Creativity. Intuition. Design.
These components are a huge part of successful marketing campaigns, but they don’t answer the follow-up questions:
- What exactly did people like?
- How did they interact with it?
- Why did it work?
- And maybe most importantly: how do we do it again?
Leveraging Marketing Analytics
Data-driven insights are imperative when it comes to informing marketing strategies, optimizing performance, and driving meaningful results. That’s no secret in today’s industry — most marketers understand and agree on the importance of tracking performance.
But what do you do with it? The key is to take the information from those analytics tools and treat it as a living, breathing part of your strategy. Consider some of the typical metrics and strategies we regularly use.
Audience Engagement
Understanding how audiences interact with your content is integral for crafting compelling campaigns.
Is your click-through rate better on emails with graphics or photos? What about if the CTA is a button or hyperlinked text? Are people more likely to comment on your social media posts above or below a certain character count? Do giveaways work, or does your follower count stay mostly static?
Sometimes, even the most data-driven marketers think we know what works without checking. Some decisions feel like obvious common sense. Be careful of those feelings. Especially when everyone in the room agrees, it can be a shock to discover your opinion may be in the minority. Start by listening to your customers instead of your gut feeling. Then really look at the data. Listen to the story it’s telling — then avoid interpreting it to match your expectations. Best practices vary by industry, by brand personality, and by goal. Find what moves the needle for your audience and then use it to refine content strategies and create more engaging experiences.
Conversion Rates
Converting leads into customers is the ultimate goal of most marketing campaigns.
Determine the most important actions for your situation and start there. Try not to fall into the trap of impressive vanity metrics like page views; unless that’s your goal, all the traffic in the world might not have a tangible impact on your bottom line.
Optimize landing pages to have more (or less) information above the fold. Refine CTAs to encourage the desired outcome — you might need to adjust your language based on if you’re encouraging sign-ups, one-time purchases, or subscriptions.
By tracking data like conversion rates, you may even find that part of your audience is a different demographic than expected. Information like that is golden. Don’t just keep it in your back pocket, find a way to speak directly to that group. If you’re missing the mark on the intended audience, tailor your messaging to better resonate with them.
This isn’t just true for lead acquisition conversion, either. Consider what you can do for closed sales conversions, too — don’t forget what happens after the lead has been captured. Are you doing enough to keep them around?
Return on Investment (ROI)
Every marketing dollar spent should deliver measurable returns. Evaluating the ROI of various campaigns allows marketers to allocate resources strategically and maximize their impact.
Be careful that you don’t discount the early stages of projects in favor of flashier processes at the end. A lot of work done behind the scenes is integral to successful campaigns. Consider different tools like multi-touch attribution models to get a clearer picture of everything involved, not just the last thing customers saw.
The same is true in reverse. We’re seeing frequent, massive leaps in technology and innovation — it’s an exciting time to be in this industry. Before prioritizing a brand-new tool, take a minute to really look at the numbers. Does it make sense for your situation? Is it worth its weight on the budget? Are you interested in efficiency or optimization first, or are you chasing the next big thing just for the sake of it? Staying on the cutting-edge of tech can totally change the game, but it’s important to ensure it’s worth it in the long run.
By identifying high-performing initiatives and reallocating budgets accordingly, marketers can optimize ROI and drive better overall results for their business.
A/B Testing
There’s no better way to find out what works than to give it a shot.
A/B testing provides valuable insights into what audiences prefer. Experimenting with variations is a crucial part of effective marketing — you might be surprised at the impact small changes can make. Email subject lines, ad copy, visuals, and landing page designs are all great places to begin identifying winning strategies.
Just remember that true A/B testing (or split testing) means sending out two versions of something which is identical except for the specific variable being tested. This should control for other factors, giving you the most accurate insight into what affected the data. Two emails with different subject lines that are also sent at completely different times will muddy your data, although you might still unearth interesting observations. The more you can whittle down the differences, the better you can see which factors significantly impact responses.
Harnessing Data
Data-driven decisions are indispensable for marketers. By harnessing analytics to gain insights into the information tracked, marketers can continuously adjust and improve strategies. Digging into the ‘why’ behind performance metrics and key results empowers us to stay agile, adapt to changing market dynamics, and surpass our goals.
Identify patterns, preferences, and pain points. Then make them work for you.
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Blog Author: Sean Conlin, Vice President of Digital Strategy and Product Development, OBI Creative