At ordable/, we work with small business owners every day. One thing we’ve noticed? The businesses that grow the fastest aren’t always the ones spending more on ads or doing flashy promotions. They’re the ones making smarter decisions by using their own store data.
What is data driven decision making?
It simply means using real numbers and trends from your store to guide your marketing. This includes sales results, customer behavior, and how your marketing campaigns are performing. It’s not about being a data expert. It’s about paying attention to what’s already happening in your business and using that to make better choices.
Here’s how successful small businesses are doing it:
- Look at your sales data.
Beyond just checking revenue, they dig into which products are selling best, which ones get left in carts, and which are bought together. For example, one seller saw that three products were often purchased together. They bundled them into a set and sales went up right away. Another noticed that one popular item had a high cart abandonment rate. A small change in category placement helped fix it.
- Study how your customer’s shop.
Are most shoppers on mobile or desktop? How often do they return? Which pages make them leave? Do they drop off at the payment step? What time of day are they most active?
These simple questions can show you what’s working and what’s getting in the way. Some businesses found that returning customers were placing larger orders, that led them to set up simple rewards like loyalty points to keep those customers coming back.
- Check which marketing efforts actually convert.
It’s not enough to get clicks or views what really matters is which campaigns bring in actual sales. Successful businesses look past surface numbers and track what leads customers to complete a purchase.
One seller noticed their WhatsApp messages were getting read quickly, but not leading to orders. They had been sending general store updates. After switching to shorter, product-specific messages with clear prices, images and links, conversions improved. Make sure your message is focused and easy to act on.
Another merchant ran a promotion across Instagram and WhatsApp at the same time. Instagram brought more traffic, but WhatsApp drove more sales. By tracking where conversions were coming from, they shifted their focus and saved both time and budget.
The key is to test small changes, try different wording, images, or timing. Then check which version actually leads to more checkouts. It’s not always the loudest campaign that works, it’s the clearest one.
You don’t need to do everything.
The most successful sellers pick a few key numbers to watch. They check in regularly and test small changes like updating a product title, changing a photo, or trying a new ad.
If you’re running a business online, your next best move is probably already in your data. Open your dashboard, look for one number you haven’t paid much attention to and use it to guide your next step.
Smarter decisions start with what you already know.
