Throughout the history of the industry, the bulk of changes have had an impact on the ratio between science and art in marketing. Today, as data is increasingly praised, the ratio is shifting toward the scientific side due to the incredible processing power and cloud computing.
This is due to several valid factors.
When developed and implemented correctly, a data-driven marketing plan will be more precise, focused, and adaptable to market shifts. Because of all of this, more and more marketers are making investments in data-driven marketing.
Again, to make this happen, you must proceed with extreme caution while developing your data-driven marketing strategy. If you forget one item, everything else falls apart.
You’ll Require Personnel
The people are always the first to do it.
You’ll need a team that can manage data-driven marketing campaigns, or is ready to learn how to handle them, to be able to conduct any kind of campaign. The majority of “traditional” marketers will find this to be an extremely challenging endeavor, therefore you’ll probably need to enlist the help of a data scientist.
Regretfully, you might have to search outside and employ a data scientist because they are not exactly cheap. Naturally, there’s always a chance that someone in your company has experience in data mining and/or analysis. Businesses that employ business analytics techniques typically have data scientists on staff, and they may even be delighted to pick up some marketing savvy.
It is crucial that this team has an individual in charge as well. Yes, a flat organizational structure is hip and trendy, but this diverse team requires a boss who knows exactly what they are doing because they are working on a new project for the company.
Quantities. Quantities. Quantities.
The primary selling point of data-driven marketing is that all decisions should be made with a clear understanding of the objectives, key performance indicators, and return on investment. The data-driven marketing plan must specify these in detail in advance for this to be true.
The objectives should be very clear, to start. Is boosting the company’s visibility the aim in order to increase website visits? Is increasing the attractiveness of offerings intended to lower the number of abandonments at some point in the sales funnel? Is improving targeting intended to lower customer attrition?
After the ultimate objective has been established, it is critical to identify the KPIs that will demonstrate that these new data-driven initiatives are progressing as intended. The good news is that after the new plan is implemented, the data collected will make it very evident whether the team is moving in the right direction and whether the KPIs are showing.
Seeing the results of their labors will also be a wonderful motivator and source of engagement for your newly formed data-driven marketing team.
Obtaining the Information
Naturally, if you do not have the necessary data, none of this will function.
The good news is that there are plenty of resources available to you for learning pertinent information. First, there’s the information you voluntarily gather from clients and prospective clients. These are often acquired through speaking with clients directly and through various survey formats.
The “indirect” data that you get from customers who visit your website comes next. For example, you discover what sections of your website they spend the most time on, whether they have looked at your About Us page, and where they are from (both when they are on your website and when they are in person). The list is endless.
Furthermore, seeing how your clients and prospects behave on social media can offer fascinating insights into market trends and oscillations. It’s possible that you’ll need specialized software to accomplish this, such as Socedo, but the investment is nearly always worthwhile.
The information that the other departments in your business gather and keep will then be something you’ll want access to. You could, for example, go up to salespeople and ask to see their statistics, which includes customer loyalty figures, churn rates, percentages of successful sales, and so forth. The customer service representatives will possess information on the issues that annoy your clients the most and how they resolve them. It’s possible that your business also gathers dark data that is never utilized.
With so much information available, it is critical that your team avoids becoming overloaded with stuff they won’t utilize. Make sure the information you gather is relevant to your goals and will only be used to support them.
Allow someone to conduct some independent data study if that’s what they want to do. Boost their spirits.
Keeping Your Eyes Open
A marketing plan based on data is not static. A team may occasionally become so consumed with the data, analysis, and attention to detail that they lose focus on the main task at hand, which is improving marketing decisions.
Making smarter marketing decisions is the main goal of data-driven marketing.
You are missing the mark if you and your team aren’t keeping an eye out for fresh opportunities to use and even collect data. You should also be paranoid enough to see problems early on if they do arise, which is highly likely to happen. Modify it. Play around with it. Take another exam. Create a different theory.
Data-driven marketing is not a cause for concern. Yes, it could mean stepping outside of your comfort zone and working with people you wouldn’t normally collaborate with, but the rewards will come in the form of improved marketing skills and business advantages.
And a plan is the foundation of it all.
