Data reporting and analytics can be a tricky process to navigate if you don’t have a native talent and/or passion for such things, but that doesn’t mean you can’t build out a solid system within your agency by establishing a few consistent practices and priorities.

You can begin by exploring the difference between reporting and analytics with your management team and understanding the role and function of each process.

The second priority is to get your whole team rowing in the same direction by, together, building a solid foundation of usable data, regular reporting, and focused analytics.

Reporting vs. Analytics

Reporting is something most agencies do on a regular basis, and that is simply gathering and formatting data from your TPS into a usable form. This could be as easy as building a dashboard that automatically imports relevant data that the team desires to view on a regular basis or creating charts or data sheets for a presentation at meetings.

Analytics is the process of mining the data for a specific end, such as formulating a forecast, adjusting business plans based on what is emerging in the market or devising a new growth strategy centered on specific opportunities identified in the reports.

For example, as interest rates go down and you see more refi business flowing into your agency, the analytical process asks, how do we capitalize on this trend to grow our business in that market vertical?

Another case in point: the ability for a title business to compare or contrast client order volume with historical trends, helping to address potential churn.

Asking the right questions

Of course, if you really want your data to work for you most effectively, you can’t just be reactive to what is coming in. You have to formulate the right questions so that you have a clear idea of where you want to place your efforts to maximize your growth.

Back to the example of the expanding refi market, you can ask a question of your data such as, “Which marketing channel is most effective for us in reaching and building relationships with those clients most likely to refer refi business?” or, “What are the top 10 sources of refi business over the past five years?” or, “Who on staff has had the most success building a strong book of business in the refi end of the business.” 

Getting the answers to these questions sets you on the path of building your marketing outreach in the most effective way, while focusing energy on your top-tier customers, with a team led by your most effective producer.

Bam! The team is off and running.

Analytics is all about connecting the dots between different data sets to come up with the most targeted strategy for a specific goal or objective. This is most effective when your business teams have useful and current data and the entire company has access to shared dashboards that include both department and company objectives.

At Settlor, we offer the first and only cloud-based platform to simplify the user experience by combining modern technology with three decades of user input and refinement. Settlor is an all-in-one title, closing and escrow accounting application that offers users real-time data sharing, a secure customer and consumer-facing portal, quick access to critical information, in-app communication, enhanced security and clear data ownership rights.

Contact us today to learn more.