Use Data Or Be Used By Data!

The November 3 issue of Seotistics is here for you!

It's common to read on LinkedIn about "data strategy" and all that entails.

Look, in most cases we working in Web need less...

and that's why domain knowledge matters.

Once you understand what companies want, the rest is downhill.

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📣📣 Important Announcements 📣📣

Working on some more content and product updates, this time of the year is packed!

And prepare your wallet for my next product updates and Black Friday sales (starting November 27).

P.S. Go check my articles in the resources at the bottom 👀

Why I Dislike The "Data" Fluff

It's super easy to dismiss technical skills and claim they are obvious.

Maybe some of us don't realize that learning stuff like SQL, Python and data warehouses takes time.

At the same time, topics like strategy and even business aren't often discussed, barring a few like-minded colleagues.

The solution is always in the middle.

You think strategically but also know your data and are able to be self-sufficient.

This is also why I recently started studying a little bit more of engineering.

And also why I love reading about growth and business models!

Politics, Politics, Always Politics!

You still need to combine business skills and have an idea of data strategy...

but many professionals don't have the political power to influence anything, let's be realistic.

The guy doing Web Analytics in a company doesn't often have any say with the C-level.

That's not necessarily a bad thing!

A specialist isn't (always) supposed to orchestrate the data strategy of an entire company or talk to the C-level.

Yet, you often see "influencers" blaming professionals because of X and Y.

In reality, you can frame your tasks differently but ultimately you don't decide anything.

However... your work can fit into strategic initiatives, for example:

• GSC data with queries can be used to underdstand your audience
• Cohort analysis can be used to understand sales patterns
• Measuring seasonality or peaks/lows is useful for preparing in advance

There are many things you can actually do that are important for a whole organisation!

What Companies Often Need

Small or big, companies in respect to web data always look for the following:

• processes to use
• dashboards or any way to present work and take action

You just need a little bit more of awareness of how businesses work to help them even further.

For example, I often notice that most dashboards are useless and will become technical debt.

Why you ask?

Because they track useless metrics and they aren't actionable.

All of this can be prevented by asking the right questions and having a clear understanding of a business.

If you are working with a B2B SaaS, you know that they most likely want to track downloads and forms...

rather than mere traffic.

For sure, you don't simply offer what they ask you but go beyond based on your expertise.

The Generalist Trap

What's the issue with generalist data content?

Simple, it doesn't improve yourself or get you hired because it's too "generic".

Companies in 2025 (and 2026) don't look for the oversaturated generic professional.

That Udemy course or degree in "Data Science" is just another way to get your money.

You open a job position and it gets flooded with 1000s of candidates. Most of them have surface level knowledge.

Don't be like them! Specialize in something and craft your positioning!

Easier said than done but go check my past issue.

I've worked on countless projects without specialists and you could see the HUGE difference.

If data represents your business, you need someone who actually understands the topic, right?

Web data is pesky by definition and you need to know how it works.

Or ignore my warnings and get the following:

• people mixing scopes in GA4 and getting absolutely wrong results
• paying for stuff like Fivetran to store API data when native exports in BigQuery are free (and better)
• tracking the wrong stuff (e.g. using traffic as a measure of success lol)

Complexity? No, Thanks

I swear, some projects are overly complicated for no reason.

There is a FIXATION for attribution and proving the "ROI" of everything.

The ROIfication of Marketing is a curse because there is less focus on execution and more on thinking.

Marketing is not rocket science, it's execution and testing, let's not make it impossible.

Data is the same, it reflects the business.

And this is also why I follow a strict modus operandi for identifying what people want:

This way you are almost sure you will answer the major concerns and needs of your stakeholders.

I explain all of this in detail in my dedicated course:

Really, I get asked about attribution, server-side tracking and even measuring the ROI of everything.

Folks, there are use cases where all of those are needed...

but in most cases they are not and you are sleeping on 99 other levers you can pull.

The (Hard) Skills That Made My Life Easier

I always mention them and remind them but it's:

• SQL, the English of data and the most long-lived skill ever
• Python, nice for scripting and as a general purpose language... but kinda overrated
• BigQuery, because Google has some nice native exports and it's a great tool. Plus, it includes Dataform
• Looker Studio / basics of PowerBI, as companies NEED dashboards
• Google tools as a whole, especially GA4. So easy to get value out of it

It all boils down to:

pull data, process it, showcase your results, do something about it (maybe not you)

This is why I teach SQL, BigQuery and how the Google tools work.

It's 99% of the market and you can't go wrong. Plus, many data "generalists" have no idea about web data or marketing.

So it's a great choice to invest in a niche!

It makes a huge difference to be someone that not only talks but can get dirty and execute when needed.

Otherwise you are just another snake oil salesman who claims that data is not technical lol

P.S. This doesn't mean you need to know everything, uh. I myself don't touch some topics!

AI & LLMs?

Look, the foundations and the gist of data didn't really change!

But you can't ignore LLMs exist and make our life remarkably easier.

Even from a pure visibility perspective (i.e. SEO), this is an important topic as everyone asks for it.

Data-wise, this is nothing new and it should NOT affect your strategy!

Job-wise, it's important to be aware of what is happening, otherwise you will be perceived as "outdated".

We know that this is far from true but the perception others have on you is crucial!

So yes, it's not like AI alters a strategy but it's an important tool for execution, especially if you write code like me.

Good luck spending hours to write long SQL or converting code from Python to Javascript.

👥 Join Our Community

Our Discord community offers a small place where we can talk business and web data.

If you hate all the noise of social media, then this place is for you.

I will start posting more there as we have a forum channel now.

This is the best way to stay updated in real time on Seotistics:

🔎 Analytics For SEO Ebook - Course / Ebook

You will:

✅ Use GSC and GA4 Data to their fullest potential

✅ Learn Python/SQL for your needs

✅ Get a complete blueprint for auditing websites

✅ Learn how to 10x your productivity

✅ Learn BigQuery to work on large websites

I teach you what's needed to go from 0 to a professional Data Analyst.

Even if you leave SEO, the foundations are the same for other jobs!

Also in ebook:

📚 Recommended Reads - Peak Content 🗻

Read these peaks:

• GA4 VS GSC: All The Differences & How To Use Them
• Google Search Console VS Bing Webmaster Tools – All The Differences
• Strategy + Web Analytics: How To Tie Data To Results
• Data and Analytics Strategy for Business: Unlock Data Assets and Increase Innovation with a Results-Driven Data Strategy
• Analytical Skills for AI and Data Science : Building Skills for an AI-Driven enterprise
• Data Literacy In Practice
• Becoming a Data Head
• Storytelling with Data

As usual, my most recent LinkedIn content is here.

❗️ Feedback and Recommendations

If you have ideas/recommendations for the next issues of Seotistics, you can simply reply to this email.

Marco Giordano
​Data/Web Analyst

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