We are WYM Analytics
If I told you there was an untouched money pool of an estimated $3.1 TRILLION in lost sales every year in the US due to poor data use in business, would you rethink the way you approach your marketing data and analytics?
You’d be insane not to, right? And still, every year, numerous online enterprises do precisely that.
It’s an easy thing to do! No finger-pointing here, I was also data avoidant at one point in time.
*Spoiler Alert: I *might* be announcing some pretty epic ways to tap into this untouched money pool below!
The Days of Hustle and Grind Marketing Without Data Use
Fifteen years ago, I started my first eCommerce venture, a Reverse Auctioning Website, and the vast majority of my marketing efforts consisted of writing articles, sending emails, cold calling leads, and blasting away on social media.
Most of us know this as the “hustle and grind” model, and it sucks.
Does it work? To an extent, yes! I’d even created a comfortable level of success this way.
Still, it was a blind success, and I had no understanding of where to direct my marketing focus and methods to hit the sweet spot so I could grow significantly and scale that success.
What was working, what wasn’t? Why did some make purchases recurrently and others only once? Who were my most lucrative clients, did they have a common thread? Why did some become clients and others not? Are there issues on my website that silently sabotage closing sales?
When you don’t know what you’re doing right, you also don’t know what you’re doing wrong. 80% of your revenue comes from 20% of your clients; you NEED to know what the hell you’re doing!
The lack of skilled data analysis kept me stuck in the hustle and grind loop, and eventually, the quality of my content, leads, and sales, dropped because I was missing the clarity, substance, and core desires my ideal customers could connect with and pursue.
I’d hit a wall in my scaling efforts and knew I needed to suck it up and dive into the data I’d been ignoring.
When I did, a whole world opened before me, and I knew I’d found one of the subtle and often overlooked secrets to sustainable, scalable success -even today.
It was a turning point for not only my Reverse Auctioning business but also for the path my future endeavors would take.
The Beginnings of Data Mastery and the Inevitability of Wym Analytics
What began as personal and professional betterment for myself and my own business gradually transitioned into gigs for other companies, and I became the Devil In The Details.
The Marketing Analytics details!
From freelance projects and the establishment of Web Your Mind. to employment with multiple Fortune 100 Corporations, my journey into the world of marketing technology and data mastery was one hell of an experience!
One that brings me to the launch of Wym Analytics, a cutting-edge and dynamic MarTech company that caters to small to medium e-commerce stores, brand developers, start-ups, and marketing managers/agencies.
To see this vision come to life, I hand-selected an incredibly experienced and diverse team of experts in the various fields of marketing data analysis and technology so we could empower and assist these companies in a way they may not have considered before.
You see, many companies are focused on more visual and stimulating elements of their marketing processes and tactics -branding, social media pages, visibility campaigns, email marketing, web hosting, and sales platforms- all vitally important ingredients for sure! But they’re only one part of the marketing pie that brings your hungry people to the table.
Marketing data is the secret ingredient of the pie that KEEPS them at the table longer and more frequently with each decadent bite! This is the fuel that feeds the fire of Wym Analytics.
Small and medium-sized companies should be aware of, and able to access, the same level of marketing data and analytical savvy and success typically reserved for multi-million and billion-dollar corporations, and that’s precisely what our publication is all about.
Can you feel the trillion-dollar money pool getting closer?
Keep reading and make sure you follow our publication where I’ll be giving a clean and simple breakdown on core need-to-know marketing data hacks your business *might* be missing out on!
How can You Master your Marketing Data and Tap into that Trillion Dollar Money Pool?
First and foremost, avoid the land of Data Denial.
You may already have someone on your team doing your market analysis tasks for you; if so, perfect! Now it’s merely a matter of sharing files, asking the right questions, and delegating necessary tasks to remedy any issues that arise.
For those with smaller teams (or no team) lacking a proficient market data pro, if you’re not even remotely interested in learning the skills to do it for yourself, you’d be best served by partnering with a qualified and proven agency.
No matter what way your company chooses to pursue this, make sure you don’t get stuck in the land of Data Denial. This is too vital to half-ass or procrastinate on -sort of like your taxes.
One typical example of Data Denial we find can be seen in highly creative, visionary entrepreneurs, those most effective in the soul and creation of their movement, but not always remembering the back end logistical tasks.
One example of The Visionary Entrepreneur could be an up and coming fashion designer and primary heavy lifter in their company. They’d likely be handling the production, processes, fabrics, and of course, design. As the company continues to grow and thrive, they may begin contracting out some of the day-to-day running tasks like product distribution, accounting, and keeping the store and products active and visible on social media channels.
The Visionary isn’t likely to delve into using the analytic tools their online store and website have available, and they know they need to as their social media marketing contractor keeps asking questions they don’t have answers for.
- What channels were more efficient in generating traffic and sales?
- Why did some purchase while others didn’t?
- How many came back for additional products?
