From 2021 to 2022, online traffic increased worldwide by 25%. This growth reflects both a significant expansion in the number of internet users, as well as an increase in the number of companies offering content, products, and services online.<\/p>\n
With more and more business happening online, business leaders are recognizing the power and importance of data in developing better digital business strategies.<\/p>\n
A\u00a02022 Data and AI Leadership Executive Survey<\/a>\u00a0showed that 91.7% of companies are increasing investments in data and AI, and 92% are already achieving returns on their investments. This trend is reflected in search volumes for the keyword \u201cdata\u201d. Comparing 2022 to 2018, global monthly search volumes have increased by 350K.<\/p>\n Of the companies surveyed, however, only 26% reported they\u2019ve achieved the goal of becoming data-driven. The remaining companies are still working to make data a fundamental part of their culture. This gap reflects the challenges businesses face in implementing data.<\/p>\n In this article, we\u2019ll explore the topic of data strategies from several angles. And to provide the best possible insights, we\u2019ll refer to the expert advice provided by industry experts in the recent Semrush webinar:\u00a0\u201cHow to Implement Data to Strengthen Your Marketing Strategy.\u201d\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n Running a business requires constant adaptation and improvement. Businesses need to track and analyze a variety of important metrics to adjust to changing market conditions and gain a competitive advantage. Some of those metrics include:<\/p>\n This list is by no means inclusive, but each of these examples require data to measure. As webinar guest, Natalie Luneva, a SaaS Entrepreneur and Growth Advisor, says, \u201cWhat gets measured gets improved.\u201d This idea gets to the fundamental importance of working with data in the business context. Data is key to understanding, and understanding allows for improvement.<\/p>\n Get Instant Market Data<\/p>\n with Semrush .Trends<\/p>\n<\/div>\n While data can provide a big competitive advantage, building a data strategy framework isn\u2019t easy. This is the reason why only 26% of the surveyed companies said they\u2019ve successfully become data-driven. The rest are still overcoming challenges. Let\u2019s take a look at a few struggles businesses face with regard to data and listen to the experts to figure out how to overcome them.<\/p>\n In the last decade, businesses have benefited tremendously from targeted marketing made possible by third-party data providers. But with Google and other big data providers\u00a0phasing out third-party cookies<\/a>, many businesses are wondering what the future of data will look like.<\/p>\n This change also speaks to a larger issue. New technologies, consumer sentiment, and changing regulations will impact the kinds of data that are available and how you can use it. For companies, this means keeping a close watch on the ever changing data landscape.<\/p>\n In a world of heightened data privacy, new data sources and new data management strategies are becoming crucial. As one solution, Expert Marketer, Martin Henning, suggests, \u201cthe earlier companies begin to switch to a first-party data strategy the better.\u201d<\/p>\n First-party data is collected by companies directly from their customers. In order for a first-party strategy to work, quality content that attracts visitors will become increasingly important. \u201cIf the content is that good,\u201d Hennig continues. \u201cI\u2019m confident that customers will find their way to us.\u201d<\/p>\n Additionally, in this new era of restricted data access, segmentation, channel awareness, and a focus on broader trends will become increasingly important for long term success.<\/p>\n Companies often struggle to figure out how to help teams collaborate and use data to track and achieve common goals. Different business units are often interested in different metrics. In isolation, there\u2019s no problem with the sales team focusing on sales metrics and the marketing teams focusing on marketing metrics. But what happens when these units need to work together? Confusion around the most important metrics is a common challenge.<\/p>\n When collaborating, Luneva suggests, \u201cBringing different types of data into one common denominator.\u201d Across teams, she says, \u201cWe\u2019re often using different languages. But once we\u2019re able to bring all of those data points and metrics together into a single common denominator, everything becomes easier.\u201d<\/p>\n Along similar lines, Hubspot\u2019s SEO Team Lead, Jennifer Lapp, spoke to her success collaborating across teams. \u201cWe created shared goals,\u201d she says. \u201cAnd the alignment in the efforts between those teams has helped us understand what we should be measuring.