by 
It’s all about numbers. Everyone wants to see numbers: new clients, higher sales, lower costs. My phone was ringing off the hook with companies trying to promote and sell their products in a new year, just hoping for that first big sale of the year.
Personally speaking, those of us who made weight-loss resolutions, would love to see a 3-5 lb drop on the scale in the first week of January.
This leads me to the Iowa Caucus Results from last night. Check out the numbers, what conclusions are you making.
2012 – Results
- Mitt Romney 30,015 24.6%
- Rick Santorum 30,007 24.5%
- Ron Paul 26,219 21.4%
- Newt Gingrich 16,251 13.3%
- Rick Perry 12,604 10.3%
A quick look here, and it appears that the top three candidates will move on to the next round.
Wait a minute and stop for a second!!!
History shows us that the results from Iowa are not the final numbers. Go back four years and look at the results.
2008 –Results |Source Wikipedia Iowa Caucuses
- Mike Huckabee (34%),
- Mitt Romney (25%),
- Fred Thompson (13%),
- John McCain (13%),
- Ron Paul (10%),
- Rudy Giuliani (4%),
- Duncan Hunter (1%)
Isn’t it interesting to see that John McCain only received 13% of the total vote in the Iowa Caucus, but went on to be the elected nominee in 2008. Could this possibly Newt Gigrich’s situation in 2012?
When looking at your analytical numbers, make sure you are making good decisions based on good data and results. I really like Google Analytics and GetClicky. I focus on the current week activity and I compare it to the past 30 and 60 days and I look for trending lines up and down to really see what is happening. Also, I always look at other factors like sales, location of hits, key words, links and other data.
Looking for trends is the key. The only way to do this effectively is to have some data over a set time frame.
So as 2012 gets started, keep planning and tracking and be careful to read too much into your early numbers. Also, side tip, if you do have a weightloss resolution, check out your progress after 21 days. This is my motto for 2012. I need to do some type of activity: (Change in diet and Consistent Exercise over a period of time. 21 days)
