The Analytics Power Hour
Michael Helbling, Moe Kiss, Tim Wilson, Val Kroll, and Julie Hoyer
Attend any conference for any topic and you will hear people saying after that the best and most informative discussions happened in the bar after the show. Read any business magazine and you will find an article saying something along the lines of "Business Analytics is the hottest job category out there, and there is a significant lack of people, process and best practice." In this case the conference was eMetrics, the bar was….multiple, and the attendees were Michael Helbling, Tim Wilson and Jim Cain (Co-Host Emeritus). After a few pints and a few hours of discussion about the cutting edge of digital analytics, they realized they might have something to contribute back to the community. This podcast is one of those contributions. Each episode is a closed topic and an open forum - the goal is for listeners to enjoy listening to Michael, Tim, and Moe share their thoughts and experiences and hopefully take away something to try at work the next day. We hope you enjoy listening to the Digital Analytics Power Hour.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Jun 13, 2018 • 12min
(Bonus) 1:1 with Michele Kiss: Finding Time to Learn Stuff (like BigQuery)
Michele Kiss, a senior partner at Analytics Demystified and an expert in Google Analytics and BigQuery, shares her insights on tackling new skills in analytics. She discusses the importance of time management and the mental hurdles of learning SQL. Michele emphasizes hands-on experimentation to boost confidence and highlights her journey from Google Analytics to BigQuery for deeper data analysis. She also encourages integrating diverse datasets for practical insights, equipping listeners with valuable strategies for mastering analytics.
Jun 5, 2018 • 1h 6min
#090: A New Paradigm for Privacy with Sergio Maldonado
Put this in your pipe and smoke it: all of the tracking we try to do of people is actually technology designed to track content. And, even that tracking of content was a hacked-together repurposing of a system designed to deliver content. In other words, we've got layers of fiction upon fiction that we're trying to muddle through (and, often, ignore) as an industry. The result? A ridiculous level of inefficiency whereby brands overspend to ineffectively reach their target audiences with direct response messages, and well-intended intermediaries grow their bank accounts. Ugh! On this episode, the gang invited Sergio Maldonado from PrivacyCloud (and, by day, from Sweetspot Intelligence) to chat about the broken environment we're operating in, as well as how GDPR and financial considerations may just force us onto a path of shaking it up! For complete show notes, including links to items mentioned in this episode and a transcript of the show, visit the show page.
May 22, 2018 • 58min
#089: Bringing Statistics to Digital Analytics Data with Matt Policastro
Regression. Correlation. Normality. t-tests. Falsities of both the positive and negative varieties. How do these terms and techniques play nicely with digital analytics data? Are they the schoolyard bullies wielded by data scientists, destined to simply run by and kick sand in the faces of our sessions, conversion rates, and revenues per visit? Or, are they actually kind-hearted upperclassmen who are ready and willing to let us into their world? That's the topic of this show (albeit without the awkward and forced metaphors). Matt Policastro from Clearhead joined the gang to talk -- in as practical terms as possible -- about bridging the gap between traditional digital analytics data and the wonderful world of statistics. For complete show notes, including links to items mentioned in this episode and a transcript of the show, visit the show page.
May 8, 2018 • 47min
#088: User Research Meets Analytics with Els Aerts
Thanks for stopping by. Please get comfortable. We're going to be taking a few notes while you listen, but pay that no mind. Now, what we'd like you to do is listen to the podcast. Oh. And don't worry about that big mirror over there. There may be 2 or 3 or 10 people watching. Wow. We're terrible moderators when it comes to this sort of thing. That's why Els Aerts from AGConsult joined us to discuss user research: what it is, where it should fit in an organization's toolkit, and some tips for doing it well. For complete show notes, including links to items mentioned in this episode and a transcript of the show, visit the show page.
May 1, 2018 • 13min
(Bonus) 1:1 with Chad Sanderson: The Pitfalls of A/B Testing
Bayesian vs. Frequentist. False Positive vs. False Negative. Truth vs. Uncertainty. It's the world of A/B testing! In this bonus mini-episode, Moe sat down with Chad Sanderson from Subway to discuss some of the pitfalls of A/B testing -- the nuances that may seem subtle, but are anything but trivial when it comes to planning and running a test.
Apr 24, 2018 • 59min
#087: Offline Data in an Online World with James Fogelberg
If you have a smartphone nearby and you are not wearing a foil hat, chances are that some brand somewhere -- and probably several brands in many places -- know where you are. Is that creepy? Maybe. It's likely removing a few taps when you check what the weather will be like tomorrow, and there might just be a coupon for a discounted hamburger just waiting to pop up when you get near your favorite QSR around lunchtime! In this episode, James Fogelberg from Landmarks ID joins the gang to discuss the ins and outs of using the ubiquity of mobile to the advantage of both brands and consumers. For complete show notes, including links to items mentioned in this episode and a transcript of the show, visit the show page.
Apr 10, 2018 • 49min
#086: Avoiding Analytics Rabbit Holes
Have you ever walked out of a meeting with a clear idea of the analysis that you're going to conduct, only to find yourself three days later staring at an endless ocean of crunched data and wondering in which direction you're supposed to be paddling your analysis boat? That might not be an ocean. It might be an analytics rabbit hole. In this episode, the gang explores the Analysis of Competing Hypotheses approach developed by Richards Heuer as part of his work with the CIA, inductive versus deductive reasoning, and engaging stakeholders as a mechanism for focusing an analysis. Ironically, our intrepid hosts had a really hard time avoiding topical rabbit holes during the episode. But, acknowledging the problem is the first part of the solution! For complete show notes, including links to items mentioned in this show and a transcript of the discussion, visit the show page.
Apr 3, 2018 • 11min
(Bonus) 1:1 with Krista Seiden: Growth Marketing
That's right. We're trying to grow the reach of this podcast, so we figured we needed to do some growth h---...NO! No. No. NO!!! We're NOT going to use that term. But, it turns out that growth marketing has some interesting concepts. On the one hand, you may think, "Don't I already do that?" And the answer is quite possibly, "Yeah. Pretty much." On the other hand, you may think, "Oh, well that's an interesting lens through which to view the world." And, that is okay, too. Either way, check out this chat Moe had with Krista Seiden from Google on the subject.
Mar 30, 2018 • 12min
(Bonus) Hot Takes from Adobe Summit 2018 with Michael and Tim
Michael, Tim, and 12,998 of their closest friends descended on Las Vegas for Adobe Summit the last week of March. With luck, Tim will have worked through the after-effects of the sensory overload of Vegas combined with the sensory overload of Adobe Summit by mid-April, but who knows? The guys (really...just the guys -- Moe was in the U.S., but she was in Austin at CXL Live) sat down to share their hot takes from the show. Attribution, Adobe Sensei, Adobe Launch, the Philadelphia Eagles, and more! For a picture of Michael and Tim recording this episode, head over to the show page.
Mar 27, 2018 • 57min
#085: Moving Beyond Microsoft Excel
Some people (possibly even one of the co-hosts of this podcast...on this very episode) have been known to say, "People have this dependency on Excel, which is freakin' weird!" We know it wasn't Tim, because he wouldn't have filtered his language! Whether it's a symptom of weirdness, an illustration of inertia, or an invisible hand of inevitability, though, Excel remains omnipresent. Is that a good thing? Is it a bad thing? Is it merely "a thing?" In this episode, the gang dives into the topic: the good and bad of Excel, the various paths to a future where its ubiquity is no longer a given, and different strategies and considerations for moving towards that future. For complete show notes, including links to items mentioned in this episode and a transcript of the show, visit the show page.
