Big data is not just a fad, it can make all the difference to make your marketing efforts meaningful and successful.
To substantiate, big data analytics can increase a company’s ROI to as much as $200 billion globally. Yet, a whopping 87% of marketers still believe that data is the most underutilized asset in their organization. Such huge amount of untapped data can contribute big time in shaping your marketing strategies by giving you a lot of insights to ponder upon.
Data is incredibly messy, and the data in itself really cannot revolutionize your marketing methods, it is really about the valuable inferences, insights, and application of analytics to this raw chunk of large data that can make a difference.
Big data – Not a big deal, really.
In recent times, big data has been hyped so much that organizations believe it could solve all their problems. For years, such data has been collected in large amounts and the data lake has been built without a clarity about what to do with it. The big deal here is leveraging the data that really matters. Marketers can utilize this to effectively shape up their marketing strategies and emerge successful in all their marketing efforts.
61% of CMOs admit that they have a long way to go in using big data properly. This clearly indicates that marketers are far away from gleaning actionable business takeaways from data.
So, how can this integration of big data and marketing strategies be achieved?
Monetizing on your customer’s online research
Your customers are constantly creating data online through their actions. This gives an idea about specific touch points like what are your customers searching for, products that are appealing, and what offers or deals they are interested in. This would help in crafting effective strategies that would reach your potential audience.
How do you gather such data?
- There are thousands of mediums where your customers are active. For instance, online discussion forums like Quora can be a great place for your research as this gives you a broad idea of what people are talking about. Type in a keyword related to your product/service follow the in-depth conversations about what people feel and set your target right there. You may want to check Bloomberry that gives you conversations from all such platforms at one go
- Another interesting way to digital stalk your customers is through keyword research, that’s right – it is not just limited to SEO. In a broader sense, it helps you figure out what people are interested in and in what numbers. Also, you will be able to understand the exact language used to search the products/services. This will come in handy while you are writing a promotional piece like emails/blogs that will help you connect at higher levels
- Tracking reviews and blog comments are some ways to understand your customers. Apart from this, tools like Consumer Barometer gives you data on how people do an online research before making a purchase decision
Location-based targeting
Real-time email marketing campaigns based on consumer’s current locations and major geographic events have 2.5 times more open rates and double the number of clicks than traditional email campaigns.
Segmenting your target audience for your campaigns will give you better conversion rates rather than reaching everyone out there. Begin by breaking down your market based on geography, this can follow after analyzing population density of customers, their tastes, and preferences. This will help you in customizing your pitch, create more appealing and appropriate content. Customer demography data will help you do this.
Unlocking the power of social media
Your customers spend a lot of time on social media. On an average, an individual spends over 2 hours on social network and the marketers can harvest on data available through this by tracking their actions.
This is a powerful medium that can be utilized for successful marketing. How’s that now?
- Listen to your customer. Follow all the conversations around the industry you are involved in and track what people like, dislike and what they share or recommend. When you start following groups/pages that are related to your industry, you will get a clarity on what exactly your customers are looking for.
- Increase your visibility on social media, in the sense always be there to answer when someone raises a question, be there to educate them about your offers, your products, its features and why you stand out. Leveraging big data for marketing success is not just about winning dollars, it is also about elevating your brand and establishing personal connectivity
Personalize to persuade
Greeting someone by their first name is really engaging and if that person is the right target for your campaign, you have won half the race right there. Analysis of big data will help you in identifying these right targets, you can analyze the right fit in terms of designation and geography.
For instance, Amazon drives in billions of dollars by personalizing their email marketing campaign messages by including a personalized welcome email.
You may also want to check Mailchimp to keep track of key metrics which provides analytical information about your email marketing.
Begin to implement these ideas in your marketing strategies and be sure that your marketing efforts will elevate and reach the pinnacle of success. But before you begin you should check if you are big data ready..
Ask yourself this before kickstarting your big data journey:
- What is your objective? What do you intend to achieve by leveraging big data?
- Do you have the required skills and resources in-house to avail big data?
- What technology options you have to have this plan in place?
While leveraging big data for your marketing glory could only be a head start in your journey, there needs to be a lot of research, efforts, and patience to do the marketing magic. Data is highly perishable and remains relevant only for a brief period. Update, adapt and accept to stay relevant in the market.
Nandhini
Blogger and Community Manager
