Don’t distance yourself from your data
At this time more than any other, analytics are crucial. Businesses need clarity and focus in order to drive efficiency in their business. Think about the levers that have the greatest impact on the business and focus on those that will allow the business to grow most efficiently.
Data is created constantly and much of it is beyond the financials you track and scrutinize. Every interaction with customers or media can offer additional insight to adjust and prioritize in order to drive efficiency in your business. Don’t make the mistake of letting data take a back seat in your process. You can’t afford to approach decisions and prioritization blindly when resources are thin and every penny counts.
Many businesses struggle to allocate scarce resources in this period with little or no revenue. Social distancing has created a great deal of economic uncertainty for businesses of all sizes and looking ahead to post COVID-19 recovery can be daunting. Recovery will happen for most, but when? Will your business be ready to capture the returned demand?
Analytics are crucial at this time more than ever. We’ve had to adjust guidance and executing against our 3-5 year strategy in a new working environment requires clarity. Give careful thought to the data behind your decisions and move forward with the confidence needed to make the tough choices. Do you have visibility into the data needed? It’s there, make the most of it.
Data is created constantly and much of it is beyond the financials you track and scrutinize. Every interaction with customers or media can offer additional insight to adjust and prioritize in order to drive efficiency in your business. Don’t make the mistake of letting data take a back seat in your process. You can’t afford to approach decisions and prioritization blindly when resources are thin and every penny counts. Identify what investments have the greatest impact on your business and focus on those in order to grow quickly and most efficiently.
Consider answers to the following questions:
Are all lines of business impacted equally?
Whom are the most valuable customers and why?
How do you best reach new prospects and how has this changed over the past 60 days?
What content is most valuable to customers and what resonates now that didn’t previously?
What additional value can you provide to keep customers engaged with your brand (particularly for physical businesses)?
Take time to think through these questions and if you have the answers, let that drive action. If answers don’t come as easily, think about the data that can give you an edge. How do these answers align with your core business objectives and how you measure success?
Don’t guess. Use the data available (both explicit and implicit or behavioral) to understand the way that customers interact and what drives value. Create a measurement plan and stick to it:
Focus on your primary business objectives and define success for each.
Keep your set of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) small and specific to your objectives.
Identify how you can best drive those key metrics. Which variables are most important (especially when resources are limited)? Modeling data through advanced analytics can provide clarity and eliminate noise in the process.
Optimize your communication plan to drive your key objectives.
Connect with your customers authentically. Use social media and other owned brand channels (e.g. website, email) to offer value and stay relevant. Ask customers for feedback where appropriate.
Examine your media strategy and optimize out of less efficient channels or partners.
Continue to look after your team during this time of uncertainty. Keep the communication lines open and don’t lose sight of your goals. Build your plan around those efforts that best support your objectives. If it’s not clear, go back to the data.
If resources are stretched, SR² can articulate the data strategy and assess data available to answer the questions needed to refine your 2020 plan.