\u201d<\/p>\n Before diving into work across units, take time to discuss goals, define key metrics, and think about what Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) best reveal success.<\/p>\n Just as different business units are interested in different kinds of data, stakeholders often aren\u2019t interested in fine details of the data. They\u2019re most interested in the impact on the bottom line. As Lapp says, \u201cThe struggle is finding ways to deliver data so it generates buy-in and support from leadership.\u201d Unfortunately, unclear communication or a focus on the wrong details can leave stakeholders confused, or worse, resistant to further support for a given project.<\/p>\n The skill of translation data for individuals outside of your team is key. It takes not only practice, but time to translate data in an effective way. Likewise, as with any kind of presentation, it\u2019s crucial you understand your audience. \u201cYou need to tie the data to business metrics they care about,\u201d Marcus Tober, Head of Enterprise Solutions at Semrush, suggests, \u201cTranslate it into a language stakeholders understand.\u201d<\/p>\n So far, we\u2019ve disused the importance of data and some of the challenges. Now, let\u2019s take a look at how to actually work with some data to generate strategy-strengthening insights.<\/p>\n For these examples, we\u2019ll pretend we work for a small bicycle manufacturer who wants to expand into the broader U.S. bicycle market. We\u2019ll use\u00a0Semrush .Trends<\/a>\u00a0to dig up some data to explore how the insights might inform our strategy.<\/p>\n The first thing we might do when thinking about trying to bring our small bicycle manufacturing company to a broader national audience is take a look at the market as a whole. We could start broad by looking at some industry reports and reading up about top players in the industry. Then, we could use the\u00a0Market Explorer<\/a>\u00a0Overview Report to do some research on the digital landscape.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s a look at the Market Summary for six of the top domains in our bicycle market in the month of October, 2022.<\/p>\n Looking at the left side of the screen, we discover the market has a moderately low-level of consolidation, with Trek as the market leader with 47% of the market share. Specialized and Giant are next in line with 25% and 11% of the market share. For a new entrant, this market may be a little challenging to enter, but by no means impossible.<\/p>\n We can also see the market traffic this month is up by 15%, and the market size is large with some room to grow. These are all good signs for our company.<\/p>\n But, as any business owner or marketer knows, it\u2019s important to look at data across time. What happens when we look at the market over the last year?<\/p>\n Looking to the right side of the screen, we discover some less encouraging signs. Though the month of October looks strong, over the past year market traffic has declined nearly 24%. Likewise, we can see some growth and decline in the market size. This is likely due to seasonality, as the peak in market size is centered around the spring and summer months.<\/p>\n Now, let\u2019s turn our attention to the market audience. The Audience report in\u00a0Market Explorer\u00a0<\/a>can provide some data regarding demographic, socioeconomic, and employment statuses. Here\u2019s a look at the\u00a0Demographics<\/a>.<\/p>\n For the bicycle market, nearly 80% of the audience are men and most are millennials (between ages 25-44). Interestingly, looking at the right hand side of the chart, it appears the percentage of women in the market are higher in the 18-24 category and the 65+ category.<\/p>\n Looking into the Socioeconomics of our market, we discover some additional insights. Our audience is composed mostly of people who work full time (52%), who have a college degree (48%), have a low or medium income (49% low and 30% medium), and live in a home with 3-4 people (38%).<\/p>\nWhy Is a Data Analytics Strategy So Important for Businesses?<\/h2>\n
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How to Overcome Data\u2019s Biggest Challenges<\/h2>\n
A changing data landscape<\/h3>\n
What\u2019s the solution?<\/h4>\n
Aligning teams<\/h3>\n
A possible solution:<\/h4>\n
Translating data for stakeholders<\/h3>\n
A possible Solution:<\/h4>\n
How do you turn data into data-driven strategies?<\/h2>\n
Exploring market trends<\/h3>\n
Moving from data to strategy:<\/h4>\n
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Analyzing the market audience<\/h3>\n
Moving from data to strategy:<\/h4>\n
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