There is a newer version of this report available: 2017 Measurement and Analytics Report

Never have marketers, analysts and ecommerce professionals had more data to work with as part of their ongoing efforts to improve business and organisational performance.

At the same time, the growing challenge for individuals and organisations alike has been to avoid being overwhelmed by proliferating sources of data and metrics across a burgeoning number of marketing channels and technology platforms.

The Measurement and Analytics Report 2016, produced by Econsultancy in partnership with analytics consultancy Lynchpin for the ninth year running, looks at how organisations are using data strategically and tactically to generate insights and to improve business performance.

The research, based on a survey of almost 1,000 digital professionals, also focuses on the important role for data and analytics in supporting their attempts to build a competitive advantage by becoming more customer-centric.

What you’ll learn from this research

  • Understand how analytics can help to meet financial goals and what the most common growth and profit-related requirements are.
  • Discover how organisations are using data and analytics to build a competitive advantage by becoming more customer-centric.
  • Benchmark the make-up of your analytics or data team and investment plans against those of your peers.
  • Find out where the biggest analytics skills gaps are and what the most common challenges related to deploying tools and technologies organisations face.

Key findings from the report

  • The vast majority (84%) of marketers agree that their understanding of the customer is increasing over time, and 64% say that they are using data-driven customer insights to adapt their marketing strategies and influence business decisions.
  • Despite the increasing importance of data, the proportion of analytics data used to drive decision-making within the organisation dropped by seven percentage points compared to last year’s survey.
  • While 77% of marketers believe digital analytics important to their company’s digital transformation, fewer than one in five consider digital reporting to have a ‘very influential’ role in supporting business decisions.

Features of the report

Based on a survey of almost 1,000 digital business professionals, this report also aims to cut through the noise to understand how companies are using measurement and analytics to boost revenue and profit growth, while also looking at the types of technology and data which are used to meet these ends.