Kelly Owen Grover is the Vice President of Marketing for Cloverly, a technology platform for high-quality carbon credits.
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This article expands upon my previous article outlining the basic inputs when creating a data governance team. (I’d encourage reading Part 1 here before diving into Part 2 so you can get the most out of the below.)
In this piece, the conversation continues, outlining the processes needed to take the foundational inputs outlined previously and turn them into an evergreen data governance program that drives exceptional growth.
The Basic Processes
1. Name the strategy: There is no shortage of GTM (go-to-market) strategies: ABM (account-based marketing), PLG (product-led growth), inbound, outbound, category creation, blue ocean and many other flavors. Each one of these is distinct, with unique tactics and measurements of success. If advances made by having clear definitions, shared reports and SOPs are the ingredients, GTM is the recipe.
Using ABM as an example, expect lower lead numbers. Ideal customer profile parameters are so refined, fewer inputs are needed at the top of the funnel. Conversion problems are not likely because the focus would have been on creating hyper-targeted use cases, case studies and testimonials. Contrast this with an outbound strategy, where marketing is more focused on general brand awareness to the masses and the sales team owns more of the funnel.
Naming your GTM strategy upfront avoids the journey taken by many companies that amounts to throwing spaghetti against the wall to see what sticks. They try a few inbound tactics, create basic sales assets, hire a bunch of salespeople, and then wait and see what happens. Not only is this an inefficient way to drive growth, but it can also be a huge waste of money. Each strategy demands a unique GTM investment profile. Without this clarity, it is easy to spend money where it will make no impact or be counterproductive. The data governance team can be a powerful force in driving this important discussion because they can demonstrate how the different models would change their reporting and success measurements.
2. Tap into customer journey mapping: GTM strategies align teams from the inside out. However, they do not go far enough in considering how that strategy translates into the customer experience. Ultimately, the value of a company’s product or service is determined by the customer. While even “perfect” data provides a crucial measurement of the final performance of the journey to purchase, it does not tell the whole story. Mapping the current state of the customer experience at every stage of the funnel will allow the GTM team to do a gap analysis between the current state and the ideal future.
So, why does this matter and what new information can come to light? For the ABM example used above, they may have a solid report that shows conversions now holding at a decent growth rate. However, when they complete the customer journey map, they discover that the form has technical issues that hinder conversion, meaning they are only capturing a fraction of what they could.
Data governance teams not only measure what happens but also how it happens. Once a company has charted an aspirational customer journey map, it is easy to prescribe new KPIs that measure the quality of the customer experience. While qualitative in nature, these experiences are often proportionally tied to the value placed on the product and to the product’s differentiation within the market.
3. Be intentional about your team: Data is not intrinsically exciting to many people. It lacks the visual beauty of graphic design, the adrenaline rush of expansion to new territory, or the cache of a career-defining product launch. It is for this exact reason that GTM data is often orphaned.
So, as bold growth practitioners look to harness its power, they are going to need to sell a sexy story to get other stakeholders’ attention and keep it. Like any campaign, it is all about the value provided to the end user. In the case of data governance, the value is, at its core, exceptional growth. Wading into the data weeds is not a typical exercise for executives used to focusing only on high-level strategy. There will be a temptation to delegate it. However, it is those same executives that determine investments and who are responsible for the success of the company. If they are not best suited to own the data, then who is?
To structure the data governance team, ensure that there is representation from each stakeholder group—any team that inputs, manipulates or uses the GTM data. Be honest and share that sometimes they will need to dig into very nuanced aspects of the data, but remind them that the goal is to surgically identify and exploit the areas of the GTM strategy that represent the hottest areas for scalable and sustained growth.
Lean into very real trends, like consolidating sales operations and marketing operations into revenue operations. The stakeholders need to see the value of the data governance team to have a sustained impact.
Get Started
The above is a general framework for those companies looking to unlock the power of data governance. However, it does not need to be overly prescriptive. It is more important to get started than for things to be perfect out of the gate. Like any long-term initiative, it is an ongoing process that is going to continuously evolve. The data needed to truly drive strategy might not even be available on day one.
Conversely, the most pressing projects today will be in the rearview mirror tomorrow as they receive their due attention and are systematically addressed. Just start. Because while aligning on a specific definition of a metric, locking in shared reports, and drafting SOPs may not be exciting, having productive conversations, working across department silos, making strategic resource allocations, and driving top- and bottom-line growth is.
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