#09: How to Tell the Right Story with Data
Socialinsider
Simplified and straightforward social media analytics for busy social media marketers.
Hello and welcome to the 9th issue of The Social Dot newsletter. I’m Andreea, your local social media expert, and together we shall connect the dots of the social media world.
Stories help us make sense of the world around us and connect with others on a deeper level. They can inspire action and loyalty, two of the most important goals marketers have for their customer conversion.
There is a catch, though.
Stories, by themselves, can’t work wonders. They have to be supported by facts, data, and evidence. But what happens when the numbers don’t paint a full picture, or worse, tell conflicting stories??
We had the same dilemma, so we reached out to Tarooj Anwar , data analyst at Create Media Group, a leading strategic digital communications agency based in Dubai.
In his role, Tarooj combines the power of storytelling with insights extracted from data analysis.
As a digital marketer, it’s easy to get lost in the numbers. Data is there to prove the results of your efforts so it makes sense that you should want it to let it tell your brand’s story. In other words, if the numbers are up, the story has a happy ending.
Choosing the best metrics for your story
In an ideal world, the insights that you get from data analysis should tell a coherent story. They should support your narrative 100% and leave no room for uncertainty or second guessing. Unfortunately, things don't always work out that way.?
Even with the help of the most powerful social media analytics tools, sometimes there will be inconsistencies in your dataset. The trick is to not let yourself waste too much time looking at the data and lose sight of the bigger story.?
Instead, tap into your storytelling superpower and:
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The truth is nobody can tell you with certainty what metrics make the most sense for your brand.
You will need to figure that out depending on what you’re trying to achieve each time you tell your story: gain new leads, grow your community, attract investors etc.?
The one thing to keep in my mind here is that your story needs context. When it comes to social media data,? benchmarks are your context.?
What it takes to collect the right data
Tarooj points out that you need an ecosystem of tools to help you collect the data you need. Only the right tools can enable you to have a holistic view of your performance and attribute each outcome to its source. In other words, see what works and why.
Without proper attribution, you cannot have a coherent, believable story.?
To find out more about data-driven storytelling, check out these resources:?
And I’ll see you next week, in the next issue of The Social Dot, a newsletter powered by Socialinsider, and written by me, Andreea, you local social media expert.
Until then, tell me, do you think data storyteller should be a new job role in marketing?