Sarah's Newsletter

Sarah's Newsletter offers insights into marketing, analytics, Product-Led Growth (PLG), and professional development, blending personal experiences with technical guidance. It delves into data tool selection, analytics strategies, the importance of data quality, and the evolving landscape of SaaS, emphasizing actionable advice for data-driven decision making and efficient organizational practices.

Data Analytics Marketing Strategies Product-Led Growth SaaS Tools Data Management Professional Development Technology Trends Operational Efficiency Company Culture

The hottest Substack posts of Sarah's Newsletter

And their main takeaways

A Webhook Love Story

3 HN points • 17 Apr 24
🕹 Technology Automation APIs Workflow Integrations Operations
  1. Webhooks provide a plug-and-play interface for event-driven workflows, making automation in marketing efficient and scalable.
  2. Webhooks are useful when immediate automated responses are needed to events from the outside world, and relying on batch implementations would be inefficient.
  3. Effectively implementing webhooks requires observability through alerts, in-depth logs, centralized deployment, and proper scale to avoid operational challenges.

Guide to Anonymous Identity Resolution

139 implied HN points • 15 Aug 23
🕹 Technology Web applications Data Analysis
  1. Fully personalized user journeys rely on correlating anonymous source events to authenticated users.
  2. Identity resolution involves collecting anonymous visitor data, mapping them to authenticated users, and merging duplicate accounts.
  3. Implementing event tracking through cookies and URL parameters is crucial for resolving identities across applications and domains.

Group Assignment in a Frontend vs. Backend A/B Test

99 implied HN points • 19 Sep 23
🕹 Technology Experimentation UI/UX Data Analysis Frontend Backend
  1. Decide which product feature should be behind a test, read the results of an A/B test, prioritize features based on data
  2. Understand that frontend tests focus on user experience and user groups in the browser, while backend tests require business logic and user assignment in the database
  3. Choose frontend user group assignment for speed and simplicity via firing analytics events; go for backend assignment for more complete data by storing user assignment in a database model

On a Personal Note

319 implied HN points • 20 Dec 22
💼 Business Career Consulting Startups Marketing Data
  1. The author is relocating to Vermont, excited about being closer to snow for ski season and connecting with local communities.
  2. The author's startup, Versionable, is currently taking a back seat as they focus on settling into new changes and exploring different angles to address marketing challenges.
  3. The author is embarking on a new role as the Growth Lead at Prefect, highlighting their interest in ambitious team goals and a UI-first experience in data tooling space.

The Analytics Requirements Document

359 implied HN points • 27 Oct 22
💼 Business Analytics Product Launch Contracts Data Management Team Collaboration
  1. Analytics should be a first-class citizen in crafting product launches to avoid wasted time and ensure measurable success.
  2. Utilize detailed agreements like Product Requirements Documents (PRD) and Analytics Requirements Documents (ARD) to align teams, outline goals, data criteria, assumptions, and finalize expectations.
  3. Involving analytics early in the product evolution lifecycle is crucial for gathering and analyzing data effectively, helping in decision-making, and ensuring alignment across technical and business teams.
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Choosing a Product Analytics Tool

299 implied HN points • 27 Sep 22
🕹 Technology Analytics Vendors Tools
  1. Product analytics is crucial to understand how users engage with your product through front-end tracking data like what pages they view and buttons they click.
  2. Event tracking data helps in analyzing funnels, identifying drop-offs, and creating customized user experiences, such as re-engagement campaigns.
  3. When choosing a product analytics tool, consider features like tracking implementation, native integrations, analysis capabilities, and pricing based on your team's skillset, budget, and main purpose for utilizing event tracking data.

The Thrill of Deprecating Dashboards

239 implied HN points • 29 Nov 22
🕹 Technology Analytics Automation Data Management BI Tools Data Visualization
  1. Having an excessive number of dashboards can lead to inefficiency and confusion within an organization. It's important to prioritize strategic organization over creating new dashboards indiscriminately.
  2. Developing an automated dashboard deprecation strategy can help save time and maintain a clean BI instance. By automating the process, organizations can efficiently manage and delete unused visuals.
  3. Implementing a proactive maintenance plan, such as using a data catalog or automated tools, can help keep BI instances organized and optimal for data insights. Regular cleaning and organization are key to ensuring the effectiveness of analytics strategies.

