„There is nothing that Excel can’t do“

How would you describe your daily work?

You can’t generally say that a day is structured in a certain way, because it differs all the time. I check the running campaigns every morning, in order to start the so-called monitoring. This means that I check how many impressions, how many clicks, engagements, conversions and so on we have generated. Afterwards, I talk to my team about how we can optimize the campaigns. You could say I’m looking through the customer’s eyes, always having their goals in mind.

You seem to be in your element talking about your work. How do you like it so far at ad pepper?

The tasks are very interesting and varying. The team is young, very cool and funny. My first months here were really good. I have never integrated into a team so quickly.

What do you think, where will your journey at ad pepper lead you?

My goal? Well, I think here at ad pepper everything is possible. Everything you are keen on learning about the digital world. At the moment, I still try to work step by step and concentrate on accomplishing smaller goals by myself. I don’t specifically plan ahead, but I want to stay here for a long time.

How much potential do you see for the job as a data analyst?

There is a lot of potential for this profession, especially when analyzing data with the right tools. I think the ability to work with data in general is helpful and necessary in any job. That’s why this field is very promising for the future. Nowadays, data is everywhere and it has to be analyzed. That’s the main task of a data analyst.

At the moment, you’re responsible for the data analysis at ad pepper – which skills do you need for that?

Basically, it’s important that you like numbers and that you are able to work with them. The most important thing obviously is not just the ability to analyze the data, but to interpret the most important information and develop proposals for action for the customer.

You mentioned that using the right tools is important for analyzing data. What do you prefer personally: PowerPoint or Excel?

Excel of course! There is nothing that Excel can’t do. It can really do anything. I’m also using it in my private life, for example for planning parties and holidays. Furthermore, private budgets are easy and efficient to structure in Excel.

That’s unusual. Most people are afraid of using Excel.

That is only because they don’t understand Excel. If I would show them what the tool is capable of, I’m sure it would thrill them. I already convinced my ad pepper colleagues Sabine and Annika.

Originally you come from a market research background. Now you’re working in online marketing. What’s the main difference when working with data?

Definitely the speed. In market research you usually have to wait for a few days, or even a few weeks until the surveys have been finished and the data has been generated. It just takes more time. Here at ad pepper, I am able to see results in real time – immediately after the campaign has been launched. The data is available very quickly, since it is compiled by ad servers.

Which challenges have you been confronted with in online marketing so far?

At the beginning, everything was very new for me – especially the vocabulary. I did not know what a DSP, DMP or Real Time Bidding were – just to name a few. It is like learning a new language. Therefore, I created a glossary and now I study my vocabulary every night (laughs).   

Which areas would you especially like to explore even more?

I would love to dive deeper into data analysis and specialize in that field. It would be cool if I had certain data available just at the push of a button. The online world is developing so fast, that you can’t really estimate how everything is going to work in five or six years from now. You should never stay at the same state of knowledge.

When is a working day in your analytical ad pepper data world successfully completed?

It’s successfully completed, when my to-do list is worked off – or at least if it became shorter… as the list always grows day by day. But every day, I work on optimizing at least one thing, in order to satisfy our customers and to achieve the best result possible.

Susanne Siegert interviewed by Tyra Webster