Business Insights Book

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The book is offered only in a hardbound format due to the number of colored graphics. We are not printing or releasing a softcover or electronic version of the book. If you would like to order 26 copies or more, please email for bulk pricing discounts (book@delta-assoc.com).

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1 Unleashing the Power of Business Insights

Earn a Place in the Inner Circle
Would You Be in Tom’s Top 3%?
Typical Analyses vs. the Top 3%
Good Slides Start with Good Thinking
Six Attributes of Effective Slides

2 What’s Important to Your Customer? Objectives . . . and More

Where Do Your Objectives Come From?
Your Internal Customer’s Objectives
Your External Customer’s Objectives
Clarifying Objectives with CPS: Clarify, Probe, Summarize
The Importance of Trust
When Data Drives the Objectives
Meeting Objectives with Insights

3 Business Management Questions™ Reflect Critical Thinking

The Power of Business Management Questions™
Four-Step BMQ® Process
Price-Related BMQs®
Promotion-Related BMQs®
Product Mix-Related BMQs®
Placement-Related BMQs®
Chapter Appendix

4 The Importance of Numeracy

Squeezing More Out of Your Numbers
Beware of Simpson’s Paradox
Emphasize or De-Emphasize Your Story with the Delta Six-Pack®
Points vs. Percent Difference
Who Needs Math?
Where Do You Get These Numbers in the First Place?
Chapter Appendix

5 Reading the Tea Leaves: The Art and Science of Sifting through Data

Retail Analytics Triage
In the Triage Operating Room
Leaving a Bread Crumb Trail®
Expanding the Data Set and Bringing in the BMQs®

6 Measure What Matters

Confirmation Bias
Using Incomplete Data
Misinterpreting Data—Point-to-Point Comparison
Misinterpreting Data—Focusing on the Noise and Not the Signal

7 Eight Rules of Writing Business Insights

Rule #1: Quantify the Business Insight
Rule #2: Dimensionalize the Data
Rule #3: Communicate Both Position & Direction®
Rule #4: Be Concise
Rule #5: Guide Your Audience to the Point
Rule #6: Use the Language of Your Audience
Rule #7: Raise BMQs®
Rule #8: Give It “Legs”

8 Depicting Business Insights

The Rules of Charts
Pie Charts
Line Charts
Column Charts and Bar Charts
Liar’s Charts
3D Charts
Using the Wrong Data in Your Chart
Charting Position & Direction®
Putting Position on the Left and Direction on the Right
Transition to Best-in-Class Charts

9 The Deltaized Slide

Getting It All Right While Getting It All Wrong
Keep It Clean, Clear, and Relevant
Chart Mechanics
Slide Structure

Praise for Business Insights

“There’s a clear difference between information and insight. Having worked in retail and distribution, I’ve seen a lot of information come to my desk; just not a lot of insight. By increasing the amount of insight, Delta Associates has helped us be more productive with our limited time and raised expectations from our partners, both retailers and manufacturers. This is a must-read for anyone looking to improve their business or improve their partnership with channel partners.”

Shaun Young, VP Consumer Health, Cardinal Health

“To be great in marketing, one needs to master the skills discussed in this book. The ability to find insights and then turn them into actions is crucial in today’s marketplace. This book is a wonderful and practical resource for marketers at all levels.”

Derek Bowen, SVP Marketing, Coty Beauty US

“The ability of professionals to uncover meaningful insights and to effectively communicate, align, and provoke organizations to action is a critical skill in today’s consumer and trade environment. This book is an easy read that clearly articulates Delta’s powerful approach to finding and effectively communicating game-changing insights—a powerful read for all business professionals.”

Dan Buttling, SVP Business Analytics and Performance, Diageo

“Delta Associates has equipped our staff to go beyond simply reporting data in order to provide more value to our clients. Their interactive training and tools are helping our people home in on critical insights and convey them clearly, concisely, and with impact.”

Pauline Kalargiros, Global Head of Learning & Development, The NPD Group

“Distilling big data into compelling business insights is a challenge. Harder still is to create a concise and easily understood presentation. Business Insights provides you with proven principles of analytics moving you from ‘selling’ toward true collaboration and partnership. Regardless of the products that you sell or your channel of distribution, this book can increase your sales and profitability.”

Mark Gatehouse, VP Category Management, Planning, & Replenishment, Wrangler & Lee Jeans, VF Corporation

“Business insights are critical to managing any business. Learning how to uncover and clearly articulate them is not intuitive. Many organizations do not maximize their potential due to skills lacking in this area. Business Insights is a valuable tool for any company. Using these techniques will produce a step change in how you manage your business.”

Clint Hinze, Channel Marketing Manager, 3M Company

“The clarity and consistency in the Delta process allow all stakeholders to quickly identify the what and why of business issues, allowing the conversation to move into the more collaborative, and solution-based, how. This book, and training, should be required reading for every customer-facing role.”

Brian Sedra, Senior National Account Manager, Bacardi USA

“A must-read for anyone who wants to be more efficient in analyzing data and developing compelling, best-in-class presentations. Helps the reader navigate the plethora of data we encounter in today’s retail environment. If you want to be in the ‘Top 3% Club’—the best of the best—this book will give you the foundation to begin the journey.”

