We tend to like certain parts of our marketing more than others. The creativity? The words? Love ‘em. But when it comes to the data, well… it gets a little boring doesn’t it.

When I’m running webinars and workshops on creating graphics using Canva, they usually sell out in no time. Same goes with topics like Instagram Stories and making better posts on social media.

But when I put up a workshop on Measurement and Analytics, there’s crickets. Business owners just don’t seem to want to learn about the most critical things when it comes to their online marketing.

So what are you missing out on when you don’t address things like Analytics and Insights?

First up, you’ll have little to no idea what works and what doesn’t.

Sure, you can flip back through a few posts and smile that you got 6 comments on that Boomerang video on Instagram. But do you know what your followers and fans like most out of all the things you do over a longer period of time? And do you know what topics seem to keep winning again and again?

Digging into your Facebook and Instagram Insights unveils a world of information on what your customers, followers and fans like, don’t like, react to most, and click through on.

For example, knowing that your followers tend to love your videos more than your shared links means that you are able to produce more of what they like, which increases your engagement with them, and tells the social media platforms that you are worth them delivering to more newsfeeds of those who already follow you, and suggest you to more people who may find what you do somehow useful or interesting.

There are real benefits to not just reading and understanding your Insights, but going forward to act on them in your social media accounts.

Next, the information you’ll get from Google Analytics on your website will tell what to do next on your website.

That’s because Analytics can tell you where people go on your website, and where they come from before they land on your website. But that’s not all. You can also see what search terms that enter on search engines to find you, where they go after your website, and what it was that led to them leaving your website.

Let’s say, for example, that someone searched for “Bond Cleaner in Rockhampton.” If you are a cleaner in the Rockhampton region, you’ll see that your website visitor reached you after typing in that search. That’s good for you to know, because you can now type that same search in to Google to see how high or low on the list that your website is. If you’re showing up at #5, then you may want to increase your chances of getting more of that search traffic by doing some work on your website to attract more of those people who type that in to Google. That’s called SEO, or Search Engine Optimisation.

And that’s just the beginning.

Let’s say that you are selling safety products on a WordPress site using WooCommerce. Your Google Analytics can show you not only how people are finding your site, but you can see the difference between the people who find you by typing in a search term, those who come from your ads on Instagram, and those who come in through your LinkedIn company page. That can be valuable for allocating your time and money to those platforms. If you’re getting tonnes of hits from LinkedIn, but not from Instagram, then it may be worth shifting some of your time and budget over to LinkedIn and away from Insta.

Likewise, if you’re finding that simple searches in Google are bringing in most of your new customers, then it may be time to review whether your paid advertising is doing anything at all.

Finally, the information you are getting from your website and social media statistics can inform you of the kinds of people your customers are.

Google gives some great analytics that show the demographics of the people who discover your website on their search engine. It can tell you whether they are men or women – and even what affinities they have based upon their behaviours and search patterns.

Facebook goes into even deeper detail, showing you, via their Audience Insights tool and your own business page Insights, the age group they fall into, their geographical location, times they are active on the platform and the kinds of things they like locally and generally.

It can be very useful to know that your male customers are big fans of craft beer, when you’re selling PPE and safety gear. Partnering with the local craft brewer could be a great way of connecting more with those customers.

Imagine knowing ahead of time what kinds of partnerships with other business would work best, and who your core customers are? That’s the kind of information you get from taking a look at your website and social media Insights and Analytics.

Want to know more about your potential customers and what makes them tick? Then it’s time to start taking more notice of your Analytics and Insights. So, get started!