Picture this a pristine, untouched lake. That’s your digital analytics. Clear. Reflective. A perfect snapshot of everything underneath.

Now, think of every decision you make in business as a raindrop. A feature release? Drop. Social media post? Another drop. Google Ad? Yet another. And those ripples, spreading across the water? That’s the business impact. Sometimes, they mingle, overlap, even interfere with each other.

On any given day, in companies all over, it’s pouring. And our tranquil lake? It’s getting harder and harder to read. Waves of content marketing, showers of updates, a deluge of decisions.

But what if… we could do things a bit differently?

Imagine, gathering each raindrop — every decision, every feature release, every ad — understanding it, and then… releasing it in a way that ensures each ripple is purposeful, measured, impactful. This is the art and science of refined digital strategy in the modern age. Here are steps to navigate these waters effectively.

Now what I typically here at this point is - “We can’t right now for XYZ reasons,” “We ship too fast,” or “Our work is too complex to measure.” Developing a strategic software and digital strategy is challenging. With ever-shifting platforms due to various factors, it’s a steep learning curve. However, I have five steps to guide you in understanding how to create a strategy that allows you to measure if your work has a positive or negative impact

or no impact at all

1. Setup a starting point for analytics

Product Analytics

• Product Usage and Engagement- Google Analytics or Mixpanel

• Error & Performance Monitoring — LogRocket

Marketing Site Analytics

• Traffic and User Behavior — Google Analytics

• Conversion Tracking — Google Analytics

Full list with descriptions

2. Stop Waiting - Start Today

It doesn’t happen overnight and you will never be “ready”. Good strategy requires persistence and time. Start today, incrementally. Although shortcuts may tempt you, avoid them. Eliminate “I can’t” or “we are waiting” from your vocabulary.

3. Break Down Silos

Connect your teams to the bigger picture — People will begin to intuitively and organically link each other’s work and support one another.

4. Break Down the Work

Start with a desired outcome. Segment it into Software, Sales, Marketing, and Customer Support, then execute strategies in parallel.

Let’s take “Drive more user signups” as our outcome

User Signups — Go Live Date: June 27th

• Engineering (starts mid-May): Develop a more seamless signup process based on user research from UX.

• Engineering (launch day): Team up with support to be on standby for any issues.

• Sales (starts early June): Reach out to leads and inform them of the upcoming enhanced signup process, emphasizing how it simplifies their journey.

• Marketing (starts early May): Initiate new email campaigns highlighting the enhanced signup experience for potential customers.

• Support (starts early June): Get briefed on changes and messaging. Receive elevated troubleshooting solutions in case of issues.

5. Measure

Use your tools to report on views, interactions, impressions etc. By collecting and organizing your ‘drops’, you’re now poised to measure their impact, accounting for both long and short-tail effects. Remember, if you’ve made it this far, you’re already ahead of 95% of organizations. Strive for continuous improvement.

Using our signup example

• Engineering: Success Rate: Percentage of successful signups vs. failed attempts.

• Sales: Lead Conversion: Number of leads that converted to signups.

• Marketing: Campaign Effectiveness: Number of signups attributed to specific marketing campaigns or channels.

• Support: Volume of Queries: Number of support tickets or queries related to the signup process.

• UX: User Journey Analysis: Analysis of where users drop off during the signup process.

So, while we started with the imagery of a lake and raindrops, it’s clear that it’s more than just a metaphor. By meticulously understanding each decision, like those individual drops, we can unify our teams, measure success more accurately, and chart a clearer course for future investments. Dive deep into analytics, make waves with intention, and let your business strategies flow with purpose.