Choosing a Data Quality Tool

359 implied HN points • 22 Feb 22
🕹 Technology Data Quality Data Tools
  1. Data quality tools are essential for maintaining trust in data and preventing stakeholders from resorting to workaround solutions.
  2. Choosing the right data quality tool involves understanding the specific needs of your organization and considering factors like budget, technical resources, and overall data quality goals.
  3. There are different types of data quality tools available, including auto-profiling data tools, pipeline testing tools, infrastructure monitoring tools, and integrated solutions, each with unique characteristics and considerations for selection.

Modernity != Value

299 implied HN points • 19 Apr 22
🕹 Technology Data Analytics Data Tools Data Platforms Problem Solving
  1. Having modern tools doesn't guarantee providing value - it's more about how analytics teams use the tools to drive organizational change.
  2. The focus should be on delivering value to the organization rather than just building data platforms or using the most modern tools.
  3. Start simple with the minimum viable data stack and only add complexity when necessary - focus on solving real problems and evaluating tools based on problem-solving, maintenance, and scalability.

Choosing a Data Catalog

279 implied HN points • 03 May 22
🕹 Technology Open Source Outsourcing
  1. In startup culture, collaboration comes naturally, but as organizations grow, maintaining data documentation becomes challenging. Having a centralized data catalog tool is crucial for larger organizations to speak the same language and avoid miscommunications.
  2. Documentation in analytics should enable quick access and understanding of data assets, reducing time spent searching for information and improving decision-making. It goes beyond just listing items and involves data discovery and enablement.
  3. Consider different types of data catalog tools based on your organization's size, budget, and specific needs. Choose tools based on factors like security, collaboration features, integrations with existing data tools, and the level of support required.

A Call To Write

259 implied HN points • 17 May 22
📚 Literature Writing Feedback Conversations
  1. The importance of writing to express your voice and thoughts even if you're not an expert.
  2. Encouragement for minority readers to share their perspectives and start writing.
  3. The commitment to continue writing regularly, even if other projects become a priority.

Make Everything Versionable

239 implied HN points • 24 May 22
🕹 Technology SaaS Tools Data Development
  1. Teams are facing challenges with SaaS tools and maintaining them as complexity grows.
  2. Making everything versionable can help in QA, testing, and peer reviewing changes, leading to fewer errors in production.
  3. There is a need for more accessible ways to version configurations across different teams and tools, especially for non-technical users.

Values of My Hypothetical Company

199 implied HN points • 10 May 22
💼 Business Company Culture Values Relationships Decision-making Leadership
  1. Company culture is critical for employee happiness and retention, with clear values fostering alignment and unity.
  2. Values in relationships and business overlap, emphasizing the importance of shared core beliefs for effective communication.
  3. Key principles like valuing individuals, balancing logic and emotion, trusting employees, and working with intention and urgency can drive success in company culture and relationships.

What is SaaS Observability?

139 implied HN points • 30 Aug 22
🕹 Technology SaaS Observability Data Quality Automation
  1. SaaS Observability sheds light on the health of all data and automations in SaaS tools.
  2. Business teams should not need to rely on technical-heavy tools to ensure their systems are working correctly.
  3. Having bad data quality and anomalies in automations can impact business operations significantly and require constant monitoring.

Hidden Tasks of Product Management

159 implied HN points • 28 Jun 22
💼 Business Management Data-driven Quality Assurance Leadership
  1. Product managers should oversee their company’s offering like any manager oversees people.
  2. Being data-driven is crucial for product managers. They need to question data, consider various types of data, and course correct based on data-driven decisions.
  3. Product managers play a critical role in owning quality assurance and getting stakeholder buy-in for successful product launches.

What is SaaS debt?

179 implied HN points • 01 Mar 22
🕹 Technology Software Business Automation Data
  1. SaaS debt occurs when maintaining SaaS tools involves more manual work than automated work, leading to inefficiencies and chaos.
  2. Business teams can benefit from understanding concepts like templating, testing, and versioning to build scalable operational processes and avoid accumulating SaaS debt.
  3. Implementing modular systems, testing processes, and versioning workflows can save time in the long run and prevent errors in operational tasks.

The Froyo Data Shop

159 implied HN points • 22 Mar 22
🕹 Technology Data Analysis Data Quality
  1. Self-service is about making choices with clear explanations and options.
  2. Raw data without context can lead to misinterpretation and flawed analysis.
  3. Data democratization needs testing, context building, and ongoing data literacy.

