I've been in the analytics business for several years now and have silently become a product expert. I decided to begin to voice my opinions and share some tricks with the internet community. I have extensive knowledge to share regarding the best and worst of analytics methodology and pitfalls. Along the way, I've seen and heard a lot of brilliant ideas along with some real hog wash. I hope to expose both over time.
Perhaps the most interesting phenomenon I've seen has been the shift first toward comprehensive data proliferation and the search for the most "complete" tools possible (aka Omniture) and back to more specialized solutions focused on niche areas like PPC Bid Management, E-mail, Social, and SEO. What is a businessman to do? IT still needs "Stats" and Marketing guys and gals still need actionable ROI information. So when is enough information enough for a business to stop searching for more data and when can we start doing stuff.
The concept of a KPI (Key Performance Indicator) has been talked about for the past few years. Most businesses have one, but it's rare that the best one is easy enough to spot. The best ones are typically pretty intuitive. It seems that some analysts want to complcate the process of defining a KPI in an effort to find that Holy Grail metric that will save the world. Find one an move on already. Too much data will cause analysis paralysis.
With so many tools available, which ones should a marketer use? I've learned as much about this topic in my own workshop. I am always and forever searching for the best ways to complete my projects. I own lots of tools that I've collected over time. But every time I get a new tool, I can't figure out how I ever lived without it. I'm not always the most proficient practitioner with each tool, but typically spend enough time experimenting to be able to handle the most important features. In many cases, another tool may be able to get the job done, but depending on my desired outcome, I may want to save time, make a smoother cut, measure more precisely or handle repetitive tasks in simpler steps. Not too big a stretch to keep this analogy going.
My budget doesn't always allow me to just buy every tool out there and so it is in business. I had a rule that I'd follow pretty closely in my workshop. When I begin a new project, I'd first make a reasonable attempt to get the job done with the tools I have. If it seems unlikely that I can or if it seems I'd save a considerable amount of time, effort, etc. with a new tool in my belt, it would be time to evaluate. One of the most frustrating experiences is when there are tools available that I'd never seen before and therefore could not possibly have decided to buy.
The analogy does break down in a couple of important ways. In my workshop, I'm usually a committee of one- maybe two depending on the cost of the tool. In analytics, it's rare that a new tool or a new metric can be implemented by one person. Also- when I buy a new tool, I usually just unpack it and plug it in. The process of implementing analytics is rarely as straight forward. Javascript implementation is commonly WAY to complicated. Most WA 1.0 applications still require customizing code aka "evars" parameters, etc.
In some cases, the need for a new tool is not readily apparant. While there are certain tools that solve common problems, there are even some tools that solve problems business people either didn't know existed or that they were so used to not being able to solve, they stopped trying.
Look around- you're likely to be surprised.
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