Yes, the data becomes very important when you are trying to make a case for a certain strategy or initiative. For B2C companies, you want to be able to show upper management that funding your approach to social media marketing actually results in more customers. For B2B companies, you are often wanting to make the case to other businesses that your consulting services are actually worth their investment. Being able to put hard numbers and dollar figures to your results is critical.
As for where to start, I do think searching around Coursera for what seems relevant to your needs is a good place. I took the Stanford SQL class there way, way, back to brush up on some things, and it was very good. I'm not super keen on the certifications themselves (companies just don't know how to evaluate them yet), so I usually audit courses on there for free. This specialization on Excel seems about right to get your mind in the right space for data work before moving into other possible directions:
https://www.coursera.org/specializations/excel