Doug Cross, Director, Category Leadership National Accounts, ConAgra

“In today’s sophisticated world, every successful sales professional should have Business Insights close at hand. The difference between good and great can mean big money, and this book can help you reach new heights and become the preferred business partner of any retailer.”

Patrick Robertson, Senior Regional Director, Diageo Canada

“If you are in the consumer goods business and are looking for ways to extract value out of the ever-growing mountain of data, then you should read this book.”

Sami Toivola, Senior Statistician II, H-E-B

“Business insights are the catalyst and the heartbeat of any business intelligence department and will complement or challenge strategy for the better of an organization. I have been doing business with Delta for more than 15 years, and I know firsthand that their book and on-site training is cutting edge and will empower your organization to achieve its goals and separate itself from the competition.”

Chris Wade, Former VP Sales Business Development, Heineken USA

“Business Insights is a quick, insightful read. It captures the best of Delta’s classes—how to effectively build insights from all of the data and concisely present opportunities to the retailer. Even if you’ve taken Delta courses and are a seasoned category manager, this book is a great reminder of how to focus your time in front of a buyer.”

Wendy Warus, VP Sales, Winning In Store, Henkel Consumer Goods

“Want to increase your value to your clients and become an integral part of their team? Grab a copy of this book and share it with your entire team. It pragmatically outlines the core elements of fact-based solution selling and can make your team the go-to resource your customers turn to for solutions.”

Carl Singer, Jr, VP Sales and Marketing, North America, Maplehurst Bakeries

“Practical, useful, and critical for today’s business environment. A must for everyone who makes selling presentations, or just presentations in general.”

Graciela Meibar, VP Global Sales Training and Global Diversity, Mattel

“Delta Associates has created a logical, fact-based methodology to understand and distill data into its simplest form, then make the key observations that facilitate sound decision-making and strategy development.”

Terry Burnside, Former President, Medicine Shoppe International

“Like most businesses, we have a wealth of data available to us. What we lacked were insights from that data. Or, better said, we lacked individuals who could find and communicate those insights. Delta Associates helped us change that. This book is an excellent refresher for those already versed in good analytics and is priceless to those wishing to learn. The steps and practices shown will assist the reader in learning what is needed to provide clear insights. The tools and direction to accomplish great work are here in this book, as long as the reader supplies the desire and discipline. This should be required reading for anyone touching data—big or small.”

Kevan Wilson, VP of Sales, Nintendo

“A must-read for those who want to understand their business quickly and succinctly. It will save countless hours of poring over data and still not knowing how to communicate your opportunity in a quick and easy way.”

Rui Martins, VP Merchandise Services, Rexall

“Delta Associates has provided a powerful tool—a ‘holy grail’ instruction guide for converting a mountain of data into succinct and compelling insights for optimizing business performance.”

Katherine Sheldon, VP Category Management, Seneca Foods

“Digital consumers are forcing retailers and suppliers to collaborate more closely than ever. Delta Associates has provided the necessary tools for every retailer and CPG vendor to thrive in this new omnichannel world by harnessing the power of big data. Using these techniques, retailers and suppliers can forge strong partnerships that allow them to understand and satisfy today’s demanding consumers.”

Charles Hackerson, VP of Supplier Sales, SPS Commerce

“Business Insights should be considered basic training for anyone involved in the retail sales process…on either side of the desk. A must-read, and an enjoyable presentation of what could be a rather mundane topic. The authors hit it out of the park in my opinion.”

Phil Hutchens, VP of Marketing, Standard Motor Products

“Amidst the hype about big data and category management, Delta brings a no-nonsense approach to finding the golden nuggets and business insights. Our company has learned to focus on what is most important and to communicate in a clear, concise way—which means leaving the thirty-page deck at the office. Choosing Delta as our BI training partner has proved to be one of our best investments.” =

Joe Pase, Director Strategic Planning & Category Management, Tenneco

“This book teaches skills that should be common practice, such as asking the right questions, learning what your audience wants to see, understanding how data can lead to better decision-making, and making every pitch practical and impactful. The reader will learn how to cut through the clutter and present clients with valuable business opportunities—something that is altogether too rare.”

Cathy Shifflett, VP of Center Store Sales and Marketing, TOPS Markets

“Business data has become increasingly available and the need to derive business insights from that data has never been greater. David, Steve, and Sharyl give an excellent set of guidelines to find business insights and have meaningful conversations with business partners. The concepts of Bleeders® and BMQs® are key for any business professional.”

Puneesh Malkani, VP Category Management & Consumer Research, UCI-Fram Group

“This book is the building block to many breakthrough insights that help manufacturers and retailers both win in the marketplace; the principles help provide a runway to sustainable, profitable sales growth.”

Kevin Jost, Veteran Retail Executive (Walmart, Advance Auto Parts, and Target)

“Delta’s focused discipline enables merchandising organizations to drive deep analytics into the decision-making process of category planning. This book should be part of the merchants’ toolbox to drive great outcomes.”

Charles E. Tyson, EVP Merchandising Marketing and Supply Chain, Advance Auto Parts

Business Insights Book

Table of Contents

Praise for Business Insights

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