{"id":10640,"date":"2026-03-31T04:29:12","date_gmt":"2026-03-31T08:29:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/data-mania.com\/blog\/?p=10640"},"modified":"2026-03-31T04:29:12","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T08:29:12","slug":"4-steps-to-selecting-an-optimal-analytics-tool","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/4-steps-to-selecting-an-optimal-analytics-tool\/","title":{"rendered":"4 steps to selecting an optimal analytics tool"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you\u2019re responsible for selecting an analytics tool to help your data project or product achieve a strong ROI, then this article is for you. That\u2019s because I\u2019m about to share with you a battle-tested 4-step process for planning a data-project and exactly what you need to do to select the optimal analytics tool for boosting the ROI of your next data project.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-10643 size-large lazyload\" data-src=\"http:\/\/data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/4-steps-to-selecting-an-optimal-analytics-tool-1024x576.png\" alt=\"4 steps to selecting an optimal analytics tool\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/4-steps-to-selecting-an-optimal-analytics-tool-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/4-steps-to-selecting-an-optimal-analytics-tool-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/4-steps-to-selecting-an-optimal-analytics-tool-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/4-steps-to-selecting-an-optimal-analytics-tool-90x51.png 90w, https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/4-steps-to-selecting-an-optimal-analytics-tool-1536x864.png 1536w, https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/4-steps-to-selecting-an-optimal-analytics-tool-2048x1152.png 2048w, https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/4-steps-to-selecting-an-optimal-analytics-tool-600x338.png 600w, https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/4-steps-to-selecting-an-optimal-analytics-tool-1154x649.png 1154w\" data-sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 1024px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 1024\/576;\" \/><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In case you\u2019re new around here, I\u2019m Lillian Pierson and I support data professionals to become world-class data leaders and entrepreneurs. As far as why I am qualified to teach on how to select an optimal analytics tool, so far I\u2019ve educated over 1.3 Million people on data science and AI, I\u2019ve consulted for 10% of Fortune 100 companies, and I&#8217;ve been delivering technical and strategic plans since 2007 for organizations as large as the US Navy.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><strong>Data tools are only ever as effective as the decision-making of the people who select them.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<h2>What&#8217;s in here&#8230;<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you\u2019re reading this then you probably know that data tools are only ever as effective as the decision-making of the people who select them. Data project success propels a data career forward, and if you\u2019re looking to land a promotion into a data leadership position, this article is for you.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The main four points covered in this article are:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">My proprietary STAR framework for leading profit-forming data projects<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">How to leverage my proprietary STAR framework to plan profit-forming data projects;<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The real reason why most data projects fail and what you can do to protect yours of course;<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">My top 3 data selection tips so that you can pick the analytics tool that&#8217;s sure to boost your project&#8217;s ROI<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Spoiler alert:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> This article also comes with a video demonstration I created that shows you how to select an optimal analytics tool. It\u2019s over on Logi Analytics\u2019 website <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/go.logianalytics.com\/webinar-selecting-right-analytics-tool-to-boost-roi.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">here<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. I will be directing you to the full training on analytics tool selection to get you all of the above-promised \ud83d\udc46 deliverables.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><strong>First let me ask you a question&#8230;<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Let&#8217;s first start off with a fun game.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I want you to imagine that you have access to an analytics tool that you can embed directly into software solutions AND that is flexible enough to immediately provide your customers the self-service access to the data they need and want, all without excessive wait times or costly overhead spent on inefficient computing structures and processes.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">How would you use that? How do you think that would improve your company&#8217;s bottom line? I would love it if you&#8217;d <\/span><b>share your thoughts<\/b> <b>in the comments below.<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Don\u2019t worry if you\u2019re not sure how to use an awesome analytics tool like that \ud83d\udc46 to increase your business&#8217; bottom line. It\u2019s not your fault, because if you\u2019re like most data professionals, then you haven&#8217;t been trained on how to connect the cost of data operations to actual hard numbers in the business (ie; profits and revenues). <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The good news is that the rest of this post will get you started on how to do that\u2026<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<h2><strong>No Data Strategy = Epic Data Project Failures<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Actually, back in 2013, the senior leaders in the world&#8217;s most prestigious cancer treatment center also thought that they had found a &#8220;holy grail&#8221; of data tools. And they believed that, armed with the predictive AI, they would finally be able to eradicate cancer once and for all.