Moving from Data to Decisions: How to create value from data & analytics

You’ve invested in the latest marketing tech stack, from a brand-new data warehouse to advanced web analytics and dashboards. Yet, all that infrastructure feels like... a cost centre.

You're stuck in reporting mode, not making real decisions or changing your strategy.

Tools are necessary, but infrastructure isn’t impact. You want data to be a growth engine, not just another line item on your budget. So, how do you move from simply collecting data to taking action and creating real value from data?

Here’s what we’ve learned works:

1. Start with One Clear Objective

Don't boil the ocean. Focus your team on a single, specific question that drives action. Instead of asking "what was our CPA last month?", focus on a question that truly matters: "How much more can we profitably scale our paid social spend in Q4?"

Then, depending on your business question, the tools to measure it will be different.

• Want to understand the performance of one marketing channel? An experiment is best
• Looking to run cross-channel measurement? MMM is the best solution

Equally, we are transparent about what analytics can and can’t answer so that you can build trust in the insights.

2. Get the Right Mix of Skills

Too often, data teams chase "more data" or "perfect models." The best teams strike a balance between analytical rigour and strategic storytelling.

The most powerful insights are the ones that marketers can easily understand and act on.

3. Think Small to Scale with Always-On MMM

You don't need to go from zero to 100. Start with a smaller version of the problem, prove the value, and then scale.

Too often, data teams are focused on the infrastructure, not the value generation. In today’s world, if you aren’t driving value from data & analytics, then CEO’s & CFO’s will re-prioritise budgets to business areas that are.