Understanding the Importance of Marketing Data
The competitive nature between businesses in the existing digital era demands the utilization of data to accurately pinpoint audiences with the right messages. By using analytics to deploy targeted campaigns for specific market groups, organizations can potentially increase awareness, among the right individuals, of their products and services. The acquisition of data continues to grow, and proper utilization of the analyzed information can significantly impact marketing efforts. Businesses continue to employ marketing data to improve the success of their campaigns. In fact, in a recent survey, Forbes found that 58% of businesses are generating value with the use of data; nearly 60% of respondents in the survey said that data and analytics are “vital” to the operations of their organizations.
Data Collection
Businesses can use many technology-driven methods to collect an enormous wealth of information. Some examples of collectable data include:
- Transactional: This data helps businesses understand what customers are buying, when they are buying it, what steps they are taking in the process, and more. This data can help expose performance issues and also better understand what marketing and sales strategies are driving success. A record of a purchase on an e-commerce website might serve as an example of this type of data.
- Collected: Using online lead forms or survey questions can help collect data on the individual. Whether it be email, demographic, gender, or more, this information can be used to create campaigns to target specific audiences.
- Created: This refers to the market research processes that companies may put in place. Initiating online focus groups to evaluate consumers, their likelihood to buy, messaging preferences, or other specific pieces of information could be an example.
- Compiled: This data is more general, like census data, that may reflect overall trends occurring in the country.
- Experimental: This refers to data that comes from experiments or tests that businesses might utilize when creating marketing messaging and communications. An example could be using the results of an A/B or spit test.
- Captured: This refers to data regarding user behavior. When someone enters a keyword into Google, this becomes captured data. An example of a business utilizing captured data would be use of Google Analytics or other analytics sources tied to a business’s website to understand impressions, clicks and other important information. Another example would be a review of back end CRMs for data like customer lifetime value and other loyalty metrics.
- User generated: This is the data that businesses can compile from social media, like collecting Facebook posts or other using information from other sites, like YouTube comments or Yel reviews that may indicate the landscape in which a business is operating.
Data Utilization
Once data is collected and properly analyzed, it can be strategically utilized to more effectively reach a target market. By understanding the consumer’s pain points, purchase preferences, and shopping habits, specific marketing campaigns can speak directly to the intended audience. With this targeted approach, the influence of each initiative can increase due to proper segmentation. As targeted marketing campaigns are deployed, resulting data can be used to better understand their effectiveness. Paying close attention to engagement and conversion metrics can help fine-tune the strategy. Some metrics that can be used to evaluate marketing effectiveness include:
- Awareness metrics: followers, likes and visits to the website.
- Return On Investment: calculating cost per lead or quantity of leads generated.
- Conversion Metrics: open rates, click-through rates, cost per conversion and bounce rates.
In addition to making marketing campaigns more precise and therefore more effective, the analyzed data can help the organization as a whole update, upgrade or re-position their product or service.
Learning About Marketing Data
Developing a keen understanding of the collection and usage of marketing data can help you can create highly competitive campaigns. Understanding your target audience and the messages that will resonate most effectively with them is a strategic approach for the digital age. If you are interested in learning more about metrics like these and expanding your capabilities in an increasingly data-driven world, consider pursuing an Online Master of Business Administration degree from Maryville University.
Sources:
https://www.sas.com/en_us/insights/marketing/marketing-analytics.html
http://www.stateofinbound.com/?__hstc=20629287.1c7df461cff45b157a621f6335015c04.1472569677976.1488320966624.1488640289659.21&__hssc=%2020629287.1.1488640289659&__hsfp=158113565
https://www.rapidionline.com/blog/data-integration-the-future-of-marketing
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