How to measure the data that matters

With so much data to choose from or analyse, it can be difficult to know where to look first – and why. Only when you’ve understood where to look and the reasons for looking there can you leverage insight from the data you’re measuring and use it to inform improvements to your digital experiences.

In all honesty, how you approach measuring the data can be equally as important as the data itself – but before you dive into specific metrics and dashboards, you need to set your compass on where to look.

You can measure lots of data, but that doesn’t mean you need to, or should, measure it all. It can be tempting to dive straight into the available data with a view to optimising your digital experience sooner rather than later.?

The trouble is, this is likely dictated by what was being measured by default, what is most prominently shown in template reporting dashboards, and is probably largely quantitative data. All these things together likely mean you’re either trying to find a needle of insight in a haystack or filling the gaps with your own assumptions.

Consequently, trying to plug your knowledge gaps with incorrect assumptions risks missing key context and not delivering the value you’re working so hard to achieve. Assumptions are often wrong because you don’t have the same contexts, daily influences and biases as your audiences.?

And without delivering value to your audiences, you’ll likely lose traffic, engagement, and potentially revenue – which is why this matters so much.

But you can’t be confident in the most meaningful data to capture and analyse until you’ve married up your digital platform objectives with what your audiences come to you for – knowing your audience needs and contexts is critical.

We’ll break down the subject here based on our experience and the common problems we see businesses encounter.

Collecting data, but don’t know where to look?

Many data points are looked at in isolation from their interaction or page or through platforms that aren’t easy to use. The danger here is that you’ll focus too much on assumptions about what’s causing the data you’re seeing or simply stop at vanity metrics we know so well, like total page views, clicks or total time spent on site. It can lead, well…nowhere.?

Really, effective UX measurement comes down to data that informs decisions or tells you something.?

So, while isolated data points might be beneficial in some instances, it takes away the ability to catch themes, see the real barriers, and prioritise actions across the end-to-end experience.

The issue with not finding the data that informs decisions is that there’s no real movement in the right direction – no way for you to find insight or meaning from your data. By not being insight led, you’re in danger of taking unnecessary risks, such as time and money being spent on digital products or experiences without validating the priority or audience need.

How to know what data matters

Knowing what your audiences fundamentally need, what they come to you for and what completing that looks like are all critical components of your insight compass, pointing you towards what data matters most.

So, do you know the answers to these questions?

• What broad outcome are my audiences trying to achieve?
• Why have they specifically come here today? What task are they looking to complete?
• What behaviours, conversions, engagement signals, or endpoints signify they have been able to complete this task successfully??
• What are the barriers stopping them from achieving what they need?
• What are the gains in helping them to achieve what they need?

Of course, it’s not just about pleasing your audiences. You need the offering to be successful and profitable for the business too. So identifying where these elements overlap with what you’re able to provide is also key.?

Get really clear on where your sweet spots of business/digital objectives and customer needs overlap. Then, embed a robust programme of data capture and measurement around that.

This, ultimately, will dictate what you need to measure to understand if you’re achieving success for both your audiences and your organisation.

How to measure the data that matters

It’s not just what you measure but how you measure it. Just because you have a set of data in front of you does not mean you have the answers. The methods of capturing that data, the way in which it has been interpreted and the breadth of context that sits behind it all affect its integrity and, therefore, how useful it is to you.

Bad data can be more damaging than no data if you have misplaced confidence and make investment decisions based on inaccurate insight.??

Here are some key things to remember when capturing the data that matters to your business:

1. Measure both quantitative and qualitative data

To get a full picture of audience behaviours and what is influencing them, you should use both quantitative and qualitative methods. This means not just stopping at Google Analytics or Adobe Analytics dashboards along with a survey or two. They may tell you some of what is happening but not the full picture as to why.?

Only a solid combination of both qualitative and quantitative data can bring the ‘what’ and the ‘why’ of your digital success to the table. And you can be sure you haven’t filled in knowledge gaps with your own incorrect assumptions.

2. Monitor accessibility alongside usability

1 in 5 people have a form of disability, impairment, or health condition . And there’s no reason to miss out on business from 20% of people - simply because you didn’t include accessibility considerations when testing your digital experience.?

Automated testing will only catch about 11% of your website's accessibility issues, so manual testing with real people is imperative.

Equally, there’s overlap in accessibility and simply browsing with limited attention. For example, a UI barrier that trips up someone with ADHD or dyslexia may also trip up someone dual screening or distracted by other things going on in their surroundings.

So, an experience accessible to all, including using various assistive technologies, is also better and more intuitive for everyone - it makes business sense, not just moral sense, to prioritise this.

Not only is accessibility a fundamental part of a successful digital solution, but with accessibility laws coming into effect in the next 12 months, you should take notice now to ensure you’re compliant.

3. Frame your questions carefully

How you ask research questions plays a huge role in how accurate and useful the answers will be for you.?

Whether it’s a survey or a research interview, pausing to consider how your questions are phrased is imperative. As such, we recommend that you:

• Ask open and non-leading questions where possible
• Use language that your audiences use
• Be clear and specific about what you’re asking for
• Be considerate of their time and only ask questions that are necessary and where the answers will be used
• Ask what they have done in the past, over predicting what they will do in the future (we as humans are notoriously poor at accurately predicting what we’ll do!)

And remember, you’re asking for their context, not what they think the solution is. Your audiences are, of course, experts in their own needs, not the digital technologies that could solve them.?

So, whilst they may have useful suggestions to take on board, don’t skip understanding and empathising with their situation and behaviours first.?

4. Don’t forget the team that delivers your digital experiences

Now, focus on your biggest asset. Also known as your internal team. You know, the people who directly contribute to the success of your digital experience, such as:

• Content creators
• Marketing team
• Sales team
• CMS administrators

If we stop to think about these roles as audiences for you to serve, you can start to see how that changes how you approach and listen to them. But this doesn’t mean making them feel monitored and watched; it means capturing their needs and measuring how well they are met.

For example:

• If your sales team is referencing and sharing digital materials, is it easy for them to find and use??
• Are your CMS admins able to effectively create sophisticated pages and content blocks that look and behave as necessary??

These internal audiences are often forgotten, yet key to the delivery and success of the experience for your external audiences.

Stay ahead of changing customer behaviours and signals

Ultimately, knowing what your audiences and business need from your digital experiences will steer your insight compass to which metrics matter most.?

In other words, the metrics that will tell you how well you’ve delivered. When you have this information in a complete picture of both what is happening and why, you’ll be holding the opportunities for improvement and growth.?

Focusing on the right metrics to inform user-centric decisions is key – and that starts with knowing your audience's needs and contexts.