Analyzing a marketing program is an essential component of improving it. Too many marketers save this vital aspect of consultation for last instead of making it a central component of every aspect of the marketing process. Assessing a marketing program at its end assuresits end. The modern market moves in a way that makes it difficult for any static marketing campaign to work. Analysis must be consistent and timely.
Companies just beginning their journey with a new website should begin the process of analysis before launch. Here are just a few of the reasons that you should be planning for your 1.1 upgrade before your 1.0 even hits the public.
You’re Probably Starting Out Behind the Eight Ball
You may think that you are coming out with a 100% new product or service. In most cases, this is ego. New businesses are popping up every day online, and there is nothing new under the sun. What does this have to do with marketing analysis?
Although you have likely done research on your market before launching your website, you will not find out the extent of your competition until you put yourself in the market. Your customers and your competitors will tell you exactly where your shortcomings are. You will probably find out that you have more work to do than you previously thought.
Sales Funnel Over Design
Too many marketers focus more on front end design than they should. The money in a business comes from backend design – the sales funnel that you implement to allow the website to bring money to you. What good is a fantastic design if you don’t have a way to create revenues for your business?
Focusing on front end design may redirect your analysis in an unproductive way as well. You may think that your website needs to change its look before you will be successful. The real problem is that people are unable to complete a sale with you. You need to analyze your entire process in order to determine the real bottleneck.
Saving Money on Changes
The earlier that you catch a problem, the less it will cost you to fix it. The more problems you catch before launch, the smoother your launch will be. If you can catch a problem in the design phase, you may be able to pinpoint the exact line of coding to fix. Can you imagine the time that you would save if you could do this for every issue?
If you can analyze your marketing in the design phase, you also gain a much better perspective on how to focus on a problem. You cannot build a business or website on a shaky foundation – this will only cause a breakdown of that business or website in the future. If the foundation is strong, then you can create a business that does not require as much tweaking down the road.
Take the time to initiate your analysis during the website design phase. The time that you spend upfront will save you money and time down the road. This will also get you in the right mindset – analysis is a part of every aspect of your marketing campaign. Don’t save it until the end. It may be too late by then!
