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Three steps to creating valuable analytics

So, you’re ready to start measuring performance. Seems easy enough. Pull a report into a spreadsheet, click a few buttons and you’ve got charts galore. Repeat this process a few more times for the many reports you have and suddenly you’re knee-deep in data visualizations without a clear way to make sense of or how to use them. 

This is what we call the “shotgun approach” — create charts first, and ask questions later. It's tempting, but there's a better way. Before you dive into the data, ask yourself these three questions. They'll save you time, money and headaches, ultimately leading to analytics that actually make a difference.

What specific questions are we trying to answer?
This is your starting point: Define your questions before you even look at a single data point. Otherwise, you might end up answering questions that aren't actually important. Part of this process is discovering and refining those questions.

What information do we need to answer those questions?
Handing over a stack of reports as thick as a brick isn't helpful to anyone. The key is to focus only on the data that's relevant to your specific business questions.

This is often the toughest part of creating meaningful analytics, but clarity can be achieved by: 

  • Identifying which parts of the business we need to explore to solve the problem
  • Figuring out what data we need from those areas
  • Teaching leaders which levers they can pull to influence those areas

Keep only what you need, and make sure everything has a purpose.

What are the risks if we don’t answer these questions?
What could happen to your business, your employees or your customers if you don't address these questions? After all, if there's nothing to gain or lose, why bother answering the question in the first place? This step helps you prioritize which questions are truly important and deserve your time and resources.

The goal isn't to have the most charts or the fanciest dashboard. It's to have clear, actionable insights that lead to progress.