An analytics strategy is a crucial element in working with online data. In this article, I will describe how we approach digital analytics strategy in our work with clients.
The primary goal of digital analytics
What is an analytics strategy?
Key elements of the strategy
Analytics services
Summary
The primary goal of digital analytics is to support organizations in making decisions using data. In the case of digital analytics, these are mainly online data. Companies that base their decisions on data grow faster, achieve their KPIs more easily, and obtain higher returns on their online marketing investments.
The outcomes that companies achieve largely depend on their level of analytical maturity. Companies at a higher level of analytical maturity can better understand and utilize data, which translates into better business results.
I have written about data-driven organizations and levels of analytical maturity in separate articles where I thoroughly explore this concept. In today’s article, I will focus on the practical aspects of the digital analytics strategy, i.e., the path to becoming a data-driven organization. The Holy Grail for any organization that wants to operate based on data is to become a data-driven organization.
An analytics strategy, in itself, is a broad concept and is interpreted differently by various companies.
In the context of digital analytics, the strategy is a long-term path leading the organization to become data-driven. In practice, as part of our analytics services, we implement what we internally call roadmaps. These define how a company will achieve the status of a data-driven organization with our help. Throughout the process, different competencies may be taken over by the company or supplemented by us.
This approach comes from many years of experience in helping companies build analytical maturity. An analytics strategy can be compared to a football team’s strategy. Some teams are more focused on attacking, others on playing in the midfield, and yet others on defense and scoring goals on counterattacks. The strategy for each football match should be detailed as tactics.
In the context of digital analytics, the strategy consists of three elements: people, processes, and tools. People are those who execute the analytics, processes are how the analytics are performed, and tools are the data used in these processes.
To build effective tactics, we determine who, how, and what will be executed within digital analytics. We then create roadmaps that lead to achieving the highest level of analytical maturity.
This process begins with a business workshop where we map the organization. We identify who is responsible for what and how information flows between different individuals in the organization.
The next step is the analysis of the tool stack. We check which tools are already being used and whether they need an audit or can be immediately used to execute the processes.
The third element of the business workshop is the processes, which must be appropriately defined and optimized. Analytics processes within a company cover various aspects such as reporting structure, communication, ad hoc analysis, and conversion rate optimization. Mapping these processes allows us to understand the current status, namely the state of people, processes, and tools within the organization.
We then develop a strategic picture of the ideal state and create a roadmap that outlines how to reach it.
The roadmap includes steps such as implementing a single source of truth, building the organization’s know-how in fundamental analyses, and implementing a conversion rate optimization process. These significant points are broken down into specific tasks, providing a clear action plan within the scope of our analytics services.
Analytics services are carried out in four areas:
Such a digital analytics roadmap contains tactical points that lead to building a strategy. We typically break it down into a 6-9 month period, describing which initiatives we will undertake, when, and in what order we will execute specific tasks and mini-projects. The roadmap also includes the expected outcomes of individual initiatives.
At the end, we summarize everything so that those managing the delivery department have a clear picture of what elements are being implemented for each client, leading to a data-driven organization.
This way, we know how to manage the analytics stack. The roadmap is continuously updated, and at least once every six months, it is reviewed and updated.
Our approach to the analytics strategy consists of two main elements. The first is a resource map involving people, processes, and tools. The second is the tactics that will drive us towards becoming a data-driven organization.
We do not create an ideal model where the people are a team of analysts and the processes are specific activities because this would require the involvement of many departments in the organization. We implement the analytics strategy with the ideal picture of a data-driven organization in mind. Thanks to our roadmaps, we develop the organization in this direction.
During the collaboration, various needs emerge, such as hiring an in-house analyst, using our services as an alternative to an online analyst, or other solutions. These issues typically arise during the collaboration.
We base the execution of these tactics on four areas: data provision, data maintenance, data activation, and know-how building. Data provision includes building this element, i.e., the data themselves and their maintenance.
Know-how building is the WHO element, meaning people, because a data-driven organization is not only analysts but also other employees who can analyze data at a basic level. The HOW element refers to the processes organized around data and those that utilize data within the organization.
If you are curious about the level of analytical maturity of your organization, there is a survey linked below that will help determine your level of analytical maturity. If you find the result unsatisfactory, feel free to contact us to discuss how building analytical maturity in your company might look.
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