Marketing agencies big & small often use gimmicky words like “next-gen” “industry leading” and hype up their abilities in areas like SEM & Analytics
Here are some of the easiest points to get clarification on before taking the leap:
“We have experience with Google Analytics.”
While having some familiarity with Google Analytics is a good start, it does not necessarily make an agency an expert in digital analytics. Anyone can log into your GA account and pull page visits. The trouble is when it comes to more difficult situations surrounding items like data stewardship, tracking, and what it means. Make sure you get their ideas on important factors including KPI identification, GDPR regulation, and UTM creation that will frame the entirety of Google Analytics usefulness.
“We can track your website traffic.”
This reminds me of the Portlandia episode where anything that was not hip enough required someone to just “SLAP A BIRD ON IT!”
Yeah…No tracking code does not work like that. be wary, “slappin’” analytics code on anything requires foresight and technical understanding.
Ask for specific architecture plans surrounding your individual setup. Are you an online store focused on driving pages through direct mail? How will that be tracked?
Are there 3 stores under separate domains that you would like to include in one reporting suite?
These types of answers are vital to ensuring you get exactly what you paid for.
Setting up tracking is a necessary step in digital analytics, but it is not the same as being able to design and implement a comprehensive tracking plan that aligns with your business goals.
“We can provide you with reports.”
Providing reports is an important part of digital analytics, but it is not the same as being able to interpret and analyze the data in those reports to identify trends and insights, and provide recommendations for optimization.
Make sure you ask what formats any reports will be in. If you have a preference for Google Data Studio, PowerBI, or Tableau do not hesitate to speak up. Once a reporting platform is decided on, discuss and potentially get in writing details like limitations, unknowns like data cleaning & structure as well as data stewardship. This will ensure there are no hiccups and reporting will be done in a timely and expected manor
Bottomline: Call it like you see it!
Overall, it is important to look beyond surface-level claims and ask specific questions about an agency’s expertise and approach to digital analytics to determine whether they are truly skilled in this area. If it sounds too vague, easy, or optimistic, start asking those hard questions!