3 ways to drive Domo adoption across your organization

For most companies, buying and implementing Domo is only half the battle. After they’ve got their tool up and running, and they’ve loaded their data into the tool, they actually have to get other people in their organization to actually use the tool. Unless people are actually using the tool to find insights and drive change, there’s no point in investing in Domo.
 

 

How do I encourage Domo adoption?

Often, encouraging widespread Domo adoption within an organization is the hardest part of the implementation. This is especially true for businesses that haven’t used any sort of BI system before.

People have to change their workflows to accommodate the new tool, and that doesn’t happen overnight. Businesses can’t just flip a switch and have everyone using Domo instantly; adoption is a process that takes time and effort.

It’s very difficult to drive any sort of meaningful company-wide change using BI when only a handful of people within an organization are actually using Domo. If an implementation is limited in scope, and there are only a few adopters across an organization, then the sorts of changes that the tool can drive will be limited in scope as well.

• How can businesses drive Domo adoption across all levels of an organization?
• How can managers and executives get their lower-level employees to use Domo?
• How can data experts convince data novices of the value of Domo?

Businesses need to know the answers to these questions so that they can integrate data analysis with every factor of their operation.

We have a few strategies that business leaders can use to drive change internally towards BI so that they can get the most out of Domo.
 

Build useful dashboards

The most basic way to get people to use Domo is to make it so they actually want to use the tool. That may sound banal, but it’s the truth; if you don’t give people a reason to use the tool, then they won’t.

The main way that most people in an organization will interact with Domo is through a dashboard. They’ll use dashboards to keep track of metrics, see the results of data analysis, and follow along with trends.

Since dashboards are the central way that most people will interact with Domo, the dashboards they see need to be useful and intuitive. Employees should be able to understand the purpose of a dashboard as soon as they see them, and come back to the dashboard multiple times as they work on projects and tasks.

Making a dashboard that’s useful is easier said than done, though. Many users just starting out with Domo will end up making dashboards that aren’t as useful as they could be, since they don’t know the best practices for dashboard creation.
 

Keep dashboards simple and focused

If a dashboard is awkward and hard to understand, it might actively work against the goal of driving change with data.

When building a dashboard, keep in mind what the dashboard’s central purpose should be, and include metrics and visualizations that provide valuable insight into that central purpose. Don’t include unrelated or tangential metrics, and use the visualizations that best serve your data.
 

Get executive buy-in

One of the most effective ways to boost widespread Domo adoption across an organization or department is to find a member of the executive team or senior management who’s willing to press the issue. With the support of someone high up in the business hierarchy, it’s much easier to advocate for greater rollout across a department.

Executives and managers can encourage their employees to do more with Domo. At the most basic level, a manager can tell their team ‘We’re using Tool X now’, and the team will start making the switch. Just telling people to use Domo isn’t the most effective strategy overall, but it’s far more effective when it’s someone high up saying it.
 

Lead by example

High-level employees can also lead by example. They can show their employees how useful Domo can be, instead of just telling them. For example, they might build out a useful department-wide dashboard that has clear utility, then encourage their employees to build out more personalized dashboards.

Compared to the rest of an organization, executives and managers are probably the most useful people to convince of the value of Domo. Those who make high-level, strategic decisions for a department are those best suited to drive change within a department. If they’re convinced that the insights coming out of a tool are valuable, they have the authority to act on those insights in a meaningful way.
 

 

Garner valuable wins

The best way to convince people in your organization how useful Domo can be is by showing them exactly how to drive change with data. Once you’re familiar with Domo, and have started using it to improve your business operations, you can point to that success as a reason to use the tool.
 

Demonstrate clear examples

It’s very hard to drive Domo adoption using arguments that aren’t backed up by data. The average manager or executive won’t be swayed by general arguments about potential increases in efficiency or productivity. They want to know specifically how Domo can improve their operations. Unless they know exactly how Domo can help, they won’t give it a chance.

As your team or department starts to get a better handle on Domo, they’ll start using it to garner wins. You can then bring those wins to others who aren’t convinced of Domo adoption and point to them as clear evidence that Domo is useful.
 

Use actionable metrics

“Domo can help with lead generation”’ is a decent argument, but “Domo helped our team boost lead generation by 20%” is a better argument for convincing others to adopt Domo. With clear metrics on how Domo improves operations, it’s much easier to make the case for the tool.

Often, Domo spreads through an organization in this way. One team or department starts using Domo to unlock greater data insight, and then other departments see Domo’s value and start implementing it themselves.
 

Conclusion

Domo is a powerful, intuitive tool, and any department in any business can make use of it to drive insight. However, before someone starts using Domo, they have to be convinced that it’s the right choice for them. Those looking to drive Domo adoption in their organization need to convince their own teams, their bosses, and other teams and departments that Domo is the right choice. With useful dashboards, executive support, and evidence of valuable wins, it’s much easier to drive Domo adoption across an organization.