Beyond Vlookups: The Marketing Data Analytics Stack
Sam Fonoimonana, Chief Analytics Officer at Stoke Analytics, spoke about data analytics and how it is important for marketers to take a close look at the data (using multiple data points) to tell the full story. In order to look at the data set Sam recommended marketers use pivot tables to collect and manage the data.
In this presentation, Sam talked about how marketers need to set the data which allows them to get the foundation in place. To do that, Sam discussed the following steps to set up your performance pipeline -
- Diagram - the cost data (Ad platforms such as AdWords, Facebook, Twitter, Bing and LinkedIn)
- Website data - Google Analytics which is important to help you better understand the customer journey.
- Automation data - tools such as MailChimp which allows you to see what your email campaigns are doing and measure conversion rates.
- Transacttion/CMR data - platforms such as a Salesforce, Magento, and Microsoft Dynamics
- Central/Database Layer - you can do the same thing as Vlookups
- Reporting & Visualization - such as Tablo, Domo, PowerBi, and Excel
- Modeling & Action - predictive analytics and lead forecasting through tools such as Python and SQL.
When it comes to setting up your performance pipeline, there are some great benefits such as:
- Powerful reporting to compare content and see what kind of wins client is seeing.
- Lower CPA / Higher ROI - you can use the data to improve your performance and determine where your main focus should be).
- Time Savings which saves you time from manually exporting data and going more automation).
- Accuracy to avoid human error.
The key is to make the data work for you. To do that, Sam concluded that you must look at all sides of the story to make the best decision for you and your clients.
Using Google Tag Manager for Advanced ‘Behavioral Based’ Remarketing on Facebook
Chris Mercer, Co-founder at Measurement Marketing.IO, was the next presenter and he talked about using Google Tag Manager (GTM) for Advanced ‘Behavioral Based’ Remarketing on Facebook.
Chris began his presentation talking about the Pillars of Measurement Marketing:
- Planning - what questions am I going to answer, how am I going to answer, etc.
- Building - using tools such as Google Analytics, GTM, etc)
- Reporting
- Forecasting - use the data to see what results will be next week.
- Optimizing
During his presentation, Chris talked about how marketers are running into the problem of remarketing too much, too often due to the data being misleading because you may be targeting the wrong audience. Instead, Chris talked about how marketers can better measure the data through GTM to remarket to the correct target audience.
The key is to keep it simple. GTM is an amazing tool that controls everything on your site but you have to “train it” by telling it want you want it to do. Another tool Chris highlighted was Facebook Analytics which can help you narrow your focus through:
- Facebook Pixels Basic - tells Facebook that you’re on a page
- Event Pixels - the specific action
- Lead Generation - when people click on CTA
- Customized page view (engaged pageview) - identify why visitors left the funnel and try to determine how to bring them back to the cart.
This is where your remarketing tactics come into play. By developing a plan, or behavior blueprint, you can categorize your visitors into groups (who are you talking to?), their behavior (determine what ads to create to engage potential customers), and remarket to get leads (using GTM which should be behind the scenes firing the tags).
Note: GTM must fire the tag as “once per page” which is not a default. You will need to change this setting manually. This is important because most errors come from the event tag not firing correctly.
As you begin to use GTM to better align and target the right people, you will get better results from your remarketing efforts and get better engagement.
If you'd like to view the slides from June's presentation, click here or see below.