Hiya, Reader!
Do you ever find your emotions and logic at odds when trying to make a business decision?
Last week, I was trying to determine whether or not to sign up for a business retreat in California next year.
My emotional brain was telling me, "Do it, Bev! You'll get to hang out in-person with these amazing people you've connected with over the past few years!"
But financially did it make sense for me?
I gathered some data, including known revenue & expenses through now and the end of the year, and did some calculations to determine how much additional revenue I need to bring in this year to make logic and emotions align with this business decision.
It probably comes as no surprise that I love data & numbers. But maybe that's not the case for you.
Perhaps you've never considered yourself a math person and looking at numbers gives you heart palpitations as you have flashbacks to high school math class.
No matter where your brain goes when you hear the word "data", consider this reframe.
Over the summer, I read a fantastic book by a local mom I know called Climate Action for Busy People. It’s one of those books that's now full of highlights and tabs, that I have pages and pages of notes with ideas.
Though it's not at all a business book, there's one quote that jumped out at me that feels very applicable here. And it has to do with data:
Not everyone thinks of themselves as a "data person,’" but as it turns out, data does not have to be a dense spreadsheet of numbers or a series of regressions. It’s just a compilation of information that helps you understand why things are the way they are."
For many small business owners doing email marketing, hearing "data" can feel really big and complex that you don't want to think about.
But the truth is, data is simply information that can help us understand why things are happening the way they are in our email marketing.
For example, my clients who’ve hired me for an audit often come to me with questions like:
- “Lots of people are clicking on my emails, so why isn’t anyone on my email list booking a call with me?”
- “Why do I have so many cold subscribers when my open rates are so high?”
- “Why have the open rates been going down on my emails?"
- “I have way too many tags, but I’m afraid to delete them.”
When we dig into the data (aka the information), those questions turn into actionable answers:
- “No one is booking calls” becomes “You have five free offers listed in your emails, and the link to book a call is buried at the bottom. Let’s fix that.”
- “High open rates but lots of cold subscribers with ” turns into “Your automation for your newsletter signup form isn't tagging subscribers so they haven't received a single email from you ever. We need to adjust that.”
- “Why are my open rates going down?” becomes “The majority of the subscribers coming in through your quiz aren't opening a single email you send, so you should stop running ads to it before it tanks your deliverability."
- And “Too many tags”…well, that’s a tedious but essential cleanup that we’ll work through together.
Numbers & data don't have to be this big, scary thing.
Data is there to help you find solutions when something might not be working the way you want them to, and to make decisions that might otherwise be driven solely by emotions.
How to put data into action with your email marketing
Pick one thing from the list:
-Have multiple opt-in? Sign up for them all and see what happens inside of your inbox. For example, are you being pulled into multiple email sequences? That's data.
-Look at the links clicked on the last 5-10 emails you sent. Were those the links you wanted people to click on, or was your main call-to-action being ignored? That's data.
-Overwhelmed by your hot mess list of tags that you're afraid to delete? List them all out, and make note of where they're being used - automations, rules, etc. That's data. You don't have to do anything with it yet, but knowing where it all lives is most of the battle.
Take it one step at a time,
​Bev​
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Bev Feldman (she/her),
Your Personal Tech Fairy 🍄
Personalized ConvertKit Support & Email Marketing Automation Strategy that's rooted in consent, deliverability best practices, and human connection.
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As a solopreneur, I strive to incorporate my values of environmentalism and anti-racism and to build an inclusive and equitable business. I believe Black Lives Matter and I stand for LGBTQIA+ rights.
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