The Greatest Marketing Unlock

I am an expert at marketing analytics.

I started learning marketing analytics in 2020, and since then I have worked with great companies and even some household names.

At this point, I would consider myself a pro.

Prior to learning analytics, I wasted a lot of money assuming my marketing was working.

I was wrong, a lot.

I remember working with my dads friend, Jeff, during that time.

He roasted me one night at the local watering hole 🍺 for not having data and wasting HIS money. Sorry Jeff.

So, learn from my mistakes, and save yourself the pain of wasted dollars by learning the story these direct booking metrics tell.

Doing this will help you stop guessing:

1. What to spend money on.

2. What not to spend money on.

3. What should be tested.

These key metrics let you think less and do more:

#1: Engagement Data

Engagement data tells us how much traffic we're getting and what people do next. Here are the metrics I pay attention to:

• Views: How many times a page was viewed.

• Users: How many people viewed the website.

• New Users: How many people are new to the website.

• Bounce Rate: The percent of people who came to the site and left without doing anything.

Here's why these metrics matter:

Let's say I build out an Instagram ads campaign to get more website traffic.

If none of the above metrics improve, then I would pull down my campaign.

Why?

I can clearly see that Instagram isn't helping me reach my goal. Therefore, why waste the money?

#2: Acquisition Data

Acquisition data tells us where people are coming from. Here are the metrics I pay attention to:

• Source: The platform people came from (i.e. Instagram).

• Medium: How they got to my site through the platform (i.e. ads vs. organically).

Using acquisition data, I can learn:

1. How many people book from Instagram vs. Google.

2. If social media marketing impacts revenue.

3. If I should invest in SEO to get more traffic through Google.

Simply put, acquisition data tells me what to do more of.

#3: Conversion Data

Conversion data tells us how effective our desired customer (guest) pathway is.

I call this the "funnel flow." Here are the metrics I pay attention to:

• Property Views: How many times a property page was viewed.

• Booking Start: How many times the booking process was started.

• Booking Complete: How many times the booking process was completed.

I look at conversion data to solve one question:

"How can I increase bookings in my funnel flow?"

The answer to that question requires testing. I always test one change at a time then revisit my conversion data to measure it's effectiveness.

Here are some changes I would test:

1. Listing descriptions.

2. Property names.

3. Pricing.

4. One page checkout vs. a three page checkout (standard).

5. Nightly minimums.

The list goes on forever. But a sweet spot might not take long to find.

Data Creates a World Without Guessing

Imagine a world where you:

1. Don't have to sit for hours coming up with new marketing ideas.

2. Launch the "perfect" campaign and actually get bookings.

3. Crack ads and start making money.

Ahhhh. Sounds like paradise.

That world is real. It exists. You get there by learning the three data types we talked about today.

Stop guessing and let the numbers tell you:

• What to spend money on.

• What not to spend money on.

• What should be tested.

It's the biggest unlock I've had in my marketing career.

That's all for today. I'll see you in the next article.