What are Cohorts
Another way marketers can drive themselves crazy? Maybe, but depending on the product or service you are marketing, cohorts may make a difference in response and conversion rates. The Wikipedia definition is “A cohort is a group of subjects who have shared a particular event together during a particular time span (e.g., people born in Europe between 1918 and 1939; survivors of an air crash; truck drivers who smoked between age 30 and 40).”
So What is the Value to Marketers?
We have a wealth of data we own and collect from our digital marketing efforts. Running cohort analysis on this data gives us insight about the actions and engagement of our customers.
- It lets us see how newer customers compare to older groups
- It give us a baseline to compare differences in behavior in acquisition groups
- Grouping by cohorts gives us the insight to personalize messages relating to the shared events or experiences
- Cohort analysis gives us insight to predict customer lifetime value
- They are a homogeneous group yielding an apples to apples comparison in our data set
Cohort analysis is a staple in the retail and eCommerce industry. B2B marketers should be, and many are, embracing Cohort Analysis. There are obvious differences between the two disciplines, B2B marketers will benefit by analyzing leads over a period of time and tracking the behavior and actions of the groups.
OK, So What is Cohort Analysis?
It’s the automated process of grouping people who share a common characteristic over time. For example, people who have opted in on the same day, or attended a trade show and requested more information. Most of the information we gather comes from our website, so of course, Google has a cohort analysis tool. It is still in beta but should be rolled out soon. There are many other platforms that vary in cost and features. There’s surely one that makes sense for you.