Intimidated by Data? Four Steps to Conquer Your Fears

John Sculley, the tech investor and former CEO at Apple, said in the 1986 book The Intuitive Manager by Roy Rowan, "No great marketing decisions have ever been made on qualitative data."

Even though his words are almost 40 years old, they're still true today. Marketing managers are made more powerful by the strength of their data, but in a world where they're being pulled in a million different directions, sifting through reams of it can be intimidating. Here are four steps to conquer those fears.

1. Trends Are Friends

My son has gotten to the age where he likes shoes. Not just any shoes — he follows websites like StockX, where global resellers try to hit it big on classic styles and new shoes alike. Yes, a shoe stock market is a real thing.

Observing his latest obsession, I've learned that it pays to seek out the trends. You can see historical values for that pair of denim Jordans and relatively easily see purchasing trends. Even for me, someone with no knowledge of shoe investing, getting a quick education on this niche market is painless if I'm looking at trends.

Marketers can see trends like this too. They don't need to get into the minutia right away; instead, they can do a quick search on their topic of choice for a 30,000-foot view of it. If time-strapped marketers have no experience with something (like me and my son's shoe investments), they can quickly pick out some interesting data points and subsequently focus their lens on the relevant data.

2. Don't Look for the Easy Answer

You have to be careful with looking at trends, though. It provides direction to your search, but it's not the answer. Marketers, and pretty much everyone else, look for quick, easy answers to their questions. Data, particularly big data, can't give quick, easy answers. While checking out the trends may yield some interesting observations for further analysis, you then need to sit down and do the analysis. Marketing managers intimidated by their data can start with a broad view of a subject, then leverage interesting trends and use that focus to discover more salient points to the task at hand.

With that being said, possible answers will likely be apparent early on. Don't let that tempt you into jumping to hasty conclusions, however. Today, we can analyze vast amounts of data relatively quickly, so it's OK to take some time before drawing conclusions. That same data, though, when interpreted correctly, can provide valuable insights into macro trends that marketers can tap.

3. Google It

When I asked them what a word meant, my parents used to tell me to go look it up in the dictionary. Nowadays, parents might tell their kids to Google something instead, but the idea is still the same. It's a good lesson for marketers as well. Go where the information is. It seems simple and intuitive, but you'd be surprised how many marketers forget that Google exists when facing a marketing question. Google instantly provides access to the world's biggest focus group on almost any topic, and it's there for the querying.

Doing a quick search is second nature when we're looking to replace a tablecloth or for the best sushi in town, so why isn't it when we're looking to see what people are thinking about our brand? It should be, and when you're faced with an overwhelming data set, some time spent on Google can help you see your marketing through the lens of a consumer. It helps you discover how people view your brand and how your target audience wants to receive marketing. Doing an internet search helps you cut through the noise and figure out what people are really thinking.

4. Don't Forget to Ask Why

I tell my kids to be inquisitive, not necessarily to ask questions. Teachers in school tell their students that it's okay to ask questions, but that's not exactly right. It's OK to be inquisitive because inquisitiveness is seeking something deeper than a superficial answer. Asking a question in math class might be something simple, like "What is the Pythagorean theorem?" If you're being inquisitive, you're asking why the Pythagorean theorem works at all.

The same holds true for marketers. We can't stop at asking what; we need to understand the why behind our data. Only by being inquisitive can we put complex data to practical use. By being inquisitive, we can understand why our audience thinks the way they do about our brand, and we can find meaning in our data. Truly great marketing is built on why.

Don't Be Scared of Data

You don't have to be afraid of data. At the beginning of your journey, to understand it, it can seem out of focus, overwhelming and complex, but it won't stay that way. The biggest key is to ask questions. It's only through asking questions that we can begin to uncover the secrets our data hides.