I recently completed a data deck - a comprehensive overview of site metrics/KPIs - and I came away with a few lessons learned.
First, what is a data deck? I define it as an evergreen document (dashboard, powerpoint, excel spreadsheet) that holds the key metrics your organization views as important to defining the success of the site. These decks typically include conversion rates for key pages on the site, click-thru rates, search trends, and navigation flows.
There is no "one size fits all" data deck. Each website is different, with different purposes, audiences, search tools, analytics set ups, and stakeholders. Imagine custom building a house. You need to:
- Establish the size/scope of your renovations - how extensive should this deck be?
- Select your tools - ForeSee, Google Analytics, user testing, crazy egg, etc.
- Develop a blue print - outline major changes/enhancements you need to track.
- Build a team - discuss metrics and approaches to pulling data with your team.
- Stage the home - if possible, have someone with design expertise refine the deck and define the visual story.
Establishing a Scope
A data deck can easily get out of hand if you don't first establish a scope. For instance, if you want to look at the site as a whole (global changes), avoid the pitfalls of isolating out individual pages and performance (unless completely necessary to tell the story). Breakout decks can be created to isolate out specific pages and are probably more relevant to specific stakeholders and audiences.
Select Your Tools
My office relies on Google Analytics (GA) for quantitative data, ForeSee for qualitative, and we have a myriad of call center and user testing data to use. GA, however, is the primary actor in our data decks and we rely heavily on quantitative data to inform content strategy.
Develop a Blueprint
When I first started the process of setting up a data deck, I took stock of all of the major changes and enhancements we made to the website. I then broke apart each piece into a table and associated a metric(s) we could/should track and what information are we looking to glean from each. Perhaps it is the humanities major in me, but breaking things down into an outline allowed me to see how each major area of the deck was going to be covered, and where I might have some weaknesses. Furthermore, a clear plan allowed me to delegate(!) areas of the deck amongst my team without any confusion about how a certain functional area of the site was being monitored.
And any outline needs to have an overarching point you want to get across. A data deck is no different. What common theme/methodology ties the data together? Often times nailing down a theme can help focus the data and scope. A great place to start is your original methodology/content strategy for the website. We relied on the top task methodology for a lot of the changes/enhancements we made and we used that to identify metrics and weave different data sources together into a cohesive story.
Build a Team
It's important to use the data deck as an opportunity to be inclusive with other members of your web team. Everyone has a stake in the success of the site and everyone should take responsibility for monitoring their functional area.
Our team included expertise in the following areas:
- Analytics
- Search
- Content Strategy
- Design
- Information Architecture
Each of these players can provide insight into what you should be tracking and the significance of the data you eventually pull.
Stage the Home
Looks matter and your data is going to have more impact if you present it in visual form as much as possible. What do I mean by that? Avoid relying on tables of data to make a point, extract out the point you are trying to make and draw a visual from that. This post is not meant to go into detail about the artistry of data visualization, so here are a few resources I recommend to learn more:
- Data Storytelling: The Essential Data Science Skill Everyone Needs
- Analytics and Digital Storytelling
- 8 fantastic examples of data storytelling
Tools I have used in the past to build visual data stories include Canva. Canva is free(!) and has flexible templates that allow you to build infographics, drag and drop visual elements and graphics, and export via PDF or jpg.
Conclusion
Just as getting it done is important, so is being accountable for the repercussions when redesigning a website. A data deck allows complete transparency between teams and stakeholders, and allows everyone to learn from the users. Otherwise, what are we doing?