- How much would each new customer spend over time?
They have no idea how to answer these questions and keep people coming back without having to start from scratch every time they do a new sales campaign.
Sure, the tools on their website to find the info, but The Visionary probably finds it annoying to spend time looking for relevant numbers and trying to make sense of that data when new projects and fun creations beg for her attention as well.
With no marketing analytics setup, no data is flowing to help them make any well-informed decision. No clear conclusions = No trustful insights. And changing things seems like a lot of work… work The Visionary simply doesn’t want to do.
**Pro Tip: One of the most powerful realizations any ambitious professional can make is to define what their zone of mastery is and to STAY IN IT! For someone like The Visionary Entrepreneur to spend hours a week stressing and struggling to muck through systems and processes that aren’t easy and natural to her robs her of the time she COULD be spending on the things only she can do, that she does best. Know when to do things yourself and when to refer/delegate out.
Second, know your tools.
Trying to fly a plane when you don’t know how the equipment works and expecting a beautifully successful (and safe) flight only works in the movies.
And a few TV shows.
And books.
Ok, ok, you get the point: It’s fun in theory but doesn’t really work out so well in reality.
Running an eCommerce store without proper usage of your market data is pretty much the same thing. Maybe you’ll get the plane off the ground, but do you know where you’re going? Will it stay in the air? Can you land it?
I could run indefinitely with this analogy, but I’m sure you get the point.
Marketing technology comes with a slew of fantastic and vital tools for every business, especially ecommerce. But what good is the tool when the operator doesn’t know how/isn’t able to use it to its fullest? At that point, you’re working against your goals.
Like our next story feature, The Doer! The Doer is pretty proficient at navigating most of the running tasks -front and back end. This is great, but can become an issue if they end up cutting corners and trial and error learning as they go simply because they CAN do it themselves.
One such tale of The Doer could be a Fitness Specialist who finds themselves lacking the data-savvy they know is needed to introduce a new product line in their online bodybuilding store.
Both The Doer and their team regularly use their analytics programs but know they have some weak spots in interpreting the data and closing the gaps and conflicts they see in some of their reports.
After an eye-opening team meeting and weighing their options of trial and error efforts or getting outside help, they know a specialist is needed to set up data tracking and help them see through the fog of poor data use.
After getting into the nitty-gritty of the desired KPI’s and goals, they’re now able to:
- See what current product subscribers would be most likely to get on board with this new product
- Save money on new lead acquisition
- Keep existing customers passionate about the company
- Generate new sales quickly to fuel additional marketing campaigns
- And The Doer and team have brushed up on data analysis skills to avoid these potholes in the future
**Pro Tip: If you (or your team) have a basic understanding of what tools to use and how — congrats! You’re way ahead of the game! Now to take that game to the next level, you may benefit from doing a quarterly review session with your desired data analytics agency to get customized tips, industry updates, and guidance that’s relevant to your specific needs that quarter.
Third, you need to have consistent data dialogue to address trends and tweaks promptly.
Like any other relationship, you have to keep regular communication flowing for the big magic to be made! Your relationship to your data is no different — especially if you plan to grow that success long term.
Our final story for this post is about The Marketing Pro, maybe a marketing manager for an online music hosting site. The Marketing Pro IS the data master for the company (amongst all the other marketing tasks), and knows the importance of that open dialogue for on the spot changes when campaigns and ads are running.
Because The Pro handles such a wide variety of tasks, they regularly work with their favorite data agency during heavy ad launches to monitor and manage them in real-time. This enables them to:
- Split test ads to see how to use the allotted campaign budget best
- Catch issues with Cost-per-click, cost-per-view, etc. ratios
- Avoid running ads with high cost/high competition keywords when better alternatives may be available
- Saving time and giving a higher return on investment when The Pro isn’t the only one managing all the tasks
**Pro Tip: If you have a big launch coming up, it may be in your favor to budget in a project management cost so you can get some outside support in making sure your ads are on point BEFORE you run them. You might even consider outsourcing the whole ad project so your focus can be saved for the next phase of your launch — product delivery and new client relationship building! Time is money, use both wisely.
Your All-Access Pass to the Trillion Dollar Money Pool is Yours!
Wow, you made it to the end! I hope this lengthy blog post has given you a few points for thought, a few laughs, and some perspective on how your company can knock the socks off its growth and expansion goals with powerful partnerships in marketing technology and data analytics.
If you feel like you could be a doppelganger for The Visionary, The Doer, or The Pro, stay tuned for the following blog posts if you are a DIY kind of person! If you don’t want to be a DIY data master, then don’t be shy about reaching out for information on how we can support you with Consulting and Customized MarTech Solutions.
Otherwise, clap, follow our publication on Medium, and we’ll catch you in the rest of this sexy series on how to be (or get) the devil in your marketing analytics strategy.
Check www.wymanalytics.com for more insights on web and marketing analytics.