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Four years later though, all they had seen was $62 Million in sunk costs, no results, and a slew of outraged oncologists who were happy to go public with defamatory remarks about the data product that had done them so much harm. The tool was Watson for Oncology and the client was M.D. Anderson.<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><strong>EVERY ANALYTICS TOOL IS NOT THE SAME. And sometimes, it&#8217;s not even the tool&#8217;s fault that a project fails. Sometimes, the root cause of the failure is in the decision-making of the person who chose to use it in the first place.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">So please, take me seriously when I say, EVERY ANALYTICS TOOL IS NOT THE SAME. And sometimes, it&#8217;s not even the tool&#8217;s fault that a project fails. Sometimes, the root cause of the failure is in the decision-making of the person who chose to use it in the first place.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But, if you let this happen to you or have been on the losing side of a data project, let me start by telling you &#8211; IT&#8217;S NOT YOUR FAULT.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With all of the online data science training courses out there, and all of the universities out there offering analytics degrees, the one thing that most of these data science training institutions don&#8217;t teach is Data Strategy. Data strategy is imperative to generate return on investment from data projects and products. And what you&#8217;re about to get is the data strategist&#8217;s cliff notes on data tool selection. You can save your company from epic failures like what M.D. Anderson had with Watson for Oncology.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><strong>Introducing the STAR framework<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I developed this 4-step framework out of a decade of experience in delivering consulting services for some of the world\u2019s largest organizations.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><strong>The STAR Framework For Analytics Tool Selection and Consulting<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The STAR goes like this:<\/span><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><b>S &#8211; Survey the Industry<\/b><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (TL;DR You spend time reviewing relevant use cases and case studies)<\/span><\/i><\/li>\n<li><b>T &#8211; Take stock and inventory of your organization<\/b><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (TL;DR You collect and generate documentation that describes all aspects of your company. This involves surveys, interviews,and requests for information)<\/span><\/i><\/li>\n<li><b>A &#8211; Assess your organization&#8217;s current state conditions<\/b> <i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(TL;DR Identify gaps, risks, opportunities, and select an optimal data use case given specifics for your company)<\/span><\/i><\/li>\n<li><b>R &#8211; Recommend a strategy for reaching future state goals<\/b> <i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(TL;DR Define a strategic plan for successfully implementing upon that data use case)<\/span><\/i><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-10648 lazyload\" data-src=\"http:\/\/data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/data-strategy-framework-819x1024.png\" alt=\"data strategy framework\" width=\"436\" height=\"545\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/data-strategy-framework-819x1024.png 819w, https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/data-strategy-framework-240x300.png 240w, https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/data-strategy-framework-768x960.png 768w, https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/data-strategy-framework-72x90.png 72w, https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/data-strategy-framework-600x750.png 600w, https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/data-strategy-framework-519x649.png 519w, https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/data-strategy-framework.png 1200w\" data-sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 436px) 100vw, 436px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 436px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 436\/545;\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 80px; text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">* If you want to go in for deep-dive training on the STAR framework, go ahead and check out <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/data-mania.com\/blog\/how-to-create-an-evergreen-analytics-strategy-framework\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">this post here<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For now, what you need to know about the STAR Framework is, you would want to rinse, wash and repeat every 18 months.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">That means, if you create a data strategy plan today or within the next 6 weeks, you need to go back and revisit, update, and maybe expand that within about 18 months because of the nature of our industry &#8211; ie; the rapid changes we see across the data industry.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><strong>Where an Analytics Tool Selection Fits In<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Analytics tools selection fits in the \u201cR &#8211; Recommendations\u201d phase of the STAR framework. That\u2019s because you can&#8217;t pick the right tool until you&#8217;ve clearly identified the use case. You also need to know which vendors and existing technologies you already have on hand to fulfill that use case. You\u2019d identify both of these in the first three steps of the STAR framework. Then, select a tool when you\u2019re ready to make recommendations\u2026.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><strong>The Real Reason Most Data Analytics Projects Fail<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I recently did a poll over on LinkedIn:<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/posts\/lillianpierson_datascience-analytics-productmanagement-activity-6862371265299152896-1f6W\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-10650 size-full lazyload\" data-src=\"http:\/\/data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/LinkedIn.jpg\" alt=\"data science analytics product management activity\" width=\"783\" height=\"438\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/LinkedIn.jpg 783w, https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/LinkedIn-300x168-1.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/LinkedIn-768x430-1.