It’s more important than ever that marketing budgets are spent wisely. Companies must understand what marketing spend is driving new customers to the brand versus promotional campaigns that are falling on deaf ears.
While creative people such as marketers don’t necessarily enjoy looking at data or analytics, it is vital to receive feedback to confirm whether what they’ve been doing is working well (or not at all). As such, marketing teams much embrace the world of data analytics to perform at their best.
Is the Marketing Team Targeting the Correct Audience?
Advertisements and where they’re placed effect whether the right type of potential customers will be attracted to it. It’s quite possible that an ad campaign that looked good on paper only brought in low spending or other types of people who weren’t that interested in the end product (but found the advert enticing).
By using analytics to examine the average order size for new customers originating from a recent campaign and providing detailed reporting for that, it’s possible to dig deeper.
Questions can be asked like the ones below and meaningful answers found:
- Did the customer purchase what was expected?
- Is the average order size at the anticipated level?
- Was the campaign profitable within the timeframe discussed?
Is the Most Appropriate Platform Being Used?
Choosing the right platform to attract an audience is a critical decision. Whether marketing through targeted Instagram posts and product links, working with social influencers or advertising more directly on the platform, the audience is inescapable.
Even if the marketer finds a platform and segment where the age group seems right, perhaps they’re not interested in a product in the price range that the company offers? Or, they have a strong environmental focus and only certain companies qualify in their eyes.
Whatever it is, analyzing the platform and results from it proves useful because it can isolate when mistakes are being made. New systems can be put in place to help drill down to the right market segment and determine how to verify it before going ahead with a new ad campaign.
A subsequent analytical review of data from new marketing efforts will confirm if the changes were right or not.
Did Someone Mention Price?
As this infographic confirms, there are different pricing strategies to consider for products.
Certainly, the price must allow the business to create a profit. However, it’s also necessary to not only look at what is appropriate for the marketplace but also for the segment of that market too.
Price Relates to Product and Likely Purchaser
Let’s provide an example of price and likely purchasers.
For instance, if marketing a bathroom upgrade for RV owners that replaces a plastic shower part with something of higher quality and durability, what will the target market pay?
Will the product appeal to baby boomers who’ll pay up for quality or is it going to be seen as necessary for a smart millennial wanting convenience? Does this change the price?
It’s Also Seen as an Indicator of Quality
When sales disappoint, sometimes it’s the pricing strategy that needs an overhaul. If it’s too inexpensive, RV owners may believe it’s too low quality. Conversely, when the price is too high, it may put off the majority of potential buyers.
Only by reviewing customer responses or performing a marketing survey can this be analyzed, determined, and responded to.
Not Ignoring Web Analytics
Web analytics through Google Analytics, Google’s Tag Manager, and other systems such as Clicky make it possible to review website traffic, their sources and dig deep into how the site is being used.
In conjunction with heat mapping, it’s possible to see how visitors are using the site, what they’re looking at, and where sales fail to materialize. Even decisions about marketing copy on the site to attract buyers – an extension of ad campaigns that connect to brand identity – can be analyzed, conclusions drawn, and changes made.
Data is Only Useful When Utilized
Taking naturally creative people and pairing them with data analysts may seem like an odd marriage of sorts, it’s nonetheless a necessary one.
Avoid marketing blindly without considering the ROI on that effort (and expense) and how better results might be obtained in the future. Data is valuable – but only when it’s put to good use. Otherwise, it’s just taking up space in a database that costs money to manage and maintain without a return for that effort. That becomes a double loss.
So, yes. Marketing teams can embrace the idea of data analytics and its inclusion in the marketing realm. Marketing analytics, as it’s become known, is worth the investment to utilize the existing teams to their best effect.
