When you’re launching and then building a new business, there are so many tasks to handle that it can get overwhelming. Plus, of course, you’re always looking for ways to stand out from your competitors and searching for ways to ensure your startup stays around for the long term. One strategy not enough new entrepreneurs concentrate on is utilizing data to their advantage. These days, even the smallest of businesses can take advantage of this asset, as it is low cost for a high impact.
Analytics can be used to help your startup move forward in a variety of ways. It will help you to decrease your workload, and it will enable you to better create an increase in profits. Read on for some key ways you should start using analytics this year to cement your startup and your place in the business world.
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Learn Key Info About Your Customers
One of the most important factors in startup success is winning over customers, so they buy from you the first time and then hopefully again and again. To generate interest from shoppers, you need to know things like what specifically people or organizations are looking for when they browse and how they shop and when. Furthermore, once you have already convinced people to buy from you the first time, you need to understand their needs so you can offer them more of the wares they want and get more repeat sales over time as a result.
Analytics can be your best friend when it comes to your customers because it will provide vital information about shoppers. In particular, B2C and B2B intent data is useful as this will let you find out who is looking for the types of offerings you sell. In addition, you can use analytics to work out how to best segment your different customer types and in turn direct targeted marketing to each group.
Sort out Inventory Management
If your new business involves you holding inventory of any sort, whether whole products or spare parts or other stock, you won’t be able to succeed and create a sustainable business unless you handle inventory management effectively. Happily, though, analytics can assist with this, too, and ensure you don’t have too much cashflow constantly tied up in slow-moving or damaged inventory.
Use programs that analyze data to provide you with reports on the amount of stock you have on hand of each item and how long these things have been setting in your warehouse. Reports can indicate how many products you have in each category, how many you’ve sold of each type since you first starting stocking it, when it was last sold and at what times of year things are most in demand.
Use the information you gather to decide which old or unmoving stock has to be discounted to clear funds and room for better-selling items. Make decisions about how much to buy of the stock that does do well and when you should order more of it. By analyzing data, you will also get a better indication of which types of goods your customers want and therefore which products or parts to bring in next to better serve your clientele.
Service Customers Better
Successful entrepreneurs know that having a thriving business isn’t purely about converting leads into sales but also about making people happy through the sales process and beyond. Clients who are not just satisfied but actually blown away by your business will be much more likely to buy more, buy more often and rave about you to others, which in turn helps to generate more sales (and at a more affordable cost price).
Use analytics to help you wow customers in numerous ways. For example, check out the data to learn what types of questions people most ask, at various stages along the buying journey, then take steps to provide answers to these questions on your website, social media pages, in advertisements, etc. Also, study when people most need assistance to find wares, complete a sale or work out how to effectively use products or services after a purchase is made. With this information, ensure you have plenty of customer support staff on hand at busy times to be of help.
Similarly, analytics can help you to see which forms of support people are most interested in using, whether website contact forms or live chat, phone conversations, social media messages, in person inquiries or another format. By catering to this preference, you will be able to increase client satisfaction significantly.
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