One of the most important things I help my consulting clients with is understanding their numbers.
We look at what the inputs were—things like number of activities, expenses, time spent, etc.—these are the things that go into their marketing.
They’re the leading indicators.
We then evaluate each month what the outputs–were. Number of followers, number of subscribers, number of new leads, website traffic, new customers, engagement—whatever metric we’re looking for.
These are the lagging indicators.
We put it all into a spreadsheet once per month and focus on the key drivers of the business in these terms. Revenue, expenses, activities, results.
Every time we review these numbers, questions and solutions jump right off the page. Simply by seeing numbers trending over time, we can see where we need to focus, which levers are creating the best results, and which activities are not worth doing anymore.
I call it “reading the tea leaves” because not everyone is able to see the story within the numbers. It’s like a psychic art to some.
Really, it just takes practice. And a way of doing it so it doesn’t become overly complicated.
It helps to have a good KPI sheet, like the one Mindtrust members get or anyone can buy within the Mindshare Operating System.
It also helps to have a good understanding of web analytics—the kind you get from Google Analytics and from reports in other marketing tools.
The better you know your numbers, the better you’ll be at your job and the more valuable your insight will be.
Lean into the numbers. Pull the important ones into one spreadsheet each month.
They won’t tell you everything, but they will help you think. And that will make you more valuable.
—k
P.S. I’m hosting a live workshop with Jordan Choo this month with an over-the-shoulder look at how to set up, configure goals, and create client reports in Google Analytics 4. Use promo code EARLY10 to save $10: https://lu.ma/ga4