8 Soft Skills You Need To Become A Successful Digital Analyst

Digital Analytics is a role that sits at the intersection of data science and engineering, so it’s critical to have a myriad of technical skills. However, if you’re looking to carve out a lucrative career in this industry, it pays to work on developing your soft skills.

Digital Analysts spend a considerable amount of time influencing stakeholders using insights and recommendations, so soft skills will enhance your ability to engage in productive interactions, especially with Senior Leaders.

What are soft skills?

Soft skills are personality traits, interpersonal skills that dictate how well one interacts with others, and are a definite part of an individuals personality. They are typically labeled as your ‘people skills’.

Why are soft skills so important?

In a competitive job market, candidates who demonstrate they have a good combination of hard and soft skills on a resume, and during the interview process often see a greater demand for their services. Soft skills are so important that they are often the reason employers decide whether to keep or promote an employee.

Here are a few soft skills that are critical for a successful career in Digital Analytics:

Communication

Communication (Oral & Written) is key in this role as the analyst is required to break down complex or technical concepts to various teams in a manner they can understand. For digital analysts who have the ability to translate complicated findings into recommendations that senior-level decision makers can understand, open doors await you. And for those with the ability to get up in front of a room full of people and deliver an impactful business presentation, the sky is the limit. The ability to communicate technical ideas clearly and effectively to non-technical people is a highly valued and sought-after skill. Here are a few ways to improve your presentation and communication skills:

Seek mentorship from an individual(s) in your organization with great communication skills

Ask your peers and manager to provide feedback on your presentations

Join a Toastmasters group (This worked wonders for my career)

Take a communication course like this one from LinkedIn- Creating & Giving Business Presentations

Story Telling With Data

Creating dashboards is the building block to understanding web performance, but data without context and insight isn’t very helpful. In order to drive meaningful decisions that optimize conversion, you need to tell a compelling story with data. This skill is especially important when presenting information to Senior Leaders who need to make impactful decisions quickly. Here is a video that will get you started on the basics of great storytelling with data - Storytelling With Data.

Interpersonal Skills

The digital analyst is in a unique position as they need to build strong relationships with multiple stakeholders (Marketing, Product, UX, Engineering, Merchandising, Senior Leaders, etc) across the organization. Building relationships takes patience, active listening, collaboration, empathy, humility, dependability, flexibility, and conflict resolution. Spend some time building your interpersonal skills, and watch your business and personal relationships improve. Here is a helpful article that will help you improve your interpersonal skills - 10 Tips For Improving Interpersonal Skills.

Leadership

Leadership skills can help you in all aspects of your career, from applying for jobs to seeking career advancement. All employers will want to know that you have the ability to make decisions when push comes to shove, and can manage situations and people. The ability to step up to the plate in a difficult situation, and help resolve it is something employers look for in an analyst. Here are a few leadership skills you should cultivate:

Positive Attitude

Team building

Conflict Management

Negotiating

Trustworthiness

Decision Making

Innovation & Creativity

Timely communication

Effective feedback

Business knowledge

The best digital analysts understand what is important to other departments such as marketing, finance, and sales. At a minimum, they speak the basic language of online sales and marketing: Lead generation, conversion, revenue, and bottom-line results. Collaborating with other departments is essential. Professionals from other departments rarely understand how to use digital insights and recommendations, and quite a number don’t even understand basic digital metrics. The best digital analysts know how to apply digital insights and recommendations to business strategy, and how to communicate this information to non-analysts.

Problem solving and opportunity recognition skills

While many data experts use business and technical knowledge to answer questions about what the data is revealing, the best analysts go beyond that and recognize business issues even before specifically looking for them. I’ve never known a good digital analyst who didn’t have a strong aptitude for solving complex problems.

Strong Attention To Detail

I believe this is a skill every professional should possess. The information Digital Analysts provide drive decisions that can cost a company millions of dollars. It is critical that you consistently provide information that is accurate. This calls for diligence, and thoroughness in every project you take on.

Adaptability

The digital world is in constant flux as more customers adopt digital services. This means your stakeholders are constantly making new decisions to meet changes in customer trends. Learning how to be flexible, and pivot quickly without explicit instructions will make you an asset to your team, and company.