The ability to collect, analyse and interpret data has become one of the most powerful tools in a business. It allows you to understand customers better than ever, predicts trends and make decisions based on objective information rather than hunches or gut feelings. However, many companies still believe that collecting data is enough—they fail to realise the importance of using it effectively.
Perception vs reality is always different. Therefore, data-driven business development is vital.
According to a study by the Harvard Business Review, companies that make decisions based on data see a 35% increase in their return on investment and a rise in market share by 25%.
Data-driven decision-making is essential for any business that wants to grow quickly and sustainably. It lets you track the impact of every investment so that you can make better decisions about where to spend your resources—and how much of them.
It’s easy to get caught up in the excitement of an idea, but if you don’t take the time to understand how people will react to it (and how they think they’ll respond), then you’ll never be able to make good decisions about how to move forward with your project.
To stay ahead of your competition, you must do thorough user or market research before working on any new initiatives!
In this article, we’ll look at what it means for your company to be “data-driven”, as well as how you can evaluate your current strategy and discover new ways to integrate information into your business model so that making data-driven decisions becomes second nature for everyone involved with running things day-to-day at your organisation!
Over the last 20 years, technology has drastically changed how we interact with each other and our environment. In that time, data has emerged as the new lifeblood of our civilisation.
Data has been around since the dawn of time. It’s a byproduct of our existence and only getting bigger. Data is everywhere—in the applications we use on our phones, the websites we visit, orders from the internet, and even the new technologies that will shape our future. Data is digital information collected, organised, stored, retrieved and analysed over time to help us make better decisions about how we do business or live our lives.
Data is available for businesses and individuals who want to learn more about themselves by looking at their own data sets (which may include medical or service records). For example, an individual might have a genetic test done through 23andMe or AncestryDNA, where they get information about their ancestry composition based on DNA. They might then go onto My Fitness Pal, so they know how many calories they eat each day and how many steps they take every day when using their Fitbit device (or other wearable devices). By combining these two sets with other data points, like price comparisons between different brands at nearby grocery stores, this person could optimise their lifestyle more efficiently than before!
What does it mean to be data-driven?
In a nutshell, data-driven decision-making is using information to inform decisions. It’s about understanding what you need to know before making an informed choice about how to proceed.
Data-driven innovation is more than just incorporating data into your business strategy; it’s about creating new processes and systems centred around data as a starting point for innovation. Data becomes more than just another input; it becomes the catalyst for your next big idea.
Data-driven business development (DDBD) builds on these two concepts by using real-time analytics and machine learning to identify patterns in incoming information so that companies can take advantage of opportunities as they arise—without having to wait until they’ve been recognised by someone else or discovered in hindsight after the fact.
How do you become a data-driven company?
Being a data-driven company can be challenging. It requires patience and perseverance, and it’s not something that will happen overnight. But if you’re willing to do the work, you can achieve your goals with a data-driven approach to business development.
Here are some steps you can take:
- Set goals, KPIs, and OKRs for your business based on actual data, not assumptions or guesses. Concrete numbers will help you make more informed decisions about where to focus your efforts and how best to reach those goals quickly and efficiently.
- Develop a culture where everyone knows what they need from their peers when it comes down to crunch time (i.e., “can we make this deadline?”). This includes ensuring everyone understands what types of information are available within their departments and how these pieces fit into the larger picture of operations at large companies outside our walls.”
It’s not just about collecting and analysing data; it’s about doing so intelligently and consistently.
Data is a tool, not the end goal itself. The information you collect and analyse should be used to help you make decisions and inform your strategy.
It’s important to remember that there are many different types of data available: from qualitative research conducted with customers to more quantitative data like website analytics or sales figures—each style has its specific function in helping you understand your customers, competitors and business as a whole.
Your data should be measured against industry benchmarks to compare your performance. This will give you insight into where opportunities lie within the market (e.g., trends) and your team or department(s).
Become a truly data-driven company.
Being a genuinely data-driven company means:
- Understanding your customers better than they understand themselves.
- Using data to make better decisions, whether hiring the right people or making more informed business decisions.
- Using data to drive innovation and create new opportunities.
- Using data to grow your business by helping you acquire new clients and retain current ones.
By evaluating your current strategy and discovering new ways to integrate information into your business model, you can grow your business by making data-driven decisions
Before diving into strategy and tactics, it’s essential to understand the current state of your business. To make data-driven decisions, you need to understand the following:
- What your business model is (how do you generate revenue)
- How customers engage with your brand and what their journey looks like
- The data available to help inform those decisions (what do you know about them?)
- Where competitors are focusing their efforts and what they are doing well or poorly (what can we learn from them?)
- Trends in the industry that might impact the future success (where will this industry be in five years?)
Bottom Line
The way you view, information can have a significant impact on how well your business grows. By developing a more data-driven mindset, you’ll be able to make more informed decisions that will lead to better results.
Who am I?
I am Dotun Adeoye, a Business Growth Strategist & Author of the 5 Pillars of Business Growth.
I’ve built up my experience via serial entrepreneurship, consulting leadership roles in business growth, business development and product innovation in large companies worldwide in the last 29 years.
Today, I consult with large businesses on how to sustainably grow their businesses, sustain infinite growth, ensure business continuity and achieve a legacy.
Hire Dotun Adeoye to Speak Virtually or In – Person at your company’s event to cover this or other topics. You can also get in touch via +44 203 097 1718
