Most marketers start by thinking—throwing around ideas, holding brainstorming sessions, and filling up whiteboards. It’s fun, it is what creatives are known for. But truly effective strategies begin with looking: studying analytics, speaking to customers, and seeing the actual situation on the ground. And because strategy is a greek military word, let’s think of an Ancient Greek general planning a battle: you wouldn’t want him to send soldiers on a hunch only to discover “oops” that was the best defended flank. We’d expect them to gather intel and look first.