Whether it’s you, your team, a consultant or your agency, data is what should inform decisions. There is nothing that clearly shows what worked and what didn’t. Many times, data is lost in translation. People process information in different ways. We all can do a better job with how we communicate quantitative numbers. Here are 6 essentials to reporting like a pro:
1. Be honest. Understand your data.
Times have changed. What once was ignored, can no longer. Every dollar spend can be attributed to a metric or benchmark. Take the time to determine what those are for your business and understand how they drive the bottom line.
2. Evaluate data throughout the funnel
Optimizing your business process at every stage is how you achieve gains. Every touch-point matters. How traffic is driven, how we convert, how we continue to engage, how we earn exponential awareness, why we loose customers, how we can do better, etc.
3. Have the right reporting tools in place
Google Analytics is a free platform that can’t be ignored. Although, there are obviously dozens of other tools and dashboard that can be licensed or that may be proprietary to your business. Make sure your tools are synced and stay on top of the latest and greatest as it might make more sense for what you do.
4. Tell a story with data
Leaders articulate a story. Raw data is raw data, but what happened, why and what’s next are the highlights that need to be communicated. Create a deck and present the story.
5. Prioritized your key insights
With more “engagement” opportunities than you can count, make sure you give priority to numbers and stats. It’s easy to get caught up in too many indicating numbers that are not directly correlated to the bottom-line. Don’t ignore, but be smart about what you’re priorities are.
Our partners at HubSpot have a download that take a deep dive into all things reporting and communication. Although, meant for agencies, this is a perfect download for any marketer. Download it here.
