3 Tips for Transitioning to Data-Driven Decisions in Marketing in 2024
A collaborative post written by BNL Media Consulting and Akari Digital
Welcome back to the BNL Blog, where we bring the latest and greatest in the marketing world to you. This week, we’re talking data—specifically, how to harness the incredible amount of available information and insights, creating bonafide marketing results. With this in mind, we knew we had to bring in a top expert in the world of data-driven marketing. That’s why we’re so excited to collaborate with the amazing Ally from Akari Digital on this post! We asked Ally to share her top tips for transitioning to data-driven decisions in 2024 in this blog post.
Ally Anderson, founder of Akari Digital, started her agency with a big focus on capturing, interpreting, and using the data you gain through marketing. There’s no shortage of information out there, but turning it into something useful can often feel like looking for a needle in that infernal haystack. Ally and her team help you make sense of your marketing insights, eliminating bottlenecks and help your brand grow and scale alongside your business.
We believe in using every available advantage when it comes to marketing. Naturally, making use of your data is one of the most essential examples. Together in this guide, we’ll go over some key considerations to make as you transition to a more data-driven approach to your marketing strategy.
Always Start With the Customer
Remember: data isn’t just the number of people on your website, the number of clicks on your posts, or the number of people on your email list.
One of the most important pieces of data you can collect is known as Voice of Customer (VOC) data. You collect it by actually talking to your customers or people in your audience, and uncovering things like:
What is the problem they have (or think they have) that they’re trying to solve?
How is that problem impacting their day-to-day life?
What are they currently doing to deal with or solve their problem?
So many businesses write from where they want their audience to go, versus where their audience is now. But if you can ground your messaging in Voice of Customer data, you’re bridging the gap between where they are now, and where you can take them if they work from/buy from you.
BONUS – Some questions to ask your customers to learn more about their needs:
What made you initially search for [product/service]?
Before you found [business name], what did you do to try and solve your problem?
What would you miss most if you couldn’t work with [me/us] anymore?
What’s the first thing you’d say to someone else if you told them about [business name]?
Remember, you can never learn too much about your clients, their needs, and their position. Strive to listen and truly understand before you go around proclaiming to have the solution they’re looking for. It will help drive you to success while fostering a relationship with your client base at the same time.
2. Diagnose Your Bottlenecks Before Investing in Marketing
Too often, businesses think that the only key to growth is adding something more to their marketing. More ads. More content. More launches. More freebies. More, more, more. But the truth is, more often than not, these time and money investments are misplaced. Why? Because they didn’t first evaluate where their marketing system needed the extra support.
Different channels or platforms will play different roles in your marketing. For example:
Things like ads and SEO help you reach new people
Things like email marketing help you nurture your current subscribers and can help put an offer in front of them at the right time
Things like sales pages and sales sequences help you convert browsers into clients
Some platforms (like social media) can play multiple roles depending on how you use them. For instance:
Instagram Reels and TikToks can help you reach new people
Your stories can help you nurture and connect with people who already follow you
You can advance customer relationships and even close business in your DMs
When you’re making a decision on where to invest your time and money in your marketing, the first step is to measure what you’re currently doing, and whether the things you’re already doing are working. Here’s what we mean:
If you’re primarily using social media to reach new people—how many accounts are you reaching each month? Are they clicking on your profile to learn more about you? Are they following you?
If you’re trying to get people onto your email list and then nurture them in newsletters—how many people click through to your email opt-in form? What percentage complete it? How engaged are they in your welcome sequence and/or newsletters?
How many people actually see your offer pages? What percentage of those impressions convert into sales?
3. Get Scientific With It
Once you know what’s working and where you need to improve, you can put your resources in the right places—much more efficient than the more, more, more approach of throwing spaghetti at the internet and seeing what sticks.
Instead, run some experiments, complete with an actual scientific hypothesis! Marketing is an art, sure, but it’s also a deeply scientific process. When we lose sight of that objective, data-driven side to marketing, it can make it a whole lot harder to grow a brand.
So the next time you’re thinking about what to add to your marketing strategy, give the experimental approach a try.
First, ask yourself what the problem you’re trying to solve is. More traffic? More leads? More sales? Higher quality traffic/leads? Or something else entirely? Whatever it is, be as specific as you can.
Next, define your hypothesis. Think back to high school science class here—phrase it as an ‘If X, then Y’ statement. For example: “IF I invest in Meta ads, THEN I will see more traffic and sales on my site.”
With your purpose and hypothesis set, it’s time to run a test and measure to see if you were correct. Make sure to use a large sample size (let’s say 1000 people at least, although more is always better), and see whether the results match your hypothesis.
Remember: we’re doing science here! So no matter what these results are, they’re useful. Even if it didn’t work out as you hoped, you now have more information to inform your next question, your next hypothesis, and your next experiment.
Invest in marketing growth that lasts
We’ve all heard of viral marketing strategies that have achieved massive success practically overnight. It should go without saying that, while it’s always possible, the odds aren’t in your favour. Instead, we recommend the slow and steady approach.
Long-term, sustainable success in marketing doesn’t come from guessing and getting lucky. It comes from a series of experiments and tests, a curious approach to strategy, and continuing adaptation to make the most of what you learn. Over time, this data compounds and builds, letting you make more informed moves with your marketing that drive the results you want to see.
If you’re looking for support in growing your brand, whether you need a hand harnessing the full potential of your data or are looking for guidance on the aesthetics, content, direction, and spirit of your brand, help is out there. Don’t hesitate to get in touch with the data-driven pros at Akari Digital and the social media unicorns at BNL today!