Across industries, organizations are adopting a data-driven approach. But many small businesses are not leveraging data to adjust their strategy, a new study reveals.
Few Using Iteration in Marketing
According to TrackMaven’s 2017 Marketing Leadership Survey (PDF), most marketers (47 percent) use data after-the-fact to find out what worked and what didn’t. But a considerably smaller percentage of marketers (28 percent) use testing and benchmarking to constantly adjust their strategy.
Marketers’ Top Marketing Objectives
When asked to name their top marketing and social media marketing objectives, most marketers (61 percent) said they want to increase sales.
Increasing customer engagement (52 percent) and increasing brand awareness (52 percent) were also high on their priority list.
Analytics Plays a Big Role in Digital Marketing Strategy
Unsurprisingly, analytics turned out to be a crucial factor determining the digital marketing strategy.
A staggering 87 percent of respondents said analytics is important or very important to their overall digital marketing strategy.
Interestingly when it comes to doing the analysis, 51 percent stated the marketing team does their own analysis. This clearly indicates the availability of user-friendly analytical tools that have made it easier for anyone to gather insights.
Tips for Businesses to Leverage Data
There’s a common misconception in the industry that big data is just for big businesses. Small businesses need to understand big data is also important for them.
In fact, a lack of proper knowledge of analytics can cause small businesses to lose out on growth opportunities.
Luckily, there are several useful tools such as HubSpot and Tableau that enable small businesses to access specific data points and evaluate their performance.
By adopting the right data strategy, small businesses stand to gain more benefits. Uday Hegde, CEO and Co-Founder of USEReady, a data analytics firm says, “By making data sets visual, business owners can start asking the right questions and making decisions based on hard facts rather than speculation.”
“The result is often better allocation of crucial technology, people, and resources.”
For the survey, Washington, D.C.-based TrackMaven gathered responses from 217 participants.
Data Photo via Shutterstock
This article, “Shocker! Only 27 Percent of Marketers Use Data to Adjust Strategy” was first published on Small Business Trends