A CMOs Guide to Navigating Data Analytics

By Michael Burns On Sep 27, 2019

The CMO function has always been critical for every business, but the role has expanded and evolved recently to encompass responsibility for driving predictable and measurable growth – as evidenced by the fact that the function is now often titled Chief Growth Officer or Chief Revenue Officer. As Sales, Marketing and Technology roles become intertwined, CEOs and Boards now expect senior marketers to prove a correlation between strategies and the bottom line.

Many Marketing Leaders, however, are unsure of where to start when it comes to using data insights to demonstrate this correlation. In fact, a report by Accenture found 69 percent of Australian and global CMOs admit they are struggling to apply insights to their Marketing strategy.

So, how can CMOs gain the most from Data Analytics?

1. Only Implement Analytical Tools That Fulfil Your Goals

Research from Forrester found that while 74% of firms say they want to be “data-driven”, only 29% say they are good at connecting analytics to action. This problem can be inevitable when there are so many martech tools available – how do you decipher which ones will bring about the necessary insights and outcomes needed for success?

It may sound obvious but doing your research will help. Marketers must take a step back and consider their ultimate goals, which can vary significantly. Forrester revealed Big Data and Analytics are being used by 44% of B2C marketers to improve consumer responsiveness, while 36% use it for better forecasting and planning.

Ultimately, it’s important to resist going with the most popular or familiar analytics solution. Go with the ones that align directly with your needs and company vision.

2. Make Sure Your Tools Are Integrated

Marketers often adopt a variety of Data Analytics platforms but fail to integrate them. This can be an issue for global corporations with departments that span across countries or companies with siloed departments. Often, the tools used vary among departments and consequently create siloed results that don’t provide an accurate overview of Marketing activities, whether online or offline. This disconnect can lead to poor decisions or wasted budget.

The events industry is a great example of this, as many event planners haven’t integrated their physical and digital data platforms. This means they can’t identify correlations between trending sessions, key activations or hot topics at events with activity on their digital assets, such as their website and social channels.

By better connecting and integrating online and offline data, marketing leaders can better identify key investment areas that build brand equity and better analyze the performance of marketing activities across different customer touchpoints in real-time.

3. Make It Relevant and Actionable

So you’ve identified your data needs, done your homework, completed your martech stack, and now you’re up and running. The data is coming in thick and fast. All is good, right? Wrong.

One of the biggest mistakes I see companies make is overlooking the importance of communicating the data into understandable and actionable insights for other departments. You can have all the data in the world but if other departments and teams don’t know how to leverage it, the data is redundant.

Think about who is going to translate the data and bridge the gap between insights and teams. If you’re not in a position to hire a Data Scientist, look for ways to upskill your team in what you’re trying to achieve, Similarly, look for platforms that offer visual reports, as these are a great way for teams to see through the numbers.

Safeguarding a Successful Future

Over the coming years, it’s inevitable the expectation for marketers to prove value using data insights will heighten. By creating a considered, integrated and targeted approach to Data Analytics, marketers will be able to discover invaluable insights and trends. Ensuring these insights are understood by those that need to know, will have a profound impact on the bottom line and the overall success of the CMO.