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/LinkedIn-90x50-1.jpg 90w, https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/LinkedIn-600x336-1.jpg 600w\" data-sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 783px) 100vw, 783px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 783px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 783\/438;\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Many of the respondents answered this question correctly.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-10652 lazyload\" data-src=\"http:\/\/data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/how-to-avoid-analytics-project-failures-819x1024.png\" alt=\"how to avoid analytics project failures\" width=\"440\" height=\"550\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/how-to-avoid-analytics-project-failures-819x1024.png 819w, https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/how-to-avoid-analytics-project-failures-240x300.png 240w, https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/how-to-avoid-analytics-project-failures-768x960.png 768w, https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/how-to-avoid-analytics-project-failures-72x90.png 72w, https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/how-to-avoid-analytics-project-failures-600x750.png 600w, https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/how-to-avoid-analytics-project-failures-519x649.png 519w, https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/how-to-avoid-analytics-project-failures.png 1200w\" data-sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 440px) 100vw, 440px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 440px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 440\/550;\" \/><\/p>\n<p><b>The real reason that most data projects fail is a lack of careful data project pre-planning.<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> And the following data tool selection method is going to take you a long way in prudent project pre-planning so you can avoid selecting the wrong data tool for the job.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><strong>How to Use the STAR Framework to Select the Perfect Analytics Tool: Leading Profit-Forming Data Projects<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Please note, I offer an entire product that shows the detailed approach for applying this framework. But there is not enough space in a single blog post to cover the entire thing.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">So, what I\u2019ve done is to focus only on how to use the STAR Framework. I&#8217;ll teach you how to select an optimal analytics tool. Head over to Logi\u2019s website and study through to the end of this training. Then, you\u2019re going to get my full demonstration of how to use this process. I&#8217;ll teach you how to go about selecting the perfect analytics tool for your data project.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Spoiler alert<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: It involves Fuzzy-MCDM\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-10653 lazyload\" data-src=\"http:\/\/data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/analytics-tool-selection-demonstration-819x1024.png\" alt=\"Using STAR Framework selection demonstration\" width=\"442\" height=\"553\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/analytics-tool-selection-demonstration-819x1024.png 819w, https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/analytics-tool-selection-demonstration-240x300.png 240w, https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/analytics-tool-selection-demonstration-768x960.png 768w, https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/analytics-tool-selection-demonstration-72x90.png 72w, https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/analytics-tool-selection-demonstration-600x750.png 600w, https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/analytics-tool-selection-demonstration-519x649.png 519w, https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/analytics-tool-selection-demonstration.png 1200w\" data-sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 442px) 100vw, 442px\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 442px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 442\/553;\" \/><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\ud83c\udf81 You\u2019re also going to get my top 3 data selection tips! Pick the analytics tool that&#8217;s sure to boost your project&#8217;s ROI.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/go.logianalytics.com\/webinar-selecting-right-analytics-tool-to-boost-roi.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><b>CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE DEMONSTRATION ON THE LOGI ANALYTICS WEBSITE<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<hr\/>\n<p><em>Want a clean, repeatable system for measuring B2B growth? Get the free <a href=\"https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/growth-metrics-os-email-course\/\"><strong>Growth Metrics OS<\/strong><\/a> \u2014 a 6-day email course for technical founders and operators who want to measure growth and make better decisions.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If you\u2019re responsible for selecting an analytics tool to help your data project or product achieve a strong ROI, then this article is for you. That\u2019s because I\u2019m about to share with you a battle-tested 4-step process for planning a data-project and exactly what you need to do to select the optimal analytics tool for [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10643,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"gallery","meta":{"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[582],"tags":[532,533],"class_list":["post-10640","post","type-post","status-publish","format-gallery","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-startups","tag-analytics-tool","tag-logi-analytics","post_format-post-format-gallery"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10640","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10640"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10640\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20289,"href":"https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10640\/revisions\/20289"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10643"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10640"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10640"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.data-mania.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10640"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}