No Code is the Future

159 implied HN points • 08 Mar 22
🕹 Technology No Code Infrastructure as Code
  1. Despite the allure of no-code tools for setting up infrastructure easily, current tools often lack important features like versioning and templating, leading to frustration.
  2. Having code, like Infrastructure as Code (IaC) or Configuration as Code, enables better visibility, control, and safety measures in system configuration compared to UI-only tools.
  3. An 'Everything-as-code' approach aims to bring version control to all aspects of development, highlighting the importance of versioning beyond just traditional code.

Sources of Inspiration

139 implied HN points • 05 Apr 22
🕹 Technology Blogs Podcasts Tech news Venture Capital Leadership
  1. Listening to discussions and staying informed is key to finding inspiration.
  2. Blogs, newsletters, and podcasts from various individuals and sources can provide valuable insights and provoke thoughts.
  3. Staying connected with data news, conferences, and VC updates can enhance understanding and spark creativity.

Reinventing the Wheel of Data Activation

99 implied HN points • 26 Jul 22
🕹 Technology Data Analytics Data Integration Automation Software Engineering
  1. Data activation is not just a concern for the data team; it affects the entire data ecosystem and requires consideration of how data moves from one destination to another.
  2. Tools like Zapier and Make are essential for activating data, even bypassing warehouses, though maintaining software engineering principles like testing and version control is crucial for data teams.
  3. Integration bridges will always be necessary to connect applications that aren't warehouse-native, highlighting the importance of scalable systems and minimizing potential points of failure in data movement.

How to Sell Products and Retain Customers

119 implied HN points • 12 Apr 22
💼 Business Marketing Customer Retention Product Development User Experience Data Analysis
  1. Understand your audience and solve their real problems to attract and retain customers.
  2. Provide a smooth onboarding experience to help users transition from inefficient processes to using your product.
  3. Customers who find your product valuable will be forgiving of small bugs, but focus on seamless integration within their ecosystem.

Sales and Marketing and Dev Ops, Oh My!

99 implied HN points • 26 Apr 22
💼 Business Sales Marketing Operations Efficiency Automation
  1. Efficiency in operational teams is crucial for the overall effectiveness of an organization. They play a vital role in supporting other departments to work faster and better.
  2. Operational teams like SalesOps, MOps, and DevOps have unique functions but share a common goal of increasing efficiency and saving time for the organization.
  3. Current tools and practices in operational teams can still involve manual tasks, hindering efficiency. Providing education and support for scale is essential for driving true efficiency across all operational areas.

Cloud Access Management Explained

79 implied HN points • 15 Mar 22
🕹 Technology Cloud Computing Networking Security
  1. Understanding networking components like VPCs, subnets, and security groups is crucial for cloud access management.
  2. AWS offers granular configuration but has a steep learning curve, while GCP has an easier start but controlling connections can be difficult.
  3. IAM roles are like shoes for people and dictate actions, while security groups are like hats granting network access to services.

Under the Hood

59 implied HN points • 29 Mar 22
🕹 Technology Programming Data Analysis Data Management No-Code Tools Cloud Computing
  1. Python's popularity is due to its ease of use and readability, making it one of the top 5 most popular languages.
  2. Abstractions like AWS Lambda can be efficient but may become harmful if not managed properly, leading to issues like security and cost concerns.
  3. Using SQL GUI tools for data aggregation can speed up the process but may lead to inaccurate results and wrong decisions due to lack of testing and QA processes.

Understanding Isn't Enough

59 implied HN points • 08 Feb 22
🕹 Technology Data Analytics Product Development Data Quality
  1. Value in data products comes from taking action, not just providing information.
  2. Vendors and data tools add significant value by influencing processes and saving time for users.
  3. Analytics products should aim to change behaviors by answering critical questions, prioritizing effectively, and continuously refining to ensure effectiveness.

What is Sarah's Newsletter?

59 implied HN points • 25 Jan 22
🕹 Technology Data Tech
  1. Sarah's Newsletter focuses on starting conversations about trends in data and tech, led by Sarah Krasnik Bedell, a data engineer and thought leader.
  2. The newsletter covers topics like data engineering, analytics, and diversity in the tech industry beyond Silicon Valley.
  3. Sarah started the newsletter to connect with smart individuals and discuss interesting ideas in the tech community.