (a combination of Recency, Frequency and Volume metrics)

    Measuring user engagement with RFV scores  (a combination of Recency, Frequency and Volume metrics)

    Shelley SealeShelley Seale
    November 24, 2018
    Fact checked by Vahe Arabian
    Vahe Arabian
    Vahe Arabian

    Founder and Editor in Chief of State of Digital Publishing. My vision is to provide digital publishing and media professionals a platform to collaborate and promote their efforts, my passion is to uncover talent and… Read more

    Edited by Vahe Arabian
    Vahe Arabian
    Vahe Arabian

    Founder and Editor in Chief of State of Digital Publishing. My vision is to provide digital publishing and media professionals a platform to collaborate and promote their efforts, my passion is to uncover talent and…Read more

    Deep bi

     


    What’s happening:

    One of today’s hottest topics in digital publishing is finding the “holy grail” of subscriptions — and many leading media companies have shown that a key driver is user engagement. When it comes to measuring engagement, the “MAU” and “DAU” methods introduced by Facebook still seem to be the most popular.

    But for Deep BI, these methods are not actionable. Instead, Deep BI took its cue from the Financial Times and uses the RFV engagement score: combining metrics on recency, frequency and volume.

     

    Digging deeper:

    The appeal of RFV is the single score, which is easier to follow, compare and use. Also, each part of the score provides valuable metrics that are actionable:

    • Recency: Measures the number of days a user has or has not been using the product. This score provides information for taking action to bring users back.
    • Frequency: Measures the number of total days within a time period that a user has used the product, to evaluable habits and therefore churn propensity. This score provides information for establishing user routine.
    • Volume: Measures content consumption in the number of articles read or a combination of usage interactions. This score helps publishers provide good value to their users; Deep BI considers it the most important usage indicator.

    Deep BI has released its RFV metrics on its platform. The company’s system calculates, in real-time, the engagement scores each time a user interacts with a digital product (app, service, website etc.), and augments that interaction with current engagement metrics.

     

    Using engagement metrics

    Using RFV, Deep BI to track engagement segments vs. subscribers, number of engaged users over time, churn risk, content categories that users prefer, days with most engaged users, cities with highest engagement, etc. The company uses those RFV scores to:

    • Define custom engagement segments
    • Define custom churn risk segments
    • Count the number of users in each segment
    • Calculate dynamics (flow) between segments
    • Find key engagement drivers
    • Intersecting engagement segments with other types of segments, such as subscription products.

     

    Content from our partners

    AI, the double-edged sword of creativity, and why publishers must embrace it

    AI, The Double-edged Sword of Creativity, and Why Publishers Must Embrace It

    Why Online Publishers Need a VPN: Protecting Data, Sources, and Revenue

    Why Online Publishers Need a VPN: Protecting Data, Sources, and Revenue

    Audience management’s Goldilocks problem (2)

    Audience management’s Goldilocks problem: how publishers get caught between tech that doesn’t work, or is too complex to use

    The bottom line:

    Deep BI uses RFV scores to provide metrics to help them grow a paying, loyal user base, using re-engagement strategies such as newsletters, push notifications and ads. The company also uses the system for product improvement and a better recommendation system.

    Editor's Picks
    What Is a Content Creator The What, Why and How of the Creator Economy
    Content Strategy

    What Is a Content Creator?

    Best Email Newsletter Platforms for Publishers
    Digital Platforms & Tools

    8 Best Email Newsletter Platforms for Publishers in 2024

    Google News SEO
    SEO

    Google News SEO Guide 2024: Best Practices for News Publishers

    Related Posts

    • Mastering Content Engagement Key Metrics and Strategies
      Mastering Content Engagement: Key Metrics and Strategies
    • Editor's Note Engagement Keeping It Short and Simple
      Editor's Note: Engagement: Keeping It Short and Simple
    • Color complexity in social media posts leads to more engagement, new research shows
      Color complexity in social media posts leads to more engagement, new research shows
    • 9 Benefits of User-Generated Content for Publishers
      How Publishers Can Benefit From User-Generated Content (UGC)
    SODP logo

    State of Digital Publishing is creating a new publication and community for digital media and publishing professionals, in new media and technology.

    • Top tools
    • SEO for publishers
    • Privacy policy
    • Editorial policy
    • Sitemap
    • Search by company
    Facebook X-twitter Slack Linkedin

    STATE OF DIGITAL PUBLISHING – COPYRIGHT 2025

    2nd Annual

    Monetization Week

    The Convergence of Innovation and Strategy: Publisher Monetization in 2025.

    A 5-day online event exploring the future of publisher revenue models.

    May 19 – 23, 2025

    Online Event

    Learn More