How often do you make decisions for your small business based on intuition? You might feel like relying on your "gut feeling" has been the key to your success so far as an entrepreneur. However, this is not always a good idea when it comes to important decision making, especially as your startup develops.

Today's massive availability of data, accompanied by data-driven decision making, has truly revolutionized the business landscape. You should take advantage of these breakthroughs to optimize your operations. This article will explain the benefits of data-driven decision making and break down some steps you can take to begin implementing this strategy.

What is data-driven decision making?

As the name suggests, data-driven decision making represents an approach to directing your business based on cold, hard numbers. You gather quantitative information about the market and your customers. Then, you use those figures to discover the best way forward for your small business.

However, it's more than just using statistics as a basis for decisions. The strategy implies a larger commitment. To properly implement a data-driven approach, you need an apparatus to gather and analyze information. Meanwhile, you also need to instill a culture that puts data at the center of your processes.

Research points to the effectiveness of this approach. One study showed that those firms that made decisions primarily based on data experienced 6% higher profits than those that used other strategies. Meanwhile, productivity for the data-driven companies was 4% higher.

What can a data-driven process do for your business?

There are many potential upsides to a data-driven approach. The specifics matter as you consider implementing this strategy. By understanding the particular benefits at play, you can determine whether the investment makes sense at this stage in your development.

With that in mind, here are some of the key things a data-driven process can do for your business:

Clarify your decision-making process

You want your decisions to be fair and predictable. At the same time, it's ideal if you and your managers can all come to the same conclusions independent of each other. A data-driven approach can achieve these goals. Everyone in your organization will understand the basis for your directions and there will be a universal process for reaching decisions.

Understand customer behavior

Gathering data lets you learn as much as possible about your customers. This is the heart of the data-driven model. Ultimately, it's about a closer connection with those interested in buying your offerings.

With a data-driven approach, you deepen your knowledge about how your products and services are being used. This lets you anticipate trends and find areas of expansion.

Improve marketing and sales

Data also helps you find new customers. A data-driven approach to marketing decisions lets you get the most out of your limited resources. You'll have the knowledge necessary to seek out the best prospects. At the same time, this information will also help you streamline the sales journey, increasing your conversion rates.

Discover unmet needs

Knowledge about your customers opens the door to targeted future development. You can pinpoint customer needs, letting you upgrade your current offerings and plan fresh product launches. This gives you the foundation you need to take intelligent steps forward, leading to better ROI on development projects.

Learn what's working (and not working)

What defines success? Data helps answer that question. You'll get the quantitative feedback you need to rate your progress. This lets you focus on high-value projects and curtail underperforming efforts before they become a drag on overall growth.

Fine-tune your operations

We've looked at several ways that data can help you make better decisions regarding your products and your customers. These are largely outward-facing concerns. However, quantitative information can also clarify your internal considerations.

How efficiently are you accomplishing your goals? What processes would benefit from some tweaks? What's the best way to build your team? Data can help you answer these questions and many more, giving you the knowledge you need to optimize your operations.

Build models to forecast future trends

What's going to happen in the future? This is a crucial question for any business -- but one that is usually frustratingly elusive. No one has a crystal ball.

Even if you can't predict what's going to happen in your industry with 100% accuracy, data analysis can make the future less of a fog. By learning as much as possible about the present, and applying techniques of analysis, you'll gain insights into the likely course of events. This will increase the odds that you'll position your company effectively.

Make more accurate cost projections

Data analysis will also help your budgeting efforts. You'll have a better idea of what things will cost in the foreseeable future. This will let you anticipate roadblocks and make the most of your resources.

Upgrade customer service

As you learn more about your customers, you can become more responsive to their needs. The information you collect will let you streamline communications and anticipate sticking points before they occur. Meanwhile, the act of gathering data becomes a communication in itself, further tightening the bonds with your customer base.

How your small business can implement a data-driven process

How can you become better at optimizing outcomes with data? It isn't like flipping a switch. There are multiple steps required to push your organization towards a more data-driven model.

Here are some initiatives you can take to begin implementing this strategy:

• Understand what data can tell you: As you look to implement this approach, learn everything you can about the current state of things. This will let you know what is possible and how you can get started.

• Seek out expert advice: As you get started, engage with top minds in the industry. There are many third-party providers that can help you jump-start the development of your data-driven processes.

• Build in-house expertise: Over time, add experts to your permanent staff. This will help you evolve over time and keep up with a changing landscape.

• Invest in technology: Gathering and analyzing data will likely require a tech upgrade. Set aside the resources necessary to add the hardware and software you need.

• Build dedicated processes: Once you've done your research, start plotting the precise operations you'll need to collect and review data.

• Develop ways to gather data: The more information you can collect, the more likely it is that you'll find actionable insights. Discover as many paths for data gathering as you can.

• Embed data in your culture: Get buy-in from your team. Make a data-driven approach a pillar of your decision-making process at every level of your organization.

What are the challenges in adopting a data-driven approach?

We've outlined the benefits you can expect from implementing a data-driven process for making decisions. However, there are drawbacks to consider as well. You should have these in mind as you move forward.

Understanding the potential challenges will help you make an informed decision about implementing this approach. At the same time, you'll have these hurdles in mind as you move forward, giving you a chance to minimize the risk and avoid some of the pitfalls. Here are some of the possible downsides that come with a data-driven model:

There's a drain on your resources

Gathering and analyzing data can be expensive. It can also be time-consuming. Installing a strong program will require a sizable investment. You should be prepared to set aside the appropriate resources.

It can be a slow, methodical approach

Going with your gut has the appeal of being quick and decisive. Focusing on data requires a more deliberate process. You need to gather sufficient information and then painstakingly mine it for usable insights. If you're used to another approach, this can feel like a drawn-out procedure.

The data can sometimes be inconclusive

Data itself won't provide a conclusive path forward in every circumstance. There's still room for personal judgment, as well as other, less quantifiable inputs into your decision making. Understand the limits of data and have a method for taking other factors into account.

You don't always have obvious data available

Some questions don't point to an unassailable data point. These situations, often involving customer relations or employee performance, involve more qualitative measures. When cases like this arise, you'll need to use other tools (like surveys) to acquire hard numbers. Or you’ll need to get clever about the type of data that you use.

The amount of data can become overwhelming

Even a small business can gather a seemingly overwhelming amount of data. A study conducted by IDG in 2020 found that small and medium businesses were coping with 47.81 Terabytes of information. You'll need a framework to capture and organize that huge volume of figures and turn it into meaningful insights.

Taking advantage of data-driven decision making

Data-backed business decisions can truly accelerate the growth of your small business. Done right, you'll gain critical insights, identify trends, improve customer service, and discover buying behaviors.

Data-backed business decisions can truly accelerate the growth of your small business. Done right, you'll gain critical insights, identify trends, improve customer service, and discover buying behaviors.

Here, we've outlined some of the benefits you'll see from a data-driven model. We've also sketched out potential downsides and provided hints for you to get started. With this information, you can see how your startup can leverage data-driven decision making for growth today.