Step 1 : Data Procurement

The first step in being excellent with data is understanding and having clarity about what data you need to run your business and what questions are the most important to answer.

I use the term "data procurement" because you have to have a procurement mindset for data just like you do other goods and services for your company. There are a lot of methods and processes for procuring data:

1. "Free" Data - This costs you nothing and is a byproduct of running your business. This can come from your own transactions. It could be transaction POS data, shipment data, website traffic data, social media data, google analytics / trends data, response time to customer inquiries, feedback from surveys - there is no shortage of this. Start here due to ease of access and low cost.
2. Market Share Data - This could be Circana, Nielsen, or other data that helps you understand the size of a market and your share of it. This data can be a one-time purchase or something that you get in a recurring model. This helps you dollarize opportunities for your brand and innovative products
3. Data from customers - Some retailers will share data with you about where your products are selling and how you stack vs. competition. Some share it freely, some will charge you for it. This should provide you incremental learnings about your brand's performance and/or help you get more access to buying teams and considerations for increases support for your brand.
4. Consumer Research Data - This should be targeted in nature and considerable thought should be given to data quality. If you are researching consumers make sure you are getting a quality group of consumers to provide information.

Generally speaking, the cost of analyzing data and finding actionable insights will outweigh data procurement costs. However, it is easy to get caught in a cycle of paying for data you don't use or leverage properly. A data audit should be conducted every 3-6 months to ensure the data you are paying for is adding value to decisions made across the organization.